Questions about swapping a hard drive in Early 2009 iMac to an SSD

[definitive]

I have an early 24" 2009 iMac, and thinking of replacing the old hard drive with a spare Samsung EVO 860 SSD I have laying around.

- I've seen several 3.5" to 2.5" brackets on Amazon which claim to work with iMacs. Would one of them require anything special aside from what's included in the package?

- Will I have any issues with the hard drive temperature sensor? I've read mixed comments on this: some said that it's only stuck to the current drive with sticky tape, while others said it requires an adapter (not sure if this was for early or late 2009 model). If it's simple as just unsticking it from old drive and taping it to the new one, does that mean that I won't have to use third party software to control the fan(s)? I'd prefer for them not be spinning at 100% speed all the time.

- If doing a clean install, do I have to format the drive before I connect it and boot up the system? I'm planning on using a USB flash drive to install the OS. I think that El Capitan was the last version officially supported by this system.

 

[Juicy Box]

- Will I have any issues with the hard drive temperature sensor?

I think the Early 2009 iMac had the Temp sensor that is stuck on with tape.
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- I've seen several 3.5" to 2.5" brackets on Amazon which claim to work with iMacs.

I don't think you need a special one. Every adapter I have used was cheap ones. I like the Icy Box ones.

Would one of them require anything special aside from what's included in the package?

Nope, I think you need to take some hardware off the existing HDD and put it on the adapter.

 

[Mr_Brightside_@]

A bracket is a nice to have, but I had one SSD in the same model Mac for a year with just double sided tape and no bracket. I ended up 3D printing a bracket which fits nicely.
The sensor is just stuck on and can be transferred.
Nope, just boot to USB, erase the SSD to macOS Extended, then install.

 

[Juicy Box]

- If doing a clean install, do I have to format the drive before I connect it and boot up the system?

You can do it after it is installed, but it is always to check out the drive before installing using an USB adapter or some type of external enclosure.

I think that El Capitan was the last version officially supported by this system.

This is a good OS, and still gets security updates.

If it's simple as just unsticking it from old drive and taping it to the new one, does that mean that I won't have to use third party software to control the fan(s)?

Yup, I just stuck it on the adapter case. The SSD should be much cooler than the HDD and shouldn't impact the fans at all.

The Late 2009 and up models require the SATA cable with the external sensor. I am pretty sure your model has the external sensor already, so no fan speed software needed.

 

[definitive]

Thanks everyone for answering my questions.

 

[Kevbasscat]

I think the Early 2009 iMac had the Temp sensor that is stuck on with tape.
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I don't think you need a special one. Every adapter I have used was cheap ones. I like the Icy Box ones.



Nope, I think you need to take some hardware off the existing HDD and put it on the adapter.

I replace the drive a quite a while back and there is no temp sensor on the early 09' iMac 9,1.

 

[mikehalloran]

El Cap is no longer supported with security updates as of last September.

This type of bracket is the one you want but, as has been pointed out, you don’t really need one.
https://www.amazon.com/Fenlink-Inte...coding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=RGQFVJHJEAFFZNKZ878C

No drive temp sensor on the 24”

I have a 24” 2009 on the bench right now. Trying to see if any of the OS kludges to High Sierra or Mojave are worth a damn. Not yet...

 

[Juicy Box]

I think the Early 2009 iMac had the Temp sensor that is stuck on with tape.

I replace the drive a quite a while back and there is no temp sensor on the early 09' iMac 9,1.

Sorry, My bad....

I did a Mid 2007 a while back, and it had the sensor. I thought the early 2009 was identical to the Mid 2007, and the Late 2009 was a redesign with the larger 21" and 27" displays, which also did not have a external-to-the-HDD temperature sensor.

But, I guess Apple started using HDD with internal temp sensors in the early 2009?

When you installed your SSD, did you use an external sensor SATA cable adapter? or did you use software to control the fans?

 

[Kevbasscat]

Sorry, My bad....

I did a Mid 2007 a while back, and it had the sensor. I thought the early 2009 was identical to the Mid 2007, and the Late 2009 was a redesign with the larger 21" and 27" displays, which also did not have a external-to-the-HDD temperature sensor.

But, I guess Apple started using HDD with internal temp sensors in the early 2009?

When you installed your SSD, did you use an external sensor SATA cable adapter? or did you use software to control the fans?

