iMac 2021 M1 possible internal drive replacement

I'm starting to see the spinning wheel often, when saving a Pages document or a Numbers spreadsheet. Have run First Aid via Disk Utility. There were some errors but reported ok. As far as I understand, this means that my internal hard drive is going to crash at some point in time.

My question is: Can the internal drive be replaced on an iMac 2021 M1? Or do I need to replace it altogether for a new machine?

24" M1 iMac, 16 GB memory

macOS: 26.2

iMac 24″

Posted on Feb 4, 2026 4:38 AM

Top-ranking reply

D.I. Johnson

Level 7

34,181 points

Posted on Feb 4, 2026 8:15 AM

-g wrote:

D.I. Johnson >> When it fails, you will have to replace the computer, or the logic board at the very least.

are you saying m-series iMacs cannot be used from an external ssd when the internal ssd fails?

Yes, I am saying that. The storage is soldered to the logic board and is integrated to the cpu. If the storage fails, it compromises the secure functions of the OS and the cpu. If the Mac cannot communicate with its on-board storage, it will not boot from an external drive, either.

Make sure you have up-to-date backups of all your stuff. Always.

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46 replies

JohnTh Author

Level 2

379 points

Feb 4, 2026 6:21 PM in response to D.I. Johnson

I realize that! Even though I don't feel so good about that.

It is what it is, regardless of my feelings though.

iMac 2021 M1 possible internal drive replacement