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

[otosan]

Thanks ill check that out. But i though those things were not needed anymore if the macbook had the newest boot rom from big sur, which i have.

or does it only work if i use opencore and upgrade to a newer MacOS?

Also it says this on Github.

"Note that MacBookPro11,1 and MacBookAir6,2 are not compatible with 3rd-party NVMe SSDs in lower power modes. Owners of these two models are not recommended to install ssdpmEnabler as it will result in crash."

Since you are using migration assistant from an old 2011 macbook, you might want to reset your power management settings, (older macbook that come with spinning drive has different standby/sleep/hibernation value/settings)

open terminal,

run this command :

sudo pmset restoredefaults

enter

then run this command :

sudo pmset -a powernap 0 standbydelaylow 1500 standbydelayhigh 1500

enter again

that's it,

bar any hardware issue, you should experience no battery drain overnight

also, reset your SMC won't hurt either. I assume you unplug your battery during ssd installation, and any battery re-placement/installation should be accompanied by SMC reset.

 

[Charbs20]

Since you are using migration assistant from an old 2011 macbook, you might want to reset your power management settings, (older macbook that come with spinning drive has different standby/sleep/hibernation value/settings)

open terminal,

run this command :

sudo pmset restoredefaults

enter

then run this command :

sudo pmset -a powernap 0 standbydelaylow 1500 standbydelayhigh 1500

enter again

that's it,

bar any hardware issue, you should experience no battery drain overnight

also, reset your SMC won't hurt either. I assume you unplug your battery during ssd installation, and any battery re-placement/installation should be accompanied by SMC reset.

Thanks for this info. Seems to be ok now. I closed the lid last night with 80% charge. 13 hours later it only dropped 3 per cent to 77. I say thats not bad for a 10 year old battery with over 800 charge cycles.

 

[DeltaMac]

I would be curious what coconutBattery shows about your battery...

 

[Charbs20]

Ok new problem. The laptop runs great but so far over the last 5 days I have ran into a strange problem where after the macbook is sleep or idle for a random period of time, it wont wake up and then when it finally does i get the dreaded question mark folder on a black screen. It cant seem to find the startup disk after sleeping.

Happened once when i opened the lid a few days ago. And then again today after the screen shut off from only being idle for about 5-10 minutes, lid wasnt even closed. Tried pressing a key to wake up the screen, nothing happens. Then eventually question mark again.

 

[DeltaMac]

Check that your boot drive is selected in the Startup Disk preference pane.

 

[Charbs20]

Check that your boot drive is selected in the Startup Disk preference pane.

It is. There is only one option and the mac boots fine every time. Its just a weird problem that is happening after sleep/hybernate. Also I ran first aid on every partition on this drive and there are no reported errors anywhere.

 

[otosan]

Ok new problem. The laptop runs great but so far over the last 5 days I have ran into a strange problem where after the macbook is sleep or idle for a random period of time, it wont wake up and then when it finally does i get the dreaded question mark folder on a black screen. It cant seem to find the startup disk after sleeping.

Happened once when i opened the lid a few days ago. And then again today after the screen shut off from only being idle for about 5-10 minutes, lid wasnt even closed. Tried pressing a key to wake up the screen, nothing happens. Then eventually question mark again.

Some other WD and Crucial models also suffer from this kind of behaviour. It happen due to some delay from the ssd to actually wake up/powered on from sleep/off state.

that's one of reason why i still not recommend them (WD & newer crucial ssd) even when some users said it work just fine on their macbook.

Best mitigation is to only shutdown your macbook when not in use. Do not left it in sleep/hibernation state.

Other option would be to try to use OpenCore. Or, disable sleep/hibernation altogether : sudo pmset -a sleep 0 standby 0 hibernatemode 0 autopoweroff 0

 

[Charbs20]

Some other WD and Crucial models also suffer from this kind of behaviour. It happen due to some delay from the ssd to actually wake up/powered on from sleep/off state.

that's one of reason why i still not recommend them (WD & newer crucial ssd) even when some users said it work just fine on their macbook.

