Macbook Pro replacement hard drive and re-installation of OS X

My son's Macbook Pro (mid 2009) started crashing on boot up and gave a input output error. I have replaced the original 250gb hard drive with a 750gb drive and also upgraded the ram from 2 to 8. Finally I have also replaced the battery. I am using Leopard installation dvd to re-install the software but can only progress as far as the screen 'Install Mac OS X' but there is no disc offered to install it on. By using Disk Utility the only disc shown is the dvd. Pressing the 'New Image' tab I entered 'Save As' 750gb WD HD and 'custom size' as 750 gb. Utility Disk informs me that the disc is only .75mb? Any suggestions to solving my problem and completing the installation program?

Niel, I've checked the connection to the hard drive and all is good but as a check I have disconnected and re-connection the cable to the hard drive and the board. I have also 'listened' to the hard drive and it appears to be spinning. Unfortunately, the Snow Leopard installation disc gets no further with its installation. Are Macbook Pro's of this age prone to cable breaks, or am I using the wrong disc for a full OS X installation, if Snow Leopard is an just as update? Is there anyway to add the drive using Disk Utility and if so how do I do it?

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Hey, can i clone my Macbook Pro internal hard drive and then paste it all onto a formated external hard drive, then make the Mac use the external as the primary hard drive?

hey, can i clone my Macbook Pro internal hard drive and then paste it all onto a formated external hard drive, then make the Mac use the external as the primary hard drive? please help for i only have around 618mb left out of 189GB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If what doesn't work?
If cloning your internal drive to the external drive is not successful, I expect CCC will tell you so. Assuming that doesn't happen, you will have a bootable replica of the internal drive on the external drive once CCC has finished.
You can then do any of several things:
1. Replace your internal drive with a much larger one (320GB or 500GB, or even larger), and clone the external drive's contents onto the new drive so you'll have all your data in one place. Note that if you do this, you'll also need to buy an external drive that's large enough to back the new internal drive up on.
2. Boot from the external drive as a temporary measure while you clear at least 30-40GB of data off the internal drive, allowing you to keep using it and saving small amounts of data to it. The external drive will then contain the only copies of the files you've deleted from the internal drive, so you'll need a seond external drive large enough to back both the other drives up on.
If you can't comfortably clear a minimum of 30GB off the internal drive, you really need a larger internal drive right now, and you shouldn't bother fooling around with the inadequate one you have — you'll just quickly overfill it again.
3. Replace the optical drive in your MBP with a large conventional hard drive, giving you two hard drives inside the machine. You will then need one or more external drives large enough to back up both of the internal drives.
If you sense a theme here — back up, back up, back up — you are correct. It's flat-out foolhardy to own or use a computer without maintaining complete, up-to-date backups of everything at all times.

MacBook Pro 17" Hard Drive and RAM suggestions

Hi, I want to but the new 17" MacBook Pro with 3.06GHz processor.
I am still unsure whether to choose 4GB or 8GB RAM as well as whether to choose SSD or HDD.
This MacBook will be used to develop iPhone apps, so I would want to have it speedy. On the other hand, I do not want to pay very much extra to get a slight noticeable improvement in speed. What I mean by this is that if 4GB of RAM is more than enough to develop apps then I will most likely not see a huge difference between having 8GB or 4GB of RAM.
I would appreciate to hear some opinions about both SSD and RAM size and whether it is wise to upgrade considering current prices.
Thanks in advance,
P.S. I want to order Antiglare film. Does anyone know about any of its disadvantages, or is it a pure benefit?

