Installing MacBook Unibody Model A1278 Dual Hard Drive

Written By: Jake Devincenzi
  • Comments: 53
Installing MacBook Unibody Model A1278 Dual Hard Drive

Difficulty

Moderate

Steps

21

Time Required

No estimate

Introduction

There are many benefits to adding a second hard drive to your laptop such as improved speeds, greater storage space, and less heartache when installing new software. Use this guide to install one using our optical bay hard drive enclosure.

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    • With the case closed, place the Unibody top-side down on a flat surface.

    • Depress the grooved side of the access door release latch enough to grab the free end. Lift the release latch until it is vertical.

    This is not a a1278 unibody MacBook Pro. A1278 MacBooks backs are one solid metal piece not two separate pieces. This guide is for a different MacBook Pro.

    Brad Burgeson -

    This guide isn’t for a pro; it’s a MacBook unibody.

    Nicholas -

    So, it turns out that Apple used the model code A1278 for quite a few different Mac models, including both Pro and non-Pro versions! This guide is for the non-Pro Macbooks. There’s also one for the Pro models with the same A1278 identifier.

    tempelmann -

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    • The access door should now be raised enough to lift it up and out of the Unibody.

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    • Be sure the access door release latch is vertical before proceeding.

    • Grab the white plastic tab and pull the battery up and out of the Unibody.

    Great tutorial ! great step !

    Leo Etcheverry -

    Even though it’s specifically stated, you have to make sure the access door latch is vertical or the battery won’t be removable.

    Henry Kim -

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    • Remove the following eight screws securing the lower case to the chassis:

    • One 3 mm Phillips screw.

    • Three 13.5 mm Phillips screws.

    • Four 3.5 mm Phillips screws.

    On my model, it seemed the top-left was 3.5mm and the bottom 4 were 3 mm.

    Jim -

    Make sure you have a good quality Phillips screwdriver. Mine had removable tips and had a small play at the connection. As a result I didn't have a good feel and damaged my screws (those securing the fan and the top left in step 23). Game over for me installing new thermal paste...

    Be very carefull with your screws! Especially those on the inside.

    Nickolas Michelinakis -

    You can get away with a Phillips #00 for many of the screws involved but the 4 at the bottom case split are likely to strip if you don’t use a JIS #00 or, in a pinch, a Phillips #000.

    Bill Cole -

    I used the Phillips #00 tip from my Pro Tech Toolkit, and it worked well enough. But yes, maybe #000 might have been better on the lower row of screws. Note to myself: Always read the comments first.

    Les Kitchen -

    When replacing these screws, the order to replace them in is as follows:

    1, Top left

    2. Top right

    3. Top center-left

    4. Top center-right

    5. Bottom center-right

    6. Bottom center-left

    7. Bottom right

    8. Bottom left

    I hope this information is helpful.

    facebook -

    I followed my usual process of putting in all the screws loosely, then tightening them gradually in distributed pattern, to help ensure that the panel settles in place evenly. But maybe some orders are better.

    Les Kitchen -

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    • Using both hands, lift and remove the lower case off the upper case.

    Thanks for the guide!

    It's implicit in the two photos, but worth mentioning because it blocked my progress in this step for a bit: You have to put the release latch back into its horizontal, closed position before you can lift off the lower-case panel.

    Les Kitchen -

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    • Using the flat end of a spudger, pry the subwoofer connector straight up off the logic board.

    • On some models, the subwoofer connector is soldered to the logic board and will break if you pry it off. If you need to replace the speaker/subwoofer, you can pull back the foam padding on the connector and remove the red and black wires to disconnect. You will need to reinsert the wires from the new speaker to reconnect.

    • If you are only removing the optical drive and not replacing the speaker/subwoofer, you do not need to disconnect this connector.

    Me, too, broke the subwoofer connector from the motherboard. I'd suggest removing the padding first so that you can see what kind of connector it is, then pry it loose (insert spudger where the cables enter the connector).

    petterwolff -

    DO NOT REMOVE THE SUBWOOFER CONNECTION. Step 6 IS NOT NESCESSARY.

