MacBook Core 2 Duo C-Channel Replacement

Written By: iRobot
  • Comments: 136
MacBook Core 2 Duo C-Channel Replacement

Difficulty

Difficult

Steps

26

Time Required

No estimate

Introduction

The metal support beneath the display.

  1. dLF6KygThyYNdyCS

    • Use a coin or spudger to rotate the battery-locking screw 90 degrees clockwise.

    I used this guide plus the Thermal Paste guide to resolve my MacBook RRS (Random Restart Syndrome) issue. My MacBook would randomly restart after the fan kicked into high speed. When I removed the heatsink I discovered an an irregular patch completely free of thermal compound of about 15-20% of the area on one of the processors. I removed and re-applied the thermal paste. I ran a memory test utility overnight that previously caused a restart after a couple of hours, and the probelm seems to be solved. TIme will tell.

    ServiceDocs -

    This guide was seriously helpful, so thanks for putting this together. I found a thick ribbon of dust/muck whatever between the fan outlet and the exhaust port that was almost as dense as felt. My fan must have been fighting like crazy trying to pass air through that blockage, which explains the high temps and excessive fan noise. Wish I'd done this sooner...

    Thanks again!

    skraggle -

    Just R&R'ed the fan in my black MacBook Core 2 Duo tonight. Took me 30 minutes tops and I was taking my time. These instructions are SPOT ON! Great job ifixit.com! Two thumbs up!

    Follow the instructions exactly as you see and have a piece of paper taped to the table next to you that you can outline all the screws you took out so you know where they go back in. I expected this to be a LOT harder, but it was one of the simplest repairs I've ever done to ANY computer!

    mikeutter -

    Piece of cake--or should I say gum. If you don't have a magnetized screwdriver, load up a stick of gum and chomp on it until it's needed then use a bit to retain screw on the driver. And if you should tear the black tape, or if the silver tape won't stick any more, just bubblegum it together. The instructions were clear and correct, which made for a very simple repair.

    Mike Woodruff -

    My battery does not pop out when after step 1. Any idea why, and how do fix it?

    Calvin -

    Quote from Calvin:

    My battery does not pop out when after step 1. Any idea why, and how do fix it?

    Will not drop out even if you turn it upside down?

    skraggle -

    Somehow, now my isight camera doesn't work and the light is always on. Cannot figure out what I did wrong.

    josefsalyer -

    Somehow the plastic disc with the slot for a coin got dislodged from the case, and I can't seem to get it open now. Any tips/links on how to open this without the aid of the plastic disc?

    Peter Wood -

    i broke my disc off as well. I used two toothpicks to rotate the thing. hi tech.

    howard bederman -

    Outstanding guide - thank you!

    owen bullock -

    My computer will not charge when plugged in. It will stay on as ling as the plug is in the wall however if the power source gets disconnected it will shut down immediately. I removed the battery and put it back in that did not help. It worked and charged fine 2 days ago. I have a backpack with a laptop storage area. I went to hang the backpack up and it fell and ever since the battery is not functioning. Is there some fix I can try or is my only solution to replace it? I would have thought that dropping it would affect more than the battery?

    Beth Tomasek -

    Better leave the back pack where it cannot fall. Hindsight is so much better than foresight . I learned the hard way too!

    Loy Lum -

    Many of the tiny screws in this project were quite sticky. I found some blue Loctite residue that must have been when the Apple repair shop worked on the laptop years ago. I have found that it is important to hold the correct driver firmly down in the screw and then just tweak the driver in short bursts to loosen it before unscrewing it with a smooth turn.

    Patrick Langvardt -

    Be really careful while doing this to not use too much force while doing this step, because the plastic disc can break off and it can be a cosmetic issue along with functionality issue. This happened to me first hand so please take my word for it…

    [deleted] -

    Probably worth mentioning at this stage that the caddy you propose to use should not have lugs on the front corners, like those used in unibody 1278 and onwards.

    harwood -

    Hehe, still my mac os running! After, already bit more than 10 years of use!

    I put new heat paste now for the second time. Maybe this helped for staying young so long.

    Thanx for all the repair guides!!!

    Fabien -

  2. FN4ThHdXJENYggv1

    • Lift the battery out of the computer.

    I just replaced the battery as indicated (with a iFixit part), but the computer says there is no battery connected, even after letting the power plug in for more than one hour.

    Jean Wallemacq -

    I think I found the way to have the new battery to charge!!!!!

    See: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRYIMDQx....

    Essentially, you have to follow a very precise order: 1/shut down the computer, 2/take off the magsafe connector, 3/remove the old battery, 4/put back the magsafe connector, 5/put the new battery, 6/power on, each time leaving a few seconds in between.

