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

[davidw89]

Latest Crucial P2 is a joke. Actually it started as a joke too. It's energy efficient. Yes. Price is cheaper than most other candidates. Yes. Performance is pretty bad once the tiny and fast cache runs out. Folks reported the issue a few pages back.

Crucial P2 was a 'miracle & mistake' only early this year. A small batch of P2 released early this year that was both energy efficient AND performed very well. But it's history. It's gone. No more.

Don't buy Crucial P2 unless you know what you're buying into. It's much worse than Apple originals you're replacing. Don't complain and regret once you find out after only writing a few GB's your new P2 boils down to 40~50MB/s write speed.

Bummer, already installed. Which energy efficient SSD drive do you recommend then for Macbook Pro 2015 Mid?

My mate runs it on Windows 10, so if there's any issues, I'll be the first to find out.

 

[kvic]

Here are my results with ssdpmenabler before and after @kvic

This is my system information:
• MacbookPro11,4
• Firmware 427.140.8.0.0
• macOS Big Sur 11.5
• SK Hynix P31 Gold 1TB

Before installing ssdpmenabler, my idle current was around 150mA


After installing ssdpmenabler, my idle current dropped to around 80mA. Not as good as the 0.01A that @vince22 recorded, but a nice drop.

Thanks for sharing. When was your P31 manufactured? Seems there are variations in P31 between now and 2020 (?) I at least saw one reputable online tech site that recorded 100mA idle out of the box. 10mA idle with power management enabled.

Now I could double-check that without SsdPmEnabler my Crucial P2 SSD uses 0,12A in idle while it uses 0,04A with SsdPmEnabler loaded.

Your Crucial P2 is a recent purchase right? The figures 100mA idle (out of box) and 10mA with ssdpmEnabler were coming from a 'small batch' of P2 early this year that have TLC NAND chips rather than QLC NAND chips in latest batches.

You know probably more about that SSD model than I do. But I whish there would be an objective testing method, as suggested before.
How about using AJA System Test? It allows for testing with a 64GB file. Isn't that big enough? Set Resolution to "5120x2700 5K RED", Test file size to "64GB" and Codec to "ProResHQ".

Run the 5G file test in BlackMagic Design continuously until the write speed slows down significantly. Most SSDs will be less than half of initial speed after only after a few iterations.

Bummer, already installed. Which energy efficient SSD drive do you recommend then for Macbook Pro 2015 Mid?

My mate runs it on Windows 10, so if there's any issues, I'll be the first to find out.

Check it out yourself: confirmed working models.

 

[isleeptill12]

Thanks for sharing. When was your P31 manufactured? Seems there are variations in P31 between now and 2020 (?) I at least saw one reputable online tech site that recorded 100mA idle out of the box. 10mA idle with power management enabled.


Your Crucial P2 is a recent purchase right? The figures 100mA idle (out of box) and 10mA with ssdpmEnabler were coming from a 'small batch' of P2 early this year that have TLC NAND chips rather than QLC NAND chips in latest batches.


Run the 5G file test in BlackMagic Design continuously until the write speed slows down significantly. Most SSDs will be less than half of initial speed after only after a few iterations.



Check it out yourself: confirmed working models.

I checked the box and didn't see a manufacture date. I bought my P31 gold to upgrade my other Mac system last November without checking if it was compatible or not, so it was sitting around until recently. I've heard that there are two? models, a green pcb version and a black pcb version. Mine is has a green pcb.

The difference in power consumption isn't such a big deal for me, I'm just happy I can use the damn thing and provide some documentation.

One thing I did notice after installing ssdpmenabler was increased UI smoothness. Before, scrolling through web pages and other basic tasks felt very laggy. Now, everything feels smooth, just as macOS on an ssd should.

 

[shafez]

Have you tried to follow the Uninstall/Re-install steps in the Guide?

If you know what you're doing, you can skip "enabling/disabling kext signing" steps. Otherwise, simply follow all the steps. I spent lots of time preparing the Guide. I don't like to call it fool proof but I have a very general and wide target audience in mind when I wrote it. Being in the industry long enough, I know how to prevent people from making mistakes.

Kext is very simple from end-user perspective. You either load it (and run it) or you don't load it (and not run it). With that said, I may make disabling ssdpmEnabler as simple as eating ice-cream in a future release. I realize such a feature beneifts people who perform frequent tests/benchmarks.


You couldn't find SK Hynix P31 Gold in Australia?

Latest Crucial P2 is a joke. Actually it started as a joke too. It's energy efficient. Yes. Price is cheaper than most other candidates. Yes. Performance is pretty bad once the tiny and fast cache runs out. Folks reported the issue a few pages back.

