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

[Superhai]

I don't have the experience and understanding of the hardware but having come across this post (https://ch1p.io/coreboot-macbook-internal-flashing/) that describes how to put CoreBoot onto a Macbook without any kind of external programmer simply by running linux and flashrom I wonder is this a possible method of flashing the older MacBook pros?

I checked this out, but at the moment it requires extensive work to port coreboot to the haswell macs. For the purpose, hw reprogramming is easier and safer.

 

[ignaciobarrena]

¡Hola ignaciobarrena! Your 2015 is lucky enough to run an NVMe drive without the dreaded hibernation issue. Using the SB-ROCKET-1TB on my machine has been enjoyable. I still have yet to install Windows through Bootcamp, so I can only comment on Mac-heavy usage at the moment.

The performance is much improved over the Apple SSD with regards to saving, transferring, and opening RAW and edited photo and video files. The battery life takes a hit. However, because much of my usage is heavy, the power cord is usually connected, making it a non-issue.

At the time I was reading this thread and made my purchase, NVMeFix was not yet on the table. With it, some drives benefit from power draw tweaks, such as the hungry Samsung EVO drives.

For the price, performance, thermals, and power consumption, the Sabrent seemed the best all-around option. I'm pleased with it so far.

There are a handful of thread contributors who've mentioned that Big Sur beta is working on NVMe drives, not certain about Sabrent specifically. I recommend going through the last several pages of this thread.

Thanks a lot for your reply!

Well, it seems I'm getting one soon then haha Is the battery life hit noticeable? It would awesome to see a power comparison between stock 256SSD and 3rd party ones.

What is NVMeFix?

thanks and have a nice day!

 

[mo5214]

¡Hola ignaciobarrena! Your 2015 is lucky enough to run an NVMe drive without the dreaded hibernation issue. Using the SB-ROCKET-1TB on my machine has been enjoyable. I still have yet to install Windows through Bootcamp, so I can only comment on Mac-heavy usage at the moment.

The performance is much improved over the Apple SSD with regards to saving, transferring, and opening RAW and edited photo and video files. The battery life takes a hit. However, because much of my usage is heavy, the power cord is usually connected, making it a non-issue.

At the time I was reading this thread and made my purchase, NVMeFix was not yet on the table. With it, some drives benefit from power draw tweaks, such as the hungry Samsung EVO drives.

For the price, performance, thermals, and power consumption, the Sabrent seemed the best all-around option. I'm pleased with it so far.

There are a handful of thread contributors who've mentioned that Big Sur beta is working on NVMe drives, not certain about Sabrent specifically. I recommend going through the last several pages of this thread.

The battery problem will go away once you install NVMeFix.

 

[mo5214]

Thanks a lot for your reply!

Well, it seems I'm getting one soon then haha Is the battery life hit noticeable? It would awesome to see a power comparison between stock 256SSD and 3rd party ones.

What is NVMeFix?

thanks and have a nice day!

It's a Kext that is designed to enable ASPM (low power states) on 3rd party NVMe Drives.
The kext themselves require Lilu kext. It is common for Hackintoshes. But in is applicable to our use-case.

I use it on mine. (rMBP 15" 2015 with Samsung 970 Evo plus 2TB, MBA 2015 11" w/ 970 Pro 512). Those are sipping battery now as opposed guzzling them.

Note: might take a few reboots for it to take effect. installed both the kexts in /S/L/E (Mojave and Catalina) tho you would need to sudo mount -uw / on Catalina if you want to put it there. Alternative is /L/E

 

[ignaciobarrena]

It's a Kext that is designed to enable ASPM (low power states) on 3rd party NVMe Drives.
The kext themselves require Lilu kext. It is common for Hackintoshes. But in is applicable to our use-case.

I use it on mine. (rMBP 15" 2015 with Samsung 970 Evo plus 2TB, MBA 2015 11" w/ 970 Pro 512). Those are sipping battery now as opposed guzzling them.

