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gtx 680 kernel panic mac pro 3.1

stagefright

stagefright

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 15, 2018
5
1
hello everyone, long time lurker. Have been helped numerous times in the past from reading threads but i can't find an answer to this specific problem.

A bit of backstory, (not sure if it's important but): About 2 months ago my 3.1 mac pro got a kernel panic and wouldn't boot. the apple logo would come up and the loading bar would begin to load but never get more than halfway, before restarting and the process restarted. wasn't able to boot off an external drive or anything either.

took it to two repair shops, finally isolated the problem to the gpu.

wanted something that is plug and play and wouldn't require updating drivers or messing around. settled on nvidia gtx geforce 680. a flashed pc one off amazon.

wouldn't boot, apple logo comes up grey and the 'busy' mouse icon appears and after about 20 seconds the screen goes into 'kernel panic'(please restart or turn off computer etc).

took it bAck to repair place but they aren't familiar with flashed pc cards. they had an older gpu laying around and my computer booted fine off of that one when tested.

so i was hoping it was a faulty card and returned it and bought another one.... and the same exact problem persists!

Hoping someone can help, pretty out of my element here!! everything i can read online says the card should be compatible... thanks in advance.
 
A few things you should add are
1. The OS you are using
2. What "older gpu" the repair place had laying around
3. What slot you placed it in
4. ect.
 
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where did you get the GTX 680? are there any markings on it? did you return this GTX 680 and replace it with another from the same vendor?
 
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May be you can try to perform an OS re-installation. No need to delete anything, just download the same OS, and install again (cover on top of your current OS). Let it fix the system / kext by overwriting all broken files.

The system hang / crash during GPU driver loading, not necessary means graphic card's problem. It can be OS problem, especially if you already try the few different graphic cards (but same GPU inside).
 
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OS6-OSX said:
A few things you should add are
1. The OS you are using
2. What "older gpu" the repair place had laying around
3. What slot you placed it in
4. ect.
Click to expand...
1.was running el capitan, can't remember exact release.
2.ive asked the repair place, will update when i know
3. wish i knew the right terms... the slot that the original gpu came out of. except the 680 is double high. two 6 pin power connectors installed.

i bought the second gtx 680 used from ebay instead of amazon. because i thought the original card could be flashed incorrectly or something.

should i buy a cheap gpu just to help troubleshoot? i can't rightly re install OS or update drivers or anything atm. this is my only build and not having a working gpu is maddening.
 
I can't boot into safe mode or disk partition or anything when the 680 is installed. If I remember correctly I wasn't able to from the original GPU either but will try again when I get home later. It would just hang and never load.

Here are some photos of the card and it installed. Sorry if this is really noobish, just really frustrated by this whole process! thanks again.

hWJM3RE.jpg

Pu4fSzz.jpg

eC6aInc.jpg

9D5FFeN.jpg

RUcJt5F.jpg
 
That GTX 680 likely does not have EFI so you won't see any boot screens. If you're having an issue, you MAY need to see the screens to figure out what is causing that issue. (That is why many people keep their old graphics card handy, or have an EFI upgraded card.)

Any chance you have the original GPU available? Likely was an ATI Radeon HD 5770 1024 MB (red and black color).

If you can troubleshoot the startup issue, getting the NVIDIA web drivers installed for the GTX 680 shouldn't be an issue.
 
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680 should just work plug and play in El Cap. Flashed or not doesn't matter. Apple drivers or web drivers doesn't matter.
  1. Please post the text of the kernel panic.

  2. If you have a spare drive, try to boot to a completely clean install of OSX (or Windows or Linux) in order to eliminate any software issues.

  3. MVC had reported that for video cards without a backplate being inserting into Mac Pro, many people hit the edge of the rubber pad that's mounted to the case and so accidentally dislodge surface mount components. Yours doesn't have a back plate and who knows how many times this old card has been in and out of Mac Pros. Check over the back side surface mount components very carefully to see if any have been knocked off or one end loose.
 
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What OS version are you running? (Please also show build number if possible.)
Did you apply any hacks to get the 3,1 to be identified as a 5,1?
 
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ActionableMango said:
680 should just work plug and play in El Cap. Flashed or not doesn't matter. Apple drivers or web drivers doesn't matter.
  1. Please post the text of the kernel panic.

  2. If you have a spare drive, try to boot to a completely clean install of OSX (or Windows or Linux) in order to eliminate any software issues.

  3. MVC had reported that for video cards without a backplate being inserting into Mac Pro, many people hit the edge of the rubber pad that's mounted to the case and so accidentally dislodge surface mount components. Yours doesn't have a back plate and who knows how many times this old card has been in and out of Mac Pros. Check over the back side surface mount components very carefully to see if any have been knocked off or one end loose.
Click to expand...

1. how do i get the text of the kernel panic?

2. I will try this, not sure how to get a clean boot onto a drive since I don't have another mac build but i'll see what i can figure out.

3. dislodged surface mount components from the gpu or the tower?


I will try to find out what exact version of El Capitan I'm running.

I am running a straight 3.1, no hacks or anything.

thanks for the responses everyone, really appreciate the help!
 
stagefright said:
1. how do i get the text of the kernel panic?

2. I will try this, not sure how to get a clean boot onto a drive since I don't have another mac build but i'll see what i can figure out.

3. dislodged surface mount components from the gpu or the tower?
Click to expand...

  1. Press command-V when booting up. This will boot up in verbose mode. Video capture with camera.
  2. You don't need another Mac. Just install a spare HDD/SDD and install an OS onto it.
  3. Forget #3. I just realized you've had this problem with three different GPUs now, including your original, so I don't think it is a damaged GPU. I'm fairly certain it is either software or some other hardware problem. This is why #2 is important so we can rule out or confirm a software problem.
 
