MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Mid 2012 Hard Drive Replacement
Replace the hard drive in your Mid 2012 MacBook Pro 13" Unibody.
- Author: Andrew Optimus Goldberg
- Time estimate: 30 - 45 minutes
- Difficulty: Moderate
Use this guide to replace a dead hard drive.
Sections
- Lower Case 2 steps
- Battery Connection 2 steps
- Hard Drive 4 steps
- Hard Drive 1 step
Tools
Relevant Parts
- 1 TB SSD Hybrid 2.5" Hard Drive, Upgrade Kit This kit contains the drive and all tools needed.
Relevant Parts (continued)
- 500 GB SSD Hybrid 2.5" Hard Drive, Upgrade Kit This kit contains the drive and all tools needed.
- 256 GB Solid State Drive, Upgrade Kit This kit contains the drive and all tools needed.
- 128 GB Solid State Drive, Upgrade Kit This kit contains the drive and all tools needed.
- Universal Drive Adapter
- MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Hard Drive Bracket
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Remove the following ten screws:
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Three 14.4 mm Phillips #00 screws
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Three 3.5 mm Phillips #00 screws
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Four 3.5 mm shouldered Phillips #00 screws
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Use your fingers to pry the lower case away from the body of the MacBook near the vent.
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Remove the lower case.
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Use the edge of a spudger to pry the battery connector upwards from its socket on the logic board.
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Bend the battery cable slightly away from its socket on the logic board so it does not accidentally connect itself while you work.
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Remove the two Phillips screws securing the hard drive bracket to the upper case.
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Pull the hard drive cable away from the body of the hard drive.
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Remove the hard drive.
To reassemble your device, follow these instructions in reverse order.
To reassemble your device, follow these instructions in reverse order.
Now that you've finished, share your repair story with others.
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61 Comments
Guide
You saved me $150 by helping me replace my hard drive on my own! Thank you!!! I know where to turn when my mac acts up now!!
Jennie - Reply
In case you need to install/reinstall your OS, the new MBPs no longer come with an install disc. To install your OS you will need to hold down CMD + R while booting up until it chimes. It will then walk you through the process.
Lynzi - Reply
I needed to install the OS X in the new HD using a USB (manual in applesfera), then I was surprised when after do all this guide I see a message "Can't verified the copy...." I fixed reinstalling my old HD, and run the old OS, changed the date and time, I change again the HD, but (this is the important) don't pull off the battery connector. If you disconnect the battery, the system lost the date and time and yo can't install the OS X with and USB. I don't test the cmd + R option.
Agustin Jimenez Fernandez - Reply
Awesome guide. Very easy to follow. Took me less than 10 minutes to do the whole thing.
Roberto - Reply
Hi, I just replaced the original 750 gb hard drive on my machine that was having some problems. I replaced it with a 1tb hdd pluss ssd combo thing from seagate. When i booted and held down the option key the drive wasn't recognized at all. Any help would be greatly appreciated
erik35angeli - Reply
What are some solutions if restored the computer before replacing the hard drive? How will I be able to install Os X Mavericks then?
milushik411 - Reply
Hello,
Do you know if the unibody macbooks (Specifically the mid-2012 13") can hold up the new 2TB HDDs? I would like to upgrade mine but I am little bit skeptical.
Frankiescou SC - Reply
Great guide that worked fine... however to actually get the computer going with a new drive (the old one was dying so I decided not to clone it) I had to do the following
1. Create OSX installer on a usb thumb drive
2. install the new drive (following this guide)
3. Start up with thumb drive inserted
4. Format the new drive using disk utilities (the disk is not recognised until you do this)
5. Reset the date using terminal (until I did this the installer would not work)
6. Install the new OS
jeremyyoung - Reply
Hi! I am having this same issue...could you provide me with more detailed steps as to how to do this. No worries if not. Thanks!
amandalee4443 -
How can I format to macintosh journaled if my ssd wasn't detected on the disk utility ? Well I double checked I followed this tutorial but somehow my ssd wasn't in the disk utility. I used corsair neutron xt 240GB. Any advise perhaps ?
Aryo Prakarsa -
What's the largest size SSD I can fit in the optical bay? Mid '12 macbook pro model.
bkslynger - Reply
What kind of Hard Drive can I replace? Normal one with 2.5 inches and 7mm for general laptop can be replace?
