Mac Mini RAM Upgrade

I bought a Mac Mini back in 2007 (A1176 Intel 2Ghz Duel Core) and have been very happy with it – it runs 24 hours a day and is primarily used as a media server for my PS3. Recently I’ve noticed it being a little sluggish and as it had only 1GB of RAM I decided to upgrade.

I decided to go for a 2GB Kingston Kit (2 x 1GB) from Amazon which cost me around £40. I thought about upgrading to 3GB but settled on the 2GB as I didn’t want to spend too much on it and I prefer to use matched RAM.

I had previously taken my Mac Mini apart shortly after I originally got it and couldn’t see where the RAM was or how to replace it. This time round however I cheated and used this online guide from ifixit.com – you’ll need a palette knife, a small Philips screwdriver and a pair of tweezers.

Despite following the guide when I put everything back together again I only had 1GB of RAM when checking Apple > About this Mac. Clicking on More Info brought up the System Profiler and clicking on Memory showed that Bank 0 was empty! I wasn’t sure whether Bank 0 was the upper or lower slot but I can now confirm that on this model it is the following configuration:

Bank 0 – Upper Slot
Bank 1 – Lower Slot

If the RAM isn’t inserted in either correctly you’ll simply get a flashing white light when you try to turn it on. If the RAM is inserted in one correctly as it was in my case the Mac Mini will boot but you’ll have to check the System Profiler to see if they were correctly installed.

My problem with Bank 0 (the upper slot) was that I hadn’t pushed it in far enough – the RAM must be pushed in when it is angled so that the pins are no longer visible – as shown in the photo below. Note though that the RAM doesn’t go in as far on the lower slot.

P.S. I don’t recommend you attempt this unless you are willing to accept the risk that you may permanently damage your machine!