A list of successful iMac 27" (2012-2019) SSD upgrades

[macgeek01]

You should have NO issues with sleep or hibernate in a 2015 iMac as its bootrom is already patched to work with all NVMes. If in any case you are having issues you disable hibernate (and its triggers standby and autopoweroff), the Mac will sleep and wake normally. For reference here.

Thanks for the info! I was going off your post above with info from another member.

Blade drive upgrade by ssdaytona

Device: late 2015 5K
SSD upgrade: 24GB Blade -> 512GB Samsung 970 Pro NVMe SSD
Speed test: 2930 MB/s read, 2170 MB/s write
OS: OS X
Adapter: Sintech ST-NGFF2013 and ST-NGFF2013-C
Issues after fresh OS install: sleep issues with both adapters, have to disable sleep

Nice job on your upgrades! I’ve always installed the OWC thermal sensors but will be great if we can confirm that’s no longer required for all iMac models after newer firmware updates (or at least true for non optical drive iMacs models)

Having said that I now remember someone else mentioning not needing the thermal sensor with a 27 iMac years ago which I believe was also 2013. I’ll have to search for the post, maybe that model is a strange exception. I’ll do some testing myself when possible and will report back.

 

[mbosse]

HDD drive upgrade

Device: late 2013 (ME088)
SSD upgrade: 1 TB HDD -> 1 TB Samsung 860 Evo SATA SSD
Speed test: around 500 MB/s read and write
OS: Mojave 10.14.3
Temperature sensor: none
Issues after fresh OS install: no issues with the fan
What to do: you do NOT need the OWC temperature sensor for replacing the HDD on a 27" late 2013 iMac running Mojave 10.14.3, so save your €39!

[...]

Issues encountered:
-It is extremely challenging to screw the spring of the CPU heatsink back. If tightened too much it physically bents the CPU so that not all the pins touch the motherboard's socket. A strange electric sound was coming out of the CPU area. It took me hours to diagnose and repair the problem. I had to use pliers to straighten back the CPU. Wasted a lot of thermal paste after each disassembly/reassembly. Eventually screwed the spring very little, but better a loose working CPU than a tightened disfunctional one. [...]

This is extremely interesting. What were the symptoms at startup when you had the CPU heatsink tightened to strongly? Did it start up, emit a sound, or else?

Thanks,
Magnus

 

[dobrink]

This is extremely interesting. What were the symptoms at startup when you had the CPU heatsink tightened to strongly? Did it start up, emit a sound, or else?

I assembled the iMac, turned it on and nothing was happening other than a buzzing electric sound (without the sound it would take me days to diagnose, I would have ended up ordering new parts like a power supply etc.). I disassembled, only left the motherboard and powersupply working in order to identify what exactly was causing the sound (there was nowhere anything similar on the internet). It was clearly coming from the CPU, I swapped it with the old, then the same happened, I disassembled and fortunately I saw how two of the four edges of the both CPUs were bent. Then it was clear that I should NOT tighten the spring like it originally was, but only just enough to hold the bracket.

Thanks for the info! I was going off your post above with info from another member.

Apparently when installing OS X on the 24GB blade SSD, the firmware does NOT update. Therefore, it cannot wake from hibernate unless it gets the new firmware flashed to the motherboard's SPI chip. This for the moment is only possible by hardware programming, or by inserting and installing OS X on an original Apple SSD from a 27" iMac minimum 2014 model, or a MacBook Pro/Air minimum 2015 model.

 

[mbosse]

I assembled the iMac, turned it on and nothing was happening other than a buzzing electric sound (without the sound it would take me days to diagnose, I would have ended up ordering new parts like a power supply etc.). I disassembled, only left the motherboard and powersupply working in order to identify what exactly was causing the sound (there was nowhere anything similar on the internet). It was clearly coming from the CPU, I swapped it with the old, then the same happened, I disassembled and fortunately I saw how two of the four edges of the both CPUs were bent. Then it was clear that I should NOT tighten the spring like it originally was, but only just enough to hold the bracket.

