Level 1

86 points

2011 Macbook Pro Logic Board Failure

I have an early 2011 Macbook Pro running 10.10.2. I have not had many issues with the computer since I have purchased it except the occasional blue/gray screen issue. While I would be using the computer as normal, the screen would randomly go blue or gray and I would have to force shut down the computer. However, after a force shut down and a reboot, this would usually solve the problem.

A few months back, this issue occurred again and the usual force shut down and reboot did not work this time. I ended up looking up some troubling shooting techniques online and ended up resetting the SMC and it seemed to do the trick. Now this is where my problem occurs. About a week ago, I was using the computer as normal, and the same issue happened. Again, this time the force shut down and reboot did not work. So I tried the SMC reset again but this time it did not solve the problem. So again, I went online for some trouble shooting techniques to see if I could solve this issue on my own. I had no luck this time around. I decided it was best to contact apple to see if this issue could be better assisted by them. I ended up spending multiple hours online with phone representatives working through various troubleshooting techniques (most of which I had already tried on my own) and could not get the computer to boot normally. It would simply boot into a gray screen with a apple logo with a loading bar beneath it, and then would slowly load until about half way, and then the screen would just go to the gray screen of death.

After many hours, they decided it was best to take it into an apple store to have them diagnose the problem. I scheduled an appointment at my near by apple store the following day and had them review my Macbook. After a few hardware tests, they determined that the problem was a logic board failure. They then proceeded to tell me that because my Macbook is early 2011, it is now considered 'vintage' and they are not able to work on such a computer. They then gave me Apple certified repair centers that were in my area to contact to repair this issue.

I ended up calling the repair centers that night to see how much this repair was going to cost and how long the process would take. After speaking with the repair centers, and explaining my issue, all of the conversations ended at the same point. I stated that I had a early 2011 Macbook Pro logic board failure and I would need to get it replaced and installed. Each and every single repair center stated that they are unable to perform this for two reasons. 1) It was a known issue that early 2011 Macbook Pro logic boards were faulty and 2) They do not make a practice of carrying or installing faulty parts.

Now this is where I began to get confused so I did some research online and came across this

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4766577?start=13395&tstart=0

and this

https://www.apple.com/support/macbookpro-videoissues/

I began to release that this problem occurred because Apple manufactured faulty logic boards, knew about it, and created an extended repair programme for this specific issue. Now you would think that this works out well, a repair programme extended for this specific issue, so whats the problem? This programme expired 12/31/2016. That's right, just a month after my laptop decided to break down.

I am writing this post because I have read through the other post and noticed that there are many others just like me that are experiencing the same issue just a month after the programme has ended. We should not be out of a laptop that we spent good money for expecting a premium product, just because our laptops decided to last just a bit longer than what Apple deemed was necessary for this problem. I made sure to keep this product in pristine condition throughout its life to make sure that I would get the most out of this product and it has, except for the one piece of hardware that Apple created faulty. Apple, you need to fix this issue, as myself and many others included are having this problem, and its not going away. Anyone else that is having this problem, please post and let me know if you were able to get this problem solved. In this day in age, it is very hard to be without a computer and this is a very long and frustrating process to go through in order to get my working computer back.

MacBook Pro (15-inch Early 2011), OS X Yosemite (10.10.2), null

Posted on Feb 27, 2017 2:37 PM

Top-ranking reply

Grant Bennet-Alder

Level 10

140,867 points

Posted on Oct 27, 2017 9:37 AM

Install gfxCardStatus (https://gfx.io) and set it to "i" (integrated graphics only). It will allow your MBP to run on integrated graphics only, bypassing the discrete GPU which has the issues. This may allow your MBP to run normally, although it will have reduced graphics performance when permforming demanding graphics tasks. The alternative is replacing the logic board, which is not cost effective on a machine that old, unless gfx does not resolve the issue and you really want to keep this MBP.

There is an acknowledged bug in the current version of Cody Kreiger's Open-Source gfxcardstatus, and the developer has confessed he does not have time to fix it right now.

There is a fork off the main build by steveschow available that seems to fix that problem for current versions of MacOS such as ElCapitan and Sierra. He provides a finished .app for direct download -- you do not have to compile anything.

https://github.com/steveschow/gfxCardStatus/releases

Also note that if your Mac does not run long enough to allow gfxcardstatus to be added, this is not really practical.

