Can I add an SSD AND a SATA hard drive to my 27" iMac?

Question

Level 1

26 points

Can I add an SSD AND a SATA hard drive to my 27" iMac?

My 1TB drive has stopped working. Can I add a SSD AND a SATA drive?

I've looked at Hybrids but thought having 2 drives might give more options. A lot of 'hybrids' only have 8Gb of SSD which seems pointless - Wouldn't OS and Apps need way more than that?

So I'm hoping I can fit in a 1Tb SATA and a 128Gb SSD. Maybe the SATA would have to be 2.5"

Is this possible? If so any recommendations and specific leads I might need to chain it all up.

Thanks for any guidance here.

Posted on Jun 19, 2014 7:07 AM

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Answer 1

Nov 13, 2017 3:36 AM in response to Flydigital

As Mike Sombrio mentioned, without knowing "exactly"

which iMac you have, every thing is just speculation and

there is also what flavor macOS you are running and intend

to run that can add a wrinkle to the issue.

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Answer 2

Umie66

Level 1

8 points

Nov 13, 2017 8:46 AM in response to Flydigital

The 2011 27" iMac has an extra sata port which you can use to add an internal 2.5 SSD.

Not sure about later models. I had a 2009 27", I replaced the 3.5 1TB with a 2TB SSHD with the OWC temp sensor on it.

Call OWC, they can tell you exactly which upgrade you can do for your mac.

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Answer 3

Jun 19, 2014 7:12 AM in response to Flydigital

What you are trying to do is install a Fusion drive that Apple now sells as an option with the iMacs...a 1 TB or larger hard drive with 256 GB SSD...you cannot do the drive replacement yourself without voiding any warranty you may have on your iMac, and if that does not concern you, just don't break anything because Apple will not help at all if you open it up.

You might try taking it to an Apple store genius bar and if the current drive is bad, see about having them install the Fusion drive and what that would cost. Then you can make some informed decisions.

Also check OWC, http://www.macsales.com and see what they have in the way of hybrids that might meet your needs.

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Answer 4

Flydigital Author

Level 1

26 points

Jun 19, 2014 3:49 PM in response to Ralph Landry1

It's over 3 years old and opened up to replace HD before already. Also Apple store won't put fusion drives in old iMacs. Currently they only ship new ones with that drive. So I could just put a 1TB back in but it's a chance to up the performance by adding an SSD for the OS to run on. I just dont know what the set up is, cables etc.

Maybe there is a 'how to' video out there but haven't seen anything yet.

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Answer 5

Jun 19, 2014 4:28 PM in response to Flydigital

I really like OWC, have four of heir external drives, memory, etc. They have on-line videos of most things imaginable. Check what hey have and drive ombinations.

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Answer 6

Jun 23, 2014 10:47 AM in response to Flydigital

We put a 240GB SSD drive in the CD/DVD drive of my son's 2009 27" iMac. Left the 1TB hard drive in place.

He put OS X on the SSD drive so it now boots from that. He also put the apps he uses the most (Adobe CS6 and Final Cut Pro).

Made a HUGE difference on the speed of this aging iMAC.

We also replaced the hard drive in a 2009 MacBook Pro with a 240GB SSD drive... breathed new life into that as well.

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Answer 7

Umie66

Level 1

8 points

Nov 12, 2017 10:44 PM in response to Flydigital

An SSHD can be a great alternative. Cheaper than a SSD, but nearlry as fast.

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Answer 8

SeaPapp

Level 7

26,486 points

Nov 13, 2017 2:41 AM in response to Flydigital

Depends, exactly which iMac?

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Answer 9

SeaPapp

Level 7

26,486 points

Nov 13, 2017 3:51 AM in response to woodmeister50

Looks like we’re replying to a three year old thread 😬

Strange thing is I didn't see anything but the original post when I replied. Oh well.......

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Answer 10

Allan Jones

Level 9

68,678 points

Nov 13, 2017 8:55 AM in response to Umie66

DearUmie66,

This thread went inactive in 2014. Due to the inability of the forum software to archive/lock ancient threads, we all have to look at the date of the original post.

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