    You can complete this guide without doing step 6 just BE CAREFUL as you already should be.

    kenneth rhem -

    The subwoofer cable is NOT removable on some models, attempting to remove it, brakes it off the circuit board and them you are @@%#$$, like me. Thanks iFixit. Also it is not necessary to remove it to replace the optical drive.

    todd -

    Oops, I followed Step-6 and my subwoofer connector came off from the motherboard!!! Please suggest me what needs to be done now?

    Srinivasan -

    Happened the same to me ... step 6 is a @%#$$. You should put now a way to repair the damage done. I just have four small tin marks on the board ...

    stratorick -

    Happened the same problem to me ... step 6 is a @%#$$**%%#. You should put now a way to repair the damage done. I just have four small tin marks on the board ... and looking to sky for help

    Badruddin Hisbani -

    Just “4 small tin marks” is what the the motherboard half of the subwoofer connector looks like.

    Bill Cole -

    There are two variants of this connector. In one, there are pins that come up from the motherboard and the connector can be pried directly up without damage.

    The other variant of the connector that everyone commenting here has is soldered to the motherboard. To repair this type, first pull off the small square of foam padding on top of the connector. Then gently pull out the four black and red wires, leaving the soldered connector attached to the logic board. After you have installed the new speaker and subwoofer, you will remove the connector on the replacement component and carefully feed the red and black wires into the connector that is still attached to the motherboard (paying careful attention to their correct order). Then replace the square of black foam.

    If you have removed the soldered on the connector, your two options are to solder it on yourself or to find a repair shop that can do that for you. There are instructables online for soldering tiny components that can help you.

    bike -

    Reading all of these comments prior to beginning the work, I didn’t even try to investigate the type of connector my laptop had. I just DIDN’T attempt removal of this connector, worked around it, and as others have mentioned, it is truly unnecessary to remove this connector. You can move the subwoofer (after removal of its other screws) out of the way just enough to slip out the old drive and slip in the new drive.

    Henry Kim -

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    • Disconnect the camera cable by pulling the male end straight away from its socket.

    The lack of warning “Be careful not to pull up on the cable as you remove it from the socket.” here, as is displayed on a similar step on the “MacBook Unibody Model A1278 AirPort Card Replacement” guide, has caused me to break the cable. My WiFi is not working anymore. How can I replace only this cable? Thank you.

    Ismael Neiva -

    https://www.ebay.fr/itm/Cable-Airport-iS...

    christophe.arnaud -

    Bonjour J’ai eu le malheur de toucher à ce câble et depuis je n’ai plus de retro-éclairage sur mon écran. Est-ce lié ?

    Hello I had the misfortune to touch this cable and since then I have no more backlight on my screen. Is it related? (but the computer works fine when I plug in a screen)

    christophe.arnaud -

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    • Use a spudger to pry the optical drive connector straight up off the logic board.

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    • Remove the two Phillips screws securing the subwoofer to the upper case.

    • The longer of the two screws is on the right.

    Longer screw was on the Left for me.

    amiller770 -

    Left: 3.7 mm

    Right: 4.0 mm

    As I measured with a vernier caliper.

    nickjg -

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    • The subwoofer is still connected to the right speaker, so don't completely remove it just yet.

    • Lift the subwoofer off the optical drive, and set it above the computer.

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    • Remove the two Phillips screws securing the camera cable bracket to the upper case.

    • The leftmost screw may remain captive in the camera cable.

    This step is not necessary. Drive can be released without removing the screws.

    mcbohdo -

    If you’re replacing the subwoofer, you DO need to remove the left screw but not the right screw. This is fortunate, because if you are stuck with a Phillips #00 instead of a JIS #00 screwdriver, you may well strip the heads of these screws.

    Bill Cole -

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    • Remove the three 2.5 mm Phillips screws securing the optical drive to the upper case.

    The lower left screw hole of the replacement drive purchased from iFixit doesn’t align with the screw hole of the body of the computer. Doesn’t seem to be a problem as the drive seems to be quite stable with the other 2 screws, and the “fit” within the drive area.

    Henry Kim -

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    • Lift the optical drive from its right edge and pull it out of the computer.

    • The hard drive cable may become disconnected from the logic board when removing the optical drive. Ensure it is connected during reassembly.

