Mac Pro (1st generation)

The 1st generation Mac Pro is an Intel Xeon-based workstation computer released by Apple Inc. on August 7, 2006.

Description

 * The specifications below are from Apple's "tech specs" page or developer notes, except where noted.

Processors
The current Mac Pro is available with one or two processors with options giving four, eight, or twelve cores. As an example the eight core standard configuration Mac Pro uses two Quad core x8 Intel E5620007 Xeon processors @2.4 GHz, but can be configured with two Hexacore Core Intel Xeon Processor X5670 @2.93 GHz. All current Mac Pros have processors supporting Hyper-Threading which allows two threads to run on each core. The four core versions come with 8MB of Intel Smart cache (L3 cache) while all others come with 12MB for each processor. All current Mac Pro processors are capable of Intel's Turbo Boost technology, which dynamically boosts the clock rate of a core in intervals of 133 MHz if the CPU temperature is below average conditions.

Memory
The original Mac Pro's main memory used 667 MHz DDR2 ECC FB-DIMMs; the early 2008 model used 800 MHz ECC DDR2 FB-DIMMS, the current Mac Pro uses 1066 MHz DDR3 ECC DIMMs for the standard models, and 1333 MHz DDR3 ECC DIMMs for systems configured with a 2.66 GHz or faster processors. In the original and 2008 models, these modules are installed in pairs, one each on two riser cards. The cards have 4 DIMM slots each, allowing a total of 32 GB of memory (8 × 4 GB) to be installed. Notably, due to its FB-DIMM architecture, installing more RAM in the Mac Pro will improve its memory bandwidth, but may also increase its memory latency. With a simple install of a single FB-DIMM the peak bandwidth is 8 GB/s, but this can increase to 16 GB/s by installing two FB-DIMMs, one on each of the two buses, which is the default configuration from Apple. While electrically the FB-DIMMs are standard, for pre-2008 Mac Pro models Apple requests that users use larger-than-normal heatsinks on the memory modules that they install. Problems have been reported by users who have used third party RAM that had normal sized FB-DIMM heatsinks. (see notes below). Mac Pro computers made in 2009 and later do not require memory modules with heatsinks.

The Mac Pro 2009/2010 and 2012 could take up to 128GB of memory RAM.

Many people have scolded the 2013 Mac Pro, calling it the "$5000 trash can", due to its expensive price and trash can-like design.

Hard drives
The Mac Pro has room for four internal 3.5" SATA-300 hard drives in 4 internal "bays". The hard drives are mounted on individual trays (also known as 'sleds') within the bays by captive thumbscrews similar to the ones used for the PCIe expansion slots. A set of four drive trays is supplied with each machine. Adding hard drives to the system does not require cables to be attached as the drive is connected to the system simply by inserting it in the corresponding drive slot. A case lock on the back of the system locks the disks trays into their positions.

The Mac Pro also supports Serial ATA solid-state drives (SSD) in the 4 hard drive bays via an SSD-to-hard drive sled adapter (mid-2010 models and later), and via 3rd-party solutions for earlier models (e.g., via an adapter/bracket which plugs into an unused PCIe slot). Various 2.5-inch SSD drive capacities and configurations are available as an option on new machines.

The Mac Pro is also available with an optional hardware RAID card. With the addition of a SAS controller card or SAS RAID controller card, SAS drives can be directly connected to the system's SATA ports.

Two optical drive bays are provided, each with a corresponding SATA-300 port and an ATA-100 port. Many optical drives require the older style ATA ports, including those currently shipped with new machines.

The Mac Pro has one P-ATA port and can support two P-ATA devices. It has a total of six SATA ports – four are connected to the system's drive bays, and two are not connected. These extra SATA ports can be put into service through the use of after-market extender cables to connect internal Optical drives, or to provide eSATA ports with the use of an eSATA bulkhead connector. However, the two extra SATA ports are currently unsupported and disabled under Boot Camp.

At the current time, a built to order Mac Pro can be configured with up to 8 TB of storage (4 × 2TB disks) or 2 TB (512 x4 SSD).

Expansion cards
For internal expansion the current Mac Pro has four PCI Express (PCIe) 2.0 expansion slots. The 2008 model had two PCI Express (PCIe) 2.0 expansion slots and two PCI Express 1.1 slots, providing them with up to 300 W of power in total. The first slot is double wide and intended to hold the main video card, arranged with an empty area the width of a normal card beside it to leave room for the large coolers modern cards often use. In most machines, one slot would be blocked by the cooler. Instead of the tiny screws typically used to fasten the cards to the case, in the Mac Pro a single "bar" holds the cards in place, which is itself held in place by two "captive" thumbscrews that can be loosened by hand without tools and will not fall out of the case.

The PCIe slots can be configured individually to give more bandwidth to devices that require it, with a total of 40 "lanes", or 13 GB/s total throughput. When running Mac OS X, the Mac Pro currently does not support SLI or ATI CrossFire, limiting its ability to use the latest "high-end gaming" video card products; however, individuals have reported success with both CrossFire and SLI installations when running Windows XP, as SLI and CrossFire compatibility is largely a function of software.

The bandwidth allocation of the PCIe slots can be configured via the Expansion Slot Utility included with Mac OS X only on the August 2006 Mac Pro. The Mac Pro (Early 2008) has its slots hardwired as follows.

External connectivity
For external connectivity, the Mac Pro includes five USB 2.0 and four FireWire 800 ports. Networking is supported with two built-in Gigabit Ethernet ports, while 802.11 a/b/g/n Wi-Fi support (AirPort Extreme) is built in. Bluetooth required an optional module in the Mid 2006 model, but is standard in the Early 2008 and newer models. Displays are supported by one or (optionally) more PCIe graphics cards. Each card has two Mini DisplayPort connectors and one dual-link Digital Visual Interface (DVI) port, with various configurations of on-card graphics memory available.

Digital (TOSlink optical) audio and analog 1/8" stereo mini jacks for sound in and out are included, latter becoming available on both the front and back of the case.

Unlike other Mac computers, the Mac Pro does not include an infrared receiver (required to use the Apple Remote). Beginning with Mac OS X Leopard, Front Row can be accessed on the Mac Pro (and other Macs) using the Command (⌘)-Escape keystroke.

Case


The exterior of the aluminum case is very similar to that of the Power Mac G5, with the exception of an additional optical drive bay, and a new arrangement of I/O ports on both the front and the back. The case can be opened by operating a single lever on the back, which unlocks one of the two sides of the machine, as well as the drive bays. All of the expansion slots for memory, PCIe cards and drives can be accessed with the one panel removed, and require no tools for installation.

The Xeon processors generate much less heat than the previous dual-core G5s, so the size of the internal cooling devices has been reduced significantly. This allowed the interior to be re-arranged, leaving more room at the top of the case and thereby allowing the drives to double in number. Less heat also means less air to move out of the case for cooling during normal operations; the Mac Pro is very quiet in normal operation, quieter than the much noisier Power Mac G5, and proved difficult to measure using common sound pressure level meters.

Mac Pro Server
On November 5, 2010, Apple introduced the Mac Pro Server, which officially replaces the Xserve line of Apple servers as of January 31, 2011. The Mac Pro Server comes with an unlimited Mac OS X Server license and an Intel 2.8 GHz Quad-Core processor, with 8GB of DDR3 RAM.