    Jean Wallemacq -

  3. wxI2pQDYMxYyon6w

    • Unscrew the three evenly-spaced Phillips screws from along the rear wall of the battery compartment.

    • The screws are captive to the metal memory cover so you cannot lose them.

    • Using The Flexible Extension sold by iFixit will help with this step.

    please pay attention that screws are native to metal pieces otherwise you are going to be a stupid like me trying to unscrew unsuccessfully until I reread the guide

    manochu -

    Lay the screws out in a ”timeline” like a circle, Then when you reassemble just start from the end of the “timeline”

    decristoforo -

    The screws have to unscrewing positions, first they unscrew from the whole body BUT if you move the lid without entirely removing the screws, they will remain attached to the lid. This I find much more recomendable!

    Wytchkraft -

    I found when putting this back in that I had to use a spudger to work the mesh/foam into the slot where the memory cards are so the bracket would lay flat again when screwed back in.

    slwatts2 -

    What size screwdriver

    edward greene -

    Edward: Philips 000

    johnsawyercjs -

  4. PGJSBlvccBHSXVPO

    • Grasp the right end of the L-shaped memory cover, then pull it towards you so it clears the battery compartment opening.

    • Lift the memory cover up and out of the computer.

    That looks so easy!

    caiden rutledge -

  5. 6blEAXc4lLXCJ2Bh

    • Remove the following 3 screws:

    • One 11 mm Phillips#00 in the middle of the lower case. (Head: 5mm dia. x .75mm thick)

    • Two 14.5 mm Phillips #00 (Head: 5mm dia. x .75mm thick)

    • If the screws stick in the case, you can use a magnetized screwdriver to draw them out.

    • The shorter of the three screws goes in the middle of the lower case.

    I couldn't get the top two 11mm screws to come out, even with a magnetized driver. When I tried to keep unscrewing them, they clicked like they were spring mounted, and I didn't have any trouble leaving them in and continuing on.

    ryan64 -

    Quote from ryan64:

    I couldn't get the top two 11mm screws to come out, even with a magnetized driver. When I tried to keep unscrewing them, they clicked like they were spring mounted, and I didn't have any trouble leaving them in and continuing on.

    I use a strong magnet to pull the screws out of their socket.

    Alaerus -

    The top two screws didn't seem to want to come out, and I saw no reason they had to, so I left them there, put a little piece of tape over each so they wouldn't fall out.

    HandyMac -

    You need to replace the shorter middle screw first, otherwise it won't tighten later since it won't quite reach the bottom.

    colmcostelloe -

    for me this was the hardest part especially the two 14.5mm that dint want to come out. keep turning the screw and slightly pressing the case down, once the screw is a little use try using finger, screw and a non metallic point to try to push them out. they arent tight but they are very hard to unscrew i almost gave up, but believe me they come out with patience

    manochu -

    I also did not find that I needed to remove the two 14.5 mm screws. I unscrewed them but they seemed designed to stay with the case and I found it did not seem to affect anything to just let them stay there.

    Alice -

  6. DtjVZJA2CTUA3iOJ

    • Take extra caution with these screws as they can strip easily!

    • You could use a flexible extension to minimize stripping.

    • Remove the following 3 screws from the rear wall of the battery compartment:

    • One 3 mm Phillips #0. (Head: 2.75 mm. dia.)

    • Two 4 mm Phillips #0 on the either side. (Head: 2.75mm dia.)

    On this step, I encountered a problem. The middle screw was screwed in very very tightly. As a result, I ended up stripping the screw despite being very careful. I tried to use a wire cutter to remove the screw, but that did not work. I actually ended up using the wirecutter to cut the bracket off, leaving the screw screwed in. This did not affect anything. I am typing off of my replace macbook top case right now.

    The point is, BE CAREFUL! but if something does go wrong, don't fret. There are solutions.

    LaNoobieFixer -

    On a Macbook I just tore down, I found that in this step, the 4mm screw was on the left, not the right. I thought maybe someone else had it apart before and accidentally switched them so in staying true to these instructions I tried to reassemble with the 4mm screw on the right. I found it would not go all the way in. I ended up putting it back together with the 2-3mm screws on the right and the 1-4mm screw on the left.

    scottgriz -

    I didn't look closely at these screws when I took it apart, but when I went to put it back together (two weeks later) I found I had two longer (4mm?) screws, and one short one. So I put the longer ones in the two end spots, the short one in the middle; they all seemed to go in okay. (Maybe the screws got changed around the last time the cracked top case was replaced, when the MB was in the Apple shop under warranty last year.)

    HandyMac -

    Me too. I had two longer 4mm screws here, and one 3mm screw. And I didn't pay attention to what holes each screw came out of. I put them back in a random order and it seems fine.

