How do you upgrade the storage in the Aluminum 'Unibody' Mac mini models? What type of hard drive(s) or SSD(s) do they each support? There are five different lines of Aluminum 'Unibody' Mac mini systems - the 'Mid-2010,' 'Mid-2011,' 'Late 2012', 'Late 2014' and 'Late 2018' - with notable differences in supported storage. Photo Credit: Apple, Inc. (Non-Server Mid-2010 - Left, Mid-2011 & Late 2012 - Right) Identification Help If you're not sure which Aluminum Mac mini model you have, the optical drive equipped 'Mid-2010' models and current 'Late 2018' 'Space Gray' models should be easy to spot (at least for now), but many models in between these lines are more of a challenge. All Aluminum Mac mini models can be precisely identified by the in software or externally by, and more details about specific identifiers are provided in EveryMac.com's extensive section.

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To locate the model identifier in software, select 'About This Mac' under the Apple Menu on your computer and click the 'More Info.' If the Mac mini is running OS X 10.7 'Lion' or later, you will need to click the 'System Report' button after clicking 'More Info.' For the pre-Late 2014 Mac mini models, the EMC number is visible upon removing the bottom 'spin off' panel to the right of the memory slots (when the ports are facing you). It is on the bottom of the 'Late 2014' and 'Late 2018' models toward the ports. As always, EveryMac.com has hand documented the model identifiers and EMC numbers unique to each model, which are most easily visualized as a chart: Alu.

Mac mini Subfamily Model ID EMC No. Mid-2010 Mid-2010 Mid-2010 Mid-2011 Mid-2011 Mid-2011 Mid-2011 Late 2012 Late 2012 Late 2012 Late 2012 Late 2012 Late 2014 Late 2014 Late 2014 Late 2014 Late 2018 Late 2018 Late 2018 EveryMac.com's feature - as well as the - also can identify these models by their.

Storage Types, Dimensions & Requirements Regular 'Mid-2010' Aluminum 'Unibody' Mac mini models, which have optical drives, support a single 2.5-inch, 9.5 mm tall, 3 Gb/s Serial ATA (SATA Revision 2.0) hard drive or SSD (or two storage drives if you remove the optical drive). The oddball supports two storage drives of the same type (and no optical drive). All 'Mid-2011' and 'Late 2012' models hold two 2.5-inch storage drives with the same 9.5 mm height restriction, but have faster 6 Gb/s Serial ATA (SATA Revision 3.0) support. The non-server 'Mid-2011' and 'Late 2012' models, which only ship with one hard drive by default, a second hard drive or SSD is supported, but one has to purchase the cable needed to attach the drive to the board before installation is possible. A user from the forums first determined that the needed part is referred to as the 'Bottom Hard Drive Flex Cable' (Apple Part Number 922-9560) and successfully installed a second drive.

More recently, site sponsor began offering a ' upgrade kit for the Aluminum Mac mini models that includes everything needed to perform this upgrade - the cable, drive bracket, precisely sized screwdrivers and screws - in one convenient package. The 'Late 2014' models have a 6 Gb/s Serial ATA (SATA Revision 3.0) connector for a 2.5-Inch hard drive or SSD in addition to a proprietary PCIe connector for a 'blade' SSD.

As first noted by site sponsor, the cable to connect this SSD to the PCIe connector is not present unless the system is configured with a 'Fusion Drive' at the time of initial purchase. However, it is possible to buy this cable later.

Accordingly, as documented by site sponsor, this 'PCIe SSD Cable Connector' is part number 821-00010-A. The current 'Late 2018' models have onboard storage and it cannot be upgraded at all after the initial system purchase. These details can be helpfully summarized accordingly: Alu.

It is hoped that by watching the videos you should be able to determine whether or not you feel comfortable performing the upgrade yourself or if you would rather hire a professional. Mac mini Hard Drive or SSD Purchase Options In theory, just about any hard drive or SSD that meets the minimum requirements should work in the Mac mini. However, it always is best to buy from a trusted company with Mac knowledge for the most trouble-free experience. In addition to the convenient storage for applicable Aluminum Mac mini models, sells hard drives and SSDs and offers an installation, as well.

