Mac mini 2014 Dual Drives?

[taylortnr4]

I have a 2014 Mac Mini and I would like to have an Apple SSD for some speed increase. I currently have the 2.6GHz, 8GB Ram, and a 1TB HDD. I swapped the 1TB HDD with a 240GB PNY SSD. I would like to get the Apple SSD with the SSD mounting bracket and put the 1TB back in.

Will this display as 2 separate drives or 1 "Fusion" drive?

I cannot find anything saying what will happen.

Also, does anyone know of an adapter that will allow me to use a M.2 PCIE SSD in Apple's SSD interface?

Thanks

 

[saulinpa]

By default adding an SSD will show as a second drive. To pair one with the existing drive into a fusion drive you have to wipe both and then create the fusion drive from scratch. Apple's instructions: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT207584

The M.2 adapter would be https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LXUH921 This would be in addition to the special mini cable needed. (https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/apple-pcie-flex-cable-part-number-for-mac-mini-2014.1807145 - 821-00010-A SSD PCIe flex Cable Connector Adapter)

 

[treekram]

The issue with the Mini 2014 PCIe SSD is that there isn't that much of a performance increase over an internal SATA SSD. The people posting their results of the Blackmagic benchmark in this forum get may somewhere in the 600's-700's MB/sec. (if anybody gets more, say in the 800+ range, it would nice if you posted). My Crucial M500 gets in the mid-high 400 MB/sec in my 2014 Mini. A big reason for this is that the 2014 Mini has a PCIe 2-lane vs. 4-lane. If you have a good 4-lane PCIe SSD in a computer with a 4-lane PCIe interface, you can get 1700-1800MB/sec.

The other side of this is that there are issues with the alternatives:
1) Buy a used Apple SSD (keep in mind Apple stopped using these in 2015) - if you get one with a high erase/write cycle count, it won't last long.

2) Get a standard PCIe NVMe SSD. You have to get an adapter (as mentioned in post #2) and use High Sierra. I haven't seen people using an adapter in the 2014 Mini in this forum. To get an idea of the issues involved in doing this on the MacBook Pro, see:
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/upgrading-2013-2014-macbook-pro-ssd-to-m-2-nvme.2034976/

3) Get one of the recent SSD's (Transcend JetDrive 820 or OWC Aura Pro X) which don't require an adapter. The OWC will require High Sierra (probably the JetDrive as well). Transcend says the JetDrive will work in the Mini, OWC does not list the Mini as being compatible (it probably will work but if doesn't, OWC may not take it back).

EDIT: I should have said that Apple stopped using the PCIe SSD's used in the 2014 Mini in models introduced after 2015, not that they stopped using them in 2015. You can still get a SSD for the 2014 Mini if you buy it from Apple (as part of the Mini, not separately). It's also not clear whether their the 2017 iMac's use the exact same SSD or an updated model, but it's not likely you'll find SSD's taken from the iMac since it's so difficult to take apart.

 

[AFEPPL]

If it's the apple adapter it will only allow you to use the apple SSDs. It's a simple plug and go. 5mins tops and you only need to remove the bottom. As long as you don't get the 128GB PCMe version 700MB/s is not going to be a issue (which is over 50% faster that a SATA SSD).

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mac-Mini...735139?hash=item1c9202b4a3:g:3RkAAOSwSYpZvTc4

You don't need HS (in fact I avoid it, full of bugs and holes), and you can choose what you want to do with the storage right back to Mavericks. I have two of these, one in a fusion setup and one set as two completely different devices. Just backup up to TM before you start, then install the NVMe blade, create the CS LVG and restore from TM.

 

[RyanXM]

The issue with the Mini 2014 PCIe SSD is that there isn't that much of a performance increase over an internal SATA SSD. The people posting their results of the Blackmagic benchmark in this forum get may somewhere in the 600's-700's MB/sec. (if anybody gets more, say in the 800+ range, it would nice if you posted). My Crucial M500 gets in the mid-high 400 MB/sec in my 2014 Mini. A big reason for this is that the 2014 Mini has a PCIe 2-lane vs. 4-lane. If you have a good 4-lane PCIe SSD in a computer with a 4-lane PCIe interface, you can get 1700-1800MB/sec.

