iM 4,1-14,4 2011 iMac Graphics Card Upgrade

[johnghadimi]

Hi. I just had my iMac 2011 upgraded to the following GPU: NVIDIA Quadro K3100M by nikey22 4096 MB

Machine boots up fine (High Sierra 10.13.6), but I'm noticing the brightness is VERY dim!! I have it at max brightness, and definitely not very bright. Is there something that needs to be done to resolve this? Appreciate any insight. Thank you.

Managed to resolve this via editing the AppleBacklight.kext file to the right value. All good now.

 

[york026]

OCLP + Big Sur all day long!

I'm on it! Will report back later 👍

 

[cabinfourus]

View attachment 1775541


The following is a rom for brightness control for the people who own a K2000M card.
You will still need to use Opencore to do the necessary ACPI injections.
Appreciate @BadBiscuit for doing the initial testing and confirmation. His hardware and OS support is below.

Vram support:
Hynix H5TQ2G63DFR (tested)

Bootloader/OS support:
OCLP v.0.1.2, BigSur 11.3.1 (tested)

Machine support:
iMac 12,1 ( 21.5-inch Mid 2011) Mac-942B5BF58194151B (tested)
iMac 11,2 ( 21.5-inch Mid 2010) Mac-F2238AC8
iMac 11,1 (27-inch Late 2009) Mac-F2268DAE
iMac 11,3 (27-inch Mid 2010) Mac- F2238BAE
iMac12,2 (27-inch Mid 2011) Mac-942B59F58194171B

Again, now that @Ausdauersportler and the others are working to refine OCLP to our generation iMacs, these cards should be more easily compatible. Much appreciation for that. A reminder, they are not for power users because of their DDR3 ram and clock limitations. Enjoy!

Insanely Great!
-Steve Jobs

I have a question for you. I am very new to the bios on these Nvidia cards and the terminology. I am trying to use a ch341a programmer to load the bios on a K2000m and a K1000m card. The files you have for download are listed as .rom files and the software I am using doesn't recognize them. I changed them to .bin and was able to load the quadro k2000m with this bios you have here. I am correct in doing this? The programmer picked up the bios chip on the k2000m card and the file you have here loaded onto the chip. Am I good to go now?

 

[Nguyen Duc Hieu]

I have a question for you. I am very new to the bios on these Nvidia cards and the terminology. I am trying to use a ch341a programmer to load the bios on a K2000m and a K1000m card. The files you have for download are listed as .rom files and the software I am using doesn't recognize them. I changed them to .bin and was able to load the quadro k2000m with this bios you have here. I am correct in doing this? The programmer picked up the bios chip on the k2000m card and the file you have here loaded onto the chip. Am I good to go now?

Strange questions come from a guy who can use the ch341a programmer.

 

[The_Croupier]

I have a question for you. I am very new to the bios on these Nvidia cards and the terminology. I am trying to use a ch341a programmer to load the bios on a K2000m and a K1000m card. The files you have for download are listed as .rom files and the software I am using doesn't recognize them. I changed them to .bin and was able to load the quadro k2000m with this bios you have here. I am correct in doing this? The programmer picked up the bios chip on the k2000m card and the file you have here loaded onto the chip. Am I good to go now?

Good to go 👍

 

[Ausdauersportler]

I have a question for you. I am very new to the bios on these Nvidia cards and the terminology. I am trying to use a ch341a programmer to load the bios on a K2000m and a K1000m card. The files you have for download are listed as .rom files and the software I am using doesn't recognize them. I changed them to .bin and was able to load the quadro k2000m with this bios you have here. I am correct in doing this? The programmer picked up the bios chip on the k2000m card and the file you have here loaded onto the chip. Am I good to go now?

We use flashrom with the CH341A to flash vBIOS version onto GPU cards to the iMac firmware back to the system board. The software does not need renaming of files. But reading the man page (this is the ancient form of the users documentation in UNIX) or the docs online is always a good idea.

But rest assured, renaming a file does not change the contents. You could have checked this yourself. There are so many tools out to do a binary (it is a binary file) compare between the original and renamed file.

