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Mac Pro (2009-2012)

A1289 · MacPro4,1 · MacPro5,1 · 2009–2013 · tower

Specifications

Cpu: Quad-core Xeon 2.66 GHz (Nehalem) base; up to two 6-core 3.06 GHz Westmere Xeons (12 cores) on 2010/2012
Gpu: NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 (2009) / ATI Radeon HD 5770 (2010) 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 10.5.6 Leopard (2009); 10.6 Snow Leopard (2010)
Release Price: $2,499

Variants

Models

Mac Pro (Early 2009)MacPro4,1(Nehalem Xeons; famously cross-flashable to 5,1 firmware)Mac Pro (Mid 2010)MacPro5,1(Westmere Xeons, up to 12 cores)Mac Pro (Mid 2012)MacPro5,1(Minor speed bump of the 2010; last of the cheese graters)

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) after the 4,1 to 5,1 firmware flash · The 4,1 to 5,1 firmware flash plus Westmere CPU swap 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