For what you described you want to do, 4GB RAM is plenty, and a fast 7200 RPM drive is fine. As for the anti-glare, if you don't want the distraction of sometimes having to see light sources behind you or reflections, get the anti-glare. The glass/glossy screen has more vibrant colors and deeper blacks, but you will get some reflection some time. Your eyes learn to ignore that quite quickly, but some people don't like it.
Unless you're doing heavily intensive app development, and maybe doing video/audio, 8GB is not worth it, and the SSD is even more not worth it. iPhone apps are not that demanding in terms of pure power.
Bryan

MacBook Pro 13" Hard Drive and other questions

Hi there,
I've just purchased a 13" MBP which I absolutely love but have a few questions about upgrading it. I want to swap out the hard drive for a larger capacity but just want to make sure I purchase one that will fit.
I'll number the questions for ease of answering.
1. Will this hard drive be correct? I know it's a 2.5" SATA but I didn't know if the dimensions are ok for the 13" MBP.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/WD-Scorpio-Black-WD3200BJKT-internal/dp/B001FBJJQ4
2. Will the difference between a 7200rpm 16MB cache drive and a 5400rpm 8mb cache drive be noticeable? I can get a 500gb slower speed drive for the same price and while the capacity increase would be useful, I would prefer a faster drive if it's noticeable.
Many thanks

That article I believe to be incorrect! The author never mentions which Scorpio drive....Blue or Black. The Blue does not contain a free fall sensor option as the Black is available with our without free fall sensor. The free fall sensor will interfere with the Sudden Motion Sensor (SMS) built into the Mac. SMS can be disabled but my experience first hand with the Scorpio Black in my MBP 13 was not good even after disabling the SMS and merely using the free fall sensor in the Black. If you want a 7200 RPM drive and you like West Dig get the Black without the free fall sensor. You will be much happier. I run the Black in several Windows Laptops and it streams fast then the 7200.4 which I also have in a windows laptop and the scorpio black performed better and more stable! I just dont think I personal would not use it on the MBP 13...I took mine out for it was problematic!! If you want a 500 GB go with the Fujitsu or the Hitachi...even the the Western Dig Scorpio Blue with does not have a free fall sensor. The author of that article mentioned ShockGuard that is not a Free Fall sensor and only engages durring spin up or down as well as parks when it is off. This does not sense a fall like the SMS or a built in free fall sensor. Many MBP unibody owner have used the Blue and it has been hugely successful!!! My experience which is very extensive with Seagate as of late has not been favorable. I do not like the latest generation of drives they are producing we are seeing extensive failures (higher % compared to other OEMs). Stick with those three.
If you want battery life, the Fujitsu or Hitachi are very good choices Fujitsu being a little better
For speed the WD Blue is best on synthetic tests but it is a little power hungry. I am sticking with the Fujitsu in real world test it seemed to do better than the others...H2Benchw it wasnt as good. PCmark it did very well. The Gaming, Video and other test it seemed to do well on but not as good in the h2Benchw.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/mobile-hdd-notebook,2305.html
Great info!!!

HT201250 I recently replaced my 2009 Macbook Pro's hard drive. I had the Apple store upgrade the OS to Mountain Lion while it was being repaired. I want to restore all of my old files and data, if I restore from Time Machine, will it revert to the old O

I recently had to replace my 2009 Macbook Pro's hard drive. I had the apple store upgrade the OS to Mountain Lion while it was in being repaired. I want to restore all of my old data and files. If I perform a restore from Time Machine, with a date prior to having the hard drive replaced, will it revert back to the old OS?

No, it won't revert to the prior OS X but you you may have third party apps installed that were compatible with Lion that may not be compatible with Mountain Lion.
App Compatibility Table - RoaringApps - App compatibility and feature support for OS X & iOS
After you restore from TM, check HD > Incompatible Software

On my macbook pro the hard drive icon is not on my desktop and I don't know how to find the hard drive or get the icon back on my desktop

on my macbook pro the hard drive icon is not on my desktop and I don't know how to find the hard drive or get the icon back on my desktop

Click on the Desktop. From the Finder menu select Preferences. Check the boxes for what you want on your Desktop. If they are already checked, then try unchecking and rechecking.

I had problems with my MacBook pro's hard drive.

I had problems with my MacBook pro's hard drive. And I have this question how can I end up getting a replacement for it like get a new one.

The recycle program makes it easier for you to trade in your old Mac and buy a new one. Apple has a partner that will take the old one and give you a gift card for the value -- if your old Mac is in pretty good condition and doen't have problems (passes the diagnostics).