Oh dear - after I replaced the CPU in my 2015 iMac it would do nothing after pushing the power button. I recall that I had to use quite some force to screw down the CPU bracket springs. Now I am thinking again...

Magnus

 

[ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTVWXYZ]

i have some noob questions. let see if i got this right

1) if i buy this and an EX920 for my iMac 27 late 2013, it will work as well as any other type of hard drive and i will have no boot/sleep/etc issues and will not have to configure anything or install any drivers?

2) because NVME read/write speeds are restricted to ~750 MB/s on this machine, does that mean that every benchmark score that is above ~750 MB/s will become ~750 MB/s?

 

[dobrink]

Buy this or this, it is cheaper on that website. Ebay is just reselling, but if you want their money-back guarantees for sure buy the more expensive at Ebay.
There are no benchmarks above 750MB/s for the iMac 2013 blade ssd cos the motherboard restricts faster speeds.

You will have to disable deep sleep by typing the following commands in the terminal. Your iMac will sleep and wake fine from the SSD (deep sleep aka hibernate, progress bar wake), but not from the RAM (normal sleep, instant wake). This is because the older than 2015 iMac have outdated firmware in the motherboard chip, which Apple hasn't yet allowed to be patched on a software level.

sudo pmset -a hibernatemode 25 standby 0
(no need to touch the autopoweroff, it can remain the default 1, cos it only initiates hibernate which is fine)

For reference here:
For example, on desktops that support standby a hibernation image will be written after the specified standbydelay time. To disable hibernation images completely, ensure hibernatemode standby and autopoweroff are all set to 0.

 

[tomscott1988]

I didnt realise that you could upgrade the 2017 iMacs internal SSD because I thought it was proprietary thats excellent news that there is an adapter. Buying preowned base model 2017s and upgrading the SSD/HDD and CPU is a sure way to save around £2000

Bought mine with apple care and 10 months old for £1150 at that price I think cracking it open is worth it.

 

[dobrink]

Blade + CPU upgrade

Device: Late 2015 - 17.1 - MK462LL/A (3.2Ghz i5-6500, HDD only)
Blade upgrade: none -> 1TB ADATA XPG SX8200 Pro
CPU upgrade: i5-6500 -> i7-6700K
Speed test: 3000 MB/s read, 2300 MB/s write
OS: Mojave 10.14.3
Adapter: Sintech ST-NGFF2013
Issues after fresh OS install: the iMac crashes upon waking from normal sleep (thus have to disable standby and enable hibernate)

Earlier this month I performed a HDD + CPU upgrade on the basic iMac 27" Late 2013 model originally equipped with HDD only. Most of the issues I have encountered there apply also to this upgrade, so please read the post linked above. Below I will discuss some differences with the current 27" Late 2015 5k.

-The 5k iMacs (2014-2017) have thicker display cables (power cable and data cable) that you have to disconnect when removing the LCD (not a big deal, just a note).
-The 4 antennas (only for Blade/CPU upgrade) are now held by two brackets that you need to unscrew with a T5 Torx screwdriver.
-The CPU thermal compound used is different than in the older models, it is abrasive and when cleaning it off the heatsink, a million miniscratches could be seen (not a big deal, just a note).
-Because the iMac is HDD-only model, its blade slot is empty, thus when inserting a new blade SSD, a small screw is required to hold it on place. The size is very slightly thicker than a normal laptop screw (but not too thick) and preferably with wide or semi-wide head.
-Again be careful when changing the CPU, do NOT screw the heatsink's spring too much (like it originally is) because it will bend your CPU and some pins will lose contact with the motherboard. Then you will have to use pliers to straighten the CPU's body. Only screw the spring about half the way.

Please check the first post of this thread. I am going to be updating it with essential information for everyone's convenience as threads seem to become very long and impossible to read.

 

[ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTVWXYZ]

can anyone confirm whether the ex920 will work on the imac 27" late 2013?

