Katastrophos.net Blog » Mac Mini http://katastrophos.net/andre/blog Chaotic solutions and random thoughts from the restless mind of a notorious problem solver (TM), by Andre Beckedorf Sat, 17 Jul 2010 16:23:20 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 The Mac Mini external SATA hackhttp://katastrophos.net/andre/blog/2006/11/02/the-mac-mini-external-sata-hack/ http://katastrophos.net/andre/blog/2006/11/02/the-mac-mini-external-sata-hack/#comments Thu, 02 Nov 2006 03:15:37 +0000 Andre Beckedorf http://katastrophos.net/andre/blog/2006/11/02/the-mac-mini-external-sata-hack/ So, finally as promised, here is my short picture walkthrough on how to do the Mac Mini external SATA hack.
I’ve added quite a few comments to the images.
And before you start complaining about the bad picture quality, I’ve shot the whole procedure with my non-HD DV cam, sorry. The pictures are from several takes, so they might differ at some stage.
Anyways, just click on the first image below to start the slide show – navigate by clicking the left or right side of the photo.
I hope you like it and please leave me a comment afterwards. Thanks!

Ah, one more thing if you want to try it yourself: As usual… warranty is void!
Don’t blame me, if you screw things up – even if you’ve followed the method described here precisely. It’s your fault. I won’t take any responsibility for any damage. It’s your fault. You have been warned.

{MacMiniHack} Pizza time! Use the pizza cutter to work your way around the three sides.{MacMiniHack} Slide it in on each side and bent it outside from the case, while pushing inwards on the clips. The clips are quite stress-tolerant.{MacMiniHack} Eventually the base will detach from the upper casing.{MacMiniHack} Lift up the base and put it on a flat surface so you can work on it. Put the upper casing somewhere safe to avoid scratches.{MacMiniHack} First step is to unplug the cable that controls the fan. Gently pull it out of the socket.{MacMiniHack} Next step is to detach the flat ribbon cable that connects to the sound board. Firmly slide the mounting bracket that holds the cable upwards. This will loose the cable.{MacMiniHack} Now, part the WLAN antenna from the base by pushing both plastic clips towards the spring. Watch the spring!{MacMiniHack} Remove the screw on each of the four corners. The corner my finger is pointing to has the long screw. Remember this. :){MacMiniHack} Now, it should be possible to remove the drive and fan assembly. Keep an eye on the back of the riser board. It will probably get stuck at some stage.{MacMiniHack} So, this is what the guts of the Mac Mini look like. Now, let's take a closer look at the riser board...{MacMiniHack} You'll have to remove the hard drive yourself, which is pretty straightforward. This is what the SATA interface looks like. In that case we can't directly use a standard SATA cable since those are female too. Obviously we either need an adapter that has female sockets on both sides or we need a cable that has one female and one male header. And that's a problem...{MacMiniHack} These adapters and cables are quite rare. I wasn't able to find a cable extension which would have done the job since it's female to male. Anyway, I've found this SATA internal to SATA external slot bracket.{MacMiniHack} This adapter was common in the days before the eSATA specification. With a little modification this adapter is almost perfect for the purpose...{MacMiniHack} If you can't find a SATA to SATA adapter of this type, try to find a similar board-based SATA (L-shaped) to eSATA (I-shaped) adapter.{MacMiniHack} In this case the result will be slightly different from mine. You'll have to use an eSATA cable.{MacMiniHack} See the screws? Guess what we're about to do next...{MacMiniHack} Unscrewing.{MacMiniHack} The upper board is slightly modified. I've clipped both mounting pins. This is required because otherwise male part of the header won't fit into the riser board's socket. The lower board is the original unmodified version.{MacMiniHack} Original unmodified plug.{MacMiniHack} Version with clipped mounting pins.{MacMiniHack} Time to attach the board to the riser board's SATA socket.{MacMiniHack} Firmly plug it into the socket. You might need to slightly bent the cable bridge above to fit the board into place.{MacMiniHack} Once the board is seated we need to make sure it won't unplug by itself, ie. due to stress imposed by the cable...{MacMiniHack} Probably the simplest non-hackish solution: two el cheapo cable ties.{MacMiniHack} Electronical bondage - Episode I 'Eternal enslavement'{MacMiniHack} Electronical bondage - Episode II 'Now, this is getting funny...'{MacMiniHack} Electronical bondage - Episode III 'Return of the Cable Ties' ;){MacMiniHack} So, now with the board in place we can attach the SATA cable and lay it to the outside of the casing via the drive assembly.{MacMiniHack} The cable I've used is from an internal SATA to external SATA (not eSATA) slot bracket. This solution is more flexible than routing a cable from the inside to the outside and directly attaching it to the drive/enclosure. Also, you'll get to choose what cable type to use: SATA/eSATA or SATA/SATA.{MacMiniHack} When reassembling the Mac Mini ...{MacMiniHack} ... make sure the WLAN antenna cable is not in the way of the riser board.{MacMiniHack} Also, don't use any kind of force when reseating the riser board. You may have have to lift the front of the drive and fan assembly slightly.{MacMiniHack} Firmly push the assembly down. There might be a small pressure due to the cable and the board. This is okay, don't worry.{MacMiniHack} Reattaching the flat ribbon cable is more delicate than just unplugging it. First off, make sure that the mounting bracket is completely unlocked...{MacMiniHack} Now, gently stick the the ribbon cable header into the socket and push down the mounting bracket with two screw drivers (for equal pressure).{MacMiniHack} Remember the long screw I talked about earlier?{MacMiniHack} This one goes here.{MacMiniHack} You might run into problems with this screw here. In this case having a screwdriver with a magnetic tip is a big plus.{MacMiniHack} This is selfexplanatory.{MacMiniHack} Ditto.{MacMiniHack} This one is utterly important! Make sure to plug the fan plug back in or your system's fan will run at 100% all the time.{MacMiniHack} Finally put the spring in its place and reattach the WLAN antenna ...{MacMiniHack} ... by again pushing the clips towards the spring to lock it.{MacMiniHack} Alright, so now that basically everything is in place again, we give the whole setup a test drive.{MacMiniHack} Attaching all cables, ...{MacMiniHack} hitting the power button, ...{MacMiniHack} it's booted! ;){MacMiniHack} At this point we can start reassembling the Mac Mini completely. In case you've cut the backside of the base, just route the cable to the outside ...{MacMiniHack} ... like so. I know it looks ugly. Stop pointing fingers already! ;){MacMiniHack} It works ...{MacMiniHack} ... and the external MacPower Pleiades enclosure sure does look cool. End of story. I hope you liked it. Please leave a comment.