Recently nearly all users moved to the Linux GRML flash utility because it is by far more easy to use and you can also flash all the bigger NVIDIA MXM-B cards with a WSON BIOS chip which cannot be flashed by a clip. Reading the first post is key to get an idea of all this.

 

[cabinfourus]

Strange questions come from a guy who can use the ch341a programmer.

Yeah, I enjoy this as a hobby and don't know much about Apple's way of doing things. The programmer is pretty basic but I had to watch multiple videos on how to use it. I was mostly worried that changing the file's path would somehow corrupt the contents or the way it was loading it to the chip. I had also read the k2000m couldn't be programmed with the ch341a clip programmer but I was able to do it and wasn't sure how it worked.
Thanks to all of you! I am very new to Apple's hardware and software but I do like their systems much more than standard PCs. This has been a true adventure for me and I enjoy a good challenge. Wishing you all the best of days and thanks again.

 

[cabinfourus]

We use flashrom with the CH341A to flash vBIOS

I used the software and drivers from keeyees.com download site. They had a very detailed set of instructions and all the drivers needed. I used my Windows 10 laptop to program the chip. I guess the main reason I asked my question was due to having some issues with my k1000m and my slow brain. I am a hands-on learner and absolutely hate reading (lol). I did read over the 1st post several times but with my limited knowledge of terminology, I found it difficult to understand and Google searches always led me back to this forum. Lastly, I am old (53) and technology is passing me by. It is so hard to find a solid answer online when it comes to loading a bios onto a GPU not offered by the manufacturer, especially Apple. Thanks again! have a wonderful day.

 

[RTouris]

Just received an iMac pre-flased K3000M today after a long wait over the post; Wondering if I should possibly even attempt to install this in a 27'' late 2009 or it's a guaranteed DOA...To the untrained eye I suppose we' re looking at a significant (water?) damage in an area on the top left hand side of the 'underside', while in closing-in one can see that one of the chip's connection-legs looks substantially battered up in what appears to be a charcoal material state...

Seller obviously advertised this as a fully functional pre-tested unit as they all do in similar Ali ads. In await of an alt. 2-pipe heatsink - since I'd be performing another such upgrade on a similar setup in the near future - evaluating my next steps. Seller comms sent, in await of his take on this, but I have a feeling this won't end well..

Looking for an experienced opinion before I embark on this 'quest'..

 

[Radical78]

Just received an iMac pre-flased K3000M today after a long wait over the post; Wondering if I should possibly even attempt to install this in a 27'' late 2009 or it's a guaranteed DOA...To the untrained eye I suppose we' re looking at a significant (water?) damage in an area on the top left hand side of the 'underside', while in closing-in one can see that one of the chip's connection-legs looks substantially battered up in what appears to be a charcoal material state...

Seller obviously advertised this as a fully functional pre-tested unit as they all do in similar Ali ads. In await of an alt. 2-pipe heatsink - since I'd be performing another such upgrade on a similar setup in the near future - evaluating my next steps. Seller comms sent, in await of his take on this, but I have a feeling this won't end well..

Looking for an experienced opinion before I embark on this 'quest'..

Try to install it and you'll take away your doubts. Hope it works and good luck.

 

[RTouris]

Will end up doing just that; I'm only waiting for the second heatsink to arrive in a few days prior to investing any DIY-time in dremel-ing and installing the set to what could possibly be a DOA case and me left with no desktop to work on. Thanks for the wishes

 

[passatgt]

Just received an iMac pre-flased K3000M today after a long wait over the post; Wondering if I should possibly even attempt to install this in a 27'' late 2009 or it's a guaranteed DOA...To the untrained eye I suppose we' re looking at a significant (water?) damage in an area on the top left hand side of the 'underside', while in closing-in one can see that one of the chip's connection-legs looks substantially battered up in what appears to be a charcoal material state...

Seller obviously advertised this as a fully functional pre-tested unit as they all do in similar Ali ads. In await of an alt. 2-pipe heatsink - since I'd be performing another such upgrade on a similar setup in the near future - evaluating my next steps. Seller comms sent, in await of his take on this, but I have a feeling this won't end well..

Looking for an experienced opinion before I embark on this 'quest'..

That doesn't look bad in my opinion. Clean it with some alcohol and give it a go. I've seen worse working.