 

[Gluca]

Ciao, per favore chiarisci. Ho un imac 27 "5k 2015 solo HDD Quale NVME è compatibile al 100% Chi dice samsung 970 evo che dice di intel chi è Adata ma che non mi dà problemi di ibernazione o altro?
[doublepost=1551900580][/doublepost]Hello, please clarify. I have an imac 27 "5k 2015 only HDD Which NVME is 100% compatible? Who says samsung 970 evo who says intel who Adata but which does not give me problems of hibernation or other?

 

[dobrink]

There is no NVMe 100% compatiable with any HDD-only iMac, other than Apple's SSDs. They have made sure that they will not flash NVMe support to the bootrom with any of the OS X versions so far. This, I suppose, is in order to push people to purchase official SSD upgrades from Apple itself. Your iMac will not be able to sleep, you will have to hibernate it!

Your best option at the moment is to purchase a used original, at least 128GB, blade drive from a 27" iMac 2015 model or newer. Put it, install Mojave and your bootrom will be updated because it will recognize an official Apple blade. Now when your bootrom is flashed, swap the blade with your NVMe one, and sell away the Apple blade.

 

[Gluca]

Thank you so much I understood everything, but so I should pay for a new ssd used by someone and open twice the mac twice and would bother me in both cases. If I put a ssd 970 evo what + Adapter + Hibernate command in the terminal essentially what changes? What I lose in sleep function I do not understand what is sleep function.
[doublepost=1551904839][/doublepost]

Thank you so much I understood everything, but so I should pay for a new ssd used by someone and open twice the mac twice and would bother me in both cases. If I put a ssd 970 evo what + Adapter + Hibernate command in the terminal essentially what changes? What I lose in sleep function I do not understand what is sleep function.

One last question is the possibility that the ssd nvme a tomorrow with a new update of the MacOs Operating System from more compatibility problems? Thank you very much I trust you and I apologize for my bad English.

 

[dobrink]

With sleep giving you system error when waking, you are forced to hibernate your iMac which translates into a few seconds wake (compared to instant wake during normal sleep). Furthermore, ”Wake for network access” and ”Power nap” are buggy and should be disabled. There are some hibernate benefits as well, but useful mainly for laptops.

Please note that the solution below is just a theory based on induction. I have not done it myself and thus do not guarantee its success. It is best that someone who has tried it can confirm or deny feasibility.

Before opening your iMac run the following two commands in Terminal. They will return your EFI Firmware and Boot ROM versions:
1) /usr/libexec/firmwarecheckers/eficheck/eficheck --integrity-check
2) system_profiler SPHardwareDataType | grep -i "Version" | awk -F ':' '{print $1 $2}'

You only need to open the iMac once to get to the motherboard, install a 2nd hand Apple blade (min 128GB and 2015 or newer), connect the power supply to the motherboard, screw the fan down, do not connect the speakers if u don’t want to and only connect the two LCD cables so you get a picture on the display. Boot in recovery or internet recovery, install the latest OS X. Run the above EFI and Boot ROM checks in Terminal and note the difference in the returned versions.

Get to the motherboard again, put the 3rd party blade you are gonna be using, do the procedure from the previous paragraph again without sealing the iMac, check if it can wake from sleep after installing OS X to the new NVMe. If all is good seal your iMac and enjoy.

I am also doing some research on software prospects for flashing the bootrom. I do not think it is currently possible like in a Mac Pro cos the RomTool crashes, but may be we figure it out. Read >here<.

Another hardware solution if you have a few hundred lying around is the Medusa-3 tool, which according to cmizapper can latch to and reprogram the bootrom.

 

[macguru8]

Here you can find and discuss all the collected knowledge regarding upgrading the HDD, blade SSD and CPU of a 27" iMac 2012-2017, as well as a list of performed upgrades.

