Questions on upgrading Mini Core Duo 1.66 hard drive

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Level 1

5 points

Questions on upgrading Mini Core Duo 1.66 hard drive

The original drive is starting to click and stutter after long durations of usage and I plan to replace it with this:

http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-2-5-Inch-500GB-Cache-MQ01ABD050/dp/B00BHSXDSA/ref= sr_1_10?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1385840164&sr=1-10&keywords=2.5-Inch+500GB+sat a

1 - This will work, yes? Is there any difference in dependability between this, Hitachi, WD or Seagate?

2 - The Mini is bootcamped, there is a small Windows XP partition. I don't need it. When I clone and copy the clone to the new drive, I just clone the OS X partition and restore it, that's it, right? Just ignore Windows.

3 - The OS X partition is 50gb. If it's only using 25gb, I should be able to clone the HD to a 32gb usb flash drive?

Posted on Nov 30, 2013 1:12 PM

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Answer 1

Best reply

BDAqua

Level 10

239,225 points

Nov 30, 2013 4:32 PM in response to nevets88

Hello,

1. I'm no longer sure of which is best & if that for certain works, here's a list of ones that will...

http://eshop.macsales.com/MyOWC/Upgrades.cfm?sort=pop&model=244&type=Internal+Dr ive

2. Yes.

3. Yes, if not a block by block clone.

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Answer 2

C F McBlob

Level 4

2,885 points

Nov 30, 2013 4:37 PM in response to nevets88

"This will work, yes? Is there any difference in dependability between this, Hitachi, WD or Seagate?"

Personally, I wouldn't EVER choose a WD hard drive again. I've had too many bad experiences with them.

Hitachi is OEM in a lot of PCs, and I've had good experiences with Seagate. They make good, solid, reliable drives in my opinion.

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Answer 3

K Shaffer

Level 7

34,978 points

Nov 30, 2013 6:06 PM in response to nevets88

While a clone to a USB flash drive may be successful (or not) as a boot volume, as that could be helpful in other ways, it probably would have to be a bit larger in capacity than the slim margin you suggest to try & use it.

Since OS X requires free drive space (and reliable speed for response) in order to use the built-in virtual memory for temp swap files, etc, the System would likely balk at only a few GB flex space in a flash drive.

If you find and use a 'flash drive USB' to satisfaction, you may seek to find information on what (if any) of the brands available offer a wear-leveling software that runs in the chip. In any event, I would not expect a usb flash drive to have great longetivity; as a boot drive, its life may vary. An externally enclosed HDD or SSD - with its own power supply - is a better option for a boot-capable clone and reliable system backup, since you could also perform major system maintenance from a second system or clone on an external drive that does not rely on port power.

Good luck & happy computing! 🙂

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Answer 4

nevets88 Author

Level 1

5 points

Dec 1, 2013 7:22 AM in response to K Shaffer

Thanks for the info. That was helpful.

I just want to use the usb drive to transfer over the current hd. I'll be getting another external hd for a long term clone. I got the hard drive down to 23 gigs so the 32 gig usb flash drive should do.

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