SSD upgrade on MBP?

So the fusion drive seems to be pretty decent - not sure if it was worth the effort (had a few issues restoring my data and ended up using a superduper backup in the end) but what's done is done. Had to get a new backup drive though because my old one was only 500mb. :o
 
bwana said:
So the fusion drive seems to be pretty decent - not sure if it was worth the effort (had a few issues restoring my data and ended up using a superduper backup in the end) but what's done is done. Had to get a new backup drive though because my old one was only 500mb. :o
Click to expand...
Didn't quite get the reason why you felt this was necessary?

Surely much of the benefit of the fusion drive will only be realized once you exceed the SSDs capacity. I.e. your current SSD based performance should be no different than before (before the fusion)
 
[)roi(];11384019 said:
Didn't quite get the reason why you felt this was necessary?

Surely much of the benefit of the fusion drive will only be realized once you exceed the SSDs capacity. I.e. your current SSD based performance should be no different than before (before the fusion)
Click to expand...

Primarily it was necessary because I was too lazy to reinstall all the apps that didn't migrate properly to the ssd. Backing up both drives on a regular basis was also overly complicated.

My original hdd is 500mb while the ssd is only 120gb. Creating a fusion drive gave me a single backup which I can quickly swap out in the case of a drive failure. I'm bot sure if you've tried getting to a drive in one of those super drive replacement kits but it's not something you want to rush.
 
bwana said:
Primarily it was necessary because I was too lazy to reinstall all the apps that didn't migrate properly to the ssd. Backing up both drives on a regular basis was also overly complicated.

My original hdd is 500mb while the ssd is only 120gb. Creating a fusion drive gave me a single backup which I can quickly swap out in the case of a drive failure. I'm bot sure if you've tried getting to a drive in one of those super drive replacement kits but it's not something you want to rush.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the explanation.

Ps. If you think that's "complicated"? then it's probably best I don't talk about my data / backup arrangement :D
 
[)roi(];11385859 said:
Thanks for the explanation.

Ps. If you think that's "complicated"? then it's probably best I don't talk about my data / backup arrangement :D
Click to expand...
Compared to my usual backup strategy it was too complicated. I've learned the easier the backup regime the more likely I am to follow it. :)
 
bwana said:
Compared to my usual backup strategy it was too complicated. I've learned the easier the backup regime the more likely I am to follow it. :)
Click to expand...
True but surely you've automated it.

With mine I simply had no choice but to automate (far too complex / tedious to trigger manually)
 
[)roi(];11386795 said:
True but surely you've automated it.

With mine I simply had no choice but to automate (far too complex / tedious to trigger manually)
Click to expand...

It's automated in so far as I insert the backup drive and superduper runs but with two separate drives internally I would have had to clone to two drives (or one drive with two partitions).
 
bwana said:
It's automated in so far as I insert the backup drive and superduper runs but with two separate drives internally I would have had to clone to two drives (or one drive with two partitions).
Click to expand...
Sounds simple enough.

For me it's not so easy. Size (just over 12TB), varying data sources (media, databases, Git code stores, ...) & multiple Macs forced to give up the notion of any simple backup solutions like Time Machine & superduper. It's now all OSX Servers, Thunderbolt storage, & custom scheduled backup scripts.
 
The only issue I have with my fusion drive is trying to partition it to install Ubuntu. It doesn't matter what method I try, it always ends with some sort of error. Disk Utility is useless. DiskUtility via the Terminal is also useless. I was considering breaking the fusion setup but decided against it. I'll just wait till I can afford a 512 SSD and use that instead of fusion.
 
vinodh said:
The only issue I have with my fusion drive is trying to partition it to install Ubuntu. It doesn't matter what method I try, it always ends with some sort of error. Disk Utility is useless. DiskUtility via the Terminal is also useless. I was considering breaking the fusion setup but decided against it. I'll just wait till I can afford a 512 SSD and use that instead of fusion.
Click to expand...
Are you referring to partitioning via Bootcamp, irrespective of partitioning solution I doubt this would ever work as it would require an Ubuntu fusion compatible driver.

IMO Ubuntu server/ desktop run satisfactory in a Parallels VM (at least satisfactory enough for my development needs)
 
[)roi(];11390577 said:
Sounds simple enough.

For me it's not so easy. Size (just over 12TB), varying data sources (media, databases, Git code stores, ...) & multiple Macs forced to give up the notion of any simple backup solutions like Time Machine & superduper. It's now all OSX Servers, Thunderbolt storage, & custom scheduled backup scripts.
Click to expand...

My system only needs to ensure one machine out of the lot of them is backed up and that's my laptop. It also needs to be portable.
 
[)roi(];11391499 said:
Are you referring to partitioning via Bootcamp, irrespective of partitioning solution I doubt this would ever work as it would require an Ubuntu fusion compatible driver.

IMO Ubuntu server/ desktop run satisfactory in a Parallels VM (at least satisfactory enough for my development needs)
Click to expand...