    Thomas -

    My early 2008 MacBook was the same. 2 x 4mm in the outer and 1 x 3mm in the centre.

    Ernie K -

    You need to replace the shorter middle screw first, otherwise it won't tighten later.

    colmcostelloe -

    I needed a tweezers here. These screws are tiny!

    If you lose one you may have to remove the RAM (by pulling the appropriate lever) and gently slide out the screw.

    colmcostelloe -

    oh thanks I thought the screw was lost forever

    Ike Broflovski -

    I couldn't pull over the two 3 mm Phillips on the step 6, how could you've done it?

    Eliotus -

    To confirm what HandyMac and colmcostelloe found, some MacBooks have one 3mm and two 4mm screws in the rear wall of the battery compartment. On the one I worked on, the shorter 3mm screw came from the middle hole.

    BeatJunkie -

    please note the position of the screws because when you are reinstalling them you might get confuse. this ones go below or under (sorry English inst my first language). There are two screw holes this steps are for the ones below.

    manochu -

    Quote from BeatJunkie:

    To confirm what HandyMac and colmcostelloe found, some MacBooks have one 3mm and two 4mm screws in the rear wall of the battery compartment. On the one I worked on, the shorter 3mm screw came from the middle hole.

    Thanks Beat Junkie, this was the situation with my Mac 2.13ghz Mid 2009 that I was putting back together. Thanks for the confirmation! (For the 6th step)

    Cong Trieu -

    For me (A1181), there were two shorter screws and one longer. The longer went on the left (a shorter screw wouldn't catch). (Not the middle that is currently in the instruction. But that could be model difference.) The middle screw started to strip the head but using a slightly larger phillips allowed me to get it out.

    Paul Collins -

    I have two MacBooks, one white and one black and both had two 3mm screws and one 4mm screw, opposite of what was in the main document

    doublel -

    In my late 2006 macbook the central screw was longer than the side screws..

    Julien Lesage -

    Mine was A1181 model, Core 2 Duo 2.16 GHz. Of course I did not keep track of the screws and ended up with two shorter ones and one longer. Replaced them with the longer one to the right of the three. Got it done with a Wiha PH00 screwdriver. Had better hold than the bit from the precision screwdriver kit.

    quentinlow -

    me too. Got it done with a iFixIt PH00 screwdriver.

    Johhnie Doe -

    Yeah, same for me, #00 worked; #0 suggested in the guide was too big. I didn’t even try #000. For 2.2GHz A1181. My screw config matched the guide, 3mm in middle, 4mm on the sides.

    Les Kitchen -

    Stripped a head on my left screw (A1181 model, Core 2 Duo 2.0 GHz). Used a precision 1.5 slotted screwdriver to get enough bite to screw it out and back in.

    Daniel -

    I couldn't get the suggested Phillips #0 tip to grab. PH#00 worked, but I found the PH#000 to work the best.

    steveeb33 -

    I found this step to be the hardest to put back because of the angle - even with iFixIt's driver Flex Extension.

    steveeb33 -

    I had two 3mm screws and one 4mm screw…. So I put the 4mm screw in the middle hole, and the 3mm screws in the outer holes.

    FixWiki -

  7. 4MqPJgssmP6AGvOt

    • Remove the two Phillips screws from either side of the right wall of the battery compartment (not the ones closest to the battery connector).

    • Two 6.25 mm Phillips #000. (Head: 4 mm. dia. x .5mm thick)

    The steps do not tell you what length screw that is needed to be here. What I can tell you that is the screw needs to be 5mm or 6mm, NOT 7.5 or 8mm or 9mm.

    Cong Trieu -

    Screwdriver PH0

    Projectors Band -

    For black 2.2GHz A1181, I used PH #000 as suggested by guide. My screws are both 6mm.

    Les Kitchen -

  8. xdDA5eHuaNInWRlA

    • Remove the four indicated Phillips screws from the front wall of the battery compartment. When working from the left, remove the 2nd, 4th, 7th and 9th screws.

    • Four 3.25 mm Phillips #000. (Head: 4 mm. dia. x 4mm thick)

    It's recommended to use a PH00 screwdriver instead of the PH000.

    The PH000 is too small and you can damage the screwheads.

    Martin Born -

    Yeah, I found PH #00 better too. (For black 2.2Ghz A1181.)

    Les Kitchen -

    I used PH0 for this

    Projectors Band -

    Is there a way I can cut the bracket off? I completely stripped one of the screws?

    Austin Martin -

    I’ve done this often enough that I marked the screws to remove with red marker.

