Difficulty

Moderate

Steps

14

Time Required

                          25 minutes - 1 hour

Sections

4

  • Lower Case
  • 2 steps
  • Battery Connection
  • 2 steps
  • Hard Drive
  • 4 steps
  • Hard Drive Cable
  • 6 steps

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  • BackMacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011

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Introduction

What you need

Step 1

              Lower Case
  • Remove the following ten screws:
  • Three 14.4 mm Phillips #00 screws
  • Three 3.5 mm Phillips #00 screws
  • Four 3.5 mm shouldered Phillips #00 screws
  • When replacing the small screws, align them perpendicular to the slight curvature of the case (they don’t go straight down).

Remove the following ten screws:

Three 14.4 mm Phillips #00 screws

Three 3.5 mm Phillips #00 screws

Four 3.5 mm shouldered Phillips #00 screws

When replacing the small screws, align them perpendicular to the slight curvature of the case (they don’t go straight down).

1024

Step 2

  • Use your fingers to pry the lower case away from the body of the MacBook near the vent.
  • Remove the lower case.

Use your fingers to pry the lower case away from the body of the MacBook near the vent.

Remove the lower case.

Step 3

              Battery Connection
  • Use the edge of a spudger to pry the battery connector upwards from its socket on the logic board.
  • It is useful to pry upward on both short sides of the connector to “walk” it out of its socket. Be careful with the corners of the connectors, they can be easily broken off.

Use the edge of a spudger to pry the battery connector upwards from its socket on the logic board.

It is useful to pry upward on both short sides of the connector to “walk” it out of its socket. Be careful with the corners of the connectors, they can be easily broken off.

Step 4

  • Bend the battery cable slightly away from its socket on the logic board so it does not accidentally connect itself while you work.

Bend the battery cable slightly away from its socket on the logic board so it does not accidentally connect itself while you work.

Step 5

              Hard Drive
  • Remove the two Phillips screws securing the hard drive bracket to the upper case.
  • These screws will remain attached to the hard drive bracket.

Remove the two Phillips screws securing the hard drive bracket to the upper case.

These screws will remain attached to the hard drive bracket.

Step 6

  • Remove the hard drive bracket.
  • The hard drive bracket may be firmly seated against the upper case.

Remove the hard drive bracket.

The hard drive bracket may be firmly seated against the upper case.

Step 7

  • Use the attached pull tab to lift the hard drive out of the upper case.
  • Don’t try to completely remove the hard drive just yet. It is still attached to the hard drive cable.

Use the attached pull tab to lift the hard drive out of the upper case.

Don’t try to completely remove the hard drive just yet. It is still attached to the hard drive cable.

Step 8

  • Pull the hard drive cable away from the body of the hard drive.
  • Remove the hard drive.

Pull the hard drive cable away from the body of the hard drive.

Remove the hard drive.

Step 9

              Hard Drive Cable
  • Use the flat end of a spudger to pry the hard drive cable connector up from its socket on the logic board.

Use the flat end of a spudger to pry the hard drive cable connector up from its socket on the logic board.

Step 10

  • Remove the following four screws:
  • Two 3 mm Phillips screws
  • Two 9.7 mm Phillips screws

Remove the following four screws:

Two 3 mm Phillips screws

Two 9.7 mm Phillips screws

Step 11

  • Carefully peel up the thin IR sensor/sleep LED ribbon cable from the adhesive securing it to the upper case.

Carefully peel up the thin IR sensor/sleep LED ribbon cable from the adhesive securing it to the upper case.

Step 12

  • Pull the front hard drive bracket containing the IR sensor/sleep LED away from the front edge of the upper case.

Pull the front hard drive bracket containing the IR sensor/sleep LED away from the front edge of the upper case.

Step 13

  • Remove the hard drive cable.
  • Your replacement part may come with several adhesive foam bumpers. These are to ensure a snug fit of both bracket and hard drive. Apply only as needed.

Remove the hard drive cable.

Your replacement part may come with several adhesive foam bumpers. These are to ensure a snug fit of both bracket and hard drive. Apply only as needed.

Step 14

  • Your replacement part may or may not come with the front (sensor) bracket. If it does not, you’ll need to transfer it to your new cable.
  • Use the tip of a spudger to flip the “lever” of the ZIF connector (left side in first photo) on the hard drive cable. The connector does not come off, see next instruction.
  • Gently pull the yellow sensor bracket cable out of the ZIF connector (to the right, in the second photo).
  • Use the flat end of a spudger to pry the hard drive cable up off the sensor bracket to which it is adhered.
  • Remove the adhesive backing from your new hard drive cable, stick it onto the sensor bracket, and connect the sensor bracket cable.
  • Many fixers cover the length of the thicker cable in the pair with sections of electrical tape on both sides because it can rub the tiny ridges inside the aluminum case causing a short to the case itself or simply breaking the connection.

Your replacement part may or may not come with the front (sensor) bracket. If it does not, you’ll need to transfer it to your new cable.

Use the tip of a spudger to flip the “lever” of the ZIF connector (left side in first photo) on the hard drive cable. The connector does not come off, see next instruction.

Gently pull the yellow sensor bracket cable out of the ZIF connector (to the right, in the second photo).

Use the flat end of a spudger to pry the hard drive cable up off the sensor bracket to which it is adhered.

Remove the adhesive backing from your new hard drive cable, stick it onto the sensor bracket, and connect the sensor bracket cable.

Many fixers cover the length of the thicker cable in the pair with sections of electrical tape on both sides because it can rub the tiny ridges inside the aluminum case causing a short to the case itself or simply breaking the connection.

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

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Author

                                      with 6 other contributors 


                    Andrew Bookholt

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David Talbot - May 12, 2014

Reply

Quick and easy fix a repair shop would have charged a small fortune for. The only thing I’d add is if your replacement has built in glue like mine did be careful installing it as it will stick anywhere and everywhere!

lachlan - Jan 8, 2015

Reply

We upgraded our hdd to an ssd and in the process must have damaged the sata cable. Macbook worked for a month before we got the flashing ? folder of death. Investigating we noticed the cable was partly ripped. This guide was perfect for replacing the cable, and now the macbook is working fine again! Brilliant! Just be careful to anyone replacing the hdd, the sata cable can tear easily.

Jim Good - Feb 2, 2015

Reply

I’ve replaced my hard drive cable twice now. The problem seems to be that the underside of the aluminum unibody has small ridges on it (you can see them, but they are small. The cable rubbed back and forth on these ridges, and you could see where the cable had shorted where it had worn away. It doesn’t take much.

I found a youtube fix which involved only laying a piece of electrical tape along the underside of the cable (underneath the drive), and another piece along the body itself. A couple minutes and few cents worth of electrical tape later and all was working fine.

Mike - Nov 8, 2015

Reply

I think i might have damaged the yellow ribbon that needs to be reinserted into the new sata cable because i recently installed one and had it fail 2 weeks later and just got a new one that isn’t loading up the sign-in menu but at least begins to read the hard drive instead of going straight to the ’ ? ’ folder. However, it will just continue to read the hard drive and stay at the loading screen with the apple icon and a spinning gray loading wheel below it without any progress. Any thoughts? I was thinking the yellow cable could have somehow been damaged. Does anyone know the name of the part with the yellow ribbon? It is connected to the bracket that sits below the hard drive.

Florian - Mar 9, 2016

Reply

Guide is easy to follow, successfully replaced the sata cable.

Unfortunately my Mac does not recognise the battery anymore now. Does anybody have an idea what went wrong? Or even better: how to fix it?

I unsuccessfully tried a PRAM as well as an SMC reset.