SSD installed in 2012 Mac Mini - what to configure?

W

weelzSA

Expert Member
Joined
Jul 23, 2009
Messages
3,259
Reaction score
51
Location
Cape Town
As the title reads. I am going to install the SSD drive into my mac mini once it has finished copying the existing drive using superduper. My plan then is to use the original HDD externally connected via USB 3.0 which will hold all my music, larger files, downloads ect.

My question is how do I set it that OS X knows where to save and look for downloads. obviously all my apps will be installed to the SSD, but what if there are some apps I want to install to the normal HDD - where do I select where it gets installed to?

Any settings I should change after i have installed the SSD? I want to get the best performance possible. I know in Windows you had to do something with T rim and other settings - is it the same with OS X?

I know how to change it in iTunes to look on my external drive for music ect, just everything else I am not too wise on. Any help will be great especially from someone who has done this before. Or maybe even a guide or something I can read?

Sorry again for all the questions, just don't want to miss anything...
 
For trim support look at the app called : Trim Enabler

For iTunes - when you open it - hold down the ALT key, this will let you select the location of your library.

For the installation location - most apps with installers will give you options which drive to install too.
 
Rishalin said:
For trim support look at the app called : Trim Enabler

For iTunes - when you open it - hold down the ALT key, this will let you select the location of your library.

For the installation location - most apps with installers will give you options which drive to install too.
Click to expand...

Is this what you are talking about: Trim Enabler ? Do I then just install and enable? Anything else I should configure or change?

With regards to iTunes, after I installed iTunes, as per normal it created an iTunes folder in my music folder, how do I change it so it uses my older iTunes folder (will this work if the old iTunes folder came from a windows PC)? I have all my apps from years and years inside that iTunes folder, so loosing it is not an option, how do I make iTunes save everything into that iTunes folder on my external drive rather than the iTunes folder on my SSD drive?

For apps that don't give me the option of an installation options, should i just live with it?
 
weelzSA said:
Is this what you are talking about: Trim Enabler ? Do I then just install and enable? Anything else I should configure or change?

With regards to iTunes, after I installed iTunes, as per normal it created an iTunes folder in my music folder, how do I change it so it uses my older iTunes folder (will this work if the old iTunes folder came from a windows PC)? I have all my apps from years and years inside that iTunes folder, so loosing it is not an option, how do I make iTunes save everything into that iTunes folder on my external drive rather than the iTunes folder on my SSD drive?

For apps that don't give me the option of an installation options, should i just live with it?
Click to expand...

Open iTunes... Then iTunes/Preferences/Advanced will get you to a point where you can point iTunes to the folder location where you'd like to keep your media stored. Select the external and you're good to go.
 
greg0205 said:
weelzSA said:
Is this what you are talking about: Trim Enabler ? Do I then just install and enable? Anything else I should configure or change?

With regards to iTunes, after I installed iTunes, as per normal it created an iTunes folder in my music folder, how do I change it so it uses my older iTunes folder (will this work if the old iTunes folder came from a windows PC)? I have all my apps from years and years inside that iTunes folder, so loosing it is not an option, how do I make iTunes save everything into that iTunes folder on my external drive rather than the iTunes folder on my SSD drive?

For apps that don't give me the option of an installation options, should i just live with it?
Click to expand...

Open iTunes... Then iTunes/Preferences/Advanced will get you to a point where you can point iTunes to the folder location where you'd like to keep your media stored. Select the external and you're good to go.
Click to expand...

Yeah it's the same as holding ALT key down. Once you select the new location it will keep it
 
weelzSA said:
Rishalin said:
For trim support look at the app called : Trim Enabler

For iTunes - when you open it - hold down the ALT key, this will let you select the location of your library.

For the installation location - most apps with installers will give you options which drive to install too.
Click to expand...

Is this what you are talking about: Trim Enabler ? Do I then just install and enable? Anything else I should configure or change?

With regards to iTunes, after I installed iTunes, as per normal it created an iTunes folder in my music folder, how do I change it so it uses my older iTunes folder (will this work if the old iTunes folder came from a windows PC)? I have all my apps from years and years inside that iTunes folder, so loosing it is not an option, how do I make iTunes save everything into that iTunes folder on my external drive rather than the iTunes folder on my SSD drive?

For apps that don't give me the option of an installation options, should i just live with it?
Click to expand...

Yeah that's the right link - download and enable. After the reboot check your "system information" > Serial-ATA>SSD and you will see "Trim Support : Yes"
 
Rishalin said:
Yeah that's the right link - download and enable. After the reboot check your "system information" > Serial-ATA>SSD and you will see "Trim Support : Yes"
Click to expand...

Yep, and unless I'm mistaken, it'll be the iTunes Media folder which will include the OP's apps, books, movies and so on.
 
Cool. Thanks to everyone for the help. Going to copy my HDD to the SSD now and then swap the two out. Hopefully all will work out. Last quick question. Do I only install Trim Enabler once the SSD is installed, or should I do it now before I copy my HDD to SSD? Or does it not matter?
 
I have just connected the SSD via external USB but I am told "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer" The options then are: Initialize, Ignore or Eject. When I click Initialize there is nothing I can do except for erase the disk and make it the Mac OS Extended ect. Also SuperDuper does not pick it up either. Is there something I need to do for the Mac to pick up the SSD?
 
Nevermind, realised I had to format it to Mac Journal Extended. Once it was formatted, was Picked up straight away and now busy in Super Duper.
 
So I just installed the SSD and all seems to have worked out fine. Booted into OS X and everything seems to be running. I installed trim enabler and restarted. I am doing a Disk Speed Test and while the read speed is sitting at roughly 450mb/s, the write speed is only hitting 172.5mb/s. Is this correct or is there something else I need to change? I am using the Kingston HyperX 3K 120GB (there website seems to be down at the moment so can't post a link).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X