From what i've read, you can partition a fusion drive as long as the free space for the partition is created in the HDD and not the SSD. I followed a tutorial that uses Disk Utility via Terminal to resize the CoreStorage volume without breaking fusion. This method results in 1 extra partition without destroying data or breaking the fusion array. Some people got it working fine but it failed for me. If it worked, then Ubuntu would boot via EFI on the new HDD partition and the remainder of the HDD and the SSD will still be part of the fusion array.

I tried installing Ubuntu via Parallels but 13.10 and the current version of Parallels tools doesn't work together. Also, the launcher doesn't work (autohide) on Ubuntu in Parallels unless you disable smart mouse which sucks. I'm hoping that an update for Parallels will fix this but it seems as if they are pushing everyone to upgrade to Parallels 9. This happened with Parallels 7 and I then bought 8 to fix it. Not falling for that trick again. I think that Ubuntu running native on my Macbook will be overall a better experience and will be less of a pain when I have to update it again. Rebooting to access OS X and then having to reboot again to access Ubuntu is inconvenient but i'm prepared to live with it if I get that 512 SSD. Should boot in around 15 seconds or less.
 
vinodh said:
From what i've read, you can partition a fusion drive as long as the free space for the partition is created in the HDD and not the SSD. I followed a tutorial that uses Disk Utility via Terminal to resize the CoreStorage volume without breaking fusion. This method results in 1 extra partition without destroying data or breaking the fusion array. Some people got it working fine but it failed for me. If it worked, then Ubuntu would boot via EFI on the new HDD partition and the remainder of the HDD and the SSD will still be part of the fusion array.

I tried installing Ubuntu via Parallels but 13.10 and the current version of Parallels tools doesn't work together. Also, the launcher doesn't work (autohide) on Ubuntu in Parallels unless you disable smart mouse which sucks. I'm hoping that an update for Parallels will fix this but it seems as if they are pushing everyone to upgrade to Parallels 9. This happened with Parallels 7 and I then bought 8 to fix it. Not falling for that trick again. I think that Ubuntu running native on my Macbook will be overall a better experience and will be less of a pain when I have to update it again. Rebooting to access OS X and then having to reboot again to access Ubuntu is inconvenient but i'm prepared to live with it if I get that 512 SSD. Should boot in around 15 seconds or less.
Click to expand...
Ok I get the gist of the partitioning; agreed should in theory work; yet I wonder if the partitioning should be completed before activating fusion?

On the workflow bit; I agree re the pain of yearly Parallel updates (all software vendors are in this pool), but then if it's for work purposes then surely that cost will be accounted for in your rates / billing. If it's however for your own experiments then maybe try your hand at Virtualbox.

The dual boot option personally just doesn't work for me as I tend to run some services on Mac, and/or Windows and/or Ubuntu (client requirements) simultaneously with code compiling / testing in Xcode and ports to Android with Apportable -- there's just no sensible way that can ever be done with dual boot.
 
[)roi(];11392359 said:
Ok I get the gist of the partitioning; agreed should in theory work; yet I wonder if the partitioning should be completed before activating fusion?

On the workflow bit; I agree re the pain of yearly Parallel updates (all software vendors are in this pool), but then if it's for work purposes then surely that cost will be accounted for in your rates / billing. If it's however for your own experiments then maybe try your hand at Virtualbox.

The dual boot option personally just doesn't work for me as I tend to run some services on Mac, and/or Windows and/or Ubuntu (client requirements) simultaneously with code compiling / testing in Xcode and ports to Android with Apportable -- there's just no sensible way that can ever be done with dual boot.
Click to expand...

Here's a link about the Fusion drive: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5446?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US

It explains the partitioning issue. This is for Macs that come pre-installed with a Fusion drive and not a home made version. However, the process to partition is more or less the same.

My Mac is used for work and other crap. Nothing really serious. I use Ubuntu alongside OS X mainly for comparison purposes with the aim of one day using Ubuntu as my primary OS. I also use Ubuntu for my website for articles, screenshots, testing games etc. A virtual machine is just not good enough especially when you need to write an article on the latest Ubuntu version and you can't get it working properly in Parallels.
 
For anyone that cares and is still lurking in this thread somewhere, I just got myself a OCZ Vertex 450 256GB SSD.

Installed it myself.

Took two days because I couldn't find a Torx T6 screwdriver (didn't even know what that was till I had to find one :P)

...


But my Macbook (mid 2012) is running like a dream!!! :D

Reboot in 13-15 seconds. Yayness
 
ph4t3 said:
For anyone that cares and is still lurking in this thread somewhere, I just got myself a OCZ Vertex 450 256GB SSD.

Installed it myself.

Took two days because I couldn't find a Torx T6 screwdriver (didn't even know what that was till I had to find one :P)

...


But my Macbook (mid 2012) is running like a dream!!! :D

Reboot in 13-15 seconds. Yayness
Click to expand...

Awesome. Where did you install - optical or HDD bay? And are you running them as two separate drives, or fusion?
 
At the moment I just replaced the HDD with the SSD. Busy trying to find a caddy to house my old drive. :)

I don't think I will run them as a fusion drive when the time comes.

But will see how it goes.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X