    Peter Wood -

  9. EBC44ZGj1Dj1QTlD

    • Remove the following 4 screws from the back of the computer:

    • Two 11 mm Phillips #00, with Shank (2.2mm dia. x 2 mm len.) (Head: 3.2 mm. dia. x .5mm thick)

    • Two 7.25 mm Phillips #00, with Shank (2mm dia. x 3.75 mm len.) (Head: 3.2 mm. dia. x .5mm thick)

    • During reassembly, the two longer screws go on the inside, and the two shorter screws go on the outside.

    Outer screws (red) are shorter (7mm long), while inner screws (orange) are 11mm.

    ptb -

    I found these screws quite loose; upon reassembly, I wanted to torque them but found the case would distort towards the center, so I had to leave them fairly loose

    David A -

    I cannot get the two outer screws out for the life of me- and afraid of stripping them. Already see I'm doing some damage. Help? What can I do?

    Olivia -

    Are you sure you have a proper screwdriver? From my experience you really need to use the correct size and not just something that seems to fit.

    Jakub Clapa -

    Olivia, you can screw back the longer screws that go on the inside. In the photo marked with orange. Then open and close the lid of the MacBook a few times. This will fit the 4 screws more properly in the steel inner-frame and they can come a little bit loose.

    Close the lid again. Leave the inner screws untouched and begin with the outer screws (marked with red) with indeed a perfect matching screwdriver head (with a big and long grip for your hand). This worked for me perfectly without damage. Success!

    S van Dam -

    When reassembling, do not fully tighten the two 11 mm (orange) screws. When the plastic starts to flex, back it off until the strain on the plastic housing is released and leave it at that. The two 7.25 mm (red) can be snug.

    steveeb33 -

    Same experience as David. Case warped and left screws a little loose.

    spadu79 -

  10. jesHGFcWjJWckGS1

    • Remove the two Phillips screws from the optical drive (right) side of the computer:

    • Two 5.2 mm Phillips #00, with shank (2.3mm dia. x 3.25 mm len.) (Head: 3.2 mm. dia. x .5mm thick)

    • It is not necessary to remove the similar screws on the ports (left) side of the computer.

    The screw farthest from the optical drive would not come out, all other screws came out fine with my screw driver and the screw looks ok, any tips on how to get the screw out?

    Aidan Morey -

    With some of the screws that can happen. I had it too. This did it for the MacBook I was repairing: 1. Open the MacBook. Then press firm but gentle on the upper case with your hand or fingers while trying to loosen the screw with your screwdriver. 2. I used a different screwdriver from the same size diameter but with a much larger hand-grip. Success!

    S van Dam -

  11. rU3wVbbA1jsJBNJW

    • There's a trackpad and keyboard ribbon cable connecting the upper case to the logic board, so don't pull the upper case off entirely just yet.

    • Use a plastic opening tool, an expired plastic credit, or a similarly-thick card to pry up on the upper case, starting in the upper-left corner and working around to the front of the computer.

    • The upper case is likely to stick at its connection above the front edge of the optical drive. If this happens, first free all other sides, then proceed to pull upward on the upper case from either side of the optical drive opening. Here again, inserting a plastic card, guitar pick, etc. can be useful.

    • If you stand the base of the MacBook on one end to get a better look, you may displace the four grey plastic clips that hold the right side of the upper case in place. Don't panic. They slide into slots at the top rightmost edge of the lower frame, above the front edge of the optical drive.

    • During reassembly, make sure the clips on the right side, above the optical drive, click firmly into place. They're different from the clips on the left side, and so normally they require a little firmer pressure to click into place.

    There will be 4 grey plastic clips just right of the DVD drive. Note their position as they will fall out in the next steps.

    tim7866 -

    No such clips found on my early 2008 version.

    Ernie K -

    Thank you ifixit, it was huge help for me, I did it and everything just works great.....THANK YOU!

    Dako -

    As is reported above, there a 4 friction tabs that connect to the keyboard. If they do not stay in place and stick to the keyboard, the keyboard will not go back on. Just remove them and put them in the clips, with the solid clip wall to the outside of the unit, and put the keyboard back on. Do this before reconnecting the keyboard.

    David Higgins -

    I had no problem at all in this step, the left side was already unlocked when I open the MacBook, the right side was a little tricky but i was able to pull it out in less than a minute

    manochu -

    The front left had an annoying little metal strip between the outside of the case and the tab. It's very easily bent, so the tab was caught on it. I spent a good deal of time trying to push and pull various things (and even just yank the @$!^ thing off), but eventually I found that if you undo the two screws you are told not to in step 7, the battery connector can be pulled up and out, leaving enough horizontal room to pull out the metal strip (with a little bit of coercion). I left it out when I put everything back together.

