Mac Specs > By Capability > Mac Storage Upgrade Compatibility Guide
Storage info — details on speed, dimensions, and hard drive and SSD interface specifics — for all G3 and later Macs are organized below by category.
The hard drives in the new 2018 Mac mini are PCIe which means they are very fast, but also expensive. Unlike previous models, you cannot upgrade the internal hard drive. It is soldered in. But thanks to the USB-C interface on the new Mac Mini, an external SSD drive is now a good option.
Some Macs have a hard drive or SSD that can be upgraded easily, others have storage that 'unofficially' can be upgraded with some effort, and still others have soldered storage that cannot be upgraded at all after initial purchase of the Mac. This section makes differentiation easy.
In general, be sure to purchase your hard drive or SSD from a vendor that has tested the storage it sells with your particular type of Mac to ensure full compatibility and ideal performance. Also, be sure always to read the complete specs page for a specific Mac as some compatibility is dependent on OS version, firmware, or other details.
- The 8 best external hard drives and SSDs for Mac and PC users in 2019. An external hard drive or SSD (Solid State Drive) is a device that can plug into your machine, giving you an instant boost to storage space, without having to go down the road of pricey computer upgrades.
- The Mac Mini can be broadly divided into four different generations. The first Mac Mini with a solid-state drive appeared in mid-2011 during the third generation, after Apple switched to an all-aluminum unibody design. These Mac Mini models have an Intel Core 2 Duo processor, Bluetooth 4.0, and Thunderbolt ports.
Be sure to also see EveryMac.com's Mac Upgrades FAQs section for instructional Q&As to upgrade the storage and other parts in your Mac.
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Please note that the thumbnail images merely show one of the more representative Macs in a category. Many series also include other models with different designs.
MacBook | MacBook Pro | MacBook Air |
iBook | PowerBook G4 | PowerBook G3 |
iMac | iMac Pro | Mac mini |
Mac Pro | Power Mac G5 | Power Mac G4 |
Power Mac G3 | eMac | Mac Server G4 |
Mac Server G3 | Xserve |
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The hard drives in the new 2018 Mac mini are PCIe which means they are very fast, but also expensive. Unlike previous models, you cannot upgrade the internal hard drive. It is soldered in. But thanks to the USB-C interface on the new Mac Mini, an external SSD drive is now a good option. I chose to buy the smaller (and cheaper) 250GB Mac Mini and supplement it with a 500GB external SSD drive.
Mac Mini 2018 Ssd Replace
USB-C Gen 2 can handle the speeds of most (but not all) SSD drives. So unless you want a very high-end solution, you’ll be fine using an external SSD over USB. An external SSD drive plugged in via USB-C will only be 1/5 the speed of the new internal PCIe drives, but it’s still fast. The external SSD drive on my new mac mini is faster than the internal non-PCIe SSD drive on my previous mac mini.
1. Buying a drive.
My first purchase was a Samsung S5. It’s fast, it’s USB-C Gen 2, and it’s cheap. But it caused a 30-second delay each time my mac booted up. Apparently, this is a common problem nnd Apple support were unable to help me resolve it.
The drive I ended up using was the Seagate Fast SSD. It’s fast and works well. I purchased the 500GB version. I’ve already filled it up so end hindsight I publish should have gone for the 1 TB version but I was trying to save soem money.
2. What to put on it.
Now that you’ve connected your drive you need to choose which data to store on it. I used to recommend using your new SSD as the boot drive, but given that the internal SSD drive is now faster, you are better off booting off your internal drive and just putting some files on the external drive.
I kept OSX and my applications on my internal boot drive, as well as my users home folder. So my internal SSD drive looks like this:
- Applications
- Library
- System
- Users
I moved most the large folders from inside my Users folder onto my external SSD. I did not change my home folder to be the external SSD. I copied the files out of my home folder. I did al this when I was migrating the data accrossform my old MAc because it did not all fit in my new Users folder.
