Upgrading 2013-2015 Macbook Pro SSD to M.2 NVMe

[chanawar]

Macbook Pro Retina 2013 Late 13"
I had Sandisk 256GB SSD inside the machine
I installed Adata XPG Spectrix S40g 512GB
I used generic short adapter (Not sintech)

Here is my before and after results:

Before with Apple Sandisk SSD:



After with XPG SSD:



And I have a question. In theory Adata XPG SSD disk speeds are read 3500MB/s, write 3000MB/s but my speeds are above. If I bought more cheaper SSD which has 2000MB/s, write 1700MB/s speed, would I get the same results or they will be more low?

I got these speeds with x4 link

 

[Audit13]

Macbook Pro Retina 2013 Late 13"

And I have a question. In theory Adata XPG SSD disk speeds are read 3500MB/s, write 3000MB/s but my speeds are above. If I bought more cheaper SSD which has 2000MB/s, write 1700MB/s speed, would I get the same results or they will be more low?

The PCIe 2.0 bus will limit the speed of any high-speed SSD.

Hey everyone,
just to let you know - I am in the line of happy mbp owners having run the latest Catalina update without the need to swapping back to the original Apple SSD but getting the newest bootrom (190).

MB is an early 2015 13" device (12,1).
Harddrive is an adata 8200 pro.

Cheers!

I have an early 2015 13" Air and I started getting bootrom updates that started with the second last release of Mojave with a name drive installed.

 

[Steffinuss]

Hello,
I successfully patched my BootROM a month ago with the J6100 adapter. Now I installed the 10.15.4. update, thinking that a patched BootROM with Non-Original-SSD (Sabrent Rocket 2TB) would not be overwritten. But I was mistaken. The update upgraded my BootROM from 158.0.0.0.0 (with NVME Patch) to 159.0.0.0.0 (without Patch). I am really frustrated because I somehow spoiled my J6100 Adapter and cannot patch again. It doesn't recognize the EEPROM Chip anymore. I will have to go the software-workaround without real hibernation and slower boot.

Does someone know, why the BootROM was upgraded without Original SSD?

And does someone have experience patching the BootROM without the J6100 Cable, just with a Clip?

 

[profcutter]

Hello,
I successfully patched my BootROM a month ago with the J6100 adapter. Now I installed the 10.15.4. update, thinking that a patched BootROM with Non-Original-SSD (Sabrent Rocket 2TB) would not be overwritten. But I was mistaken. The update upgraded my BootROM from 158.0.0.0.0 (with NVME Patch) to 159.0.0.0.0 (without Patch). I am really frustrated because I somehow spoiled my J6100 Adapter and cannot patch again. It doesn't recognize the EEPROM Chip anymore. I will have to go the software-workaround without real hibernation and slower boot.

Does someone know, why the BootROM was upgraded without Original SSD?

And does someone have experience patching the BootROM without the J6100 Cable, just with a Clip?

Apple decides when they will provide a bootrom update, it seems like they decided that they’re not checking the drive to see if it’s Apple OEM or not. Who knows why. On my machine, I appreciate it, I’d rather not have to disassemble my machine every time there’s an OS update. As for the J6100 problem, I’m really sorry to hear that. Those adaptors are so expensive, it’s disappointing to hear that they’re not more reliable.

 

[Steffinuss]

As for the J6100 problem, I’m really sorry to hear that. Those adaptors are so expensive, it’s disappointing to hear that they’re not more reliable.

Yes I had one from Luthiania (sold on Ebay) and I used it for a MacBook Air too in which there was not a lot of space and the flex cable needed to be bent quite a lot. I think some of the internal connections cracked because of that. As for disassembling once a month I don't care, for me it's even somehow fun fiddeling with electronics, and I really like to be able to ake up the MacBook when the battery was at 0%.

 

[Tbslc]

Dumb Question.. Is there a reason why the Corsair MP510 is the only SSD written in red letters? (under "Which NVMe SSDs are known to work? "

 

[Ozil123]

Hi peeps

Having read through the entire thread some great contributions and knowledge shared but can see there maybe no definitive solution.

im looking to upgrade my MBP retina 13” early 2015. 128gb. Catalina.
Main reason is storage but if i can improve performance that would be great as the RAM cannot. Day to day browsing photoshop/illustrator use.

Leaning towards Sabrent 1tb with the Sintech adapter setup, though if I’m correct my bootroom is showing as 121.0177.b00, would that be an issue?

