Tool Designed to Recovery Data from MacBook Pro 2016’s soldered-on SSD

The 2016 MacBook Pro is even harder to repair than its predecessor. An iFixIt teardown revealed that the SSD is soldered onto the laptop’s logic board, along with the RAM and the CPU. Even the battery is glued on.

If the SSD on the 2016 MacBook Pro, or the MacBook Pro itself, runs into trouble, Apple’s tool provides a data lifeline. Apple’s new customer data migration tool is specifically designed for the new 2016 MacBook Pro and includes a logic board holder with a power adapter that allows repair staff to insert your logic board and connect it via USB-C to a MacBook Pro. That’s what the “connector to nowhere” is for, and below is a photo of the new migration tool in action with a logic board inserted in the holder ready to transfer data.

Don’t go running to Amazon to buy this tool online. The report from 9to5Mac indicates this tool will be used only by Apple support staff to attempt data transfer in case the laptop doesn’t boot. This service is available to users whose laptops are still under warranty or who have an AppleCare service plan.

Apple never guarantees that it will be able to recover your data, but it recognizes that having a non-removable SSD makes things more difficult for users, so it’s providing Apple stores and service providers with this tool to help customers. Apple will attempt to transfer your data for any logic board, SSD, Touch ID, or wireless card failures, because all of those components are attached to the main logic board on the new MacBook Pros. Apple will provide that service to anyone still covered under their one-year hardware warranty or AppleCare.

This recovery tool is a consolation prize. Because the new MacBook Pro’s key components are stuck on the logic board, the failure of any one of those parts could require replacing the entire conglomeration. Now we know how data will be transferred if disaster strikes.