I have all my music on my external hard drive when I try to add it to iTunes it is automatically added to my MacBook Pro's hard drive. How do I stop this from happening? I just want the music to stay on the external hard drive. Thanks!

I have all my music on my external hard drive when I try to add it to iTunes it is automatically added to my MacBook Pro's hard drive. How do I stop this from happening? I just want the music to stay on the external hard drive. Thanks!

This is true of course, but doesn't cover the situation where some files are in the iTunes Media folder and others are on an external drive. In my case I keep my music in the Media folder and all my films on an external drive (there are too many to have on the internal drive). In iTunes 11, and before, it was easy to add those external files by holding down the alt/opt key while dragging to the sidebar. In iTunes 12 this is no longer possible. There are several workarounds: use TuneSpan to move the file after it's been added; delete the file from the Media folder and empty the trash then use iTunes Get Info which will report the file is missing and allow you to locate it; constantly switch the Add to iTunes toggle on and off as required. All of these require a lot more work than just holding down the alt/opt key while adding.
It constantly gets harder.

My MacBook Pro's hard drive is about full, can I move a lot of the data to my 3 TB Time Capsule?

I have a late 2011 MacBook Pro 17 Inch with 750 GB of space on its hard drive. About a month and half ago I bought a 3 TB Time Capsule and I know that Time Capsule, together with Time Machine, basically takes periodic snapshots of your hard drive and will rearrange/clean/delete files on your hard drive. What I want to know is that since I'm about to run out of space on the internal hard drive can I move a good chunk of the data into the Time Capsule and free up that data on internal hard drive. Videos take up about 75% of my MacBook Pro's hard drive so video's are my biggest problem. If I can't do this with the Time Capsule I guess that's a con of the Time Capsule/Time Machine.
Thank you to anyone that answers!

You should be able to do that by partitioning but then how would that data be backed up? If the Time Capsule drive fails, then all of that data is lost. I would suggest you consider an additional external HDD for redundancy unless the video files are of no importance.
Ciao.

How do I reinstall CS6 Extended 64-bit after replacing hard drive and OS?

How do I reinstall CS6 Extended 64-bit after replacing hard drive and Windows 7 64-bit OS?

You can download the trial installer directly. Find the appropriate link below.
You must be on a trial download page to use the links, otherwise you get an error message.
For example, load the following page: http://www.adobe.com/cfusion/tdrc/index.cfm?product=photoshop_elements&loc=us
before pasting the link into the address bar.
http://trials2.adobe.com/AdobeProducts/PHSP/13/win32/Photoshop_13_LS16.7z
http://trials2.adobe.com/AdobeProducts/PHSP/13/win32/Photoshop_13_LS16.exe
You need to kepp both files downloaded into same folder and after download click on .exe file to extract .7z

How to replace hard drive and transfer everything over?

I've looked everywhere but am unable to find a definitive guide on how to do this.
Currently I have an early 2011 MBP that came with Snow Leopard and upgraded to Lion later. It has an HDD and I want to replace it with an SSD and transfer everything over to the SSD. Considering Lion created a Recovery partition (and there is also an EFI partition), I'm confused on how to do this the best way to basically copy my current hard drive to the new SSD.
The best I've figured out is to connect the SSD with a SATA-USB cable, use the Lion Recovery Disk Assistant ( http://support.apple.com/kb/dl1433 ) to create a Recovery partition on the new SSD, then, booting into Recovery, install Lion on the new SSD, and then use Migration Assistant to transfer all my files over.
Is there a simpler or better-explained way to basically copy my current hard drive over to a new SSD and then remove the HDD and use the SSD?

