Introduction
Use this guide to upgrade or replace the solid-state drive in a MacBook Air 13” Late 2010. This MacBook Air uses a proprietary storage drive connector, and is therefore not compatible with common M.2 drives without the use of an adapter.
Before you perform this repair, if at all possible, back up your existing SSD. Then, either familiarize yourself with internet recovery or create a bootable external drive so you’ll be ready to install macOS onto your new drive and migrate your data to the new SSD.
Finally, we strongly recommend installing macOS 10.13 High Sierra (or a later macOS) before replacing the original SSD from your MacBook Air. Most new SSDs require updated storage drivers not found in versions of macOS prior to High Sierra.
What you need
Video Overview
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Tool used on this step:P5 Pentalobe Screwdriver Retina MacBook Pro and Air$5.99
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Remove the following ten screws:
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Two 9 mm 5-point Pentalobe screws
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Eight 2.6 mm 5-point Pentalobe screws
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Wedge your fingers between the display and the lower case and pull upward to pop the lower case off the Air.
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Remove the lower case and set it aside.
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Grab the clear plastic pull tab attached to the battery connector and pull it toward the front edge of the Air to disconnect the battery from the logic board.
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Remove the single 2.9 mm T5 Torx screw securing the SSD to the logic board.
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Slightly lift up the end of the SSD and pull it straight out of its socket on the logic board.
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