Here is a list of all 27" iMac models subjected in this thread:

Late 2012 - 13.2 - MD095LL/A (2.9Ghz i5-3470S, HDD only / Fusion HDD+128GB blade / blade only)
Late 2012 - 13.2 - MD096LL/A (3.2Ghz i5-3470, HDD only / Fusion HDD+128GB blade / blade only)
Late 2012 - 13.2 - none (3.4Ghz i7-3770, HDD only / Fusion HDD+128GB blade / blade only)
Late 2013 - 14.2 - ME088LL/A (3.2Ghz i5-4570, HDD only / Fusion HDD+128GB blade / blade only)
Late 2013 - 14.2 - ME089LL/A (3.4Ghz i5-4670, HDD only / Fusion HDD+128GB blade / blade only)
Late 2013 - 14.2 - MF125LL/A (3.5Ghz i7-4771, HDD only / Fusion HDD+128GB blade / blade only)
Late 2014 - 15.1 - MF886LL/A (3.5Ghz i5-4690, Fusion HDD+128GB blade / blade only)
Late 2014 - 15.1 - none (4.0Ghz i7-4790K, Fusion HDD+128GB blade / blade only)
Mid 2015 - 15.1 - MF885LL/A (3.3Ghz i5-4590, HDD only / Fusion HDD+128GB blade / blade only)
Late 2015 - 17.1 - MK462LL/A (3.2Ghz i5-6500, HDD only / Fusion HDD+128GB blade / blade only)
Late 2015 - 17.1 - MK472LL/A (3.2Ghz i5-6500, Fusion HDD+24GB blade / HDD+128GB blade / blade only)
Late 2015 - 17.1 - MK482LL/A (3.3Ghz i5-6600, Fusion HDD+128GB blade / blade only)
Late 2015 - 17.1 - none (4.0Ghz i7-6700K, Fusion HDD+24GB blade / Fusion HDD+128GB blade / blade only)
Mid 2017 - 18.3 - MNE92LL/A (3.4Ghz i5-7500, Fusion HDD+32GB blade / Fusion HDD+128GB blade / blade only)
Mid 2017 - 18.3 - MNEA2LL/A (3.5Ghz i5-7600, Fusion HDD+32GB blade / Fusion HDD+128GB blade / blade only)
Mid 2017 - 18.3 - MNED2LL/A (3.8Ghz i5-7600K, Fusion HDD+128GB blade / blade only)
Mid 2017 - 18.3 - none (4.2Ghz i5-7700K, Fusion HDD+32GB blade / Fusion HDD+128GB blade / blade only)


The iMacs in orange experience cannot-wake-from-normal-sleep issues after upgrading the blade SSD with a non-Apple. Only at least Late 2014 iMac 27” with a Fusion drive or a blade ssd is able to receive a NVMe support flashed to the motherboard's firmware upon installing the latest OS X. The only exceptions are iMac 27" Late 2015 MK472LL/A and its i7 version with a Fusion drive composed of 24GB blade+1TB HDD (this particular blade is odd and the NVMe support is NOT flashed).

Therefore, all the rest iMacs when upgraded with NVMe blade drives cannot wake from normal sleep and "restart because of a problem" or show a question mark icon. There are two solutions to that:
1) get the new firmware flashed to the motherboard's SPI chip. This for the moment is only possible by hardware programming. (more info coming soon...)
2) replace/insert an original Apple blade drive (from a 27" iMac minimum 2014 model, or a MacBook Pro/Air minimum 2015 model, for example this) and after installing OS X, your system will be flashed with firmware supporting NVMe blade drives. In this way, it is even possible that a 2012 and 2013 iMac will get NVMe support! (this is more of a hypothesis, someone please confirm!)
3) software flashing research is to be added here very soon (more info coming soon...)

