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How much force is normal to install 2017 iMac Ram?

BigVern84

BigVern84

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Aug 30, 2017
8
0
Hi. Just finished installing extra Crucial ram in my new 2017 iMac, but I'm a bit concerned about how much force was needed. I ended up pushing VERY firmly down using two finger, to the point there was a few very slight plasticky creaking nosies from the inside. I might just be being OCD with my new expensive computer (and everything is working), but is that ok? Any chance I could have damaged the ram slots/motherboard? How tough are Apple's ram slots? Thanks!
 
I recently installed 32 GB (2 sticks) of Corsair Vengeance and it went in very easy. Very little pressure was needed to seat the new RAM.

From what you described, you may have been pushing down a little too hard.
 
The cover on mine was difficult to take off, I had to use a tool to press the button and pop the cover off and it makes a metal crunching sounds putting the cover back on. Thank goodness I'll probably never have to change the ram again. It was like scratching a black board. Inserting the ram on mine was considerably smoother than my old late 2009 iMac which had to really push it in hard before it would click into position.
 
Thanks for your responses!

My old ram upgrades always needed to be pushed in REALLY hard, so I expected I needed to do the same on the new iMac. Now I guess they were already in place and fine, but I was just trying to get that normal click noise (Still didn't get one), so I think I pushed far harder than i needed.

Any ideas how durable these slots are and how easily it is to damage them/motherboard?

Thanks again.
 
There was no click on mine either, but I did need to push them in very firmly. When I applied a 'normal' amount of pressure, the new sticks sat proud of the original Apple sticks by a couple of mm.
 
imac275 said:
There was no click on mine either, but I did need to push them in very firmly. When I applied a 'normal' amount of pressure, the new sticks sat proud of the original Apple sticks by a couple of mm.
Click to expand...
Was that with the new 5K iMac? Did they sit inline with each other after pushing harder?
 
I pushed pretty firmly because I didn't hear a click. I eventually decided to stop pushing without hearing a click because the new modules were at the same level as the Apple modules. Previously, RAM I've installed in PCs was always retained in place by a clip. It seems strange that the modules I installed in my iMac are just being held in by friction, but I'm reluctant to push so hard that I damage the PCB.
 
This short video shows very little force used to seat RAM. My experience is the same.


If you are coming from a PC where you have to push full length DIMM modules down until the latch on the end pops up. This is DIFFERENT!
 
It's d
Smoothie said:
I pushed pretty firmly because I didn't hear a click. I eventually decided to stop pushing without hearing a click because the new modules were at the same level as the Apple modules. Previously, RAM I've installed in PCs was always retained in place by a clip. It seems strange that the modules I installed in my iMac are just being held in by friction, but I'm reluctant to push so hard that I damage the PCB.
Click to expand...
Yes, it doesn't help when apples own guide says "Replace or install a DIMM by setting it down into the slot and pressing firmly until you feel the DIMM click". That's what I was going by with a click. On the plus side it sounds like a few of us had a similar experience and not done any damage, I hope!
 
I installed Crucial CT2K16G4S24AM (16GBx2) in a base-model 2017 27" iMac. It required very little force, it popped in easily. I laid the iMac flat on it's display when I performed the upgrade, not sure if that makes a difference.
 
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nilk said:
I installed Crucial CT2K16G4S24AM (16GBx2) in a base-model 2017 27" iMac. It required very little force, it popped in easily. I laid the iMac flat on it's display when I performed the upgrade, not sure if that makes a difference.
Click to expand...

Yup. Did it exactly as depicted in the video (post 11) and it shows the amount of force needed. No hammer required!
 
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