    James Pearson Hughes -

    Thanks for the tip. Saved me!

    Joe -

    Because this step requires some force, make sure to double check that you got all your screws out. I finally got my gumption up to apply the necessary force required to pull up the upper case, and after 5 minutes of pulling, I look and see that the reason it wasn't coming up because I missed one screw. Ugh.

    Also, before you just shove your hands under the upper case, prying about, think twice: I cut my finger pretty bad on a sharp piece of metal.

    Thomas -

    When reassembling, take some care to align the tabs on the right hand side next to the optical drive. Rock and slide these tabs into position. Then work from right to left, as the rest of the case is quite easy to put back together.

    Andrew Dent -

    I took my mac apart yesterday to clean out the trackpad properly and after getting some 'help' from my grandfather (he lost 2 screws and snapped off a bit of the uppercase but i didn't have the heart to ask him to leave it alone) i tried putting the uppercase back on. it fits perfectly but the middle section closest to the screen appears slightly raised and when i go to screw in the four screws on the exterior of the laptop i can't because the hole is not at all aligned (and two of those four screws are very long). anyone know why this might be? can it be fixed/is it a common problem?

    Eliza -

    If the upper case sticks above the optical drive, don't pull straight up, but up and to the left at the same time.

    frood -

    Wow, pulling both up and to the left made all the difference for me, to unstick the keyboard around the optical drive.

    Neil Steiner -

    I think it is a mistake to separate the keyboard from the clips at the right side (above the optical drive) at all! Instead, after freeing the other three sides, just slide the keyboard slightly to the left, and leave the clips attached to the keyboard. For reassembly, just put the keyboard in its approximate place and slide it to the right to get those clips into position. Be sure the keyboard is really snug against the machine’s case. Then press the other three edges of the keyboard down.

    jeh -

    The plastic around the edge is very thin and cracks easily, so be gentle while using the opening tool.

    Henry S -

    On the right side above the optical drive there are little plastic braces that latch the upper case to the main body. This is the reason why the upper case might stick here. If the above step is not working, also try to gently push the upper case sideways away from the optical drive after freeing all other sides. When reassembling make sure the braces are in their slots of the main body and not attached to the upper case. If you cannot fit the upper case evenly over the optical drive, that's probably why. In this case carefully remove them and slide them back into their slots before lowering the upper case.

    Hendryk1982 -

    this guide was awesome. this step was easy for the broken macbook i salvaged and noticed because i got a factory replacement keyboard quite recently on my macbook in use, the 4 clips above the optical drive were TIGHT - it took quite a bit of pulling up before it came loose!

    Chinarut Ruangchotvit -

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    • While holding up the upper case, pull up the black tab on the connector end of the silver ribbon cable away from the connector's socket on the logic board.

    • If there is no black tab, you can also use a spudger to gently pry the connector out of its socket on the logic board. This connector is tall, so be sure to pry straight up.

    • If you happen to break your upper case cable when removing the upper case, we stock the cable individually and we have a guide that makes replacing it easy.

    • While you have the upper case removed, it's a good time to remove dust, hair, etc. It's best to use a can of compressed air, though if you use a brush, make sure that its bristles are made of a material (usually animal hair) that doesn't generate static electricity, which can destroy electronics.

    • Upon reassembly, there are 4 grey plastic clips installed in slots running along the top of the frame in front of the optical drive (refer to second and third pictures). These clips must be installed in their slots for their mating tabs on the underside of the right side of the upper case to snap into them.

    When changing the topcase remember to change the sticker with the serial also! This might be important when further service or bigger repairs by apples service are needed. The serial also helps you with identifying your macbook!

    spi -

    The entire connector broke off the logic board when I was disconnecting the keyboard just now. Be extremely careful!

    Chris -

    I tried to remove the blacktab from the logic board, however, the black tab tore apart. The logic board is okay but the keyboard connector is torn. It has some silver wires passing through a whit plastic housing. It is the first generation of MacBook Core Duo. Do you think it can be repaired?

    Roger -

    I could not get the keyboard off my the body... (black macbook I don't know if that makes any difference). It was stuck bottom left hand corner, so I had to bend whatever was stuck to get access to the logicboard etc... any reason why this is the case??

    Takuma -

    not sure if this is the place to ask but my mac. doesn't start properly now it turns on and the little light on the right side turns on but keyboard leds don't and display doesn't either any ideas please?

    carlos -

    Great repair guide! Changing the top case was pretty easy and it saved me a lot of money.

