Runcore MBA rev. A SSD upgrade problem

[AdamN]

I'm trying to upgrade with a new 128GB SSD drive from Runcore and I cannot get the drive to be recognized. While booting from the Snow Leopard DVD, I go to Disk Utility, and no physical hard drive is recognized. The old drive is about to go so I can't boot off of that.

Does anybody have any troubleshooting advice? The cable seems very durable so I presume it's either the SSD connection or the SSD itself? Is it possible for the cable to be damaged invisibly or is those chances pretty slim?

 

[Scottsdale]

Sorry, I don't know if you have the cable connected properly. Wish I could help out. I am sure you will enjoy it once you get it going. Good luck.

 

[AdamN]

I've connected the drive via the included usb assembly successfully so it's either a cable issue or a problem with the connector on the logic board. There aren't any firmware or other issues to worry about are there? I saw references to firmware improvements but those looked like just performance drivers, not something that would be required for disk utility on the MBA to see the physical device.

Is there a diagnostic to confirm that the port is working if the other drive is dead/dying? I was having kernel IO errors and the machine wouldn't reboot with the stock 80GB drive.

 

[mcruzader]

I would take your laptop in and have it looked at to make sure its not the actual computer, once you know for sure, you should start troubleshooting for other problems.

 

[Scottsdale]

Are you sure you're not connecting it flipped from LIF to logicboard? Do you see a 1 on the logicboard by one side of the LIF connector and one side of the LIF cable? Can you ensure both are lined up properly? I still think it's about connecting the drive properly to the logicboard. We know the PCB and cable both work if it worked in the USB enclosure. Therefore, it has to be the connection to the drive/LIF, LIF/logicboard, or something of that sort...

 

[AdamN]

I don't see any number 1 on the cable (although I do see a type of V that lines up with the socket). I can guarantee that the connector to the logic board is going in the same way as the old one.

I got the data off of the old hard drive last night onto another machine and will try tonight to access the old drive from the old cable on the MBA to confirm that it's not the cable or the connection to the logic board.

If that works, it can only be the connection of the old cable to the new drive - everything else worked. I didn't totally screw up with revisions did I? I have model A1237 which I thought was rev. A.

 

[vdvalk01]

Mine is also type A1237. It's a Rev. A with 80 GB HD drive.

 

[AdamN]

Old drive on USB to another machine - works
New drive on USB to another machine - works
Neither drive works on MBA

I can only think that now it's either:

The way I'm seating the cable into the SSD (anybody have a picture of their's?)
The cable itself
The connector on the logic board.

Does anybody have thoughts on the best next step? Is that cable even purchasable?

Can somebody recommend a good shop in Manhattan?

 

[AdamN]

Tekserve fixed it

The cable was the culprit. The labor for fixing it was $130 and the cable was $20 I think. In theory, that was an unnecessary amount of money but finding that cable would not have been easy. I'm not sure if the cable was faulty in the first place or I damaged it - but it was broken.

When initially installing the new drive I did not realize that there was a release at first so I did try to jam the cable in - which may have damaged it.

 

[Scottsdale]

The cable was the culprit. The labor for fixing it was $130 and the cable was $20 I think. In theory, that was an unnecessary amount of money but finding that cable would not have been easy. I'm not sure if the cable was faulty in the first place or I damaged it - but it was broken.

When initially installing the new drive I did not realize that there was a release at first so I did try to jam the cable in - which may have damaged it.

Or when you had it flipped and got the error... like I told you the "1" is on the cable and connection. Since you reported the error you did, I know you had it flipped. That was probably your problem.

Too bad there isn't a clear instruction set somewhere to avoid these problems!

 

[AdamN]

Or when you had it flipped and got the error... like I told you the "1" is on the cable and connection. Since you reported the error you did, I know you had it flipped. That was probably your problem.

I don't see how I could have it flipped - unless the SSD has a different orientation from the stock drive. I would have had to bend the cable in the opposite direction from which it's already bent in order to plug it in the other direction - which seems a bit odd.

Also, I looked for the '1' and didn't see it.

Anyway, the computer is a dream now - I highly recommend the upgrade. I know some people just upgrade their computers but for $600 I have a machine that's twice as fast as the old one and has 128GB of super-speedy SSD. The processor and graphics are still limiting factors but I feel good that the MBA isn't in the garbage and I probably saved a few hundred dollars by upgrading over buying new.

 

[Scottsdale]

I don't see how I could have it flipped - unless the SSD has a different orientation from the stock drive. I would have had to bend the cable in the opposite direction from which it's already bent in order to plug it in the other direction - which seems a bit odd.

Also, I looked for the '1' and didn't see it.

Anyway, the computer is a dream now - I highly recommend the upgrade. I know some people just upgrade their computers but for $600 I have a machine that's twice as fast as the old one and has 128GB of super-speedy SSD. The processor and graphics are still limiting factors but I feel good that the MBA isn't in the garbage and I probably saved a few hundred dollars by upgrading over buying new.

You did have it flipped. I know that by the error you reported. Just because you didn't see where the "1" was doesn't mean it wasn't there. It surely was on mine, and it's just like every other computer cable I have ever seen in that respect.