The other side of this is that there are issues with the alternatives:
1) Buy a used Apple SSD (keep in mind Apple stopped using these in 2015) - if you get one with a high erase/write cycle count, it won't last long.

2) Get a standard PCIe NVMe SSD. You have to get an adapter (as mentioned in post #2) and use High Sierra. I haven't seen people using an adapter in the 2014 Mini in this forum. To get an idea of the issues involved in doing this on the MacBook Pro, see:
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/upgrading-2013-2014-macbook-pro-ssd-to-m-2-nvme.2034976/

3) Get one of the recent SSD's (Transcend JetDrive 820 or OWC Aura Pro X) which don't require an adapter. The OWC will require High Sierra (probably the JetDrive as well). Transcend says the JetDrive will work in the Mini, OWC does not list the Mini as being compatible (it probably will work but if doesn't, OWC may not take it back).

EDIT: I should have said that Apple stopped using the PCIe SSD's used in the 2014 Mini in models introduced after 2015, not that they stopped using them in 2015. You can still get a SSD for the 2014 Mini if you buy it from Apple (as part of the Mini, not separately). It's also not clear whether their the 2017 iMac's use the exact same SSD or an updated model, but it's not likely you'll find SSD's taken from the iMac since it's so difficult to take apart.

This has to be one of the most comical replies I've ever seen in a MacRumors thread and also one of the most biased. The simple fact that a PCIe SSD is going to have much better performance in the small things, let alone a benchmark. A SATA based SSD isn't going to come close to the random and small reads/writes of a PCIe SSD. IOPS is the key here, not throughput when doing a large file transfer.

Also, you are very mistaken on the "Apple has stopped using said PCIe SSD as of 2015...". Yes, they hadn't updated much of anything until this calendar year, but the SSUAX (retired) and the SSUBX PCIe SSDs are still being manufactured and used in products to this day. The Mac Pro (Late 2013) still uses them (and is still being sold), the 15" MacBook Pro (Mid 2015) is still using them (and still being sold), the Mac mini (Late 2014) is still using them (and still being sold), and so is the 13" MacBook Air (Mid 2017) (it really is just a 2015 model with a processor bump) is still using them (and still being sold). So you might want to rethink and do better research before posting some misinformation about what PCIe SSDs Apple is still using/manufacturing.

Reply to #1 - Blatantly false and misleading.

Reply to #2 - This is a decent choice, but you will need to use High Sierra and the vast majority of users are going to recommend a Samsung 960 EVO or Pro (I'm in this majority).

Reply to #3 - Stay as far away as possible from the OWC Aura Pro X. You are putting yourself at risk for data loss when using those products. I don't have any experience with the Transcend, but an OEM Apple/Samsung PCIe or using an adapter are 100x better alternatives.

Reply to EDIT - The iMac (Mid 2017) are using an updated version of the SSUBX. The SSUAX and SSUBX were PCIe AHCI based. They are now using the Samsung Polaris Controller, which is PCIe NVMe based, that is used on the Samsung 960 EVO and Pro. This has been confirmed by multiple sources. The 2016 and 2017 MacBook Pros are using a very customized version of this SSD that is soldered to the MLB (Main Logic Board) in the TouchBar models and is a separate module in the non-Touchbar 13".
[doublepost=1513177818][/doublepost]

I have a 2014 Mac Mini and I would like to have an Apple SSD for some speed increase. I currently have the 2.6GHz, 8GB Ram, and a 1TB HDD. I swapped the 1TB HDD with a 240GB PNY SSD. I would like to get the Apple SSD with the SSD mounting bracket and put the 1TB back in.

Will this display as 2 separate drives or 1 "Fusion" drive?

I cannot find anything saying what will happen.

Also, does anyone know of an adapter that will allow me to use a M.2 PCIE SSD in Apple's SSD interface?

Thanks

They will be seen as separate drives unless you run the commands to produce a Fusion Drive (simply a CoreStorage command) which will appear as a single drive.

In the Mac mini, a Fusion Drive makes the most sense from both a performance and storage space size if you are using the 128GB or 256GB PCIe SSD. If you move up to the 512GB or 1TB PCIe SSD, keep them separate.