Note: might take a few reboots for it to take effect. installed both the kexts in /S/L/E (Mojave and Catalina) tho you would need to sudo mount -uw / on Catalina if you want to put it there. Alternative is /L/E

Thanks!

The Samsung 970 Evo Plus seems to be very powerr hungry. I'm going to buy the Sabrent Rocket I guess, seems the most balanced option.

Is there any installation guide to that NVMeFix kext? I'm not that savy with terminal stuff 😅

 

[mo5214]

Thanks!

The Samsung 970 Evo Plus seems to be very powerr hungry. I'm going to buy the Sabrent Rocket I guess, seems the most balanced option.

Is there any installation guide to that NVMeFix kext? I'm not that savy with terminal stuff 😅

Check my comment regarding Sabrent Rocket from a couple of weeks back.
(Don't buy new Sabrent Rocket 2TB)

As for installation guide to install NVMeFix. the following might not be entirely accurate.

1. diable SIP
in Recovery/USB installer, etc: open utilities->Terminal
in there: csrutil disable.

2. download latest NVMeFix kext from : https://github.com/acidanthera/NVMeFix/releases
3. download latest LiLu kext from : https://github.com/acidanthera/Lilu/releases/

4. you would want to copy to NVMeFix and Lilu kext to either:
/System/Library/Extensions or /Library/Extensions

if you are on Catalina you would need to jump through more hoops. before you copy
do : sudo mount -uw /

5. you would want to change the owner group to match other files
sudo chown -R root:wheel /System/Library/Extensions/<YOURKEXTHERE>/

6. you might have to set boot-arg to boot unsigned kext (not sure if its signed)
in terminal do:
sudo nvram boot-args=debug=0x144

Ask around. Some might have simpler way of doing it (usually kext is installed using hackintoshtool or w/e as its easier)

 

[ignaciobarrena]

Check my comment regarding Sabrent Rocket from a couple of weeks back.
(Don't buy new Sabrent Rocket 2TB)

As for installation guide to install NVMeFix. the following might not be entirely accurate.

1. diable SIP
in Recovery/USB installer, etc: open utilities->Terminal

I was going to pick up Sabrent Rocket 1TB, is that okay? 2TB is too much haha.


thanks a lot!

 

[Earl Urley]

On an rMBP running Mojave 10.14.6 latest version, I installed Lilu 1.4.8 using Hackintool, then NVMeFix 1.0.4.

Rebooted, disabled SIP, rebooted again, checked System Profiler and it seems that LiLu and NVMeFix aren't loaded, they're marked as Loadable: No and aren't signed.

Did I miss a step?

 

[mo5214]

On an rMBP running Mojave 10.14.6 latest version, I installed Lilu 1.4.8 using Hackintool, then NVMeFix 1.0.4.

Rebooted, disabled SIP, rebooted again, checked System Profiler and it seems that LiLu and NVMeFix aren't loaded, they're marked as Loadable: No and aren't signed.

Did I miss a step?

You gonna need add boot-args in order for 10.14+ to load unsigned kexts:

now not sure if it's
sudo boot-args='debug=0x144'
or
sudo boot-args='kext-dev-mode=1'

If I recall correctly the kext-dev-mode=1 is obsolete, and debug mode somehow allows unsigned kext.

I usually have both.

 

[Earl Urley]

Whoops, looks like it's working now.. I had to do a csrutil disable, reboot, verify that SIP was disabled, and then run Hackintool to load LiLu and NVMeFix.

Can't run HT with SIP enabled.

I rebooted after that and then saw that they loaded.

Then I re-enabled SIP again, rebooted, and am relieved to see they continue to load.

Think maybe I'll add OpenCore too, seeing how it's doing fine on my MacPro 5,1..

mo5214, thanks, maybe I'll add the boot-args but for now I'm fine..