Crucial P2 was a 'miracle & mistake' only early this year. A small batch of P2 released early this year that was both energy efficient AND performed very well. But it's history. It's gone. No more.

Don't buy Crucial P2 unless you know what you're buying into. It's much worse than Apple originals you're replacing. Don't complain and regret once you find out after only writing a few GB's your new P2 boils down to 40~50MB/s write speed.

EDIT:

I should add that I have little idea about the current market price and availability of P31. My price impression was from a few months back before HDD/SSD/NVMe prices went crazy. I recall having seen 1TB P31 at ~$105 price point. That was a steal. 1TB P31 for ~$150 and 200GBP? I would rather wait if you could..

I have Crucial P2 512 installed on my MBP 13" Late 2013, at the beginning I had performance issues, read and write speed where around 650mb/s but after enabling background defragmentation as instructed in the below Link the speed pumped up to 1300+ mb/s.

Defragging an APFS hard disk. - Apple Community

discussions.apple.com

UPDATE: According to the below document at Crucial, It is not recommended to defragment the SSD.

Should You Defrag an SSD?

There are many questions around whether to defrag an SSD. Head to Crucial for expert advice on solid state drives and whether defragmentation is necessary.

www.crucial.com

 

[olfo]

I think people need FAQs. Page 1 of the thread is still a great reference, as well as kvic's page, but information is too hard to find on 366 pages altogether. I'd volunteer to help.

 

[kvic]

I have Crucial P2 512 installed on my MBP 13" Late 2013, at the beginning I had performance issues, read and write speed where around 650mb/s but after enabling background defragmentation as instructed in the below Link the speed pumped up to 1300+ mb/s.

Defragging an APFS hard disk. - Apple Community

discussions.apple.com

This is an interesting finding but I believe it doesn't address the main issue of the new Crucial P2.

Fragmentation is an issue for spinning HDD. Hence, there is defragmentation tool to undo fragmentation and recover lost speed. For SSDs which are semiconductor chips, fragmentation/defragmentation are _not_ a thing. Hence, by default Apple disables this feature for SSDs formatted as APFS. I think there may have negative side effect in the long term if you force it on.

Here is my guess what happened to your observed speed up. When you enable defragmentation in the background, macOS is likely also performing TRIM continuously (or as frequent as the 'defragmentation' operations happen). Hence, you see recovered speed.

As explained in one of my recent posts, after heavy use (benchmarking in BlackMagic day in day out), the system may take longer time to finish TRIM. Reboot or sleep/wake a couple more time should finish all TRIM activities. And your SSD should speed up closer to like new.

IIRC, the real issue for the new Crucial P2 uncovered in May/June timeframe in this thread is the worst-case performance. Crucial P2 comes with a tiny SLC cache. Continuous and huge write will very quickly throttle down to its true speed which according to some members' reports is about 40-50MB/s.

You can help to confirm or refute such claims by performing the 5GB file test I suggested earlier to @olfo in my previous post.

As a general-purpose SSD (i.e. office type of workload, occasional photo & video editing, browsing & email), Crucial P2 still does its job well. I would be happy with it since I had saved quite a bit money to begin with.

 

[shafez]

This is an interesting finding but I believe it doesn't address the main issue of the new Crucial P2.

Fragmentation is an issue for spinning HDD. Hence, there is defragmentation tool to undo fragmentation and recover lost speed. For SSDs which are semiconductor chips, fragmentation/defragmentation are _not_ a thing. Hence, by default Apple disables this feature for SSDs formatted as APFS. I think there may have negative side effect in the long term if you force it on.

Here is my guess what happened to your observed speed up. When you enable defragmentation in the background, macOS is likely also performing TRIM continuously (or as frequent as the 'defragmentation' operations happen). Hence, you see recovered speed.

As explained in one of my recent posts, after heavy use (benchmarking in BlackMagic day in day out), the system may take longer time to finish TRIM. Reboot or sleep/wake a couple more time should finish all TRIM activities. And your SSD should speed up closer to like new.

IIRC, the real issue for the new Crucial P2 uncovered in May/June timeframe in this thread is the worst-case performance. Crucial P2 comes with a tiny SLC cache. Continuous and huge write will very quickly throttle down to its true speed which according to some members' reports is about 40-50MB/s.

You can help to confirm or refute such claims by performing the 5GB file test I suggested earlier to @olfo in my previous post.

As a general-purpose SSD (i.e. office type of workload, occasional photo & video editing, browsing & email), Crucial P2 still does its job well. I would be happy with it since I had saved quite a bit money to begin with.

I have run the 5gb file test for 10 minutes and the speed was almost constant.

