Can’t install Win 7 x64 on MBP 2006

[vorob]

Guys, I can’t install Windows 7 on my MBP Late 2006 (A1211) with C2d and ATI X1600.

I burned dvd and got this well known thing:

1

2

Select CD Rom boot type:

Then I found a guide how to burn Mac friendly dvd. Followed it and now I’ve got:

CDBOOT: Cannot boot from CD - Code: 5

This one I don’t know how to fix. I read that you can name is disk as CD_ROM and this should do, but not in my case.

 

[eyoungren]

Are you also keeping OS X on the Mac?

If so, you'll want to partition the drive. Leave one partition for OS X and the second partition for Windows. Format it as NTFS.

If you're just going to use Windows, boot from an OS X install disk and format the entire drive as NTFS.

Then boot from your Windows 7 installer and install Win7.

You'll want to use I suspect either Pro or Ultimate. I doubt lesser versions will install.

Note: All of this assumes you aren't using Bootcamp at all. Which means that once you're done with the initial install you are going to have to hunt down all the updates/installs that make the Mac features (backlight, function keys, etc) work with Windows 7.

Oh, and the driver for ethernet is a generic Intel ethernet driver. That one took me quite some time to figure out.

 

[vorob]

Hmm, you are talking about hdd preparation, while i'm saying that my win 7 installer won't launch at all.

 

[theMarble]

FYI, you cannot install Windows 7 64-bit onto a A1150, A1151, A1211 or A1212 MacBook Pro. They utilise 32-bit firmware which means you can only boot and install 32-bit Windows.

 

[vorob]

My GOD! A 64bit pc limited my 32bit firmware. Any way to hack this misunderstanding?

 

[B S Magnet]

My GOD! A 64bit pc limited my 32bit firmware. Any way to hack this misunderstanding?

Intel’s 64-bit teething pains.

 

[theMarble]

My GOD! A 64bit pc limited my 32bit firmware. Any way to hack this misunderstanding?

Unfortunately not, All Late 2006 Macs (MacBook, MacBook Pro, iMac, Mac mini, Mac Pro, Xserve...) are limited by this. The only way to fix this is by getting a 2007+ MacBook Pro (A1226/9+) which has 64-bit firmware.

Also, annoyingly the 2007 MBP's have the same CPU's as your 15" (and my 17") Late 2006 MacBook Pro yet because the 64-bit EFI, the 2006 is stuck with Lion (Mavericks with a patch) while the 2007 can do El Capitan with no patches!.
(The 2007 also has a newer GPU, but performance is very similar.)

 

[Amethyst1]

FYI, you cannot install Windows 7 64-bit onto a A1150, A1151, A1211 or A1212 MacBook Pro. They utilise 32-bit firmware which means you can only boot and install 32-bit Windows.

You can on an A1211 and A1212. You need to modify the ISO to use a 32-bit loader, which the OP have already done.

Intel’s 64-bit teething pains.

I'm not sure this is a limitation on Intel's side of the fence. It sounds like one of Apple's EFI/BIOS CSM implementation. I can install Windows 7 x64 on my EFI-less Toshiba Portégé R500, which uses hardware quite similar to Late 2006 MBs/MBPs.

Also, annoyingly the 2007 MBP's have the same CPU's as your 15" (and my 17") Late 2006 MacBook Pro yet because the 64-bit EFI, the 2006 is stuck with Lion (Mavericks with a patch) while the 2007 can do El Capitan with no patches!.

The Late 2006 MBPs can go past Lion with the help of a patched boot.efi. I've had Yosemite on mine at some point, but performance was terrible due to no GPU acceleration. El Capitan is also possible but requires more work.

 

[rampancy]

The 64-bit-CPU-on-32-bit-Apple-EFI issue is also the reason why it is tricky to install newer versions of popular Linux distros (especially Ubuntu) on 2006 and 2007 MacBooks/MacBook Pros, without using tricks like Matt Gadient's hacked Linux ISOs.

 

[vorob]

Guys, i'm terribly sorry. I was following guide without moving my brains. Instead of taking 32bit loader and injecting it into 64bit distro I dumped 64bit loader and injected it back

Now everything works! MacBook Pro Late 2006 running Windows 7 x64.