Before LiLu / NVMeFix:

idle - 0.2A
Read - 0.3/0.4A
Write - 0.5/0.6A

After Lilu / NVMeFix:

Idle - 0.1A
Read - 0.2/0.4 A
Write - 0.5/0.6A

Figures are from iStat Menus.

Looks like small gains but they add up over time, especially the Idle being 50% less is a big help!

Also forgot to mention, it's an Inland Premium 1 TB SSD.

 

[macpro_mid2014]

You gonna need add boot-args in order for 10.14+ to load unsigned kexts:

now not sure if it's
sudo boot-args='debug=0x144'
or
sudo boot-args='kext-dev-mode=1'

If I recall correctly the kext-dev-mode=1 is obsolete, and debug mode somehow allows unsigned kext.

I usually have both.

Hi, mo5214,

any conclusion about the PCI lanes after I posted the file with the PCI output for the Macbook Pro mid 2014? The file is in tab 292.

Thanks.

 

[Maverick1776]

Hello everyone. I recently bought a MacBook Pro 15" Late 2013 2GHz. I'm running the latest version of Catalina 10.15.7
I swapped the 256GB Apple OEM SSD (Samsung chip based), and replaced it with a Samsung 970 Evo NVMe 500GB along with the gum stick M.2 adapter. I'm noticing 1675 MB Read / 1523 MB Write. It's definitely an upgrade from the stock 820 R / 665 W I was getting before. But the speeds are not up to spec. Is the motherboard for late 2013 PCIE 2.0 ?

Also when running bootcamp along with Windows 10, I installed Samsung Magician, and it also gives me the same read/write speeds. Regardless if I use the Samsung NVMe Driver or not.

Either way, I'm happy with the result, just trying to get the most out of the drive, or as optimized as it can be.

 

[ignaciobarrena]

Whoops, looks like it's working now.. I had to do a csrutil disable, reboot, verify that SIP was disabled, and then run Hackintool to load LiLu and NVMeFix.

Can't run HT with SIP enabled.

I rebooted after that and then saw that they loaded.

Then I re-enabled SIP again, rebooted, and am relieved to see they continue to load.

Think maybe I'll add OpenCore too, seeing how it's doing fine on my MacPro 5,1..

mo5214, thanks, maybe I'll add the boot-args but for now I'm fine..

Before LiLu / NVMeFix:

idle - 0.2A
Read - 0.3/0.4A
Write - 0.5/0.6A

After Lilu / NVMeFix:

Idle - 0.1A
Read - 0.2/0.4 A
Write - 0.5/0.6A

Figures are from iStat Menus.

Looks like small gains but they add up over time, especially the Idle being 50% less is a big help!

Also forgot to mention, it's an Inland Premium 1 TB SSD.

So running the NVMeFix and Lilu kext is mandatory in all Macbooks with replaced SSD? (in order to get more efficient idle consumption).

I thought you only need to run these kexts with 2013 and 2014 macbooks, because of the sleep/hibernation issues...

 

[Audit13]

So running the NVMeFix and Lilu kext is mandatory in all Macbooks with replaced SSD? (in order to get more efficient idle consumption).

I thought you only need to run these kexts with 2013 and 2014 macbooks, because of the sleep/hibernation issues...

I've been out of the upgrade loop for a while but it's my understanding that these kexts are for enabling power management in NVMe drives and will not resolve hibernation/sleep issues with 2013 and 2014 Pros and Airs.

GitHub - acidanthera/NVMeFix

Contribute to acidanthera/NVMeFix development by creating an account on GitHub.

github.com

 

[mad cow disease]

I haven't checked into this thread in a while...wondering if anybody has insight into this issue I've been having.

I am consistently getting kernel panics which reference the NVMEExpress driver. The panics usually happen when using Zoom and multitasking in the background -- which is problematic because I present using Zoom. Using Sintech Long adapter with a SX8200 960 GB on a 2015 13", Catalina 10.15.7.