Otherwise, the only way to prevent your iMac from crashing is to prevent your blade SSD from sleeping and use deep sleep instead (aka hibernation) by typing the following command in Terminal:
sudo pmset -a hibernatemode 25 standby 0
(the autopoweroff can remain the default 1, since the above two commands are enough to disable normal sleep)


Regarding the HDD upgrade, because of several occasions where the OWC's temperature sensor was not needed, I have two hypothesis for why the fan-spinning-on-max-rpm issue does NOT appear:
Hypothesis 1: The newest OS X firmware has eliminated this issue so the temperature control no longer triggers the fan to spin at max rpm.
Hypothesis 2: Only when upgrading both the blade SSD and the HDD the iMac gets no temperature reading and thus the fan problem appears. Should either upgrade just the HDD on a fusion model, or on a HDD-only model in order to not need the OWC's temperature sensor.
(someone please confirm one of the above)


The tools you are going to need are color coded as follows: all, HDD, Blade, CPU.

-T8, T10 Torx screwdrivers
-wheel opening tool (€1)
-plastic card opening tool (€1) (optional)
-1-2x suction cups (€2)
-spudger tools (€1)
-tweezers (€1) (optional)
-adhesive strips (€2)

-mounting bracket (€2)
-2.5" SATA SSD (example Samsung 860 Evo)
-OWC thermal sensor (€40) (only required if changing both the Blade and HDD with non-Apple)

-adapter for the blade drive (8-13€)
-a small screw to hold the new blade drive on place (it is missing on HDD-only models)
-T5, T25 Torx screwdrivers
-thermal paste for the CPU and GPU (€7)
-a compatiable intel CPU from the same generation as the original

For the blade SSD upgrade it does not matter which of the three adapters you use (first, second, third), or if it is sold on ebay, amazon, or wherever else, or if it is branded as Sintech or Kalea or whatever else, they are all the same. Using an AHCI blade will never give you hibernation issues, though those are very limited and no longer manufactured. It does not mater which NVMe drive you use, except the 01.2019 released Samsung 970 Evo Plus which is not compatible with any of the adapters, so do NOT use it unless a new adapter is released.

IFixit guide for SATA HDD replacement
IFixit guide for Blade SSD replacement
IFixit guide for CPU replacement
IFixit guide for Adhesive strips application


Examples of how to report your upgrade. These two upgrades below I personally did in 02.2019:

1) HDD + CPU upgrade

Device: Late 2013 - 14.2 - ME088LL/A (3.2Ghz i5-4570, HDD only)
HDD upgrade: 1 TB SATA HDD -> 1TB Samsung 860 Evo SATA SSD
CPU upgrade: i5-4570 -> i5-4670K
Speed test: around 500 MB/s read, 500 MB/s write
OS: Mojave 10.14.3
Temperature sensor: none
Issues after fresh OS install: everything is ok with the fan, OWC temperature sensor NOT required!
More details and problems >here<


2) Blade + CPU upgrade

Device: Late 2015 - 17.1 - MK462LL/A (3.2Ghz i5-6500, HDD only)
Blade upgrade: none -> 1TB ADATA XPG SX8200 Pro
CPU upgrade: i5-6500 -> i7-6700K
Speed test: 3000 MB/s read, 2300 MB/s write
OS: Mojave 10.14.3
Adapter: Sintech ST-NGFF2013
Issues after fresh OS install: the iMac cannot wake from normal sleep, have to use hibernate 25 instead and disable standby.
More details and problems >here<


The following is a list of upgrades performed by other people, I will update the list as new entries become available:

Blade drive upgrade by Jeden87

Device: Late 2015 - 17.1 - MK472LL/A (3.2Ghz i5-6500, Fusion HDD+16GB blade)
Blade upgrade: 24GB Blade -> 512GB Samsung 970 Pro NVMe SSD
Speed test: 2900 MB/s read, 2200 MB/s write
Adapter: Sintech ST-NGFF2013
Issues after fresh OS install: the blade drive does not wake up from sleep, have to restart, or disable sleep entirely


Blade drive upgrade by MKhan

Device: Late 2013
Blade upgrade: ?? blade -> 512GB Samsung 970 Pro NVMe SSD
Speed test: 756 MB/s read, 756 MB/s write
Adapter: KALEA-INFORMATIQUE
Issues after fresh OS install: the blade drive does not wake up from sleep, have to restart, or disable sleep entirely