In addition, Steve Schow writes that he has abandoned further development -- because there are better solutions available [for both the 2010 model and 2011 models]. In particular, the use of ArchLinux bootable CD to gain access to and re-write the EFI on the drive, and permanently disable the discrete graphics chip. This page and scroll down past the list to the blog:

Releases · steveschow/gfxCardStatus · GitHub

there are two similar procedure listed. I used the second from MacRumors as it seemed easier. I have made the Arch Linux bootable CD on another Mac, and tried this approach. I now have a perfectly-functioning MacBook Pro late 2011 15-in model with Discrete Graphics disabled. Runs just fine.

View in context

377 replies

Sep 8, 2017 2:00 AM in response to BobTheFisherman

Bob.... you never learn do you. Continually defending Apple. Here you are challenging someone to name a PC manufacturer who replaces the motherboard for free after 6 years of use. How many times do you need to be told that we haven't had 6 years of use out of the motherboard. This is the core of this thread/discussion. They are rendered useless after approximately 2-3 years of solid use and that is completely unsatisfactory. What is also unsatisfactory is that Apple replaced the motherboards with the same fault as the now useless ones. It's as if you aren't even reading the comments and just blindly defending Apple. No different to replacing a faulty engine in a brand new car with another faulty engine. Think about it will you.

Sep 8, 2017 7:38 AM in response to andrewj44

andrewj44 wrote:

Bob.... you never learn do you. Continually defending Apple. Here you are challenging someone to name a PC manufacturer who replaces the motherboard for free after 6 years of use. How many times do you need to be told that we haven't had 6 years of use out of the motherboard. This is the core of this thread/discussion. They are rendered useless after approximately 2-3 years of solid use and that is completely unsatisfactory. What is also unsatisfactory is that Apple replaced the motherboards with the same fault as the now useless ones. It's as if you aren't even reading the comments and just blindly defending Apple. No different to replacing a faulty engine in a brand new car with another faulty engine. Think about it will you.

Perhaps you should be paying a little closer attention before calling someone out. I was replying to a specific post where the poster stated "This laptop cost me £3,000 6 years ago I now know that I could have purchased a decent windows laptop each year." This makes it a 6 year old computer used for 6 years. I agree that a computer's logic board should not fail in 2 or 3 years, but it happens.

ThomasD3

Level 1

46 points

Sep 9, 2017 5:19 AM in response to BergoniaC

BergoniaC wrote:

IFixit.com gives the logic board removal a "difficult" rating and it takes 1-3 hours.

It's not that difficult to remove; it's mostly tedious, but in practice it's 10-15min with the right tools if you're comfortable with that kind of process.

Sep 9, 2017 10:59 AM in response to ThomasD3

I believe the majority of Macbook Pro owners are like me, have no experience or practice removing or installing Logic Boards. For me one reason for buying an Apple computer is so I wouldn't need to remove parts because they are suppose to just work.

Oct 1, 2017 9:16 AM in response to DZohan

Yup, I'm part of a great conspiracy that is out to convince you what products to use and what to believe. Hopefully you are wearing your tin foil hat because I'm again about to post. I don't work for Apple; I don't get compensated by Apple; I care less about Apple other than I do use MacBook Pros; I do not own any other Apple products; I use Windows PCs daily; I don't care it you use Windows PCs or Apple notebooks; I try to offer advice to those willing to listen.

Apple has a feedback channel which I suggested be used. They pay attention to feedback provided via the channel. They do not pay attention to rants posted by conspiracy theorists in these user-to-user help communities. People posting assistance here are doing it in good faith to help each other. I don't care if you switch to Windows. So take the advice given or don't.

Oct 1, 2017 1:58 PM in response to Arepoli

I have the same problem. For me, Macbook pro is the most expensive home electronics. It is not acceptable that Macbook pro-2011 is a vintage after 6 only years. Apple definitely should be responsible for the repair as Toyota and Takata are doing, since their failure is obvious.

Oct 1, 2017 3:38 PM in response to andrewj44

andrewj44 wrote:

so who deletes comments on here Bob? You or Apple

The helpers here are just users like you. Apple provides community hosts, Apple employees, who monitor these communities. They are the only ones who can delete or edit a post. When a post gets deleted the poster gets an email from the hosts stating why the post was deleted.

Oct 1, 2017 3:38 PM in response to andrewj44

Only the Apple Support Community "Hosts" (not individual Users, no matter how many points they have) can remove User comments.