Is this potentially a firmware issue? Firmware is 180.0.0.0 which is quite old, probably a year out of date.

 

[Audit13]

I haven't checked into this thread in a while...wondering if anybody has insight into this issue I've been having.

I am consistently getting kernel panics which reference the NVMEExpress driver. The panics usually happen when using Zoom and multitasking in the background -- which is problematic because I present using Zoom. Using Sintech Long adapter with a SX8200 960 GB on a 2015 13", Catalina 10.15.7.

Is this potentially a firmware issue? Firmware is 180.0.0.0 which is quite old, probably a year out of date.

Are you sure that the drive and adapter are fitting properly? I'm asking because some people have found that using the long adapter with a NVMe drive that has memory chips on both sides caused the drive to bend slightly when the screw is tightened.

 

[mo5214]

Hi, mo5214,

any conclusion about the PCI lanes after I posted the file with the PCI output for the Macbook Pro mid 2014? The file is in tab 292.

Thanks.

From the

the PCI Bridge that is connected to your NVMe Drive seems to be of different one:
Your root port:
Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port #5
LinkCap is 5GT/s x4 width

My root port:
Intel Corporation Crystal well PCI Express x4 Controller
LinkCap is 8GT/s x4 width

As a result you can see this in your NVMe Card linkSta section:
LnkSta: Speed 5GT/s (downgraded), Width x4 (ok)

So I guess that the PCIe in the 2015 models could be routed via the CPU PCIe lanes instead of via the PCH as it has been in 2013-2014 models.

Again, its an educated guess at best. Might have to confirm with the signal routing when cross-checking with the schematics between models (If I lay my hands on one)

I've been out of the upgrade loop for a while but it's my understanding that these kexts are for enabling power management in NVMe drives and will not resolve hibernation/sleep issues with 2013 and 2014 Pros and Airs.

GitHub - acidanthera/NVMeFix

Contribute to acidanthera/NVMeFix development by creating an account on GitHub.

github.com

That's correct. From what I read, the hibernation/sleep issues is caused by a "buggy" DXE NVMe driver in the bootROM. Only way to fix that is to flash the "patched" rom using the patched DXE NVMe driver module extracted from the bootROM from 2015 Macbooks.

 

[Elviss116]

Transcend Jetdrive work without adapter but cost a fortune. Oscoo work without adapter but hard to found. Adapter is your best bet. As for the SSD, you might want to look for Lexar NM700, or WD SN550 or Adata SX8200 pro.

Hi
I found this ssd ADATA XPG GAMMIX S11

US $52.05 17％ dto. | ADATA XPG GAMMIX S11 256GB 512GB Lite PCIe 3D Gen3x4 M.2 NVMe 2280 SSD unidad de estado sólido para ordenador portátil de escritorio disco duro interno

US $52.05 17％ dto. | ADATA XPG GAMMIX S11 256GB 512GB Lite PCIe 3D Gen3x4 M.2 NVMe 2280 SSD unidad de estado sólido para ordenador portátil de escritorio disco duro interno

a.aliexpress.com

I have MacBook Pro 2015 - 13”

 

[herb2k]

Hi
I found this ssd ADATA XPG GAMMIX S11

US $52.05 17％ dto. | ADATA XPG GAMMIX S11 256GB 512GB Lite PCIe 3D Gen3x4 M.2 NVMe 2280 SSD unidad de estado sólido para ordenador portátil de escritorio disco duro interno

US $52.05 17％ dto. | ADATA XPG GAMMIX S11 256GB 512GB Lite PCIe 3D Gen3x4 M.2 NVMe 2280 SSD unidad de estado sólido para ordenador portátil de escritorio disco duro interno

a.aliexpress.com

I have MacBook Pro 2015 - 13”

If it has the integrated heatsink, you won't have the clearance in your machine. Stick to the ones the previous poster recommended.

