As well as the OpenCore on the MacPro group for advice on OpenCore.Ībsolutely! I had a 4,1 with single processor and 4 Gigs of RAM - upgraded it to dual Xeon 5680's and 48 Gigs of RAM - 6 sticks of 8Gig - (READ UP on why this is the fastest RAM config, vs 8 sticks - this config enables 'Triple Channel' memory). If you need advice check out the MacPro Upgrade group on FB.

I’d look to see if there are local eWaste or refurbishment places, they usually have gobs of the server RAM needed for a 2010 MacPro. Caveat to that is if High Sierra has not been installed, the firmware is not up to date to allow for startup off of an NVME PCIe drive.Īs for RAM look for server grade RAM. NVME is a lot less expensive and there are any number of those options. There are also some reasonable PCIe to 2.5” SSD options out there too. Either a 2.5” on a 3.5” to 2.5” carrier works or hook it to the SATA and SATA power connection in the open 5.25” bay and let it float. The macOS starting with 10.12 macOS Sierra is optimized for SSDs. If you can find an NVS model (multiple display outputs) your 27” LED Display will without issue as those have DisplayPort or MiniDisplay Port output.Īn SSD for any macOS past 10.12 is a must. I used one on my 5,1 to upgrade to High Sierra and ran with it till I picked up a dual processor MacPro in a trade.

If you are not doing anything GPU heavy the nVidia GeForce 710 or 740 is a Metal capable card that will work.

Best cpu for mac pro 5.1