 

[treekram]

This has to be one of the most comical replies I've ever seen in a MacRumors thread and also one of the most biased. The simple fact that a PCIe SSD is going to have much better performance in the small things, let alone a benchmark. A SATA based SSD isn't going to come close to the random and small reads/writes of a PCIe SSD. IOPS is the key here, not throughput when doing a large file transfer.

Also, you are very mistaken on the "Apple has stopped using said PCIe SSD as of 2015...". Yes, they hadn't updated much of anything until this calendar year, but the SSUAX (retired) and the SSUBX PCIe SSDs are still being manufactured and used in products to this day. The Mac Pro (Late 2013) still uses them (and is still being sold), the 15" MacBook Pro (Mid 2015) is still using them (and still being sold), the Mac mini (Late 2014) is still using them (and still being sold), and so is the 13" MacBook Air (Mid 2017) (it really is just a 2015 model with a processor bump) is still using them (and still being sold). So you might want to rethink and do better research before posting some misinformation about what PCIe SSDs Apple is still using/manufacturing.

Reply to #1 - Blatantly false and misleading.

Reply to #2 - This is a decent choice, but you will need to use High Sierra and the vast majority of users are going to recommend a Samsung 960 EVO or Pro (I'm in this majority).

Reply to #3 - Stay as far away as possible from the OWC Aura Pro X. You are putting yourself at risk for data loss when using those products. I don't have any experience with the Transcend, but an OEM Apple/Samsung PCIe or using an adapter are 100x better alternatives.

I realized my mistake in saying "Apple has stopped using said PCIe SSD as of 2015" and made the edit (clearly noting it was an edit) the same day I posted initially.

Reply to reply #1. I believe a high erase/write cycle count in a used SSD is a concern. I would suggest that the OP research the issue and come to their own opinion before making a decision.

Reply to reply #3. In terms of the OWC SSD with data loss, are you referring to the OWC Aura, which was introduced in the Spring of 2016, or the OWC Aura Pro X, which was introduced in October of 2017? I'm not a big fan of OWC and if people want to avoid the Aura Pro X based on how the OWC Aura worked at this point in time when there's not a lot of information on how the Aura Pro X actually works in the real world, I wouldn't blame them. If they want to avoid OWC SSD's altogether, I wouldn't blame them either.

My opinion is that the typical person wouldn't notice that much performance difference between a good SATA SSD and whatever PCIe SSD you get for the 2014 Mini. I have a computer with a Samsung 960 Pro (4-lane NVMe vs. 2-lane AHCI or NVMe which is what you would have in the 2014 Mini) and a clone backup running on a Samsung 850 Evo in a USB enclosure and the performance difference doesn't hit me in the head like the difference between a HDD and a SATA SSD does. Even in specific use cases where I think the performance gain can be put to good use (specific database-related tasks), I do notice a difference as compared to older computers, which have less CPU power, but it certainly is not revelatory. And to get that performance increase, one faces less-than-ideal alternatives, again in my opinion.

 

[ignatius345]

By default adding an SSD will show as a second drive. To pair one with the existing drive into a fusion drive you have to wipe both and then create the fusion drive from scratch. Apple's instructions: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT207584

The M.2 adapter would be https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LXUH921 This would be in addition to the special mini cable needed. (https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/apple-pcie-flex-cable-part-number-for-mac-mini-2014.1807145 - 821-00010-A SSD PCIe flex Cable Connector Adapter)

I did just this on my old Mac Mini -- put in an SSD in addition to the existing HDD -- and linked them together using core storage into a fusion drive.

It was a bit of work to take the machine apart, and I was a newbie to all the arcane Terminal stuff I had to do, but I followed the instructions (from macsales.com, I believe) very very carefully, and it all worked perfectly.

The benefit was immediate and dramatic, and that machine is still going strong 4 years later. It's quite usable under Sierra, which I don't think would be the case if it was still running that old 5200 rpm hard drive.

As for the "fusion" part, the simplicity of having a single drive and letting the core storage logic move frequently-used files between the two drives, far outweighed any performace hit I took by not keeping them as two separate drives.