I have just replaced the internal HDD of my Mac Mini with a Crucial MX500 SSD, in the process of moving the logic board I pulled it out too far which disconnected the wires from inside the logic board connector of what I believe is the optical drive sensor. I have inserted the wires back into the connector but even so I’m having an issue with the fans on full speed.

As others have recommended, I am using the app SSD Fan Control but became perplexed as to why it wasn’t doing anything when I set it to Auto or S.M.A.R.T.

Only when I set the optical drive setting to manual did it stop the fans from spinning on max.

I’m guessing this means the optical drive thermal sensor is broken.

I taped the HDD thermal sensor to the new SSD, similar to how it was on the original.

The app is set to SMART on the left half (hard disk) and manual (2500 RPM) on the right side (optical drive). Does this mean the fans are still working automatically based off of the data from the thermal sensor on the HDD, just not on the sensors on the optical drive? The optical drive on this Mac is never used, so could I feasibly continue to use the Mac as normal and won’t have to worry about overheating so as long as the optical drive isn’t used? The reason I believe the HDD thermal sensor is working is because the measured data on the app fluctuates a little (RPM and degrees) so I think it’s reading some sort of data.

Separate to this, does this app work in the background? When I close it, it doesn’t show anything in Activity Monitor that I can see, so will it still read the sensor data and adjust the fans accordingly? I’ve set it to open upon logging in via System Preferences, Users, Login Items.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

⟐ Commented February 20, 2026 at 5:33 MST

⟐ Commented February 18, 2026 at 21:53 MST

⟐ Edited January 27, 2026 at 17:42 MST

However, I encountered difficulty in re-installing the Antenna Plate, particularly the two 5.0mm T8 Torx on both sides. While it was originally perfectly fit (when I tried to remove the antenna plate), it is now re-installed with only one side of the T8 torx on either one side and the two 6.6mm T8 screws in the bottom part, leaving one 5.0mm screw uninstalled. Though my mac mini worked perfectly fine without that screw.

I don't think I have damaged or transformed the antenna plate and I believe that the antenna plate was not perfectly fit out of the box. Do anyone of you encounter this problem? Any solution?

⟐ Commented January 20, 2026 at 17:10 MST

From what I searched, USB-C doesn't handle the max power output of the original, which is aproximatly 19V/6A, and I also can't find any diagram or pin layout of the connector, which is a shame. Even if it is slightly underpowered, can it run normally?

⟐ Answered January 20, 2026 at 0:37 MST

⟐ Commented December 24, 2025 at 0:58 MST

Do I replace it with a new power button unit or?

⟐ Answer accepted December 15, 2025 at 15:00 MST

I thought the storage becomes faulty since I upgrade it but I tried using the original storage but I got the same result.

Here’s my situation: after plugging in the power, the Mac mini’s light keeps glowing on and off. When I press the power button, there’s no chime or response—just the same pulsing light. The dock station connected to my Mac mini isn’t turning on—there’s no light on my mouse.

Here’s the thing I have tried.

1. I hold the power button to turn it off. Then I press it after again. I can hear the chime and there’s white light glowing for a while after a several mins the light will turn to blinking red.
2. I have successfully “revive” the original storage but still the same result.

#

1. Also I just found out that the dock station slot I use to connect my Mac has a blinking light, which means it’s having trouble maintaining proper conductivity. The other slot works fine. Also only the mouse is connected to the dock station so believe I'm not overloading on it too.

⟐ Commented December 12, 2025 at 16:40 MST

Thanks in advance :)

⟐ Commented December 07, 2025 at 14:20 MST

⟐ Answered December 06, 2025 at 14:19 MST

The internet has been strangely silent on this topic. I haven't been able to find anything definitive from either iFixit or OWC, which are usually all over upgrades like these.

⟐ Answered November 21, 2025 at 8:42 MST

⟐ Answered November 18, 2025 at 22:59 MST

The startup-disk choice resets, Mail and Music/TV libraries rebuild or vanish after path changes, and data seems lost. After sleep, the SSD randomly disconnects; Spotlight and iCloud loops rebuild indexes endlessly. FileVault, TRIM, and Thunderbolt power management make things worse, causing freezes or corrupted mounts. Cloning is nearly useless—only a clean migration gives stability.

From my testing and countless reports online, external booting on Apple Silicon is still technically possible but feels deliberately neglected by Apple and gets more fragile, slower, and frustrating with each macOS release.

⟐ Commented November 18, 2025 at 22:55 MST

⟐ Answered November 17, 2025 at 2:21 MST

⟐ Answered November 14, 2025 at 6:33 MST

I'm upgrading this mac mini with 8 GB RAM and the 256 GB Sandisk X400 SSD. Computer runs fine and boots normally off of original hard drive which has Yosemite installed with 8 GB RAM installed.

I've been trying to get the SSD working and it now has El Capitan with latest updates. I've not been able to get this SSD drive working in the internal slot. System boots normally off the old drive in the internal slot, the system boots El Capitan from the Sandisk SSD if it is put in an external inatek enclosure. System will boot normally with the SSD in the external enclosure, with no drive in the internal slot. So long as the SSD is connected from the external enclosure, everything is fine, system runs El Capitan, and shows 8 GB RAM installed.

If I put the SSD into the internal slot, I get a grey screen. No question mark, no nothing. The only boot key sequence it seems to recognize is reset NVRAM, which I have tried multiple times. No other boot key sequences are recognized. Can't bring up boot manager, can't boot off DVD, nothing. I tried downloading an old EFI firmware update recommended elsewhere. Booted into El Capitan, it says this update is not needed.

I could just run this off the external enclosure, but would prefer to get the SSD working normally in the internal slot.

Any ideas?

⟐ Answered November 07, 2025 at 7:06 MST

⟐ Marked as duplicate October 22, 2025 at 17:39 MST

⟐ Answered October 04, 2025 at 14:00 MST

• Sometimes it reaches the desktop before crashing, other times it crashes during login.
• I’ve reset PRAM/NVRAM, booted in Safe Mode, and run Apple Diagnostics (no hardware issues).
• Disk Utility shows no errors, and I’m currently attempting a macOS reinstall without success.
• The issue started after the upgrade, but I don’t have full details since this is a client’s machine.

Any insights on next steps? Would a clean install or T2 DFU restore be necessary?

Thanks in advance!

 Chris Leeds

Independent Apple Specialist

Well Connected Life

⟐ Commented August 30, 2025 at 9:53 MST

⟐ Answer edited August 12, 2025 at 18:59 MST