 

[KootenayMacGuy]

** NVIDIA Quadro K3100M Mac Edition ROM **
Genuine Native Boot Screen & Brightness Control​

View attachment 942193


Pre-installation Requirements:
- iMac12,2 (27-inch Mid 2011) Mac-942B59F58194171B (Tested machine)
- BootROM: 87.0.0.0.0. Please use High Sierra to update your BootROM to latest version.

- GPU Variant: N15E-Q1-A2

- Hynix GDDR5 Die Generation variants
View attachment 1687878
H5GQ2H24AFR - Hynix 1st Generation die - VDD 1.5V, use K3100M_AFR.rom
H5GC2H24BFR - Hynix 2nd Generation die - VDD 1.35V, use K3100M_BFR.rom
H5GQ2H24BFR - Hynix 2nd Generation die - VDD 1.5V, use K3100M_BFR.rom

known working cards:
Dell K3100M vbios: 80.04.B0.00.0A
HP K3100M vbios: 80.04.CD.00.0A. PN: 744354-001

This ROM does not require a 3rd party bootloader like OpenCore.
This ROM is build on the same principles as my K4100M. Unfortunately, the color-pixel bug is still present. But I am working on it. The brightness will need to be adjusted via a kext as previous. I have a feeling that the native brightness dimness is also inline with the same generic driver bug previously mentioned. The rom has a modest clock table boost as well.

Post-installation Requirements:
Brightness Control Stepping Mod:
-Turn computer on, hold down Command(⌘)-R
-Choose Utilities > Terminal
-Enter:csrutil disable
-MacOS Catalina: requires you to make root writeable: sudo mount -uw /
-Reboot
-Download and open 'Kext Utility v2.6.6'

-Navigate to S/L/E (System/Library/Extensions)
-Copy "AppleBacklight.kext" to Desktop
-Edit: AppleBacklight.kext/Contents/Info.plist
-Scroll down to: IOKitPersonalities > AppleIntelPanelA > ApplePanels
-There you find several Apple LCD profiles.
-For the iMac 2011 27" machine locate:

<key>F10Ta007</key>
<data>
ABEABgALABQAHAAnADMAPwBOAFwAZwBzAIEAkQClAL8A2wD/
</data>

-Change the <data> section to:
ABEAAgA3AF8AigCzAOsBJAFnAakB1AIJAlQCogL4A00DlgRpBGk=

-Drag your modded kext into Kext Utility, allow it correct permissions
-"Applebacklight.kext.bak" folder will be created
-Reboot

The above data pattern will allow for a wider span of steppings for the brightness control and utilizes more of the capacity of the HD3000. If you have a different machine, your panel ID can be found by going to System Preferences > Displays > Color > Open Profile > mmod

Caveats post-install/Bugs:
-16bit resolution glitch of UGA_DRAW_PROTOCOL - temporary solution: activate a sleep cycle and return, this should now clear the issue.

warning: please remember this is a WSON based card. You will be unable to recover from a bad flash with clip.



View attachment 939736 View attachment 939740

"insanely great!"
-Steve Jobs

**update**
01-27-2021 BFR-mem:1800Mhz; TDP:849.5Mhz, Rom Ver:31.6B.32.37.B1
12-07-2020 TDP/3D/Boost adjusted for both ROMs
12-06-2020 new roms for Hynix AFR and Hynix BFR based vRAMs should fix white/black screen issue
10-04-2020 working on Catalina 10.15.7, HP PN:744354-001 @GButorin
08-04-2020 working on Sierra 10.12.6 @Ausdauersportler