Also just some opinions to sway me... would it just be better to buy a used genuine Apple SSD 500gb of ebay (similar price range) instead of the Sabrent 1tb? I mean I would love to speed up my system as well as additional storage but would rather not have to deal with any issues ie battery/ bugs. Any thoughts?

thanks much appreciated!!😀

ash

 

[Ozil123]

Hi peeps

Having read through the entire thread some great contributions and knowledge shared but can see there maybe no definitive solution.

im looking to upgrade my MBP retina 13” early 2015. 128gb. Catalina.
Main reason is storage but if i can improve performance that would be great as the RAM cannot. Day to day browsing photoshop/illustrator use.

Leaning towards Sabrent 1tb with the Sintech adapter setup, though if I’m correct my bootroom is showing as 121.0177.b00, would that be an issue?

Also just some opinions to sway me... would it just be better to buy a used genuine Apple SSD 500gb of ebay (similar price range) instead of the Sabrent 1tb? I mean I would love to speed up my system as well as additional storage but would rather not have to deal with any issues ie battery/ bugs. Any thoughts?

thanks much appreciated!!😀

ash

Apologise High Sierra maybe that’s the bootroom?

 

[korypostma]

Hello,
I successfully patched my BootROM a month ago with the J6100 adapter. Now I installed the 10.15.4. update, thinking that a patched BootROM with Non-Original-SSD (Sabrent Rocket 2TB) would not be overwritten. But I was mistaken. The update upgraded my BootROM from 158.0.0.0.0 (with NVME Patch) to 159.0.0.0.0 (without Patch). I am really frustrated because I somehow spoiled my J6100 Adapter and cannot patch again. It doesn't recognize the EEPROM Chip anymore. I will have to go the software-workaround without real hibernation and slower boot.

Does someone know, why the BootROM was upgraded without Original SSD?

And does someone have experience patching the BootROM without the J6100 Cable, just with a Clip?

The J6100 is a Hirose DF40/DP40 connector, you should be able to buy one from Digikey or Mouser if it is damaged or just resolder it.

 

[Audit13]

Apologise High Sierra maybe that’s the bootroom?

I recommend updating to the latest bootrom before installing the nvme.

 

[profcutter]

Yeah, you can clone your internal drive to the external, then install a newer OS on the internal drive. Swap out the drives, you’ll have a new bootrom and the old OS.

 

[tzevoon]

I've successfully replaced my SSD, thanks (and no thanks) to COVID-19.

My Machine

1. 2013 Macbook Air 13"
2. macOS Mojave 10.14.6
3. 1.3GHz Intel Core i5
4. RAM = 8GB
5. Original SSD = 256GB SSD (Samsung)
6. New SSD = 1TB Adata SX8200 Pro
7. ADAPTER = Sintech short adapter ST-NGFF2013-B (http://eshop.sintech.cn/ngff-m2-pcie-ssd-card-as-2013-2014-2015-macbook-ssd-p-1143.html)

In general these are the steps I took

1. Backup with TimeMachine
2. Download macOS Mojave (https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/macos-mojave/id1398502828?ls=1&mt=12)
3. Created bootable disk using SD card (64GB Samsund Evo Plus)
4. Opening and replacing the SSD was easy - just remember to disconnect the battery before replacing the SSD.
5. Boot up machine with SD card created in (3)
6. Format new Adata SSD
7. Restored from Time Machine - failed 3 times
8. Reboot from SD card again, but this time I install macOS
9. Restore machine using Migration Assistant & Time Machine backup
10. Disable hibernation (i.e set mode to 0)
11. Success...!

Some issues I noticed

1. There is now a noticeable lag during booting before the Apple logo appears
2. But time to login screen is noticeably faster
3. I'm unable to run Time Machine now (stuck on Preparing Backup..) - I suspect it's Spotlight indexing the SSD
4. I have not tried Bootcamp yet, but will try once Spotlight finished indexing and that I can run Time Machine again

Update #1 (2020-03-30)

1. Time Machine was completed successfully.
2. Bootcamp was also installed successfully but with a hiccup. When the error "The Computer restarted unexpectedly..." popped up, I did what has been described in the first post.
3. Bootcamp software in Windows did not install automatically but you can always run it manually. This happened in my old SSD also. So it's nothing serious.
4. Everything is running well now, except the BOOTCAMP partition is now called EFI rather than WINDOWS previously on my old SSD.
5. Went to sleep with 100% charge, woke up with 97% after 7.5 hours. Not bad, even with hibernation disabled.

Update #2 (2020-04-02)

1. It seems like my Calendar and Reminder only mac (Mojave) is broken. It can no longer sync with my other devices (iOS13.3.1).
2. However, other iCloud features such as Contacts, Notes, KeyChain, iCloud Drive is working.
3. Apple also acknowledged this (https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT210220#other) and that mac should be running Catalina.
4. But I cannot understand why it is not working as it was still working (Mojave) before the SSD upgrade.