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    • Remove the optical drive cable by pulling it straight away from the optical drive.

    • This connector is particularly deep, so be sure to pull away from the drive at the center of the connector.

    • If you have a CD or any other object jammed in your optical drive, we have an optical drive repair guide.

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    • Remove the two black Phillips #0 screws securing the small metal mounting bracket. Transfer this bracket to your new optical drive or hard drive enclosure.

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    • Remove the plastic spacer from the optical bay hard drive enclosure by pressing in on one of the clips on either side and lifting it up and out of the enclosure.

    is it 9,5mm or 12,7mm for the caddy? My stuff macbook pro mid 2010, need advice what size is compatible. Thank you

    Adi Purba -

    All Macbooks use 9.5mm Optical Drive Caddy, also, If you’re wondering as well, the Optical Drive runs at SATA II speeds just like with the main hard drive area, so if you’re using a SSD, then it’s going to run at a slightly slower speed.

    - PS5iscool - -

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    • Make sure that the hard drive connectors are facing down before placing it into the enclosure.

    • Gently place the hard drive into the enclosure's hard drive slot.

    • While firmly holding the enclosure in place with one hand, use your other hand to press the hard drive into the enclosure connectors.

    Okay it seems like some models of MacBook Pro have issues with a fast (6Gbit/s) SSD in the optical bay. Even though my Mac says it offers 6Gbit on both bays it simply didn't work in the optical bay. So I switched places between the two drives and everything seems to work. My Mac booted from the old HDD in optical bay automatically and then I cloned it afterwards and changed the startup disk to the new one. As said before, don't put a fast SSD in the optical bay!

    Carl -

    This is an extremely late response to an old comment, but… whatev’s. My 2011 MacBook Pro had that issue: the main (HDD bay) SATA operated at 6Gbit, and while the optical bay said it was 6Gbit, the “Negotiated Link Speed” was like 1.5Gbits regardless of what you put in it (I can understand 1.5Gbits for an optical drive, but not for an SSD). Some of the early 2012 models did the same thing, from what I understand, but that was corrected pretty early on; both my 13” and 15” 2012’s run at 6Gb/s on both SATA busses.

    AJH -

    It’s not wise to swop the optidrive for an HD as there is no physical protection. The caddy is only intended for an SSD.

    Ben Ormerod -

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    • Once the hard drive is snug, reinsert the plastic spacer while holding the hard drive against the bottom of the enclosure.

    Normally with the HD enclosure there come a set of screws. use these to screw down the HD in the enclosure since you need to flip it up side down to reinstall it into the MBP

    Bart -

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    • Use two Phillips #1 screws to secure the drive to its enclosure.

    Where are these screws coming from? Were they part of the original optical drive?

    Bradley DeHerrera -

    The new enclosure should include these two Phillips screws.

    Sam Omiotek -

    Can someone show the step of removal process of hdd/SSD placed in the caddy? I am unable to revert this process. Do we have to apply back greater force to remove back the hard drive/SSD from the caddy?

    Tarun Kumar Verma -

    Gads, I wish they made a caddy where the optical drive was removable without having to remove the entire caddy. That is a major peeve of mine. Like… just mount it the other way! I don’t want to have to go through this entire process every time I upgrade the secondary drive.

    AJH -

    These screws seems to be located in different places on different enclosures. I had serious trouble getting the SSD that the previous owner of this MacBook installed out of the enclosure until I realized the screws holding the SSD in place were on the side and not on the bottom. In case anyone else has the same issue!

    nessie1001 -

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    • Attach the optical drive bracket to the new enclosure with two Phillips #0 screws.

    • Reconnect any cables you have removed from the original optical drive onto the optical bay enclosure.

    Replaced the optical with hdd, as well as replaced the hard drive with an ssd. Now I get the circle with a line through it. But, when I hold the option key down, it gives me both hard drives, PLUS, the thumb drive I have in the USB port with a Mountain Lion installer. It even shows the recovery disks, but gives me the circle with the line when I choose one. Any help is appreciated.

    claude -

    Mate,

    My mbp shipped with OS 10.8, and I had upgraded twice to 10.10

    I've a 10.7 USB which upgraded my old MBP.