I successfully flashed the H5GC2H24BFR version of this card. I was able to get correct backlight control levels with AppleBacklight.kext mod. I have one major issue however. I am unable to wake from sleep in Mojave and Catalina. Screen stays black and keyboard/mouse will not wake iMac. Eventually (after a few minutes) the system kernel panics and reboots. Is this a known issue? I have tried resetting PRAM/SMC and reinstalled OS multiple times. Here is the crash report:


panic(cpu 0 caller 0xffffff8002e14e17): "NVDA::setPowerState(0xffffff8016e92480 : 0xffffff7f83711d76, 0 -> 2) timed out after 45191 ms"@/AppleInternal/BuildRoot/Library/Caches/com.apple.xbs/Sources/xnu/xnu-6153.141.2/iokit/Kernel/IOServicePM.cpp:5296
Backtrace (CPU 0), Frame : Return Address
0xffffff81113fbb40 : 0xffffff800271a65d
0xffffff81113fbb90 : 0xffffff8002854a75
0xffffff81113fbbd0 : 0xffffff80028465fe
0xffffff81113fbc20 : 0xffffff80026c0a40
0xffffff81113fbc40 : 0xffffff8002719d27
0xffffff81113fbd40 : 0xffffff800271a117
0xffffff81113fbd90 : 0xffffff8002ec1a6c
0xffffff81113fbe00 : 0xffffff8002e14e17
0xffffff81113fbe50 : 0xffffff8002e146f9
0xffffff81113fbe60 : 0xffffff8002e2bc8e
0xffffff81113fbea0 : 0xffffff8002e134a8
0xffffff81113fbec0 : 0xffffff800275c605
0xffffff81113fbf40 : 0xffffff800275c131
0xffffff81113fbfa0 : 0xffffff80026c013e

BSD process name corresponding to current thread: kernel_task
Boot args: -no_compat_check amfi_allow_any_signature=1

Mac OS version:
19H2

Kernel version:
Darwin Kernel Version 19.6.0: Mon Aug 31 22:12:52 PDT 2020; root:xnu-6153.141.2~1/RELEASE_X86_64
Kernel UUID: 05D51A3D-3A87-3FF0-98C3-9CF3827A3EDD
Kernel slide: 0x0000000002400000
Kernel text base: 0xffffff8002600000
__HIB text base: 0xffffff8002500000
System model name: iMac12,2 (Mac-942B59F58194171B)
System shutdown begun: NO
Panic diags file available: YES (0x0)