Blade upgrade by ssdaytona

Device: Late 2015 - 17.1 - MK472LL/A (3.2Ghz i5-6500, Fusion HDD+16GB blade)
Blade upgrade: 24GB Blade -> 512GB Samsung 970 Pro NVMe SSD
Speed test: 2930 MB/s read, 2170 MB/s write
Adapter: Sintech ST-NGFF2013 and ST-NGFF2013-C
Issues after fresh OS install: sleep issues with both adapters, have to disable sleep


Blade + HDD upgrade by jdee2wheels

Device: Mid 2017 - 18.3 - MNE92LL/A (3.4Ghz i5-7500, Fusion HDD+32GB blade)
Blade SSD upgrade: 32GB Blade -> 1TB Samsung 970 Evo NVMe SSD
HDD upgrade: 1TB SATA HDD -> SanDisk 2TB 3D SATA III
Speed test: blade 2500 MB/s write, 2900 MB/s read, SATA SSD 450-ish
OS: Mojave 10.14.2
Adapter: Sintech NGFF M.2 nVME SSD Adapter Card, OWC temperature sensor for SATA SSD
Issues after fresh OS install: NONE


HDD upgrade by uller6

Device: Late 2014 - 15.1 - none (4.0Ghz i7-4790K, Fusion HDD+128GB blade)
HDD upgrade: 1TB SATA HDD -> Crucial M500 2TB SSD
Speed test: 500 MB/s read, 480 MB/s write
OS: Mojave 10.14.2
Temperature sensor: none
Issues after fresh OS install: NONE - everything works perfectly


Blade upgrade by mbosse

Device: Late 2013 - 14.2 - MF125LL/A (3.5Ghz i7-4771, Fusion HDD+128GB blade)
SSD upgrade: 128GB blade -> 2TB Samsung 970 Evo NVMe SSD
Speed test: 780 MB/s read, 730 MB/s write
OS: High Sierra 10.13.6
Adapter: Sintech ST-NGFF2013
Issues after fresh OS install: the blade drive does not wake up from sleep

Blade upgraded by macguru8

Blade + Harddrive + CPU upgrade
Device: Late 2015 - 17.1 - MK462LL/A (3.2Ghz i5-6500, HDD only)
Blade upgrade: none -> 500GB Samsung 970 EVO 500 GB M.2 NVMe SSD
HDD upgrade: 1TB -> Seagate BarraCuda Pro ST4000DM006 4TB 7200 RPM 128MB Cache
OWC temperature sensor: Required for Harddrive
CPU upgrade: i5-6500 -> i7 6700K 4.00 GHz Unlocked Quad Core Skylake
Speed test: 3070 MB/s read, 2374 MB/s write
OS: Mojave 10.14.3
Adapter: Sintech ST-NGFF2013-C
Issues after fresh OS install: the iMac cannot wake from normal sleep unless I press the power button, had to use hibernate 25 instead and disable standby.

 

[macgeek01]

Blade upgraded by macguru8

Blade + Harddrive + CPU upgrade
Device: Late 2015 - 17.1 - MK462LL/A (3.2Ghz i5-6500, HDD only)
Blade upgrade: none -> 500GB Samsung 970 EVO 500 GB M.2 NVMe SSD
HDD upgrade: 1TB -> Seagate BarraCuda Pro ST4000DM006 4TB 7200 RPM 128MB Cache
OWC temperature sensor: Required for Harddrive
CPU upgrade: i5-6500 -> i7 6700K 4.00 GHz Unlocked Quad Core Skylake
Speed test: 3070 MB/s read, 2374 MB/s write
OS: Mojave 10.14.3
Adapter: Sintech ST-NGFF2013-C
Issues after fresh OS install: the iMac cannot wake from normal sleep unless I press the power button, had to use hibernate 25 instead and disable standby.

So your issue is with sleep opposed to hibernate? Thanks.

