Samsung 840 Pro SSD is not recognized as internal drive
Hi all,
I've purchased a samsung 840 Pro (512GB) SSD to install on my mid-2012 MacBook Pro running Mavericks (OSX 10.9.1) as a replacement for the factory 750GB (7200rpm) spinning drive.
I've followed the most typical (in my opinion) preparation procedure:
- put the SSD on a USB-SATA enclosure, carbon copy my existing HDD (including a recovery disk partition), formatted MAC OS Extended (Journaled) with a single GUID partition.
- restart the computer and boot from the SSD still on the USB enclosure (holding "option" key during startup. This works well and Mac OS starts and runs no problem.
- Shut down, replace the hard drives. And test.
NOW HERE IS THE PROBLEM:
Once I try to turn the computer on, it will not recognize the now internal SSD connected to the SATA interface, and therefore cannot boot from there.
I tried re-starting and booting from the old HDD now on the USB enclosure, which works, however it does not show the internal SSD as a bootable option (even though I could boot from aforementioned SSD while on the USB enclosure!)
While booted from the external USB (old HDD), I ran disk utility and the first time it displayed the internal SSD but it said it had ZERO space in it. In any attempt there after it doesn't even show the internal SSD.
I went back and forth swapping the internal drive between the SSD and the original HDD. The problem is consistent ONLY when the SSD is on the internal SATA connection.
I searched these forums and other sites for suggestions. The common denominator seemed to be a faulty SATA cable assembly. I ordered through Amazon next-day and got it here. I followed the procedure as outlined in other sites (iFixIt for example). Tried again with the SSD as internal SATA drive: NOTHING!
Reinstalled the old HDD internally (and put the SSD back in the USB dog house), re-started and everything works as advertised: Boot is ok from internal HDD, and it can see still the external SSD on the USB enclosure.
So, here I am, lost looking for answers. PLEASE HELP!
Thank you in advance for your time and input.
MacBook Pro (15-inch Mid 2012), OS X Mavericks (10.9.1), 2.6GHz i7 8GB RAM