iMac G5 17" Model A1144 Hard Drive Replacement

Loosen the two Phillips screws securing the access door to your iMac.

Remove the access door from your iMac.

Remove the three T8 Torx screws securing the front bezel to the rear panel.

Use your thumbs to press both RAM arms in past the front bezel for enough clearance to lift it off the rear case.

While holding the RAM arms in with your thumbs, lift the lower edge of the front bezel enough to clear the rear case.

Insert a plastic card up into the corner of the air vent slot at the top of the rear case.

Push the card toward the top of the iMac to release the front bezel latch.

Pull the front bezel away from the rear case.

Repeat this process for the other side of the front bezel.

Lay your iMac stand-side down on a table.

Lift the front bezel from its lower edge and rotate it away from the rest of your iMac, minding the RAM arms that may get caught.

Lay the front bezel above the rest of the iMac.

If necessary, remove the piece of kapton tape wrapped around the microphone and camera cables.

Disconnect both the camera and microphone cables.

Peel back the aluminum EMI shield up off the lower three edges of the rear case.

Remove the two 5 mm T6 Torx screws securing the display data cable to the logic board.

Using its attached black tab, pull the display data cable connector up off the logic board.

Pull the inverter cable connector up off its socket on the logic board.

Peel back the aluminum EMI tape from the two vertical edges of the display.

Remove the four recessed coarse-thread 7.5 mm T10 Torx screws securing the display to the rear case.

Lift the display from its lower edge and pull it toward yourself to peel it off the EMI shield attached to its top edge.

Disconnect the hard drive thermal sensor by pulling the connector away from its socket parallel to the face of the hard drive.

Press the hard drive bracket down toward the bottom edge of your iMac to free it from the rear case, then rotate the top of the drive toward yourself.

Lift the hard drive off its lower pins and pull it out of the rear case, minding the cables that are still attached.

Insert the flat end of a spudger into the gap between the SATA power connector and the hard drive.

Twist the spudger to separate the SATA power connector from the hard drive.

Pull the SATA power connector away from the hard drive.

Pull the SATA data cable away from the hard drive.

Hard drive remains.

Remove the two T8 Torx screws securing the upper bracket to the hard drive.

Remove the two T8 Torx pins on the connector side of the hard drive and transfer them to your new hard drive.

Use the flat end of a spudger to pry the hard drive thermal sensor off the hard drive.