In the UK and Ireland, site sponsor sells Mac mini with free shipping. The company provides flat rate shipping to France, Germany, and Switzerland and inexpensive shipping for all of Europe, too. In Australia, site sponsor sells Mac mini compatible SSDs, in addition to memory, with fast, flat-rate shipping Australia-wide. In Southeast Asia, site sponsor sells Mac mini compatible storage, as well as memory, with free delivery - and optional upgrade service - in Singapore and flat rate shipping to Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam and South Korea.

Also see:. do you upgrade the RAM in the Aluminum 'Unibody' Mac mini models? What type of RAM do they use?

How much RAM do they actually support?. do you upgrade the hard drive in the Polycarbonate Intel Mac mini models? What type of hard drive do they support? Is it possible to replace the optical drive with a second hard drive?.

Miyagi1218: Is it possible to use a Mac mini and perhaps an iPad as my core. I know that core has to plug into my DAC somehow but can I use the iPad to act as a blue tooth monitor of sorts? As long as the Mac Mini meets our you can use it as your Core machine with no problem! The iPad cannot be used as a Core, but it can be used as a remote device to control the Core machine. I definitely recommend checking out the articles below for more information: If you have any other questions about this please let me know! Hi Miyagi maybe if I share how I did it that helps you:. Connected the Mac Mini to power supply and a keyboard as well as a mouse.

I used the HDMI connection to connect a TV screen. With that I could set-up the Mac Mini from scratch, going through all the set-up screens including the WiFi set-up which you will need. Important that you set up a user with admin rights to connect later (e.g. If you are careful, set-up another user without admin rights, e.g. Note down the passwords. In system settings click on sharing. Allow sharing of the MacMini and mMake sure you set the hook for screen sharing for your admin and your media user.

I used another Mac, in this case my desktop iMac to connect to the MacMini by using Screen Share functionality. For this you open a new window on finder. Left hand side you should see your MacMini under network. If not assure you are in the same Wifi network as the MacMini. Click and the menu offers you a choice on how to connect. Choose screen sharing here.

MacOSX will ask you for user and password. Use the media user. If all is set-up correctly you should see the screen of your MacMini on the desktop of your other Mac. Try out to create a new folder or so. If all works you can take the keyboard and the connection to the TV away.

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From now on you can log on remotely with your other Mac. Log in on your MacMini with MediaUser. Start iTunes. Import all the music files respectively add to the library. Install Roon Server resp. Roon Core according to instructions. Roon will now use your iTunes library.

Install Roon on your iPad or iPhone. If in the same wifi network and Roon running on the Mac Mini the Roon client on your iPad should now recognize the Roon Core. Log-in and start having fun. Use the admin user for admin functions and the media user to connect to the user which has the iTunes / Roon functionality. I have used 2 different Mac mini’s for Roon Core, 1st was using a hard drive for the OS and Roon, and I migrated to another Mac mini using a 1TB SSD for the Os and Roon application. The music files are on a pair of 5TB hard disks that I implemented a RAID 1 from disk utility.

Download cisco vpn client for mac. As of now there was no VPN Client 5.x available for MAC OS..

No difference in performance between the 2 Mac mini’s running Roon, each mini is a late 2012 model running Mojave, 16G RAM, with multi-cores. I have 2500 cd’s ripped along with many purchased DSD/hires files, and streaming Roon with MQA. I don’t hook the mini to the dac. I use the network to connect the mini to the network/bridge inside my ps audio ds dac. Much better than using USB, used to use USB years ago when using Audirvana and Pure Music.

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I cant say if I heard a sound difference. Could be subtle and I’m not refined enugh to hear it. The performance was another thing. Mac Mini really increased in performance. I mean exponential. Feels like it is 5x faster Boot time and any beach balling was eleviated.

First swapped a 2.5' SSD for OS and Data. Really enjoyed the perfarmance change. Later I install a M.2 for OS only.

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This Mod also increased perfromance and is probably the best one for someone who is hesitant about tearing apart their Mini. Many M.2 are large enough for most peoples library also. Just need a few cheap parts and a M.2 Pcie Nvme.

These are on Amazon. Willhom 821-00010-A PCIe SSD Flex Cable Connector Adapter Replacement for Mac Mini Unibody A1347 (Late 2014) Sintech NGFF M.2 nVME SSD Adapter Card Upgrade 2013-2015 MacBook Also, a M.2 screw Powered by, best viewed with JavaScript enabled.