Removed comments typically do not adhere to the Terms Of Use that you agreed to when you signed up. If you need a refresher on the terms of Use, they are posted nearby.

Oct 1, 2017 3:50 PM in response to andrewj44

Submissions

Stay on topic. Apple Support Communities is here to help people use Apple products and technologies more effectively. Unless otherwise noted, do not add Submissions about non technical topics, including:

Speculations or rumors about unannounced products.

Discussions of Apple policies or procedures or speculation on Apple decisions.

Be polite. Everyone should feel comfortable reading Submissions and participating in discussions. Apple will not tolerate flames or other inappropriate statements, material, or links. Most often, a "flame" is simply a statement that is taunting and thus arbitrarily inflammatory. However, this also includes those which are libelous, defamatory, indecent, harmful, harassing, intimidating, threatening, hateful, objectionable, discriminatory, abusive, vulgar, obscene, pornographic, sexually explicit, or offensive in a sexual, racial, cultural, or ethnic context.

Post constructive comments and questions. Unless otherwise noted, your Submission should either be a technical support question or a technical support answer. Constructive feedback about product features is welcome as well. If your Submission contains the phrase "I'm sorry for the rant, but…" you are likely in violation of this policy.

Do not post polls or petitions or links to same.

... and so on

Full terms of use are here:

Apple Support Communities Use Agreement

Oct 1, 2017 3:49 PM in response to andrewj44

Because the Terms of Use specifically spell out what these forums are for and what is acceptable content. Petitions are not acceptable content in the Terms of Use which we all agreed to when we joined the communities.

Oct 1, 2017 4:05 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Grant,

Here are couple interesting tidbits from Apple Support Communities Agreement:

7. Apple may offer you benefits and award privileges for your participation in the Site. 19,000 post... you get anything for that yet?

2.1.2 Discussions of Apple policies or procedures.... So I guess this post will be deleted and your post should be deleted.

2.4. Do not post polls or petitions. So suggesting that a petition should be started is the same as posting a petition.

5.3 Apple reserves the right to delete any Submission, or take action against any account, at any time, for any reason.... I like this catch-all. "For any reason".

Oct 1, 2017 4:06 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Will you or Bob The Fisherman acknowledge that everyone on this forum apart from yourselves are angry with Apple and have genuine grievances regarding the faulty GPU's and the way Apple have handled it. Why are you two the only ones who are constantly on the defense? Why are you two even involved in this discussion in the first place?

Oct 1, 2017 4:19 PM in response to BergoniaC

BergoniaC wrote:

Grant,

Here are couple interesting tidbits from Apple Support Communities Agreement:

7. Apple may offer you benefits and award privileges for your participation in the Site. 19,000 post... you get anything for that yet?

2.1.2 Discussions of Apple policies or procedures.... So I guess this post will be deleted and your post should be deleted.

2.4. Do not post polls or petitions. So suggesting that a petition should be started is the same as posting a petition.

5.3 Apple reserves the right to delete any Submission, or take action against any account, at any time, for any reason.... I like this catch-all. "For any reason".

1. Nothing and won't get anything except Levels and Perks

2. Don't know what your point is. The TOU are very clear.

3. That is a call for the community hosts. They are the only ones who can take any action.

4. Apple's servers Apple's rules. If you have some property I assume you make the rules for tenants or visitors.

DZohan

Level 1

4 points

Oct 1, 2017 6:06 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

You see thats exactly the point im trying to make, I read all the posts in this now 8 page thread before I posted my first post. I read your story, and like I said before im happy you got your moneys worth out of your computer. You are the exception, it seems you are the only one.

You telling me or anyone else to "get over it" does nothing to help this page or the original issue at hand. I can pursue my quest and so can anyone else on this and/or any other venue they choose, we certainly dont need your permission or approval.

DZohan

Level 1

4 points

Oct 1, 2017 6:10 PM in response to DZohan

At this point Bob and Grant have succeeded to take away attention from the original reason this thread was started to begin with. So I will like I said in my first post, ignore them because it seems they have no reason to post here since one doesnt have an Early 2011 MBP and the other is satisfied with his computer dying so I dont know why they are in this thread anyway. I would hope that everyone else ignores them as well and that should be enough for them to go attach themselves to a new thread letting us get back to sharing our experience and knowledge to get this issue resolved by Apple.

This thread has been closed by the system or the community team. You may vote for any posts you find helpful, or search the Community for additional answers.

2011 Macbook Pro Logic Board Failure