Lol, I didn't even know about ssd's back when I changed it, so I just put an hdd in it. I purchased a new 2017, 27" 5k iMac last year, and after adding 32 Gb ram to it, I'm now going to take the '09 apart again, because I bought the top spec 3.06GHz C2d CPU for a whopping $ 23.00 on Ebay, and I found 2 Intel ssd's that are satta 2's and I'm going to fusion them. I have all the parts I believe, but I'm trying to see if I can leave the SuperDrive in it and keep it functional with the fusion. That's the last remaining question I have.

 

[mikehalloran]

Sorry, My bad....

I did a Mid 2007 a while back, and it had the sensor. I thought the early 2009 was identical to the Mid 2007, and the Late 2009 was a redesign with the larger 21" and 27" displays, which also did not have a external-to-the-HDD temperature sensor.

But, I guess Apple started using HDD with internal temp sensors in the early 2009?

When you installed your SSD, did you use an external sensor SATA cable adapter? or did you use software to control the fans?

Nope. The 2007 did not have a temp sensor for the drive. Neither does the early 2009. If you found one, it was added but I don’t know where one would plug it in.

The late 2009-on (21.5 & 27) does not have an external temp sensor. They have internal sensors and the WD and Seagate are not interchangeable. When replacing the drive, it requires an external sensor unless you find a WD or Seagate HDD that is compatible with the original sensor. Some WD drives are but that does no good if replacing a Seagate. There is no SSD compatible with the internal sensors. External temp sensors solve that problem. OWC holds the patents.

Without the sensor, you have an open circuit that causes the fan to go full speed. The crapware fan utilities work but you must now control the temperature manually and the fan will roar on startup till the extension loads — no thanks.

If installing an SSD in a late 2009–10, you can probably get away with shorting out the temp sensor wires but I don’t recommend it as an SSD will get warm enough to engage the fan—I’ve watched my 2010 do that under load although it runs much, much cooler with an internal SSD. Others use CD/DVD sensors available for a few $ on eBay in place of the $39 OWC sensor. This will not work on a 2011 or later iMac.

 

[Juicy Box]

Nope. The 2007 did not have a temp sensor for the drive. Neither does the early 2009. If you found one, it was added but I don’t know where one would plug it in.

This is incorrect.

There is definitely some bad info going on in the thread. I vividly recall the external temp sensor on my Mid 2007 iMac's HDD. I thought it was similar to the early 2009, but since I never worked on one, I just assumed that this post could be correct:

I replace the drive a quite a while back and there is no temp sensor on the early 09' iMac 9,1.

But, I know the Mid 2007 had an external temp sensor, so I did some research, and it looks like I am correct, the Mid 2007 to Early 2009 iMacs (or at least some of them), has external temperature sensors on the the HDD.

According to the ifixit repair guides for the Mid 2007 - Early 2009 iMacs, they had sensors stuck on the HDD with tape.

EMC 2133 and 2210, 20" Mid 2007 and 2008 iMac: Step 12
EMC 2134 and 2211 24" Mid 2007 and 2008 iMac: Step 13
EMC 2266 20" Early 2009 iMac: Step 12
EMC 2267 24" Early 2009 iMac: Step 13

The late 2009-on (21.5 & 27) does not have an external temp sensor. They have internal sensors

Yeah, I mentioned this in an earlier post in the thread.

 

[mikehalloran]

This is incorrect.

There is definitely some bad info going on in the thread. I vividly recall the external temp sensor on my Mid 2007 iMac's HDD. I thought it was similar to the early 2009, but since I never worked on one, I just assumed that this post could be correct:


But, I know the Mid 2007 had an external temp sensor, so I did some research, and it looks like I am correct, the Mid 2007 to Early 2009 iMacs (or at least some of them), has external temperature sensors on the the HDD.

According to the ifixit repair guides for the Mid 2007 - Early 2009 iMacs, they had sensors stuck on the HDD with tape.

EMC 2133 and 2210, 20" Mid 2007 and 2008 iMac: Step 12
EMC 2134 and 2211 24" Mid 2007 and 2008 iMac: Step 13
EMC 2266 20" Early 2009 iMac: Step 12
EMC 2267 24" Early 2009 iMac: Step 13
.

So what?

I had a school district contract to maintain a few hundred of those. A few years ago, I installed SSDs in every one of them to extend their life. Total number of heat sensors I had to remove=0.

Because security updates are no longer for El Cap, these machines have been retired and many went home with the teachers. I have one of those, a 2009 24” on the bench right now to install a larger SSD and see if one of the many hacks to Sierra or HS might work. aTi card so no-go for Mojave.