Gregsays:September 19, 2019 at 11:22 am
Here’s what I moved to my new external SSD Drive:
Install Windows on your Mac. Boot Camp is a utility that comes with your Mac and lets you switch between macOS and Windows. Download your copy of Windows 10, then let Boot Camp Assistant walk you through the installation steps. Boot Camp 5.1 includes several Mac drivers so that Windows will recognize your trackpad, Thunderbolt, USB 3.0, the iSight (or FaceTime) camera, the Eject key on the Mac keyboard, networking, audio, graphics, and so on. A Boot Camp Control Panel for Windows. Aug 12, 2019 With Boot Camp, you can install Microsoft Windows 10 on your Mac, then switch between macOS and Windows when restarting your Mac. For more information about using Windows on your Mac, open Boot Camp Assistant and click the Open Boot Camp Help button. Windows bootcamp for mac. Apr 23, 2019 I just installed a windows 10 partition on my Mac mini (late 2018, Mojave) It works fine, but I can't figure out how to reboot into OSX When I try pressing the option key during startup, there is no start-up disk selector screen and it boots straight back into windows. Mar 23, 2019 If you're looking to install Windows on your Mac, Boot Camp is the best way to go. Whether it's for a great gaming experience or you just want to try out Windows 10 on Apple's svelte hardware, here's how to get it all set up. If you own an iMac with 3TB or more, check out this Apple Support document.
- Documents (from my user folder – 40GB)
- Downloads (from my user folder – 5GB)
- Mainstage Sounds (from System Folder – 60GB)
- Movies (from my user folder – 10GB)
- Music (from my user folder – 60GB)
- Pictures (from my user folder including my photos library – 140GB)
When you move your Music, Pictures and MainStage files you need to tell iTunes, Apple Photos and Mainstage the new location.
For iTunes, firstly copy all your music files across to the new SSD. (users/yourname/music/iTunes) Then go to Preferences, Advanced, and find ‘iTunes Media folder location’. Click ‘Change’ and select the new folder.
For Photos you need to copy the folder called ‘Photo’s Library’ across, then restart the Photos App while holding the Option key. This gives you the option to select your new Photo library from the external SSD.
Photos should open the newly copied library and you should be able to see your photos. If that is the case then go to preferences and select ‘use as System Photo Library’ to make this change permanent.
There are some applications that will still want to use files from within your home folder on your internal SSD. That’s okay. I allow them to do that.
I find it helpful in my own mind to know which files are where so I have my documents, my music and my photos on my external SSD and I have everything else on my internal one.
But you can arrange them how you like.
Related posts:
How to speed up your mac with a Solid State SSD DriveWhat’s the best SSD drive for a Mac and how do I install it?Does my mac need more memory?How to get the most out of your ipod and laptop batteryAdding Network Storage (NAS) to your MacRoss Smithsays:June 30, 2019 at 7:56 amHello Wayne – This article answered a question I’ve had about buying a Mac mini and its small amount of internal storage. I chatted with Apple support yesterday. They only spoke in generalities, so I said goodbye once that became obvious. Instead of needing to go into an Apple store, I have the answer in your article!
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I am not sure I need the speed of an external SSD, however, I will price them now. We use a 2011 iMac for using the internet, viewing photos and also watching TV. Its display is going, its internal HD is failing, and I cannot find a good repair shop. Everything about the mini seems to fit EXCEPT it wasn’t obvious about the external drive.
I found your website through a link to your comment on a monitor for the mini. That was interesting, but this article gave me what I really needed to know. Thank you.
ReplyWaynesays:June 30, 2019 at 11:42 pm Yes it will depend on what you want to store on it. If it’s just pictures or audio files or a time machine backup then a standard HD will be fine, if you are using it to store applications, or application data, or movies, or stuff that you access a lot, an SSD will be much faster.
ReplyMac Mini 2012 Ssd
![Ssd for mac mini late 2014 Ssd for mac mini late 2014](/uploads/1/3/3/2/133279381/852402391.jpg)
Thank you for the clear description in this article! I’m in the situation of using a combination Mac Mini and external SSD.
Would you have suggestions for back-up configuration and software? Of course, I’d like to back up both devices, but will I have to do it to two separate back-up drives or can I combine them in one … ?
ReplyWaynesays:September 20, 2019 at 4:13 am Yes grab a 2TB or 4TB drive and you can time-machine both drives to it, or split it in 2 partitions and use CCC to back up each drive to it.
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