How to replace or upgrade a drive in a laptop
Step One: Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions
Boot from your OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Installer menu (Utilities menu for Tiger, Leopard or Snow Leopard.) After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer.
If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior and/or Tech Tool Pro to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.
Step Two: Remove the old drive and install the new drive. Place the old drive in an external USB enclosure. You can buy one at OWC who is also a good vendor for drives.
Step Three: Boot from the external drive. Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the OPTION key until the boot manager appears. Select the icon for the external drive then click on the downward pointing arrow button.
Step Four: New Hard Drive Preparation
1. Open Disk Utility in your Utilities folder.
2. After DU loads select your new hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Note the SMART status of the drive in DU's status area. If it does not say "Verified" then the drive is failing or has failed and will need replacing. Otherwise, click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.
3. Under the Volume Scheme heading set the number of partitions from the drop down menu to one. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID (for Intel Macs) or APM (for PPC Macs) then click on the OK button. Click on the Partition button and wait until the process has completed.
4. Select the volume you just created (this is the sub-entry under the drive entry) from the left side list. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window.
5. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Options button, check the button for Zero Data and click on OK to return to the Erase window.
6. Click on the Erase button. The format process can take up to several hours depending upon the drive size.
Step Five: Clone the old drive to the new drive
1. Open Disk Utility from the Utilities folder.
2. Select the destination volume from the left side list.
3. Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.
4. Check the box labeled Erase destination.
5. Select the destination volume from the left side list and drag it to the Destination entry field.
6. Select the source volume from the left side list and drag it to the Source entry field.
7. Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.
Destination means the new internal drive. Source means the old external drive.
Step Six: Open the Startup Disk preferences and select the new internal volume. Click on the Restart button. You should boot from the new drive. Eject the external drive and disconnect it from the computer.

Upgrading Macbook Pro 13in Hard Drive

I have looked up many forum posts about this topic but I am still confused as my specific problem is not solved. I have seen how to replace the HDD, but i don't know which to get, I watched a video that directed me to a link that says compatible 2.5" Hard Drives and SSD, but im not sure which to pick, and which will work.
This link is the SSD that caught my eye, it's a hybrid but honestly, I don't know which to get, SSD or Hard Drive, I don't really care about the speed, or noise, I just want the one that would work with no hassles.
http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Toshiba/MQ01ABD100HM/
In Buying a new HDD/SSD for a macbook pro mid 2009 13in model, what are the specs of the drive that I should get. On some sites, I see toshiba and crucial, there are some that say desktop and notebook.
What should I be taking into consideration when upgrading? I don't want to end up buying a drive that isn't compatible and have to return it.

You can pretty much buy any 2.5" SATA-II or III HDD or SSD. You will find you get more capacity in an HDD versus higher speed with the SSD. From what you have written I'd say you should stick to an HDD. Good options include Hitachi, Seagate, and Toshiba. You haven't stipulated what capacity you want in your new drive, but the maximum for the notebook drive is now around 1.5 TB (a Hitachi model.) I would not get a hybrid as they tend to be iffy in older model computers. The Seagate 500 GB hybrid is no longer in production and is hard to find, but the best model for your computer, although you may have success with the 750 GB model.

Replaced hard drive and iTunes does not recognize my laptop

My 2011 MacBook Pro froze up and when I rebooted the folder error came up. Replaced hard drive with a SSD drive and my new OS has a new name. When I logged into ITunes I had to delete an account due to my limit being reached. My old Mac ID was showing and it was signed up for the cloud at a fee of $24.00. The same MacBook but with a new hard drive had a new ID and I can not restore any of my pics or ITunes music. Am I missing a step or can I rename my Mac so it will match my old ID? If I rename it can I download my old info off of ITunes?? Thanks

I'm not following much of the question and for me it would help to get some terms straight. You only "log into" the iTunes Store (online). What account was this and what limit??
Old Mac ID? Your AppleID is what you use to log into the store. It does not change with computers. You always use the same one, perhaps updating the email address from time to time.
By the cloud do you mean iTunes Match?
Sure, your computer hard drive has a new name (you can rename it -- my series of drives have kept the same name for 23 years now). That doesn't affect logging into the Store. Start up iTunes, log into the Store using your same Apple ID, download available past purchases, and if you have the Match service download your other music too. You may have to authorize the computer again. I don't know which part of the computer is used for authentication and if that got lost with the old drive.