 

[shafez]

According to the below document at Crucial, It is not recommended to defragment the SSD.

Should You Defrag an SSD?

There are many questions around whether to defrag an SSD. Head to Crucial for expert advice on solid state drives and whether defragmentation is necessary.

www.crucial.com

 

[egalitarian]

I have problems installing the lilu kext on my MBP 2015 with Big Sur. When I copy it to Library/Extensions and reboot the system crashes and I have to boot into recovery to remove it. ssdpmenabler works just fine. Anyone with similar problems? My NVMe is Corsair P2.

 

[isleeptill12]

I have problems installing the lilu kext on my MBP 2015 with Big Sur. When I copy it to Library/Extensions and reboot the system crashes and I have to boot into recovery to remove it. ssdpmenabler works just fine. Anyone with similar problems? My NVMe is Corsair P2.

You need to add the boot-arg “keepsyms=1” in recovery mode as per the quote below.

For those of you on Big Sur and who want to try enabling NVMeFix again - I did a bit of research and found the Kernel Panics were due to the Lilu kext having a compatibility issue on Big Sur.

You need to add "keepsyms=1" to boot-args, after loading in the kext, before your first boot.

To do this:
Download and install Lilu.kext and NVMeFix.kext
Reboot in recovery mode (CMD + R)
Open up terminal

Type in:

nvram boot-args="keepsyms=1"

Reboot and you should enter macOS normally.

 

[olfo]

Some questions about the SK hynix Gold P31 :
What firmware version is needed for Mac compatibility?
Is the firmware version mentioned on the box, so you can check from the outside?
Do you need Windows to update the firmware (which I don't have)?
Is there an alternative method for firmware updates, like extracting the ROM and putting it on a bootable USB stick?
Thanks in advance.

 

[quaresma]

Has anyone tried Volta in combination with SSD PM enabler and NVMefix? Maybe that could increase battery life even more.

 

[vince22]

Some questions about the SK hynix Gold P31 :
What firmware version is needed for Mac compatibility?
Is the firmware version mentioned on the box, so you can check from the outside?
Do you need Windows to update the firmware (which I don't have)?
Is there an alternative method for firmware updates, like extracting the ROM and putting it on a bootable USB stick?
Thanks in advance.

you need a windows pc with available PCI-e slot, install drive manager utility( PC version only) follow instructions how to update firmware (hint: download latest firmware from Hynix website, upload firmware to P31 drive, lastly activate firmware ) external sources will not work. good luck.

 

[olfo]

Ok, so as I have seen on your screenshot above, the working Mac firmware is 41062C20 – correct?
Has anyone seen this firmware coming preinstalled on current P31 SSDs?

 

[vince22]

Ok, so as I have seen on your screenshot above, the working Mac firmware is 41062C20 – correct?
Has anyone seen this firmware coming preinstalled on current P31 SSDs?

That is correct.

 

[potatoboii]

I ordered Crucial P2 500GB SSD. But after reading that they now ship with slower QLC NAND type.I cancelled them. I am now left confused about what to buy. Any suggestions(across different price point)? I use Macbook pro Retina Mid 2014 13 inch. Already upgraded to Big Sur, so I have the latest BOOT ROM.
Edit:
I came across Kingston A2000. It comes in my budget. Did you guys face any problems with it?

 

[Frisklyy]

Ok, so as I have seen on your screenshot above, the working Mac firmware is 41062C20 – correct?
Has anyone seen this firmware coming preinstalled on current P31 SSDs?

I purchased a P31 on Amazon on 7/28, came in today and has firmware 41061C20.

 

[Max K]

Hi guys! I have MacBook Pro a1425 (Early 2013). Which ssd me need buy?

 

[isleeptill12]

Some questions about the SK hynix Gold P31 :
What firmware version is needed for Mac compatibility?
Is the firmware version mentioned on the box, so you can check from the outside?
Do you need Windows to update the firmware (which I don't have)?
Is there an alternative method for firmware updates, like extracting the ROM and putting it on a bootable USB stick?
Thanks in advance.

Couldn't you use a bootcamp install USB to install windows on the P31 Gold, upgrade the P31 firmware, then delete windows and install MacOS?

 

[Rimmsi]

Hi, I am choosing a new SSD with a capacity of 2TB for my MBP 15.4 Mid 2014. I have selected this Does anyone have experience with https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/sandisk-extreme-pro-m.2-nvme-3d-ssd,5538.html it in MBP? What else can you recommend me? Thank you.

 

[vince22]

Couldn't you use a bootcamp install USB to install windows on the P31 Gold, upgrade the P31 firmware, then delete windows and install MacOS?

needs updated firmware first before you install to any Mac, will not boot and kernel panic occurs /hang before your log on screen.