List of parts used:

1x internal SATA to external SATA (not eSATA!) adapter slot bracket (board-based)
Manufacturer: DeLOCK
Part# 65115 – SATA2ADT-A3 (order @ Reichelt – AK 668)

1x internal SATA to external SATA (not eSATA!) adapter slot bracket (non board-based)
1x SATA to eSATA cable 1m (order @ Reichelt – AK SATA 0702)
1x Macpower Pleiades Super S-Combo

If you can’t get the 2nd adapter slot bracket, just get the cable and directly attach that to the adapter board and route it to the outside of the case.

As for the case modification: I’ve made a few photos to illustrate the process. However, I won’t add any comments. This is quick’n dirty work.

{MacMiniHackCaseMod} {MacMiniHackCaseMod} {MacMiniHackCaseMod} {MacMiniHackCaseMod} {MacMiniHackCaseMod} {MacMiniHackCaseMod} {MacMiniHackCaseMod} {MacMiniHackCaseMod} {MacMiniHackCaseMod}

]]> http://katastrophos.net/andre/blog/2006/11/02/the-mac-mini-external-sata-hack/feed/ 44 WD Raptor + Mac Mini Intel = external 10k rpm SATA madnesshttp://katastrophos.net/andre/blog/2006/10/16/wd-raptor-mac-mini-intel-external-10k-rpm-sata-madness/ http://katastrophos.net/andre/blog/2006/10/16/wd-raptor-mac-mini-intel-external-10k-rpm-sata-madness/#comments Mon, 16 Oct 2006 21:17:38 +0000 Andre Beckedorf http://katastrophos.net/andre/blog/2006/10/16/wd-raptor-mac-mini-intel-external-10k-rpm-sata-madness/ Alright, I had this crazy idea last week: Let’s see if I can somehow route the internal SATA interface of the Mac Mini to the outside of the case so I could attach a bigger and faster external (e)SATA drive. Well, guess I wasn’t the only person with such ideas:
Perle over at 123Macmini.com already has brief instructions on how he did the internal to external mod.
I’ve made some refinements to his process which I will post shortly – along with a few pictures and links where to get the parts. Update: It’s here.

So, after doing the science (finding the right adapters and cables etc.) and tearing apart the Mac Mini with a pizza cutter (yes, you read right!), I finally have my fast drive (Wester Digital Raptor WD1500ADFD 150 GB @ 10k rpm) and the Mac Mini is still as energy efficient as previously – mostly due to the fact that another FireWire drive is now in standby mode most of the time.