 

[scoobdriver]

With sleep giving you system error when waking, you are forced to hibernate your iMac which translates into a few seconds wake (compared to instant wake during normal sleep). Furthermore, ”Wake for network access” and ”Power nap” are buggy and should be disabled. There are some hibernate benefits as well, but useful mainly for laptops.

Please note that the solution below is just a theory based on induction. I have not done it myself and thus do not guarantee its success. It is best that someone who has tried it can confirm or deny feasibility.

Before opening your iMac run the following two commands in Terminal. They will return your EFI Firmware and Boot ROM versions:
1) /usr/libexec/firmwarecheckers/eficheck/eficheck --integrity-check
2) system_profiler SPHardwareDataType | grep -i "Version" | awk -F ':' '{print $1 $2}'

You only need to open the iMac once to get to the motherboard, install a 2nd hand Apple blade (min 128GB and 2015 or newer), connect the power supply to the motherboard, screw the fan down, do not connect the speakers if u don’t want to and only connect the two LCD cables so you get a picture on the display. Boot in recovery or internet recovery, install the latest OS X. Run the above EFI and Boot ROM checks in Terminal and note the difference in the returned versions.

Get to the motherboard again, put the 3rd party blade you are gonna be using, do the procedure from the previous paragraph again without sealing the iMac, check if it can wake from sleep after installing OS X to the new NVMe. If all is good seal your iMac and enjoy.

I am also doing some research on software prospects for flashing the bootrom. I do not think it is currently possible like in a Mac Pro cos the RomTool crashes, but may be we figure it out. Read >here<.

Another hardware solution if you have a few hundred lying around is the Medusa-3 tool, which according to cmizapper can latch to and reprogram the bootrom.

Iv'e just purchased a genuine late 2017 128GB Apple SSD for my iMac Late 2015 27" which has never had a blade fitted (well a couple actually by mistake , eBay error )
I will upgrade and let you know if your thoughts are correct.
Currently I am at

Boot ROM Version 161.0.0.0.0

SMC Version (system) 2.33f10

 

[dobrink]

So your issue is with sleep opposed to hibernate? Thanks.

iMacs have normal sleep issues (the NVMe cannot be addressed in time to assist for the contents from the RAM to be read), thus they have to use deep sleep (hibernate), which is done by writing this in Terminal -> sudo pmset -a hibernatemode 25 standby 0
MacBooks have deep sleep issues (the NVMe cannot be powered in time for restoring the imaged contents back to the RAM), thus they must use only normal sleep (which drains the battery because of the constant current keeping the SSD "awake"), achieved by writing this in Terminal -> sudo pmset -a hibernatemode 0 standby 0 autopoweroff 0

Iv'e just purchased a genuine late 2017 128GB Apple SSD for my iMac Late 2015 27" which has never had a blade fitted (well a couple actually by mistake , eBay error )
I will upgrade and let you know if your thoughts are correct.

Could you please also report the following stats before your update -> model, board, efi, bootrom.
When are you going to attempt the replacement, a lot of lives depend on your results? It's one theory that the EFI updater in an OS X installer looks for SSD's model in order to assign firmware updates, however there have been opinions that even with a genuine Apple SSD the EFI updater would assign the firmware based on the board-id (use the link above to find out yours). However, your SSD is quite new, so hopes are high

How much did the 128GB 2017 blade cost?

 

[scoobdriver]

iMacs have normal sleep issues (the NVMe cannot wake in time to assist in reading the contents from the RAM), thus they have to use deep sleep (hibernate).
MacBooks have deep sleep issues (the NVMe cannot be powered in time for restoring the imaged contents back to the RAM), thus they must use only normal sleep (which drains the battery because of the constant current keeping the SSD "awake").



Could you please also report the following stats before your update -> model, board, efi, bootrom.
When are you going to attempt the replacement, a lot of lives depend on your results? It's one theory that the EFI updater in an OS X installer looks for SSD's model in order to assign firmware updates, however there have been opinions that even with a genuine Apple SSD the EFI updater would assign the firmware based on the board-id (use the link above to find out yours). However, your SSD is quite new, so hopes are high

How much did the 128GB 2017 blade cost?

