Noisy fan and silent microphone

My Problem

The fan was making noises like someone had dumped a box of nuts and bolts in it and the microphone was not working. As the laptop had been in service before the warranty had expired, I was hoping the reason for the broken microphone was that they forgot to reconnect the mike cable.

My Fix

Just one issue: the trackpad/keyboard connector retaining shield could not be unscrewed with any philips screwdrivers in my set. I had to use the smallest flat screwdriver i had.

My hunch turned out to be right: the geniuses from apple forgot to reconnect the mike when they put my laptop back together...

My Advice

The most fiddly part is putting the motherboard back in which requires levering it in plus keeping all the cables out of the way.