    Harry -

    it was really easy, i had no experience whatsoever installing or unistalling mac parts (or pc either). it just took me less than 25 minutes, and i just finish and Im typing from my new upper case keyboard.

    manochu -

    After a sucessful install of the keyboard, the select (mouse buttun equivalent) was found to not operate consistently. I called support and they are shipping a new one out to me. THIS is why I buy from ifixit - sure I can get a part for less elsewhere - but I would not get the service I get with ifixit - THANKS guys!!!

    jgreengold -

    Note - I agree, this was VERY easy - great pictures, perfect explanations...

    jgreengold -

    Quote from carlos:

    not sure if this is the place to ask but my mac. doesn't start properly now it turns on and the little light on the right side turns on but keyboard leds don't and display doesn't either any ideas please?

    Did you ever find an answer for this question? My computer is doing the same thing. Thanks.

    E Chambliss -

    Quote from E Chambliss:

    Did you ever find an answer for this question? My computer is doing the same thing. Thanks.

    no i never did couldn't get help it blows to hear someone else had the same problem...im using a windows(yuk) but im getting a new mac next paycheck. if you figure it out let me know so i can fix my other one and maybe give it to my parents

    carlos -

    Quote from carlos:

    no i never did couldn't get help it blows to hear someone else had the same problem...im using a windows(yuk) but im getting a new mac next paycheck. if you figure it out let me know so i can fix my other one and maybe give it to my parents

    Hello, I'm following this procedure because my MacBook isn't turning on due to a failure in the MagSafe DC In board, it was not charging the battery and therefore no power going in. The case was broken duirng warranty and also the MagSafe power adapter was replaced. Now it is failing again. This is an old late 2006 MacBook. Does your Mac powers on, do you hear the chime sound? or you are stuck with a hardware failure?

    Repair232323 -

    Quote from Francisco:

    Hello, I'm following this procedure because my MacBook isn't turning on due to a failure in the MagSafe DC In board, it was not charging the battery and therefore no power going in. The case was broken duirng warranty and also the MagSafe power adapter was replaced. Now it is failing again. This is an old late 2006 MacBook. Does your Mac powers on, do you hear the chime sound? or you are stuck with a hardware failure?

    my MacBook charges the battery and powers on i dont hear a chime and it turns on but never starts

    carlos -

    Quote from spi:

    When changing the topcase remember to change the sticker with the serial also! This might be important when further service or bigger repairs by apples service are needed. The serial also helps you with identifying your MacBook!

    How do you do it? I can't get it out

    Superb guide thank you guys

    eli -

    This takes some nerves if there is no tab, but be confident and just prise the connector straight up.

    Andrew Dent -

    Be very careful while you pulling the black tab! It's better to use spudger to pry the connector from it's housing while you gently pulling the black tab.

    eaksut -

    Clips removal: its hard with finger to pull. It's better and easy off with a pry tool (I used a flat twiser) to pry from the bottom gently for each clips. It was so smooth and easy.

    Johhnie Doe -

    After I clean everything nice… put the cable back and DO NOT TURN ON. What the !&&* happens!? Ideias my friends? :(

    Sorry my bad english!

    glecyo medeiros -

    Getting the upper-case/keyboard off was a bit nerve-wracking. Just work away at it carefully, bit by bit.

    A small torch (flashlight for our American friends) was handy to see what was happening underneath the upper-case. Otherwise too dark.

    I used a photographic lens-cleaning blower (with the rubber squeeze bulb, just the blower, no brush) to get away the dust. Probably not as effective as canned air, but it worked well enough. I’d recommend avoiding touching anything with the tip of the blower. Keep it a few mm away.

    Les Kitchen -

    After removing the keyboard I noticed that the side clips were not attached to the body but rather to the keyboard still. Easily removed but something to note.

    Philip Lynes -

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    • Grasp the white plastic tab attached to the hard drive and pull it to the left, removing the hard drive from the computer.

    Note, if you’ve already installed an optical/SATA adapter, and you’re doing this just to replace the SATA drive, then you might be able to skip almost all of the following steps. It seems that for the sort of adapter described in this guide (with the drive secured by a plastic positioner), you should be able to leave pretty much everything in place, and swap out the SATA drive (though you might need to move the Bluetooth antenna holder out of the way).

    Unfortunately for me, mine is a different kind of adapter, with the drive secured by screws from the underside, so I still had to go through almost all the steps to get the adapter out. I can’t even remember where I got the adapter. I think it was probably from iFixit, but it might have been a different, earlier version.

