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Added an SSD to the imac- wanted to change the HDD that was in there. Noticed that the new hard drive that I wanted to put in- a WD red had a temp sensor plug that was different than the one in the imac already? the new drive i am trying to install has a plug with 8 pins. Is there an adaptor I need?
Ok, so heres the dope! The 2011 model uses a custom HD made for Apple leveraging the internal thermal sensor within the drive which does make upgrading the drive a bit harder ;-{ Here’s the IFIXIT guide you’ll need to reference: iMac Intel 27" EMC 2429 Hard Drive Replacement. Remember this model uses a 3.5" drive so you’ll need an adapter frame if you are going with a 2.5" SSD and you’ll need this special adapter cable: OWC 2.5" to 3.5" Drive Adapter BracketOWC In-line Digital Thermal Sensor for iMac 2011 Hard Drive Upgrade If you are just swapping out the HD with another 3.5" HD you still need the in-line sensor but you don’t need the adapter frame. But before you go down this path! Maybe you just need to add the drive as a second drive. Which I think is a better direction. Here is the IFIXIT guide you’ll need to follow: Installing iMac Intel 27" EMC 2429 Dual Hard Drive Kit. As it turns out your system has a spare SATA port! Which is what we are using here. You only need this: iMac Intel 27" Mid 2011 Dual Hard Drive Kit. You don’t need to worry about the thermal sensor as the HD will take care of things. Once you have the drive installed you can make it the boot drive or even setup a Fusion Drive set.