    My plan today was to boot with my new ssd, my time machine back up and the Lion usb plugged in.

    I would then click on the Lion usb, and tell it to put the OS and time machine back up on the ssd.

    So I help down ALT and when it started it gave me the options of the usual Mac internal or the Lion USB.

    I clicked Lion, but instead of taking me to the install options (Disk utility, restore from time machine etc etc) it gave me that grey circle with a diagonal line through it. The no entry sign - grey on grey - that I think you have.

    Some googling said that it is because I was trying to usb a 10.7 install on a MBP that shipped 10.8

    You can't go back, apparently.

    So if any of the OSs are older than the mac you got, you will get this error. The grey in grey no entry.

    I just cloned my HDD to my ssd (Carbon copy cloner free 30 day trial) using an external stat-usb3 wire and all is good.

    Rory -

    I have a 17" Macbook Pro6,1 unibody with an Intel Core i5, 2.53GHz. I was successful installing a 250GB SSD in the DVD bay, and I'm able to boot from it. I did this by first installing OS X 10.9.4 on the SSD mounted into an external HD case, testing the system to see if it would boot up into the SSD, then installing the SSD and carrier in the DVD drive bay. The system now boots up from the SSD with no problems. If you are having installation problems, I recommend trying this method.

    roger hall -

    I just have finished installing second SSD to my MBP (unibody 15` 2010).

    First one was changed like one year ago. Samsung 500GB SSD. It is in my HDD bay and I'm running system from it.

    Today I put a new Samsung 1TB 850 Evo 1 SSD in to my optic bay.

    I encounter problem with SSD not recognized by Finder.

    But It was recognized by Disk Utility.

    What I did was I erase new SSD by Disk Utility. Then the new partition was created and now It has been seen by Finder.

    So If you see it in Disk Utility just erased it.

    Some extra info in under this link--> https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-4...

    Wish you all luck :)

    rybafly -

    My installation went great thanks to the guide. I did notice a small thing that might make a good tip, and that is to inspect all the visible screws. I saw one that was slightly raised, and when I poked around with the spudger, I found 2 more that had worked themselves out a bit. Its probably something super rare but at the age of these things, it wouldn't hurt to check.

    Tineyi Chapisa -

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    • Don't ditch that drive! You can still use your optical drive externally with the help of our SATA Optical Drive USB Cable.

    • Align the cable's SATA connector with the drive's port and plug in securely.

    • Plug the USB connector into your laptop and your optical drive is ready for use.

    There is a small metal button in the front of the drive and you can use that to eject the drive if you were wondering.

    Joseph Landry -

    Maybe that explain the eject button mechanism maybe….

    - PS5iscool - -

    Die neue SSD wurde durch das Laufwerk ersetzt aber leider wird jetzt die alte HDD nicht mehr erkannt. Hatte schon ein anderer das Problem?

    Alexander Richter -

    J'ai effectué le remplacement du disque optique par un DD de 250 Go en suivant ce super tutoriel !
    J'ai upgradé la RAM à 8 Go et dans un premier temps j'avais installé High Sierra (normalement non supporté sur ce modèle).
    J'ai finalement écrasé MacOs pour installer Linux Mint, le système d'exploitation est ainsi toujours à jour et tourne bien.
    Merci aux contributeurs des différents tutoriels !

    Laskoni -

Conclusion

To reassemble your device, follow these instructions in reverse order.

Author

Jake Devincenzi

Member since: 18/04/11

117912 Reputation

4 comments

Great guide, thank you! Took me 40 minutes to complete. I also cleaned my cooler fan though as i regularly do. I have moderate experience, Took apart my macbook (and other stuff too) several times. Not doing this daily though. Everyone can do this when keeping the basic rules in mind: Take your time and space and use quality tools.

Albert Zweistein -

How do you clean the cooler fan? Anyways, do you need to re-apply thermal paste for the Intel chips to keep it cool?

Shyaam D -

Thank You so much for all the videos. Use I Fm

Ifixit

Philip -

I've follow this guide and everything its ok, except that i cannot mount the drive. The SSD its unnaccesible from this mac

Javier Sánchez León -