System uptime in nanoseconds: 669964875724
last loaded kext at 6695497562: >AudioAUUC 1.70 (addr 0xffffff7f85ba9000, size 32768)
last unloaded kext at 190430091496: >usb.!UUHCI 1.2 (addr 0xffffff7f842b2000, size 139264)
loaded kexts:
as.vit9696.WhateverGreen 1.4.4
as.vit9696.Lilu 1.4.9
>AudioAUUC 1.70
@fileutil 20.036.15
@filesystems.autofs 3.0
>!AMikeyHIDDriver 131
>!AMikeyDriver 281.52
>AGPM 111.4.4
>!AHDA 281.52
@AGDCPluginDisplayMetrics 5.2.6
@GeForce 14.0.0
>!AHV 1
|IOUserEthernet 1.0.1
>!ABacklight 180.3
|IO!BSerialManager 7.0.6f7
>!AUpstreamUserClient 3.6.8
>pmtelemetry 1
@Dont_Steal_Mac_OS_X 7.0.0
>!AThunderboltIP 3.1.4
>!ASMCPDRC 1.0.0
>eficheck 1
>!A!ISlowAdaptiveClocking 4.0.0
>!ALPC 3.1
>!ASMCLMU 212
>!AFWOHCI 5.6.2
>ACPI_SMC_PlatformPlugin 1.0.0
>!AMCCSControl 1.14
|SCSITaskUserClient 422.120.3
>!AIR!C 360
>!UCardReader 489.120.1
@filesystems.apfs 1412.141.1
>!AVirtIO 1.0
@filesystems.hfs.kext 522.100.5
@!AFSCompression.!AFSCompressionTypeDataless 1.0.0d1
@BootCache 40
@!AFSCompression.!AFSCompressionTypeZlib 1.0.0
>AirPort.Atheros40 700.74.5
|!ABCM5701Ethernet 10.3.5
>!AAHCIPort 341.140.1
@private.KextAudit 1.0
>!ARTC 2.0
>!AACPIButtons 6.1
>!AHPET 1.8
>!ASMBIOS 2.1
>!AACPIEC 6.1
>!AAPIC 1.7
>!A!ICPUPowerManagementClient 222.0.0
$!AImage4 1
@nke.applicationfirewall 303
$TMSafetyNet 8
@!ASystemPolicy 2.0.0
>!A!ICPUPowerManagement 222.0.0
|EndpointSecurity 1
@kext.triggers 1.0
|IOFireWireIP 2.3.0
>DspFuncLib 281.52
@kext.OSvKernDSPLib 529
|IOAVB!F 850.1
@nvidia.driver.NVDAGK100Hal 14.0.0
|IOAccelerator!F2 438.7.3
@nvidia.driver.NVDAResman 14.0.0
>!ABacklightExpert 1.1.0
@!AGPUWrangler 5.2.6
@!AGraphicsDeviceControl 5.2.6
|IOSlowAdaptiveClocking!F 1.0.0
|IONDRVSupport 576.1
>!ASMBusPCI 1.0.14d1
>!AHDA!C 281.52
|IOHDA!F 281.52
>!AThunderboltEDMSink 4.2.3
|IOFireWire!F 4.7.5
>IOPlatformPluginLegacy 1.0.0
>IOPlatformPlugin!F 6.0.0d8
>!ASMBus!C 1.0.18d1
|IOGraphics!F 576.1
@plugin.IOgPTPPlugin 840.3
|IOSkywalk!F 1
|IOSCSIMultimediaCommandsDevice 422.120.3
|IOBD!S!F 1.8
|IODVD!S!F 1.8
|IOCD!S!F 1.8
|IOAHCISerialATAPI 268
|Broadcom!BHost!CUSBTransport 7.0.6f7
|IO!BHost!CUSBTransport 7.0.6f7
|IO!BHost!CTransport 7.0.6f7
|IO!B!F 7.0.6f7
|IO!BPacketLogger 7.0.6f7
>usb.IOUSBHostHIDDevice 1.2
>usb.networking 5.0.0
>usb.!UHostCompositeDevice 1.2
>usb.!UHub 1.2
|IOAudio!F 300.2
@vecLib.kext 1.2.0
|IOSerial!F 11
@filesystems.hfs.encodings.kext 1
|IOSurface 269.11
>!AThunderboltDPOutAdapter 6.2.6
>!AThunderboltDPInAdapter 6.2.6
>!AThunderboltDPAdapter!F 6.2.6
>!AThunderboltPCIDownAdapter 2.5.4
|IOAHCIBlock!S 316.100.5
>!AThunderboltNHI 5.8.6
|IOThunderbolt!F 7.6.1
|IO80211!F 1200.12.2
>corecapture 1.0.4
|IOEthernetAVB!C 1.1.0
>mDNSOffloadUserClient 1.0.1b8
|IOAHCI!F 290.0.1
>usb.!UEHCIPCI 1.2
>usb.!UEHCI 1.2
>usb.!UHostPacketFilter 1.0
|IOUSB!F 900.4.2
>!AEFINVRAM 2.1
>!AEFIRuntime 2.1
|IOSMBus!F 1.1
|IOHID!F 2.0.0
$quarantine 4
$sandbox 300.0
@Kext.!AMatch 1.0.0d1
>DiskImages 493.0.0
>!AFDEKeyStore 28.30
>!AEffaceable!S 1.0
>!ASSE 1.0
>!AKeyStore 2
>!UTDM 489.120.1
|IOSCSIBlockCommandsDevice 422.120.3
>!ACredentialManager 1.0
>KernelRelayHost 1
>!ASEPManager 1.0.1
>IOSlaveProcessor 1
|IOUSBMass!SDriver 157.140.1
|IOSCSIArchitectureModel!F 422.120.3
|IO!S!F 2.1
|IOUSBHost!F 1.2
>!UHostMergeProperties 1.2
>usb.!UCommon 1.0
>!ABusPower!C 1.0
|CoreAnalytics!F 1
>!AMobileFileIntegrity 1.0.5
@kext.CoreTrust 1
|IOTimeSync!F 840.3
|IONetworking!F 3.4
|IOReport!F 47
>!AACPIPlatform 6.1
>!ASMC 3.1.9
>watchdog 1
|IOPCI!F 2.9
|IOACPI!F 1.4
@kec.pthread 1
@kec.Libm 1
@kec.corecrypto 1.0

 

[Ausdauersportler]

I successfully flashed the H5GC2H24BFR version of this card. I was able to get correct backlight control levels with AppleBacklight.kext mod. I have one major issue however. I am unable to wake from sleep in Mojave and Catalina. Screen stays black and keyboard/mouse will not wake iMac. Eventually (after a few minutes) the system kernel panics and reboots. Is this a known issue? I have tried resetting PRAM/SMC and reinstalled OS multiple times. Here is the crash report:

On the first post there is a long installation guide especially for 2011 models running @dosdude1 patched Mojave or Catalina.