Best mitigation is to only shutdown your macbook when not in use. Do not left it in sleep/hibernation state.

Other option would be to try to use OpenCore. Or, disable sleep/hibernation altogether : sudo pmset -a sleep 0 standby 0 hibernatemode 0 autopoweroff 0

So if I upgraded to Monterey with opencore it would fix this problem?

Any disadvantages to running Monterey on 2014 MacBook Pro?

Would I still be able to use migration assistant to move over all my stuff (most likely from Time Machine this time)

 

[otosan]

So if I upgraded to Monterey with opencore it would fix this problem?

Any disadvantages to running Monterey on 2014 MacBook Pro?

Would I still be able to use migration assistant to move over all my stuff (most likely from Time Machine this time)

I can't say whether it can really solve it or not. But that's one of the option you can choose to try to fix it.

You can use migration assistant just fine. Although you can upgrade directly without wiping, so no need to restore anything.

No disadvantages actually. 2014 models support metal graphics anyway. If i were you, i might just go straight to Ventura instead, it save plenty of GB (Ventura system is smaller) and will prolong your security and app support.

in the case that the issue still persist (question mark folder) i suggest you to return the SN570 and pick other models that known to have zero problem.

 

[macpro_mid2014]

I've been using Ventura + OLCP on my MBP11,2 since day one of Ventura release without any major issues.

If you are a security paranoid, stay with Monterey because, in Ventura, SIP needs to be partially disabled. In my humble opinion, the security fixes released in Ventura compared to the ones in Monterey are worth having the lowered SIP.

Currently, OCLP is able to lower the SSD (SN550) consumption from 0.31A to 0.17A idle.

FYI:

System Integrity Protection status: unknown (Custom Configuration).
Configuration:
Apple Internal: disabled
Kext Signing: disabled
Filesystem Protections: disabled
Debugging Restrictions: enabled
DTrace Restrictions: enabled
NVRAM Protections: enabled
BaseSystem Verification: enabled

 

[Charbs20]

I've been using Ventura + OLCP on my MBP11,2 since day one of Ventura release without any major issues.

If you are a security paranoid, stay with Monterey because, in Ventura, SIP needs to be partially disabled. In my humble opinion, the security fixes released in Ventura compared to the ones in Monterey are worth having the lowered SIP.

Currently, OCLP is able to lower the SSD (SN550) consumption from 0.31A to 0.17A idle.

FYI:

System Integrity Protection status: unknown (Custom Configuration).
Configuration:
Apple Internal: disabled
Kext Signing: disabled
Filesystem Protections: disabled
Debugging Restrictions: enabled
DTrace Restrictions: enabled
NVRAM Protections: enabled
BaseSystem Verification: enabled

I did upgrade my 2014 to Ventura with OpenCore a few days ago and it seems to be running fine.

This is what it spits out tho...

System Integrity Protection status: unknown (Custom Configuration).

Configuration:
Apple Internal: disabled
Kext Signing: disabled
Filesystem Protections: disabled
Debugging Restrictions: enabled
DTrace Restrictions: enabled
NVRAM Protections: enabled
BaseSystem Verification: enabled

This is an unsupported configuration, likely to break in the future and leave your machine in an unknown state.


Also I am having one crazy problem that nothing online I have found will fix....

When the screen turns off due to inactivity, a couple minutes later the wifi disconnects. When I hit a key to wake up the screen the wifi never remains connected and takes a few secconds to reconnect.

Is this a common issue that I will just have to deal with?

These are the only settings in the battery section. Set both to Always in hopes it would remain connected even when screen sleeps. But no dice.

 

[otosan]

I did upgrade my 2014 to Ventura with OpenCore a few days ago and it seems to be running fine.

This is what it spits out tho...

System Integrity Protection status: unknown (Custom Configuration).

Configuration:
Apple Internal: disabled
Kext Signing: disabled
Filesystem Protections: disabled
Debugging Restrictions: enabled
DTrace Restrictions: enabled
NVRAM Protections: enabled
BaseSystem Verification: enabled

This is an unsupported configuration, likely to break in the future and leave your machine in an unknown state.