Macbook Pro 2010 Hard Drive Constant Verification Problem

Hi guys and girls. I'm at my wits end with my beloved Macbook Pro 2010. Recently in the last 6 months it has randomly on 3 occasions just powered down all of a sudden during operating. When it restarts it comes up with the apple logo and that loading bar underneath but fails to fully load and once again powers off.
I then go into CMD+R and will find that the Hitachi HDD will state 'SMART STATUS' as 'Verified' and it will verify permissions.When I go to verify the disk it comes up with an error. if i try and do a back up I get the common 'error 20'; message even if I try it to an external hard drive or different usbs.
In the end I have to reinstall the OSX and install the OSX on a 1TB Toshiba USB, then the mac restarts and works but keeps booting off my Toshiba USB. I end up having to use superclone and transfer it to the Hitachi drive. The Hitachi drive will format and work once the OSX is running.
Randomly this cycle will repeat itself every few months - ie computer turns off all of a sudden..FAIL loading..and same problem with disk utility.
I wanted to ask is this as my hard drive needs replacing that this is happening or do I have a more serious problem?
I

lemoncool wrote:
If I replace the internal hard drive and the same thing happens again, this would mean it is a cable issue?
https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+15-Inch+Unibody+Mid+2010+Hard+Drive-IR+ Sensor+Cable+Replacement/3031
Unplugging and reconnecting the cable may resolve it - bad connection
Yes, that is a possibility. Reconnecting may solve the issue but that is not a 100% solution.
How would I go about unplugging and reconnecting it when am installing the new internal hard drive?
I am guessing that you have a 13" 2010 MBP. If not, the same web site has instructions for 2010 15" and 17" MBPs as well. Examine these instructions:
https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+13-Inch+Unibody+Mid+2010+Hard+Drive+Cab le+Replacement/4304
https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+13-Inch+Unibody+Mid+2010+Hard+Drive+Rep lacement/4305
Also in terms of the phillips and torx to install the internal hard drive- would this one be suitable that shop sells?- http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/23-in-1-multi-function-precision-screwdriver-n42jx
NO! That tool does not have the correct sizes for either driver. #00 Phillips, #6 Torx are the ones you need.
Ciao.

New to Macbook Pro, External hard drive question.

I've just made the swirch to an Apple Macbook Pro from a PC. I've used the PC since the early 90's and all I know is Windows. However I'm finding myself more at home in Lion. My question is probably a simple one so I'll get to it. I have a 1TB Seagate Mac/PC external usb powered hard drive that I've used on my PC for all my iTunes media, 95% of which was purchased from Apple (who the **** knows if that matters but information could be crucial and besides I saw someone else say that in a post, only he found his music, whatever that means, anyway....). Now I have added all files to the library of my iTunes on the Mac while still running them from the external hard drive and everything transferd smothly (see not a complete idiot) but for some reason I can not write to the hard drive. If I try to update an app, delete a fie, rename or otherwis change the file in itunes I get an error claiming I don't have permission to do so. When I look at the drive itself, sure enough it says I may read only. Now the drive was formatted and used on a Windows PC prior to today. What do I need to do on the Mac end to make it read and writable (is that the right word?) so I can enjoy updating my apps or plain getting rid of some old things? Thanks in advance for any help.
New Mac User

Your external harddisk uses the NTFS file system which is common for Windows PCs.
Mac OSX can read from NTFS harddisks but cannot write to them.
For full access you need a third-party helper tool like the free NTFS-3G or Fuse4X or the commercial ones from Paragon or Tuxera NTFS for Mac.
In the long run and when you don't need a "Windows-PC-compatibility" of the external harddisk anymore you should consider reformating/repartioning the external harddisk using the Mac OSX native partition and file system formats. (GUID and MacOS Extended (Journaled)).
But such an action would delete everything that is on that external harddisk so it is not that easy.
Stefan

Macbook Pro replacement hard drive and re-installation of OS X

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