    Les Kitchen -

    Backstory is that I put an SSD in the adapter a few years back to replace a dead optical drive. And it worked with the extra drive, but it seemed to function slowly, at optical-drive rather than SSD speed. Recently, the machine stopped detecting the extra hard-drive. I don’t know why. My guess is that in an upgrade something changed in how the kernel detects devices, and it got confused by an SSD being where it expected an optical drive. (I’m running Debian GNU/Linux, it being the only way I can run up-to-date software on a machine no longer supported by Apple, and I’m a Free Software enthusiast anyway.) Your mileage may vary… Because the SATA drive wasn’t being detected, and I needed access to the data on it, I had no choice for the time being but to take out the SSD and go back to a single-drive machine. The main drive is SSD, and I’ve upgrade to the max 6GB RAM, so it’s still a pretty useful machine.

    I’m planning to put the adapter back in, just in case the void would be bad for cooling air-flow.

    Les Kitchen -

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    • Remove the two Phillips screws from the side of the optical drive.

    • Two 3.25 mm Phillips #000 (head: 4 mm. dia. x .3 mm thick)

    After installing the caddy successfully, I could not make the screw on the right fit in again. The distance between the hole and the caddy seemed to be too big.

    ThomasKS -

    !! I can't remove the left screw, and ended up "screwing" it.. it's a round hole now. What should I do?

    wkurosawa -

    wkurosawa: The optical drive will stay put properly if the screw on the left isn't installed.

    johnsawyercjs -

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    • Disconnect the orange optical drive ribbon cable connector from the logic board by prying it straight up using either a finger or a spudger.

    Pull straight up from the left

    tjkredo -

  16. WleeVoTtZUOLtSMp

    • Disconnect the newly revealed display data cable's plug from the logic board by pulling it upward using its black pull-tab.

    • If there is no pull-tab on top of the plug, it may be helpful to use a spudger to disconnect this plug.

    The display cable was difficult to disconnect for me. I had to pull firmly and use the spudger at the same time to finally pop it off.

    supershibbydude1 -

    I pulled firmly on the tab, while rocking back and forth slightly.

    Les Kitchen -

    Pull the connector firmly straight up.

    Eric -

    I have found over the years that a connector puller is invaluable in these situations. I believe that I bought mine from iFixit. In steps 16 and 17 you'll have to partially de-route two cables at the base of the connectors in order to get a good grip with the connector puller.

    randy3833 -

  17. 26qTC1KSb3Egu5rW

    • Disconnect the newly-revealed hard drive cable's plug from the logic board by pulling it upward using its black tab.

    • When reconnecting the hard drive cable's plug to the logic board, make sure the plug is routed under the cables for the right speaker and the microphone, or else the plug won't sit flush with the logic board, which will prevent the plug from fully engaging with its socket on the logic board.

    This step is not necessary

    nycstb -

    Left Off Here

    velopro -

    When reconnecting the Hard Drive Cable to the logic board (Step 17) I ran the HD cable on top of the microphone wire, and the other wire that runs parallel to it, when I should have run the HD cable underneath those two wires. This resulted in the hard drive not being connected on startup, and a lengthy troubleshooting session to figure this out. So save some time and install this underneath the two wires, just like you found it when taking it apart!

    mrphiliprichard -

    I've found it very useful to take photos of wire routing on disassembly for later reference.

    randy3833 -

  18. nSOV1TwJff11djwO

    • Peel up the foil tape between the fan and the optical drive. Lift the foil tape from the fan side, leaving it attached to the optical drive.

    • During reassembly, be sure to route the cables beneath the tape before reattaching it.

    • If the adhesive on this foil tape no longer sticks, you can hold it in place using a regular piece of tape, but don't block the fan intake.

    I was gently pulling up the tape with a spudger, but the tape snapped clean in half right at the edge of the optical drive. I'm really pretty surprised because I see no reason why it would have done that.

    Neil Steiner -

    Leave the foil on the fan side cause you’ll be taking it off the optical drive anyway

    Luke -

    How crucial is it to have tape here (foil or otherwise)?

    Peter Wood -

  19. tZJyKQ1VODthwfF6

    • Pull up the display data cable from along the edge of the optical drive to reveal a silver Phillips screw.

    I had to unscrew a screw securing flat ribbons keeping cables in position between beeper and fan to reach for the dvd screw

    t0m -

  20. 5KYOQK2dC3OKJPun

    • Remove the 2 mm Phillips #00 screw securing the rear corner of the optical drive.

    • When reinstalling this screw, make sure none of the cables nearby get caught under the screw's head.

    • The silver-jacketed Bluetooth cable may be covering the screw. If so, carefully push it aside. You may need to remove the screw holding the ground shield lugs for the two nearby cables before you can move the Bluetooth cable aside sufficiently. This screw is 7mm in earlier models, and may be 4.2mm in Santa Rosa/Penryn and 2009 models.