Also I am having one crazy problem that nothing online I have found will fix....

When the screen turns off due to inactivity, a couple minutes later the wifi disconnects. When I hit a key to wake up the screen the wifi never remains connected and takes a few secconds to reconnect.

Is this a common issue that I will just have to deal with?

These are the only settings in the battery section. Set both to Always in hopes it would remain connected even when screen sleeps. But no dice.

View attachment 2174284

try

sudo pmset -a tcpkeepalive 1 ttylkeepalive 1

from terminal

as for the configuration info, ignore that, after all you are running unofficial OS on unsupported model.

 

[Charbs20]

try

sudo pmset -a tcpkeepalive 1 ttylkeepalive 1

from terminal

as for the configuration info, ignore that, after all you are running unofficial OS on unsupported model.

Ok I ran those commands. Still disconnects when display turns off.

the ttyl command gives this...

Usage: pmset <options>
See pmset(1) for details: 'man pmset'
Daves-MacBook-Pro:~ charbs$

Do all these values look right to you?

Battery Power:
lidwake 1
autopoweroff 1
standbydelayhigh 86400
autopoweroffdelay 259200
standbydelaylow 10800
standby 1
ttyskeepawake 1
hibernatemode 3
powernap 0
gpuswitch 2
hibernatefile /var/vm/sleepimage
highstandbythreshold 50
displaysleep 1
womp 1
networkoversleep 0
sleep 1
acwake 0
halfdim 1
lessbright 1
disksleep 10
AC Power:
lidwake 1
autopoweroff 1
standbydelayhigh 86400
autopoweroffdelay 259200
standbydelaylow 10800
standby 1
ttyskeepawake 1
hibernatemode 3
powernap 0
gpuswitch 2
hibernatefile /var/vm/sleepimage
highstandbythreshold 50
womp 1
displaysleep 10
networkoversleep 0
sleep 0
halfdim 1
acwake 0
disksleep 10

I did a pmreset

Currently in use:
lidwake 1
autopoweroff 1
standbydelayhigh 86400
autopoweroffdelay 259200
standbydelaylow 10800
standby 1
ttyskeepawake 1
hibernatemode 3
powernap 0
gpuswitch 2
hibernatefile /var/vm/sleepimage
highstandbythreshold 50
womp 0
displaysleep 2
networkoversleep 0
sleep 1 (sleep prevented by sharingd)
acwake 0
halfdim 1
disksleep 10

What is sharingd and why is it preventing sleep?

 

[ToniCH]

Here is one more happy user with MBP 15" mid 2014 i7 + Catalina + SN570 1TB + Sintech long adapter.

Seems to work just fine. Tested sleep by closing the lid for 10 hours. Started with 80% battery and after 10 hours its still 80%. Battery is new aftermarket one though, if that means anything in this case.

Didn't benchmark the original 256GB ssd but I guess its comparable to my MBP 2013 256GB drive (?), Blackmagic speed test reported 409/465 MB/s write/read speed respectively. With the MBP 2014 + SN570 there is a clear improvement: 1212/1439 MB/s write/read speeds. 👍

Now I just hope the drive has a long life, despite its low price.

EDIT on the next day: now my MBP has been sleeping unplugged for 36+ hours and it has lost 1% of battery while sleeping. Wow! And note that I have no tweeks or fixes, just clean installation of Catalina and parts I bought a week ago. The only extra software that are installed now are CoconutBattery, Charge Limiter and couple of benchmark software. Now I'll start installing other software and lets see if the low consumption remains.

 

[am_karthik]

Has anyone ever tried and succeed with PCIE4.0 or Gen 4 SSD? I find Gen4 cheaper than Gen3 on various brands and tempted for an upgrade.

 

[am_karthik]

Can I reuse the stripped down SSD from rMBP with an enclosure or caddy or as a 2.5 SATA on another laptop? lot confused with M.2 U.2 M Key B Key as I am not a techie

 

[DeltaMac]

Can I reuse the stripped down SSD from rMBP with an enclosure or caddy or as a 2.5 SATA on another laptop? lot confused with M.2 U.2 M Key B Key as I am not a techie

Yes, you can. But, the connector on the OEM SSD card is proprietary - only used by Apple. You would need an enclosure that uses that same connector. OWC sells one - https://eshop.macsales.com/item/OWC/MAU3ENP1AW/
They remain expensive...
The only way to replace a laptop 2.5" drive with that Apple OEM SSD would be with the proper Apple connector to SATA adapter. I have not ever seen one of those.

