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Just ran EtreCheck and it says my hard drive is failing. What should I do?

I have a MacBook Pro 2012 with 500GB SATA Mechanical hard drive. My computer has been running extremely slowly. I just ran an EtreCheck, which says that the major problem is that my hard drive is failing. I also have a finicky left shift key which only works some of the time. I'm thinking it's time to buy a new laptop. Any thoughts on this? Is my hard drive saveable or should I just buy a new laptop? I can't interpret the technical details of the EtreCheck report below:


EtreCheck version: 5.1 (5020)


Report generated: 2018-12-20 15:02:40

Download EtreCheck from https://etrecheck.com

Runtime: 13:38


Performance: Poor


Sandbox: Enabled


Full drive access: Disabled


Problem: Computer is too slow

Description:



My computer is way too slow. MacBook Pro 2012



Major Issues:



Anything that appears on this list needs immediate attention.



Failing hard drive - This machine has an older, mechanical hard disk that appears to be failing.

Minor Issues:



These issues do not need immediate attention but they may indicate future problems.



Configuration profiles present - This machine has configuration profiles. These are sometimes used by adware and

malware.



Upgradeable hard drive - This machine’s hard drive could be replaced with an SSD. This would dramatically improve

your machine’s performance.



Out of RAM - This machine is running short on RAM and has a mechanical hard drive, reducing the speed of the virtu

al memory system.



Clean up - There are orphan files that could be removed.


Unsigned files - There are unsigned software files installed. They appear to be legitimate but should be reviewed.

32-bit Apps - This machine has 32-bits apps that may have problems in the future.


Limited drive access - More information may be available with Full Drive Access.






Hardware Information:



MacBook Pro (13-inch, Mid 2012)


MacBook Pro Model: MacBookPro9,2


1 2.5 GHz Intel Core i5 (i5-3210M) CPU: 2-core

8 GB RAM - At maximum


BANK 0/DIMM0 - 4 GB DDR3 1600 ok


BANK 1/DIMM0 - 4 GB DDR3 1600 ok


Battery: Health = Normal - Cycle count = 50


Video Information:



Intel HD Graphics 4000 - VRAM: 1536 MB

Color LCD 1280 x 800



Drives:



disk0 - APPLE HDD HTS545050A7E362 500.11 GB (Mechanical - 5400 RPM)

Internal SATA 3 Gigabit Serial ATA



disk0s1 - EFI (MS-DOS FAT32) [EFI] 210 MB

disk0s2 [APFS Container] 499.90 GB



disk1 [APFS Virtual drive] 499.90 GB (Shared by 4 volumes)

disk1s1 - Macintosh HD (APFS) (Shared - 296.97 GB used)

disk1s2 - Preboot (APFS) [APFS Preboot] (Shared)


disk1s3 - Recovery (APFS) [Recovery] (Shared)



disk1s4 - VM (APFS) [APFS VM] (Shared - 5.37 GB used)



Mounted Volumes:



disk1s1 - Macintosh HD 499.90 GB (196.86 GB free)

APFS



Mount point: /

Encrypted



disk1s4 - VM [APFS VM] (Shared - 5.37 GB used)

APFS






Mount point: /private/var/vm




MacBook Pro

Posted on Dec 20, 2018 2:17 AM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Dec 20, 2018 4:46 AM

The 2012 MBP's hard drive is easy to replace - the keyboard is another issue. The replacement isn't what I'd call user friendly, you basically have to tear the whole computer down to get to the keyboard - that's why it is an expensive repair even though the keyboard itself is relatively inexpensive. OTOH it could just be a dirty key so it would be worth your time to do a search on sticky or dirty unibody MBP keyboard and see what can be done.


If the computer is otherwise in good shape and you can get that one key working properly with just some cleaning, replacing the hard drive with an SSD - you may also need to replace the SATA cable - would be worth it. If/when it dies the hard drive or SSD can be removed and put into an enclosure to use as a backup for the new computer. But I wouldn't invest $$$ on a full keyboard replacement on a 2012.

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3 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Dec 20, 2018 4:46 AM in response to maharaj1836

The 2012 MBP's hard drive is easy to replace - the keyboard is another issue. The replacement isn't what I'd call user friendly, you basically have to tear the whole computer down to get to the keyboard - that's why it is an expensive repair even though the keyboard itself is relatively inexpensive. OTOH it could just be a dirty key so it would be worth your time to do a search on sticky or dirty unibody MBP keyboard and see what can be done.


If the computer is otherwise in good shape and you can get that one key working properly with just some cleaning, replacing the hard drive with an SSD - you may also need to replace the SATA cable - would be worth it. If/when it dies the hard drive or SSD can be removed and put into an enclosure to use as a backup for the new computer. But I wouldn't invest $$$ on a full keyboard replacement on a 2012.

Dec 20, 2018 7:35 AM in response to maharaj1836

Due to new limitations on the number of characters in a post here, we cannot see all the most useful diagnostics in the Etrecheck report. However, if you have any anti-virus software, adware, or so-called "cleaning/tune-ip" apps installed, get rid of them and rerun Etrecheck. Although the hard-drive diagnostics in the latest Etrecheck are first-rate, we have seen some cases where unneeded and unwanted third-party system hacks can trigger the hard drive failure notice and that notice goes away once you clean off all the scamware.


Another consideration for your model: In the 2009-2012 non-Retina 13-inch MacBook Pros like yours (and mine) the hard drive cable suffers a convoluted routing over sharp edges in the machined metal chassis. After 3-5 years of vibration from normal use and transport, the cable can begin to chaff at the points where it contacts those sharp edges. The symptoms of a worn cable can mimic those of a failing hard drive.


In that model I would, after getting rid of any scamware you installed and finding the computer is still slow, replace the hard drive CABLE first and see if things improve. If not, and you have to install an new drive, you'll start with a fresh cable and no worries about the wear issue.


If you install a new drive, I suggest a solid state drive (SSD) but, regardless of whether you chose an SSD or traditional hard drive, install an SATA III (6GBps) drive. Apple saved money in that model by using a slower SATA II (3GBps) roto-drive and that is what makes those feel "slow." However, the HD connection on the logic board is the faster 6GBps.


When my MBP13 2012 was about a year old I increased the RAM from 4 to 8GB. There was little if any perceived speed difference. Last year I replaced the slow 500GB roto-drive with a 500GB SSD SATA III (6GBps) and the difference in performance is stunning, to put it mildly. The compute is a joy to use now.

Just ran EtreCheck and it says my hard drive is failing. What should I do?

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