Does the 2017 iMac Pro Have a Small Battery on the Logic Board?

Many years ago, maybe a G3 or a G5 Mac, I had all sorts of issues that were resolved by replacing the small battery inside the Mac. Never even knew they existed. So, I'm again getting odd behavior and SUPER BAD slowdown of this still speedy Mac. First, is there a battery in these things? Second, can they be replaced? And third, is there a way I can check the health of the battery before even thinking about a repair?


Thanks for any information.

iMac Pro, macOS 13.6

Posted on Mar 10, 2025 10:42 AM

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Mar 10, 2025 11:04 AM in response to Alex Campuzano1

The old Gx Macs had what was known as a PRAM battery. This helped keep settings through power downs. This is no longer a thing in newer Macs so no, no battery there to be replaced.


If you run an Etrecheck report someone may be able advise in regards to the slowness.

click here ➜ Using EtreCheck - Apple Community


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Mar 11, 2025 9:39 AM in response to Alex Campuzano1

Must have been a G3 because the G5 had a newer ROM version that relocated much of the parameter data, so it was little affected by a dead PRAM battery. On the other hand, the pre-USB G3s could be proper idiots with a dead battery. Been there—done that.


PRAM battery life plummeted when users insisted on unplugging their G3s every night.


The others are correct. On the list of possible "slow iMac" suspects, a dead PRAM batt is about #42.


A big +1 on posting an EtreCheck report. It is our single best tool for helping you in this setting where we can neither see nor remotely access your computer. It will not reveal any personal or secure information.


Please see this excellent user tip on how to post long text reports like EtreCheck's into a forum response:


How to use the Add Text Feature When Post… - Apple Community


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Mar 11, 2025 10:50 AM in response to Alex Campuzano1

Okay, good to know on the battery thing. Makes sense now since it's impossible for the average user to crack one of these open without destroying it. I'm posting the report, but also had a couple additional questions.


Backing up, re-formating and reinstalling is also an option that would wipe out any old demons, assuming my issues are software only. What is the best way to backup without reintroducing said demons? I have a little over 3TB used at the moment. I'm sure I can clear up more space. I see I've accumulated over 500 GB in my Downloads folder alone. I've never used Time Machine, but I have Carbon Copy Cloner.


I appreciate the knowledge.






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Mar 13, 2025 12:18 PM in response to Alex Campuzano1

Your storage— the usual cause of slow iMacs— is transferring data on the nominals, and is healthy. But SSDs need some room to work so I would not let it get any fuller than it is today. Maybe you don't need 500GB of downloaded files! 😳


I see too many issues here CAUSED by ill-advised reinstalling of the OS. Regardless of if that is from user error or something else, I tend to make it a "last resort" step. I've used Macs since 1989 and the ONLY macOS version where i had need to do the old "Archive and install" for problem corrections was on macOS 10.2 "Jaguar." That was a looong time ago and I've not had to reinstall since.


Backups: I use both Time Machine and Carbon Copy Cloner at all times on my two mission-critical Macs. Belt + suspenders, ya know.


The first thing I would try is ejecting and disconnecting your external drives for testing to make sure they are not contributing. The WD is getting full. If it is a scratch disk, that could be a slowdown as the app tries to find free blocks to write.


Most big apps will casue the High CPU use flag but it is not a big issue for me. However, look at how many of your third-party apps and utilities show crashes and hangs. A review of "what I must-have" might be in order.




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Does the 2017 iMac Pro Have a Small Battery on the Logic Board?

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