I paid approx £60 each for the blades + Postage , the are date 11.2017 & 10.2017 , The Samsung pci3.0 x 4 version
Not sure if they are NVMe ?!?

Details you requested are
Model: iMac17,1
Board: Mac-65CE76090165799A
EFI : IM171.88Z.F000.B00.1809251200
Boot ROM Version 161.0.0.0.0
SMC Version (system) 2.33f10

 

[macgeek01]

iMacs have normal sleep issues (the NVMe cannot be addressed in time to assist for the contents from the RAM to be read), thus they have to use deep sleep (hibernate), which is done by writing this in Terminal -> sudo pmset -a hibernatemode 25 standby 0
MacBooks have deep sleep issues (the NVMe cannot be powered in time for restoring the imaged contents back to the RAM), thus they must use only normal sleep (which drains the battery because of the constant current keeping the SSD "awake"), achieved by writing this in Terminal -> sudo pmset -a hibernatemode 0 standby 0 autopoweroff 0

Thanks for the info! Some people have reported no sleep issues with 2015 and later iMacs?

 

[ondert]

Hello,
I have an iMac 2017 5k with 2tb fusion drive. I had a late 2016 15" mbp before. So, I really got used to that ssd speed on MacBook Pro. Now, I feel the slowness of the fusion drive in the iMac. I found an authorized apple reseller that can replace the internal 3.5" hdd with 2.5" ssd I'm going to buy.
Can you tell me that if it really worth doing it? Also, do they need to place another thermal sensor for the 2.5" ssd inside because some say it needs and some say there is no need for 2017 models.
Since I didn't buy the 2.5" ssd yet, I'm open to recommended models.
Thanks

 

[ssdaytona]

It’s definitely worth it. The speed increase is noticeable even for a 2tb fusion drive.


One thing that you can do is “un-fuse” your fusion drive and it’ll be much faster. I think you have a 128gb blade ssd drive in there now

Hello,
I have an iMac 2017 5k with 2tb fusion drive. I had a late 2016 15" mbp before. So, I really got used to that ssd speed on MacBook Pro. Now, I feel the slowness of the fusion drive in the iMac. I found an authorized apple reseller that can replace the internal 3.5" hdd with 2.5" ssd I'm going to buy.
Can you tell me that if it really worth doing it? Also, do they need to place another thermal sensor for the 2.5" ssd inside because some say it needs and some say there is no need for 2017 models.
Since I didn't buy the 2.5" ssd yet, I'm open to recommended models.
Thanks

 

[ondert]

It’s definitely worth it. The speed increase is noticeable even for a 2tb fusion drive.
One thing that you can do is “un-fuse” your fusion drive and it’ll be much faster. I think you have a 128gb blade ssd drive in there now

Yes, I have 128gb blade ssd and 2tb 3.5" hdd now and then I'm going to use both drives separately when I put the sata ssd. Any ssd recommendation? I'm mostly going between Samsung 860 Evo and Crucial MX500.

 

[mbosse]

Yes, I have 128gb blade ssd and 2tb 3.5" hdd now and then I'm going to use both drives separately when I put the sata ssd. Any ssd recommendation? I'm mostly going between Samsung 860 Evo and Crucial MX500.

Both are fine. You might need to be aware that replacing the Apple HDD with a third party one might upset the fan control and needs be addressed with software or with a hardware temperature sensor (from OWC).

Best,
Magnus

 

[ondert]

Both are fine. You might need to be aware that replacing the Apple HDD with a third party one might upset the fan control and needs be addressed with software or with a hardware temperature sensor (from OWC).

Best,
Magnus

I'm currently using MacsFanControl and iStats Menu. However, in any case I would like to have the sensor. Is it mandatory for the latest 2017 iMacs? For the SSD part, think that I'm going for the Samsung Evo because it offers more lifetime.

 

[ssdaytona]

I have never needed the sensor with a Samsung ssd