That should make me the first person with a WD Raptor in use on a Mac Mini. W00t! ;)

Obligatory XBench results that mean absolutely nothing:
Madness
Comparison with modded 7200 rpm Mac Mini

I’m using the Pleiades Super S-Combo external enclosure with the WD Raptor. The enclosure is made of aluminium. No cheap plastic parts here. It’s pretty solid and the aluminium functions as passive heatsink. That way, even under load the Raptor won’t cross the upper 55°C specification limit. My initial thought was that given the S-Combos universal FW400/FW800/USB2.0/eSATA-bridge it may perform worse than when connecting the cable directly to the drive. This is not the case. Actually, some benchmarks performed slightly better. I can only assume this being due to some sort of caching going on inside the bridge.
Also, if you think the drive is loud with its 10000 rpms, I can assure you it isn’t. Actually, in idle mode it is very much on par with the latest Seagate Barracuda drives which have a reputation for being very silent. The only thing that’s loud are the access noises, but in my opinion it’s not annoying.

]]> http://katastrophos.net/andre/blog/2006/10/16/wd-raptor-mac-mini-intel-external-10k-rpm-sata-madness/feed/ 3 Workaround for broken Windows Sharing on Intel OS Xhttp://katastrophos.net/andre/blog/2006/04/02/workaround-for-broken-windows-file-sharing-in-intel-os-x/ http://katastrophos.net/andre/blog/2006/04/02/workaround-for-broken-windows-file-sharing-in-intel-os-x/#comments Sun, 02 Apr 2006 21:39:47 +0000 Andre Beckedorf http://katastrophos.net/andre/blog/?p=28 So, it seems Apple broke Windows Filesharing / Samba with the 10.4.5 update on Intel-based systems. Windows clients are unable to connect to OS X shares, because the server refuses the password.
There are several threads describing the issue in detail:
http://www.123macmini.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=4555
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=401714&tstart=0

Here is a temporary workaround for the problem:
You’ll have to change the authentification settings on your XP/2k box and here is how to do that:

Start -> Run “secpol.msc”
In the tree open and click Security Settings -> Local Policy -> Security Options
Scroll the left pane down to ‘Network Security: LAN manager authentication level’
Change this to ‘Send NTLMv2 response only’

It works for me. Please let me know, if it works for you too…

Update: Apple has released OS X update 10.4.6 which resolves this problem.

]]> http://katastrophos.net/andre/blog/2006/04/02/workaround-for-broken-windows-file-sharing-in-intel-os-x/feed/ 1 Mac Minihttp://katastrophos.net/andre/blog/2006/04/02/mac-mini/ http://katastrophos.net/andre/blog/2006/04/02/mac-mini/#comments Sun, 02 Apr 2006 21:30:15 +0000 Andre Beckedorf http://katastrophos.net/andre/blog/?p=27 So, it’s been almost 2 weeks since I got my Mac Mini Core Duo. All I can say is, I don’t regret having replaced my beloved Cube with this mean little machine @ 30 Watt. It’s definitely faster than the Cube and for most stuff it’s almost faster than my Windows development workbeast Athlon MP 2600 which runs at roughly 300 Watt. Quite impressive. The faster FSB, bigger cache and faster memory definitely play a big role here.
And yes, I tried Windows on my Mini. It’s nice and all, but there is still a lot left to finish for the guys over at onmac.net. Suspending doesn’t really work and shutting down the machine crashes it hard. I can only assume this being due to the incomplete BIOS implementation.
Anyway, I couldn’t resist benchmarking the machine against my Athlon, so here are the results from SiSoftware Sandra 2005 SR2:

Machine		Dual Athlon MP 2600+ 	Mac Mini Core Duo
Clock			2.13 GHz		1.66 GHz

Arithmetics 		17248			15147
(higher is better)	 6657			 6085

Multimedia		39921			31699
(higher is better)	42412			35177

Memory Bandwidth MB/s	 1449			 3588
(higher is better)	 1481			 3559

Power consumption	 295-302 Watts		 28-30 Watts

If you keep in mind, that I’m comparing an upgraded year 2001 workstation with a new system running a mobile CPU, those results are still quite impressive.
However, what I’m missing on the Mini is dual monitor support and a decent graphics card. Also there is one major point keeping me from getting rid of that power-sucking box under my desk: hard drive performance. I don’t think we’ll be seeing 15k rpm U320 drives in a Mac mini compatible form factor any time soon. ;)

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