 

[cucu007]

Check my comment regarding Sabrent Rocket from a couple of weeks back.
(Don't buy new Sabrent Rocket 2TB)

As for installation guide to install NVMeFix. the following might not be entirely accurate.

1. diable SIP
in Recovery/USB installer, etc: open utilities->Terminal
in there: csrutil disable.

2. download latest NVMeFix kext from : https://github.com/acidanthera/NVMeFix/releases
3. download latest LiLu kext from : https://github.com/acidanthera/Lilu/releases/

4. you would want to copy to NVMeFix and Lilu kext to either:
/System/Library/Extensions or /Library/Extensions

if you are on Catalina you would need to jump through more hoops. before you copy
do : sudo mount -uw /

5. you would want to change the owner group to match other files
sudo chown -R root:wheel /System/Library/Extensions/<YOURKEXTHERE>/

6. you might have to set boot-arg to boot unsigned kext (not sure if its signed)
in terminal do:
sudo nvram boot-args=debug=0x144

Ask around. Some might have simpler way of doing it (usually kext is installed using hackintoshtool or w/e as its easier)

Thanks mo5214,
This is a good write up for the rest of us. I have a mid 2014 MBP 15....waiting on a deal for a sabrent rocket 1TB...hope to see something pop up soon...price on these have drop much...I keep seen deals on WD, ADATA, Samsung....but Sabrent is keeping their stuff high for now.

 

[cucu007]

Howdy Jedi82! Nice handle! 😄 Please excuse the delayed reply. I've been pouring over every page to finally get to the end of this thread and absorb everything. I've been running the Sabrent for over 1.5 months without crashes or other issues.

If I'm doing heavy load work such as photo or video editing, yes, the temp gets hot; 80-90ºC. For light work and idle, not so much.

There are zero issues closing and opening the lid. The MBP is usually connected to power when working. The battery lasts 5.5-6hrs unplugged while watching video at low brightness. I've learned that the hibernation issue only presents when the battery goes flat, so I just don't allow it to go flat.

I don't have a benchmark on the Apple SSD at the moment, however, here is a benchmark from the Sabrent.

I'm still working on tweaks and setting the MBP up to where it was, including Bootcamp. It looks like the next step is NVMeFix to improve power efficiency even more.

Once I have Bootcamp setup, Win10, and other programs installed and running, I'll know if the drive is worth it for me. For pure Mac use and limited Win use with Parallels or VMFusion, yes, I think it's worth it.

This is the drive I am keeping an eye on, waiting for a good sale on it. Sabrent is keeping is prices high compare to WD, Samsung, ADATA.

 

[Earl Urley]

So running the NVMeFix and Lilu kext is mandatory in all Macbooks with replaced SSD? (in order to get more efficient idle consumption).

I wouldn't say it's mandatory, you can live a fulfilled life without them, but if you want to squeeze the most out of your rMBP's battery or notice that your laptop doesn't run as long with the 3rd Party SSD installed, then install them.

Hopefully at some point LiLu and NVMeFix get updated to Big Sur compatibility.

 

[ravetcofx]

Does this exist? Otherwise whats the best fix for the Macbook 11,3 sleep/hibernate issues?

 

[Audit13]

Does this exist? Otherwise whats the best fix for the Macbook 11,3 sleep/hibernate issues?

To fix the sleep/hibernation issue with a NVMe drive in a 2013 or 2014 Pro or Air, you can disable hibernation or flash a patched bootrom with the NVMe fix.

 

[mad cow disease]

Are you sure that the drive and adapter are fitting properly? I'm asking because some people have found that using the long adapter with a NVMe drive that has memory chips on both sides caused the drive to bend slightly when the screw is tightened.

Yes, when I had to secure the drive it bowed slightly. But I don't follow how that results in kernel panics consistently using the same app. I installed this over two years ago and it's been going fine until recently.