Thanks!
cheanakhim - Reply
Thanks for the guide. I am stuck on unscrewing the torx screw. I have a T6 screwdriver but i cannot remove them i don't know why. Any help with this issue guys? Thanks :-)
uzapuca - Reply
I am stuck at unscrewing the Torx screws. I have a T6 screwdriver but is not right. Any help with this issue? Thanks! :-)
uzapuca - Reply
Step 1
Does void the warranty?
jfondeur - Reply
No, it does not void the warranty. More specifically: http://eshop.macsales.com/Search/display...
oakdragon12 - Reply
How much weight can I save by removing the optical drive?
gunes314 - Reply
You can save a lot of weight if lets say your installing a solid state drive or putting in a second hard drive but if you know that you use the CD/DVD disc drive a lot then you might just want to leave the drive alone.
Marshall WahlstromHelgren -
Also wondering how much weight I'd save by just removing. My drive is broken for ages, but I have not needed it in ages. The HD was already replaced by a cheap SSD (second best thing after upgrading to 8GB), so I'd appreciate losing some weight. I mean, the computer. Although I could lose some too... erm... well, anyway, I guess the lack of the DVD would not interfere with anything, right? Opinions?
Carlos Duarte do Nascimento - Reply
Apple has meticulously balanced the MacBook's weight from left to right, and removing the optical drive may off-balance the Mac.
skimmilk05 -
I'm thinking you'd probably be OK losing the DVD drive without a problem. Just make sure the optical drive cable is secured or you might hear it rattling in there from time-to-time.
John Adam Wickliffe - Reply
Hey guys,
this website is amazing. I read it to guide me on fixing my mac book pro, but on the video, the girl gives a wrong information.. She says that is not possible replace just the keyboard... But I managed to replace only my keyboard. It is boring because I have to remove approximately 70 screws but it is possible. Thanks a lot! You guys helped me save about US$300 thats because in Brazil some technicians would charge me with that amount!
I posted some pictures on your facebook page..
renatumb - Reply
Tip: Use one of those weekday pill holders to have a cheep way to store screws you remove and each day of the week can be for different sizes or parts. It has been handy to have (much less expensive than the magnetic mat.
Robert Wacker - Reply
Great tutorial. I found that using a Phillips #0 in lieu of the #00 worked much better.
kschmesk - Reply
I tried the PH #00 for the 10 screws that hold the bottom case and it's too big, instead PH #000 works perfectly. Are you sure this screws are #00?
Alex - Reply
The likely problem with your wifi is not the card but the antenna leads that go into the plastic clutch
. Ifixit don't have a guide to change this as it it includes the isight camera so the screen has to be disassembled which is fairly hard
I got round it by using the camera cable from the old set and cutting off the new one
brian whittle - Reply
Hello MacWorld,
Just want to say that this site is a great resource for repairing or upgrading your Mac. I had a bad SATA cable in my MacBook Pro and after ordering a new one from the "IFIXIT" site I received the cable within two days, replaced it and was up and running again in no time. Thanks IFIXIT for you help!
wer 10/5/15
tayseer999 - Reply
I have found that my MacBook Pro 13 Late 2011 has five shouldered screws and not four. I am not sure exactly where it goes but I have put it in the top left corner of the picture as it is the odd one out.
GotMac - Reply
Hello, where can I buy the screws I need in case I lose one of them?
taylornya - Reply
iFixit sells a kit: Macbook Pro 13" and 15" Unibody (Mid 2009 through Mid 2012) Lower Case Screw Set
Darrell Johnson -
on my device the #00 screwdriver was a bit too small. a #0 was the perfect one
Maximilian Klotz - Reply
I found with mine that the shouldered and un-shouldered screws were reversed (the three un-shouldered screws going where the orange colour indicates). Also, I found that the front four screws went in at an angle.
gilded yak - Reply
I need to know why my party can't hear. Me on my android phone
Tina Porter - Reply
Because that party is inside your head Tino. Just close your eyes and enjoy the tunes
Snuf Box -
Step 3
Is this step of removing the battery connector required?
manodh - Reply
yes - as with disassembly of any electronic component you have to remove any power source. You don't want to accidentally turn the Mac on
khull -
This step is not really required. Apple does not recommend it.
Steven Layton - Reply
My Battery does not get recognized after i disconnected it, screw this site!
Diego Hernandes -
Rather than be careful of the corners of the connector i would say don't use the spudger anywhere near the corners. While the corner looks like the obvious place to begin to pry it up from, it will break. Levering from the sides as the instructions suggest works well.
ausmkv - Reply
wonder why apple does not recommend it?!
Peter - Reply
I would recommend it, one careless short and the whole board is dead......