    STEP 20 - IMPORTANT= This screw secures a mounting bracket on the optical drive. This bracket's eyelets are slotted. The right side of the bracket has a tab inserted in the bottom case. After removing the screw, use the spudger to slide the bracket to the left. This disengages the tab from the right side of the case, thus allowing the optical drive to be lifted out in step 23.

    xtian -

    As an addition to xtian's note, the bracket that you need to slide right (and a spudger is very useful here) it may be because the rear right (as in the picture) of the optical drive needs to be GENTLY pushed down as the bracket end needs to slot into a hole on the right hand side of the case.

    Ernie K -

    After removing the screw gently push the metal tong (which the screw was holding) towards the fan. This will unlock the drive mount.

    Tom Roinisto -

    Please add this notes to the actual step. I missed the comments and bent the bracket.

    huso -

    I used a #000 Phillips.

    Eric -

    I found it helpful to remove the screw sitting to the lower left of the speaker.

    patjmccarthy -

    There is only one screw holding the optical drive down, the one circled in red. the one in orange is for the ground loop for the microphone and right speaker cable. Also, a spudger makes quick work of moving the cables out of the way to get to the screw for easy removal/replacement.

    Leo LeBron -

    As I tried to refit the optical drive, the plastic mount for the brass threaded socket that receives the screw crumbled like an old tooth. Only thing for it was to ditch the plastic and superglue the brass socket into place on the case - seems to have worked. (People who design parts/fixings that involve strong materials held in place by weaker ones should be imprisoned). I also had to remove the sliding bracket on the drive and cut 2/3mm off the right hand end to get the screw hole to align with the brass socket, also seems not to have caused any harm. Never thought I would find myself lashing out with the superglue and wielding a hacksaw inside a laptop...empowered!

    muir mackean -

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    • Lift the Bluetooth antenna board from the front edge of the optical drive.

  22. Ct3moTbsiW6FyN44

    • Deroute the hard drive cable from under the clips along the near side of the optical drive.

    • During reassembly, reroute the cable under these clips.

  23. FGY5WuRWQ5Kei1S3

    • Lift the side of the optical drive closest to you, then slide the drive towards you, and up and out of the computer.

    • Follow these steps to reinstall the optical drive:

    • First, slide its side nearest to the rear of the Macbook under the edge of the rear frame to the left of the hinge, while also sliding the optical drive's mounting tab at its upper left corner under the cables at this location.

    • Lower the drive partially into the lower housing. Keep the hard drive cable away from the optical drive bay.

    • Before dropping the drive fully in place, use a spudger to push forward (towards the front of the drive) on the screw hole in the drive's mounting tab.

    • Push forward the slider, which runs along the far side of the drive, to insert the end of this slider into a small channel in the lower case's frame. This helps hold the drive in place.

    • When you push the slider forward, if the screw hole in the drive's mounting tab doesn't line up over its threaded brass insert in the lower case, the front end of the slider hasn't fully inserted into its channel in the frame. Keep trying, but if the slider won't move further to the right, remove the drive to see if the end of the slider is bent.

    • If the front end of the slider isn't bent, it may be slightly too long. Use a pair of fine cutters to clip off the narrower portion of the end of the slider. The optical drive will still remain firmly in place.

    On the the optical drive there is a sliding-bar (secured by two screws, which fixes the drive in the right edge of the Alu-frame) that has to be shifted to the left when taking the drive off. Especially, before putting the optical drive back to the computer, make sure that the the sliding bar is in its leftward position in order not to block the insertion of the drive. Then shift the bar gently to the right thereby fixing the drive's position.

    armin -

    Thanks! Even so, I had to get the drive aligned just right, so that the sliding bar could mate with the matching slot in the case.

    Les Kitchen -

  24. UUZQjStq13B55TrY

    • For original Macbook Core Duo and Core 2 Duo models, remove these 3 screws:

    • Two 3 mm Phillips near the right speaker.

    • One 6 mm Phillips threaded through a hole in a plastic finger above the subwoofer.

    • When reinstalling the screw above the subwoofer, be careful not to over-tighten it or the subwoofer's plastic could crack.

    • For Santa Rosa/Penryn and 2009 models, which don't have a c-channel:

    • Remove only the single 3 mm Phillips screw from the right speaker, and skip step 26.

    If you don’t have the c-channel it seems you can skip steps 24, 25, and 26.

    mike s -

    Santa Rosa and Penryn use a #000 phillips for the speaker screw.

    Eric -

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    • Lift the right speaker out of its housing and set it to the side.

  26. CJYc1SfXO1GjMLmY

    • If you have a Santa Rosa/Penryn or 2009 model, skip this step.

    • Using a spudger, gently pry up the white plastic slot and slide the metal c-channel to the right and away from the display.

Conclusion

To reassemble your device, follow these instructions in reverse order.

Author

iRobot

Member since: 25/09/09

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