 

[Weaselboy]

There is now a noticeable lag during booting before the Apple logo appears

Try this... in System Prefs go to the Startup Disk pane and select the new SSD as the boot drive.

You have changed the boot drive and the Mac is likely searching all around for boot drives, then finally finds your new drive and boots... and this can cause the delay you are seeing.

 

[Audit13]

1. Download macOS Mojave (https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/macos-mojave/id1398502828?ls=1&mt=12)

I recommend installing the latest Catalina release before restoring from TM to ensure your MacBook is running the latest bootrom.

 

[korypostma]

Just a head's up, I just updated my development macbook pro 11,3 to Mojave 10.14.6 and it updated the bootrom from 158.0.0.0 to 159.0.0.0. So no need to use latest Catalina (at least for the MBP11,3) as it seems that the latest Mojave has the bootrom update as well. I'm curious what this latest bootrom version does or means for NVME drives. Anyone know yet?

 

[a-maxime]

Hi everyone,

Having a "imagent quits unexpectedly" problem, I may have to update from Mojave 10.14.6 to Catalina 10.15.4 in order to get rid of it on my MacBookPro11,2 . My current BootROM is 156.0.0.0 which is I think the same one than when I did my NMVe Patch back in August 2019. My question is : is there any risk to update ? I think that you'll answer me to make a TM backup : its already done on my NAS.

My other question is, if my BootROM is updated, how to check if my patch is still working ?

Thanks a lot,
Max

 

[Audit13]

Just a head's up, I just updated my development macbook pro 11,3 to Mojave 10.14.6 and it updated the bootrom from 158.0.0.0 to 159.0.0.0. So no need to use latest Catalina (at least for the MBP11,3) as it seems that the latest Mojave has the bootrom update as well. I'm curious what this latest bootrom version does or means for NVME drives. Anyone know yet?

Thanks for the information. Do you know if the SMC version also gets changed or is that static? I attached a screenshot from my mid-2014 13" Pro.

 

[chanawar]

Do you guys know that could I install XPG Gammix S11 Pro with heatsink on Macbook Pro 13" 2013 late?

Its dimensions are 80 x 22 x 6.1mm

6.1mm will be fit nicely? I think it can be removable but it could loose warranty and its little bit risky.

 

[ZERO16LIVES]

Hello all, glad to have found this thread as I’ve been doing a lot of googling and even asked some questions about this on the Apple forums and didn’t get much help.

First, a TL;DR:
Can you add your serial to the scap file and flash that with a programmer, or does it have to be a dump? If it has to be a dump does anyone know where I can get one for a mid-2014 MacBook Pro (MBP11,3)?

So, quick rundown of my situation, in case you want to know:
I bought a mid-2014 MacBook Pro (MBP 11,3) without a charger or ssd for cheap because the guy claimed it was broken. It appears that it isn’t as it boots and works fine. I bought an nvme ssd and adapter (the bad one unfortunately, I really should have done more research beforehand) but found out that the bootrom was only from Sierra so I can’t boot from it. I bought a used Apple ssd but it doesn’t boot either (I figured it would work because the ad said it was from a 2014 iMac, I assume it doesn't because its PCIe 2.0 x4). So, I eventually decided to buy a programmer and it'll be here Wednesday.
Thanks!

 

[XXNNMM]

Hello All

Great thread and very useful information,

Tho I did not see in the chart in the first post the Sabrent Rocket 1TB Q (SB-RKTQ-1TB) (QLC),

I have a MacBook Pro 13" Mid-2014, I guess I won't see a difference of speed performance.

What about the Power Efficiency ? Is it better than Sabren Rocket 1 TB (SB-ROCKET-1TB) (TLC) ?

QLC vs TLC I ve checked on internet - it seems QLC is consumptionless.

In other terms for my laptop what is better for a consumption point of view in reality ?


Thank you
[automerge]1585644059[/automerge]

Hello all, glad to have found this thread as I’ve been doing a lot of googling and even asked some questions about this on the Apple forums and didn’t get much help.

First, a TL;DR:
Can you add your serial to the scap file and flash that with a programmer, or does it have to be a dump? If it has to be a dump does anyone know where I can get one for a mid-2014 MacBook Pro (MBP11,3)?

So, quick rundown of my situation, in case you want to know:
I bought a mid-2014 MacBook Pro (MBP 11,3) without a charger or ssd for cheap because the guy claimed it was broken. It appears that it isn’t as it boots and works fine. I bought an nvme ssd and adapter (the bad one unfortunately, I really should have done more research beforehand) but found out that the bootrom was only from Sierra so I can’t boot from it. I bought a used Apple ssd but it doesn’t boot either (I figured it would work because the ad said it was from a 2014 iMac, I assume it doesn't because its PCIe 2.0 x4). So, I eventually decided to buy a programmer and it'll be here Wednesday.
Thanks!