John - Reply
simply remove the battery rather than disconnecting the cable
toiu - Reply
Don't know what the deal is with the battery, but this IS a necessary step to keep from frying the logic Board if you accidentally touch something and short it out. I did this step every time during my troubleshooting and The battery was ALWAYS recognized by the system the next time I turned the MBP on. So be safe and don't fry your logic board in the process...
fasthans - Reply
Prying the battery connector off does not take much force. I did exactly what the guide suggested (walked it off back and forth) with the spudger without any problems. Just be very gentle, much like with anything inside laptops, they are very fragile and need to be worked with carefully. A+ instructions, battery replacement was a success.
aekinaka - Reply
Installed/upgraded 4gb RAM to the system maximum 16gb and installed a 500 gb SSD today....DID NOT disconnect the battery cable....no issues at all when I powered back up. Then did a clean install of OSX Yosemite....next I used a time machine backup to put all my stuff back on the new HD. From start to finish it took about 4 hours. Macbook boots up right at 16 seconds now.
MacProUser - Reply
Easiest to use two spudgers, one on each short end, I found.
Simon Mundy - Reply
I took off th Airport /Bluetooth connectors but the number J3 connector is broken and so where can i buy J3 connecter for the Airport/bluetooth board
Zeerachen - Reply
Its a lot easier and safer (corner wise) to pry it using the flat side of the black spudger directly in front of the connector (don't go/use the corners) very easily you will be able to pry it further by inserting the spudger into a better and thicker plastic section of the connector
Ed Oliver - Reply
DON'T remove the Battery Cable, you risk the battery NOT being recognised when you start the Mac up again, or breaking it!! More to the point, APPLE DOES NOT RECOMMEND THIS, so don't do it! I Installed 2x 8GB ( 16Gb total) of Crucial Mac RAM at 1333Mhz for my Late 2011 MacBook Pro, and it works beautifully, fully recognised and working well. I followed these instructions, but as Apple didnt recommend disconnecting the battery, I skipped this step, and as well as taking less time, nothing was damaged or broken, and everything works perfectly!!! Just make sure that you DISCHARGE ALL STATIC ELECTRICITY FROM YOUR HANDS, by touching a metal surface in the Mac. Apple recommends the edge of the Optical Disk Drive ( Big silver thing ) before touching any parts. Also, Take care removing the RAM out of its packet, DO NOT touch the Gold connectors, and hold the RAM by the edges. Finally, be PATIENT, GENTLE and it should all go perfectly. I managed it first time, with no technical ability, so follow my advice. Good luck!
Bradley Marks - Reply
Followed the tuto Step by step. Disconnected the battery (quite easily).
No problem when I lit the Mac on again. Battery's here, date's right.
nichoferr - Reply
Step 4
What are the changes of it broke when i bend it?, after i disconect it does not work anymore
Diego Hernandes - Reply
The guide worked perfectly, as it has in the past (our family has three Mid-2012 Macbook Pros that have been separately upgraded with RAM and SSD).
The PH00 screwdriver fit perfectly.
One note on getting the screws to seat easily and thread perfectly...always turn them gently a couple turns to the left (CCW or Anti-Clockwise) until you hear a small click. That's where the threads will grab. Works with any screw, but when threads are fine, this will help ensure that the screw is at the correct angle and will grab and seat perfectly.
Great guides. Thanks!
timgunkel - Reply
Got RAM in but only one slot is working and now I can't remove! The RAM won't pop up like before and tabs don't seem to do anything. Please advise.
Sal Ergrapes - Reply
Step 5
These were Philips #0 screws in my computer.
Church Tucker - Reply
Step 6
Don't miss this step: I almost did and of course couldn't get the disk out until I looked at the video !
francistasset - Reply
Step 9
T5, not T6 on mine.
pilzn - Reply
Reinserting the tiny screws was a pain, until I discovered this: initially turn them counterclockwise, till the threads 'agree' and the screw drops down into it's threded slot. Then go clockwise and they seat properly.
Dave - Reply
The paint on the screw threads makes it a little finicky to get them to 'find' the threading in their matching holes.
Bad words were said, but job complete.
Dave - Reply
T6 were just too small to fit the screws of the retaining post, and T8 was just too big. I suspect a T7 will fit. I will get a T7 screwdriver and report back.
Beware other users: T6 as the guide suggests may not be the correct choice for all.
fludiumvatn - Reply
I tries every T there is and eventually got a grip. But they just won't turnê. I evento tries using pliers but the screws stay unmovabble.
Julio Lobato - Reply
If replacing the hard drive with a 7mm SSD, is a spacer required? This guide from Crucial suggests it is, but there's no mention of it here.
http://guides.crucial.com/Guide/MacBook+...
Just wondering if people are managing without the spacer.
Jeff Smith - Reply