Everything is there - if one wants to read it...

 

[cabinfourus]

I noticed there are still a few members that have K1000M cards around

I have run into a problem with file sizes. I am trying to load this file (k1000m) to my bios chip (mxic 25L1005C MI-128) and it keeps saying the file size is too large. I am going to use winmerge and compare the stock bin against this one but other than doing this I have no clue what to do. I read through the Q&A located on the first post and skimmed through the forums but didn't seem to find any answers. Any ideas on this? Thanks in advance.

 

[Ausdauersportler]

I have run into a problem with file sizes. I am trying to load this file (k1000m) to my bios chip (mxic 25L1005C MI-128) and it keeps saying the file size is too large. I am going to use winmerge and compare the stock bin against this one but other than doing this I have no clue what to do. I read through the Q&A located on the first post and skimmed through the forums but didn't seem to find any answers. Any ideas on this? Thanks in advance.

First post talks about cards with replaced BIOS chips, some special sellers manage to use smaller chips and that is what happened to you. In all cases one need a 256K chip.

 

[Mischa85]

Is anyone in possession of an iMac10,1 (Core2Duo 2009) sporting the integrated GeForce 9400M? The VBIOS could be of great value for development of a working NVIDIA VBIOS for those machines.

 

[passatgt]

Is anyone in possession of an iMac10,1 (Core2Duo 2009) sporting the integrated GeForce 9400M? The VBIOS could be of great value for development of a working NVIDIA VBIOS for those machines.

sorry, misunderstood your comment, i just don't know how to delete this one

 

[Mischa85]

sorry, misunderstood your comment, i just don't know how to delete this one

I assume you're telling us that you don't have it? 😋 The VBIOS is part of the system RAM and it's possible to read it in the EFI shell, as I did in the project post for an iMac9,1:

2011 iMac Graphics Card Upgrade

iMac 9,1/10,1 (2009 Core2Duo) GPU Change Project In this post I try to post as much information on hacking the VBIOS to work on our precious iMacs. I'm starting literally from scratch. When I learn something new I will share it with the world. I might get some things wrong initially but I try...

forums.macrumors.com

This resulting ROM holds all the clues for iMac9,1 btw Now I would like the same for iMac10,1...

 

[cabinfourus]

In all cases one need a 256K chip

Okay. Guess I am breaking out the old soldering iron and replacing this chip. Thanks

 

[KootenayMacGuy]

On the first post there is a long installation guide especially for 2011 models running @dosdude1 patched Mojave or Catalina.

Everything is there - if one wants to read it...

Thanks boss. Installed iMac Sleep Patch and now sleep/brightness working beautifully on 10.15.6.

 

[cabinfourus]

First post talks about cards with replaced BIOS chips, some special sellers manage to use smaller chips and that is what happened to you. In all cases one need a 256K chip.

I have 5 or 6 of the 675m and an asus laptop gpu but the numbers don't match.

 

[cabinfourus]

Which chip would I need? The k1000m I have has a mxic 25l1005c on it. I have several other GPU laying around but unsure if the chips will work. Can someone recommend the correct chip?

 

[Ausdauersportler]

About the chip type: Winbond W25X20, 256 kB

I just did a search of the contents of this thread limited to my own zillion posts searching for the keyword flashrom. This software usually prints out the found chip type. This type is used on K1100M and K2100M cards.

 

[Mischa85]

Does the iMac even use the part past the GOP as it's a pure UEFI machine and all... If not you could cut that K1000M VBIOS at 0x16200 and you'll end up with just the IFR and the GOP part which makes the VBIOS roughly 90 kbytes.

Am I missing something? Any reason not to?