Hi have you tried to boot on USB Adapter to install the OS

 

[XXNNMM]

Do you guys know that could I install XPG Gammix S11 Pro with heatsink on Macbook Pro 13" 2013 late?

Its dimensions are 80 x 22 x 6.1mm

6.1mm will be fit nicely? I think it can be removable but it could loose warranty and its little bit risky.

View attachment 902460

I think you won't have enough space but try

If you want to remove heat with a blower first

 

[korypostma]

Thanks for the information. Do you know if the SMC version also gets changed or is that static? I attached a screenshot from my mid-2014 13" Pro.

2.19f12 on both MacbookPro11,3 where one has Boot ROM version of 158.0.0.0 and the other has 159.0.0.0. So no, it did not update the SMC Version.

 

[korypostma]

Hello all, glad to have found this thread as I’ve been doing a lot of googling and even asked some questions about this on the Apple forums and didn’t get much help.

First, a TL;DR:
Can you add your serial to the scap file and flash that with a programmer, or does it have to be a dump? If it has to be a dump does anyone know where I can get one for a mid-2014 MacBook Pro (MBP11,3)?

So, quick rundown of my situation, in case you want to know:
I bought a mid-2014 MacBook Pro (MBP 11,3) without a charger or ssd for cheap because the guy claimed it was broken. It appears that it isn’t as it boots and works fine. I bought an nvme ssd and adapter (the bad one unfortunately, I really should have done more research beforehand) but found out that the bootrom was only from Sierra so I can’t boot from it. I bought a used Apple ssd but it doesn’t boot either (I figured it would work because the ad said it was from a 2014 iMac, I assume it doesn't because its PCIe 2.0 x4). So, I eventually decided to buy a programmer and it'll be here Wednesday.
Thanks!

AFAIK, a 256GB drive would allow you to update the Boot ROM. A 128GB will not because it lacks two SSD sensors. You could buy those on eBay for around $50-$60, which is about the same price as a programmer with the J6100 Hirose DF40 connector. Which programmer setup are you planning on using? Also, I have never updated the Boot ROM via the programmer and I'm not sure if it is even possible as I have been unable to find any instructions for it. So what is your plan of attack? I'm interested in learning, always...

 

[ZERO16LIVES]

Hi have you tried to boot on USB Adapter to install the OS

I haven’t, but I can install when it’s in the laptop just can’t boot because the firmware is old.

AFAIK, a 256GB drive would allow you to update the Boot ROM. A 128GB will not because it lacks two SSD sensors. You could buy those on eBay for around $50-$60, which is about the same price as a programmer with the J6100 Hirose DF40 connector. Which programmer setup are you planning on using? Also, I have never updated the Boot ROM via the programmer and I'm not sure if it is even possible as I have been unable to find any instructions for it. So what is your plan of attack? I'm interested in learning, always...

I have a 256gb nvme drive, but since I can’t boot from it I still can’t update the firmware... I bought a CH341A programmer and soic-8 clip (probably a clone or something?) from amazon for about $11. It should be compatible with flashrom, but in case it’s not I have an old arduino uno laying around to try. I’ve seen guides on flashing the firmware with a programmer but not using the scap file only with dumps so I’m not sure if the scap is in the right format... One of the guides I’ve seen does tell you how to replace the serial in a dump so I was gonna do that. I’d much rather find a rom dump that I could use but I haven’t found one yet.

 

[korypostma]

I haven’t, but I can install when it’s in the laptop just can’t boot because the firmware is old.

I have a 256gb nvme drive, but since I can’t boot from it I still can’t update the firmware... I bought a CH341A programmer and soic-8 clip (probably a clone or something?) from amazon for about $11. It should be compatible with flashrom, but in case it’s not I have an old arduino uno laying around to try. I’ve seen guides on flashing the firmware with a programmer but not using the scap file only with dumps so I’m not sure if the scap is in the right format... One of the guides I’ve seen does tell you how to replace the serial in a dump so I was gonna do that. I’d much rather find a rom dump that I could use but I haven’t found one yet.

OK, well reading and writing the firmware is trivial but the serial number is a different matter as there is a hash for the firmware as well and that needs signing from Apple as they hold the private keys. I saw there is a way to assign a serial number with a blank serial programmer or something like that but I have not had to do that yet. So I'm not sure if it is possible to do what you want to do, but I'm interested in learning. The 256GB SSD I was talking about is an Apple 256GB SSD. They are fairly inexpensive and nice to have around as a backup.