 

[cw13]

I have a late 2013 13" retina macbook pro (MacBookPro11,1) and I am upgrading the 256 gb SSD to a Crucial P3 2 tb SSD (PCIe 3.0).

I checked for firmware updates on the new SSD but there weren't any to install and installed macOS big sur and put it into my macbook via a Sintech NGFF M.2 nVME SSD Adapter Card but it wont boot up and shows a black screen with the question mark on a folder.

I understand that my macbook is capable of PCIe 2.0 and in the OP post under "SSD that are known to work" both the Crucial P1 and P2 are listed as PCIe 3.0, and my new Crucial P3 SSD has the same PCIe 3.0, so it should work since PCIe 3.0 is backwards compatible with PCIe 2.0 but the SSD does not boot. How do I go about fixing this so that my macbook reads the new SSD? I've read others in this thread having success with the same Crucial P3 SSD and Sintech adapter, however it doesn't work on my macbook. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I'm having the exact same problem on my mid-2014 13" Macbook Pro on Mojave. It's not detecting the Crucial P3 2TB. I haven't done anything to the MBP (no opencore, etc.) yet.
Grateful for any input.

 

[PizzaUndervolt]

Just a random lab reporting: Crucial p3 not working for me, used sn570 on at least 5 machines already, no issues.

I was using Crucial p2 until they silently downgraded the internals to much lower speeds and also started to have issues on my hackintosh with Monterey. Not sure how it's still reported as a good purchase.

Wondering about the 2016 and 2017 compatibility is the same? Will test soon. The 2240 format is not popular, and i will just put tape and fit the standard sn570 inside

 

[joe987]

Does anyone know why I now have different HDs showing?
I have a sabrent 1tb ssd.
thanks!

 

[ToniCH]

Does anyone know why I now have different HDs showing?
I have a sabrent 1tb ssd.
thanks!

That is how Macs often show APFS-volumes in the disk utility as there really is 2 separate volumes. The System volume contains system files and the Data volume contains user files. But you should only see one volume on your desktop.

They should have the same base name though. Like "Macintosh HD" and "Macintosh HD - data" for example. I guess you changed the hd name after creating it? Don't know if it matters but I would rename them again so they match.

In any case do not delete either one.

 

[joe987]

That is how Macs often show APFS-volumes in the disk utility as there really is 2 separate volumes. The System volume contains system files and the Data volume contains user files. But you should only see one volume on your desktop.

They should have the same base name though. Like "Macintosh HD" and "Macintosh HD - data" for example. I guess you changed the hd name after creating it? Don't know if it matters but I would rename them again so they match.

In any case do not delete either one.

Thanks for the quick reply.

 

[MrPhil17]

Did you ever find a fix for the battery issue with the SN570? I have the exact same rMBP as you and am considering the SN570.

Yes, install OpenCore Patcher, it will install all the .kext necessary for having an "original" battery life.

 

[MrPhil17]

So if I upgraded to Monterey with opencore it would fix this problem?

Any disadvantages to running Monterey on 2014 MacBook Pro?

Would I still be able to use migration assistant to move over all my stuff (most likely from Time Machine this time)

Install OpenCore patcher and then upgrade to Monterey. It works better than Big Sur. With my 2TB SN570 It's like having an original Apple SSD.

 

[Charbs20]

Install OpenCore patcher and then upgrade to Monterey. It works better than Big Sur. With my 2TB SN570 It's like having an original Apple SSD.

I did upgrade to Ventura with open core. But now the wifi disconnects every time the screen goes to sleep. Super annoying.

I’ve tried every fix recommended online with no success. I’m hoping the next ventura update fixes this glitch. If it doesn’t I might downgrade to Monterey to see if that helps.