Mac Pro (2010-2012)

A1289 · MacPro5,1 · 2010–2013 · tower

Specifications

Cpu: Up to two 6-core 3.06 GHz Westmere Xeons (12 cores); quad-core and 6-core single-CPU options
Gpu: ATI Radeon HD 5770 base; Radeon HD 5870 option
Ram: max: 128 GB real-world on dual-processor models (Apple listed 32/64 GB); 56 GB single-processor · base: 3 GB DDR3 ECC
Ports: USB 2.0 x5 · FireWire 800 x4 · Gigabit Ethernet x2 · Optical audio in/out · Analog audio in/out · 4 PCI Express 2.0 slots
Storage: base: 640 GB SATA HDD · options: Four tool-free 3.5" SATA bays · Two optical bays usable for drives · SSD sleds and PCIe NVMe cards common
Os Support: latest: macOS 10.14 Mojave (with a Metal-capable GPU); much later via OpenCore · shipped: Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard (2010)
Release Price: $2,499

Variants

Revisions

2010A1289 · MacPro5,1Westmere Xeon refresh, 2010

Mid 2012A1289 · MacPro5,1Final Xeon refresh with 12-core option, 2012

Upgrade paths

RAM

128 GB DDR3 ECC (dual-CPU, 8x16 GB) · Slide-out processor tray with standard registered ECC DIMMs.

EASY

CPU

Dual 6-core Xeon X5690 3.46 GHz (12 cores) · The Westmere CPU swap to X5690s is one of the most famous Mac upgrades ever.

MODERATE

storage

Four SATA bays plus PCIe NVMe adapters; bootable NVMe with 5,1 firmware

EASY

GPU

PCIe cards up to Radeon RX 580 class (Metal-capable, drives Mojave and OpenCore installs) · Kept these towers in service a decade past discontinuation.

MODERATE