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MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement

Introduction

Use this guide to replace a broken optical drive.

What you need

  1. MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement, Lower Case: step 1, image 1 of 1

    • Remove the following ten screws:

    • Three 14.4 mm Phillips #00 screws

    • Three 3.5 mm Phillips #00 screws

    • Four 3.5 mm shouldered Phillips #00 screws

    • When replacing the small screws, align them perpendicular to the slight curvature of the case (they don't go straight down).

    Edit

  2. MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement: step 2, image 1 of 2 MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement: step 2, image 2 of 2

    • Use your fingers to pry the lower case away from the body of the MacBook near the vent.

    • Remove the lower case.

    Edit

  3. MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement, Battery Connection: step 3, image 1 of 2 MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement, Battery Connection: step 3, image 2 of 2

    • Use the edge of a spudger to pry the battery connector upwards from its socket on the logic board.

    • It is useful to pry upward on both short sides of the connector to "walk" it out of its socket. Be careful with the corners of the connectors, they can be easily broken off.

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  4. MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement: step 4, image 1 of 1

    • Bend the battery cable slightly away from its socket on the logic board so it does not accidentally connect itself while you work.

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  5. MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement, Optical Drive: step 5, image 1 of 1

    • Use the flat end of a spudger to pry the AirPort/Bluetooth ribbon cable connector up from its socket on the logic board.

    Edit

  6. MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement: step 6, image 1 of 1

    • Carefully pull the camera cable out of its socket on the logic board.

    • Though not recommended by iFixit staff, some users opt to omit this step completely. For information on this, see the step comments.

    • Pull the cable parallel to the face of the logic board. Pulling it upward may damage the logic board or the cable itself.

    Edit

  8. MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement: step 7, image 1 of 2 MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement: step 7, image 2 of 2

    • Carefully move the AirPort/Bluetooth ribbon cable out of the way as you peel the camera cable off the adhesive securing it to the subwoofer and the AirPort/Bluetooth bracket.

    • De-route the camera cable out from under the retaining finger molded into the AirPort/Bluetooth bracket.

    Edit

  9. MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement: step 8, image 1 of 2 MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement: step 8, image 2 of 2

    • Use the tip of a spudger to pry the antenna connector closest to the logic board up from its socket on the AirPort/Bluetooth board.

    • De-route the antenna cable from under the finger molded into the AirPort/Bluetooth bracket.

    Edit

  10. MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement: step 9, image 1 of 1

    • Use a Phillips #00 screwdriver to remove the following five screws:

    • Two 10.3 mm screws

    • Two 3.1 mm screws

    • One 5 mm screw

    Edit

  11. MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement: step 10, image 1 of 2 MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement: step 10, image 2 of 2

    • Pull the AirPort/Bluetooth assembly and the Subwoofer upward near the center of the side of the optical drive until they clear each other.

    • Move the AirPort/Bluetooth assembly and the subwoofer away from the top of the optical drive.

    Edit

  12. MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement: step 11, image 1 of 2 MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement: step 11, image 2 of 2

    • Pull the right speaker/subwoofer cable out from under the retaining finger near the side of the optical drive.

    • Pull the right speaker/subwoofer cable upward to disconnect it from the logic board.

    Edit

  13. MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement: step 12, image 1 of 1

    • Use the flat end of a spudger to pry the hard drive cable connector up from its socket on the logic board.

    • Bend the hard drive cable away from the optical drive.

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  14. MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement: step 13, image 1 of 1

    • Use the flat end of a spudger to pry the optical drive connector up from its socket on the logic board.

    Edit

  15. MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement: step 14, image 1 of 1

    • Remove the three 2.7 mm Phillips screws securing the optical drive to the upper case.

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  16. MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement: step 15, image 1 of 1

    • Pull the optical drive upward from its edge closest to the display and remove it from the upper case.

    Edit

  17. MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement, Optical Drive: step 16, image 1 of 2 MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Early 2011 Optical Drive Replacement, Optical Drive: step 16, image 2 of 2

    • Pull the optical drive cable away from the optical drive.

    • Be sure to pull on the connector, not the cable itself.

    • Remove the two black Phillips #0 screws securing the small metal mounting bracket. Transfer this bracket to your new optical drive or hard drive enclosure.

    Edit
Conclusion

To reassemble your device, follow these instructions in reverse order.

114 other people completed this guide.

9 Comments

Great guide! Did this a while ago, but didn't get around to making a guide. Shame on me (I actually didn't figure out how to make a new product wiki and gave up. :p Good job! :)

rousp - Reply

Excellent guide. Replaced my SuperDrive in 1.5 hours with no issues.

Bob G - Reply

Great Guide, thanks i just did it and it works like a charm !!

joydivision78 - Reply

Great Guide! got a minidisk stuck in the disc drive and were able to get it out by taking the drive out. No way we could have done this ourselves without this detailed pictorial guide!

Deanne - Reply

Wow I did trackpad and optical...took my time, followed instructions. Everything is great now. Screws are small..i laid them out the way i took them out. thanks again

higasan - Reply

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