 

[white7561]

Anyways just for info. It seems like APFS Encrypted (haven't tried HFS+ Encrypted) requires a 4k block compatible SSD to have it running at full speed. So I was trying APFS encrypted on my external SSD. But the speed was so so much lower than when it's on APFS or other file system . It doesn't make any sense since it's slower than APFS Encrypted on an external HDD etc.

Then after further investigation , with DriveDX software to help diagnose things, it seems that the only drives and external storage devices that have the speed cut down when formatted to APFS Encrypted is the one that only supports 512 . My other drives and external nvme SSD which has 512e/4K support works just fine. Full speed even on APFS encrypted. So it might be good to check out if the SSD you're gonna buy supports 512e/4K or at least supports the 4k

 

[kvic]

Couldn't you use a bootcamp install USB to install windows on the P31 Gold, upgrade the P31 firmware, then delete windows and install MacOS?

The process could be even simpler than that. Using your MBP, install a very basic Win10 (Windows To Go?) on a 32GB (or preferrably 64GB) USB stick. Install P31 into your MBP by swapping out the old SSD blade. Boot your MBP from the USB stick /w Win10. Update P31 firmware. Once done, throw your USB stick into..rubbish bin.

Then proceed as usual with installing MacOS on a fresh SSD.

Won't it work?

EDIT: with more clarity

Has anyone tried Volta in combination with SSD PM enabler and NVMefix? Maybe that could increase battery life even more.

Volta for under clocking CPU? Wasn't there a guy who advocated this around the time you were active in the thread last time around..

Personally I won't touch under clocking CPU 'cos the trade off is perceivable. I guess you could try if you're very paranoid about battery life.

Anyways just for info. It seems like APFS Encrypted (haven't tried HFS+ Encrypted) requires a 4k block compatible SSD to have it running at full speed. So I was trying APFS encrypted on my external SSD. But the speed was so so much lower than when it's on APFS or other file system . It doesn't make any sense since it's slower than APFS Encrypted on an external HDD etc.

Then after further investigation , with DriveDX software to help diagnose things, it seems that the only drives and external storage devices that have the speed cut down when formatted to APFS Encrypted is the one that only supports 512 . My other drives and external nvme SSD which has 512e/4K support works just fine. Full speed even on APFS encrypted. So it might be good to check out if the SSD you're gonna buy supports 512e/4K or at least supports the 4k

I would bet all today's popular choices support both 512b or 4k sector size. For wider compatibility and less complaints from clueless users, I believe vendors choose 512b as factory default.

Virtually there is no perceivable performance difference one way or the other. There was a guy who wrote a blog to demonstrate the results (but I forgot the link).

I don't use File Vault. I would believe your finding is correct for older Mac's. 4K as the smallest encryption unit is certainly way more efficient than 512b, especially when the encryption has to be performed by CPU not a separate co-processor such as T2.

 

[white7561]

I would bet all today's popular choices support both 512b or 4k sector size. For wider compatibility and less complaints from clueless users, I believe vendors choose 512b as factory default.

Virtually there is no perceivable performance difference one way or the other. There was a guy who wrote a blog to demonstrate the results (but I forgot the link).

I don't use File Vault. I would believe your finding is correct for older Mac's. 4K as the smallest encryption unit is certainly way more efficient than 512b, especially when the encryption has to be performed by CPU not a separate co-processor such as T2.

Apparently, not all SSDs supports both. i have a generally new SATA SSD that only supports 512 it seems like from the SMART data. Tho, yeah i think they always use 512e as default but when you use 4k it does seem to work fine..

But yeah, for FileVault i am currently using MBA 2014, which uses CPU to handle encryption. so yeah . but here's the thing, its weird how the speed losses only occurs (atleast in my testing) to drives with 512b only sector. all my storage things that supports 512e/4k works just fine with the same exact speed i get on unencrypted partitions. so that's a thing

Also, out of filevault topic. My current SSD from Apple has about 17MB/s read on the random performance on QD1. I saw that NVMe users usually get 40MB++ random read performance. Does that translate on quicker and snappier feeling on the user experience? or not? I'm trying to see if it makes a difference so i can decide which SSD to buy. Thanks

 

[olfo]

A new BootROM came with the latest security update (2021-005 for Mojave and 2021-004 for Catalina).
Boot-ROM-Version: 431.140.6.0.0
It has been easily installed on the Macbook Pro 11,3 and everything still works.

The latest version for the Macbook Air 7,2 still has a lower number:
Boot-ROM-Version: 427.140.8.0.0

Does anybody have a newer version for these two models?