I don’t care what you’ve read on the internet.

 

[Juicy Box]

I don’t care what you’ve read on the internet.

That is fine, but that doesn't change that fact that this statement is incorrect:

Nope. The 2007 did not have a temp sensor for the drive.

I had a school district contract to maintain a few hundred of those. A few years ago, I installed SSDs in every one of them to extend their life. Total number of heat sensors I had to remove=0.

I wonder if the education models didn't have external temperature sensor. This would explain the inconsistencies.

 

[Kevbasscat]

This is incorrect.

There is definitely some bad info going on in the thread. I vividly recall the external temp sensor on my Mid 2007 iMac's HDD. I thought it was similar to the early 2009, but since I never worked on one, I just assumed that this post could be correct:


But, I know the Mid 2007 had an external temp sensor, so I did some research, and it looks like I am correct, the Mid 2007 to Early 2009 iMacs (or at least some of them), has external temperature sensors on the the HDD.

According to the ifixit repair guides for the Mid 2007 - Early 2009 iMacs, they had sensors stuck on the HDD with tape.

EMC 2133 and 2210, 20" Mid 2007 and 2008 iMac: Step 12
EMC 2134 and 2211 24" Mid 2007 and 2008 iMac: Step 13
EMC 2266 20" Early 2009 iMac: Step 12
EMC 2267 24" Early 2009 iMac: Step 13



Yeah, I mentioned this in an earlier post in the thread.

Try to buy a hard drive kit with a sensor from OWC for an early 2009 24" iMac. They will tell you, you they don't sell a kit for it, and they sell these kits for precisely for this reason.

 

[Juicy Box]

Try to buy a hard drive kit with a sensor from OWC for an early 2009 24" iMac. They will tell you, you they don't sell a kit for it, and they sell these kits for precisely for this reason.

Do you mean they don’t sell a kit with an external sensor for the Early-2009 because they already have an external sensor? And the SATA cable with an external temp sensor wouldn’t be necessary like it is in the Late-2009?

 

[Kevbasscat]

Do you mean they don’t sell a kit with an external sensor for the Early-2009 because they already have an external sensor? And the SATA cable with an external temp sensor wouldn’t be necessary like it is in the Late-2009?

Now that I think about it, the sensor is attached to the heat sink of the CPU. That is why I am 99% sure, but lol, some of us (not me) wear our bulls**t on the outside of our boots, and with odds that good, I'm sure that 1% will bite me.

Edit: Here is the link to OWC who makes upgrade kits for iMacs. This is for 2006 to early 2009 iMacs.
https://www.amazon.com/OWC-2006-200...t&qid=1556877294&s=musical-instruments&sr=8-9

 

[stuntflyer]

I am trying to add a SSD to an early 2009 iMac - existing drive only boots to the recovery partition looks like, and when I do an OS re-install to the original disk, I am getting a HW panic during the boot. While installing the SSD, I noticed there was NO HD temp sensor attached to the original HDD - it was actually missing from the computer. Would a missing HD temp sensor cause the Mac to panic on boot? My sense is no, and there is likely some other hardware issue with this Mac but just curious to know if my assumption about the missing HD sensor is accurate.

 

[Nguyen Duc Hieu]

The iMac will not panic.
It will read a very high temperature (128 degrees Celcius) and raise the HDD fan rotation speed.
You can control the fan speed manually using Mac Fan Control app.
If you find a loose end of such sensor inside your iMac (2009~2011), you can just cross the bare wires of the sensor, leading the iMac to think of a very low reading of temperature. You won't need Mac Fan Control in this case.

 

[stuntflyer]

The iMac will not panic.
It will read a very high temperature (128 degrees Celcius) and raise the HDD fan rotation speed.
You can control the fan speed manually using Mac Fan Control app.
If you find a loose end of such sensor inside your iMac (2009~2011), you can just cross the bare wires of the sensor, leading the iMac to think of a very low reading of temperature. You won't need Mac Fan Control in this case.

Thanks - that is what I figured. So the panic is likely being caused by some other hardware issue and nothing to do with a missing sensor.

 

[Longplays]

Thanks - that is what I figured. So the panic is likely being caused by some other hardware issue and nothing to do with a missing sensor.

Might be component failure or the component's that filthy to cause a spike in heat.

Your iMac's 14 years old. I'd clean it out every 5 years.