Alternate power button for a late 2013 (cylinder) Mac Pro
February 20, 2014 8:34 AM Subscribe
Is there any peripheral, wired or bluetooth, that can turn on a late 2013 Mac Pro?
The power button on the cylinder Mac Pro is awkwardly out of way at the back, in the middle of a forest of wires. I don't like getting my grubby fingerprints on the shiny case as I grope around behind it to turn it on. Is there any kind of USB or bluetooth "button" peripheral that can turn it on, like the on button that used to feature on old wired Mac keyboards?
The power button on the cylinder Mac Pro is awkwardly out of way at the back, in the middle of a forest of wires. I don't like getting my grubby fingerprints on the shiny case as I grope around behind it to turn it on. Is there any kind of USB or bluetooth "button" peripheral that can turn it on, like the on button that used to feature on old wired Mac keyboards?
If you really want a hardware button, I guess you could hack something together with Wake-on-Lan and a network capable Arduino.
posted by zamboni at 9:42 AM on February 20, 2014
posted by zamboni at 9:42 AM on February 20, 2014
I doubt wake-on-lan will power on a completely shutdown Mac Pro. I don't know about the new black Mac Pros, but previous models did not support wake-on-lan from power off (only from sleep). The extremely low Off power consumption for the new black Mac Pro also suggests it won't work.
posted by ryanrs at 10:33 AM on February 20, 2014
posted by ryanrs at 10:33 AM on February 20, 2014
On any newer Mac, if it's completely shut-off, the only way to power it back on is by using the power button.
The power button on the cylinder Mac Pro is awkwardly out of way at the back...
I suspect this is because Apple knows most of its pro customers will leave their MacPro on, preferring to simply put it to sleep when not in use.
posted by Thorzdad at 11:27 AM on February 20, 2014
The power button on the cylinder Mac Pro is awkwardly out of way at the back...
I suspect this is because Apple knows most of its pro customers will leave their MacPro on, preferring to simply put it to sleep when not in use.
posted by Thorzdad at 11:27 AM on February 20, 2014
Powering off a high-spec Unix box is ... barbaric. Put it to sleep gently instead.
Better yet, actually set your power management specs to sensible values and practice the Zen of just walking away.
Just kidding. Mostly.
posted by RedOrGreen at 11:52 AM on February 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
Better yet, actually set your power management specs to sensible values and practice the Zen of just walking away.
Just kidding. Mostly.
posted by RedOrGreen at 11:52 AM on February 20, 2014 [1 favorite]
Looking at the iFixit teardown it looks like the power button is essentially an impulse switch that's wired into the plug socket somewhere. With some electronics experience and a willingness to void your warranty, you could probably wire an extension to that button, but I wouldn't try it.
Just put your Mac to sleep instead of shutting down. I'm pretty sure any solution that doesn't involve wiring up an extension to this button (like Wake on LAN or whatever) will also require that you put your computer to sleep instead of shutting down as well.
posted by Aleyn at 5:17 PM on February 20, 2014
Just put your Mac to sleep instead of shutting down. I'm pretty sure any solution that doesn't involve wiring up an extension to this button (like Wake on LAN or whatever) will also require that you put your computer to sleep instead of shutting down as well.
posted by Aleyn at 5:17 PM on February 20, 2014
« Older One day in Lima / one day in Sao Paulo | Looking for solutions to TWO annoying Macbook Pro... Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.
You won't find a bluetooth or USB peripheral to power up a completely shut down Mac, because the Mac's bluetooth and USB will be off.
posted by ryanrs at 8:59 AM on February 20, 2014 [4 favorites]