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Problem is solved, thanks everyone!

Not 100% sure of what exactly fixed it, but what i think happened:

I expected the gpu to be plug and play, and when the same problem persisted from my old broken GPU to the new one, I screwed up and didnt troubleshoot thoroughly.

I am now able to get into disk repair utility, and see that my SSD that I was booting from had failed. So the computer was trying to boot from an older OS i had installed on another hard drive, and I'm assuming the OS was too outdated to run this gpu without updating drivers.

So I just reinstalled El Capitan on another drive and so far its working perfectly.

Thanks again everyone, I really appreciate it!!! Feels so good to finally be back up and running.
 
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stagefright said:
Problem is solved, thanks everyone!

Not 100% sure of what exactly fixed it, but what i think happened:

I expected the gpu to be plug and play, and when the same problem persisted from my old broken GPU to the new one, I screwed up and didnt troubleshoot thoroughly.

I am now able to get into disk repair utility, and see that my SSD that I was booting from had failed. So the computer was trying to boot from an older OS i had installed on another hard drive, and I'm assuming the OS was too outdated to run this gpu without updating drivers.

So I just reinstalled El Capitan on another drive and so far its working perfectly.

Thanks again everyone, I really appreciate it!!! Feels so good to finally be back up and running.
Click to expand...


Hi Stagefright, I am having the same symptons you had.

I can reboot with Alt option and can select to start with installation DVD or with an old recovery, but in any case after about one minute I get the same Kernel Panic ("please restart or turn off computer etc")
What ever key combination I restart with (ALT, command-R, .....) I get the kernel panic

After reading your case, can we say that:
- your original GPU was damaged
- then you got Nvidia geforce 680 thinking it was plug and play. Then you kept having same symptoms
- Later you found that your SSD had a failure and computer was trying to boot from an older OS in another drive. That older OS was too outdated to manage that GPU
- Then you installed El Capitan on another drive and everything is fine

May I ask you how did you manage to get into disk utility if you had the same symptoms after installing Nvidia geforce 680 ?

Thank you very much
 
his GTX680 was not the problem it was his installation of osx which was the problem.
 
I see, sorry.

Anyway, when I try to boot my Mac Pro 3.1 I always get Kernel Panic message ("please restart or turn off computer etc")
At this moment it is in original condition: 2GB Ram, one hard disk drive. OS is Snow Leopard if I am not wrong.

In the past I upgraded to El Capitan, but since it started to hung up often, I downgraded back to Snow Leopard. Then things started to get worse....

Using ALT key at booting I can select the boot volume, but even if I select DVD installation disk I get the Kernel panic after around 1 or 2 minutes from Apple logo screen.

If I boot pressing command+V I get following screens (I hope you can see those pictures)

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1G8ZVMw4U6skvIFnpJJMEPOHLb482PxT1
open


https://drive.google.com/open?id=1vkLTM87p108vgU08J8vaBV5fv7cB7pXj
open


https://drive.google.com/open?id=1GUChhjmaIb1QCuXYG1R9KXp6a76PzQDb
open


I would appreciate if anyone can give me a clue of how to proceed....

Thank you very much
 
izl said:
I see, sorry.

Anyway, when I try to boot my Mac Pro 3.1 I always get Kernel Panic message ("please restart or turn off computer etc")
At this moment it is in original condition: 2GB Ram, one hard disk drive. OS is Snow Leopard if I am not wrong.

In the past I upgraded to El Capitan, but since it started to hung up often, I downgraded back to Snow Leopard. Then things started to get worse....

Using ALT key at booting I can select the boot volume, but even if I select DVD installation disk I get the Kernel panic after around 1 or 2 minutes from Apple logo screen.

If I boot pressing command+V I get following screens (I hope you can see those pictures)

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1G8ZVMw4U6skvIFnpJJMEPOHLb482PxT1
open


https://drive.google.com/open?id=1vkLTM87p108vgU08J8vaBV5fv7cB7pXj
open


https://drive.google.com/open?id=1GUChhjmaIb1QCuXYG1R9KXp6a76PzQDb
open


I would appreciate if anyone can give me a clue of how to proceed....

Thank you very much
Click to expand...

Can't see your screen capture
Screenshot 2018-11-02 at 05.56.36.png
 
Links are working from my side....let me try to copy and paste directly

upload_2018-11-2_1-27-17.png


upload_2018-11-2_1-27-56.png


upload_2018-11-2_1-28-42.png
 

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  • upload_2018-11-2_1-25-25.png
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Just a thought, but when I first flashed a GTX 680 in my Mac Pro 3,1, I was stuck for some time trying to figure out why El Capitan would stop loading at the Apple logo screen with a half filled progress bar. I ended up pulling a hard drive out of my PC with Windows 10 installed, put it in the MP and removed the El Capitan drive. The Mac Pro started to boot into Windows and then bombed out with an error about the card being underpowered. I already had 2x 6 pin power lines running into the card but it needed 1x 6pin + 1x 8pin. I spliced a 12v power line off the ODD molex connectors and fashioned a plug end for the two additional pins and voila! It has been running like this for more than a year now.

My point is to perhaps let Windows 10 give it a try as it might be better at reporting the fault compared to El Capitan.
 
ActionableMango said:
680 should just work plug and play in El Cap. Flashed or not doesn't matter. Apple drivers or web drivers doesn't matter.
  1. Please post the text of the kernel panic.

  2. If you have a spare drive, try to boot to a completely clean install of OSX (or Windows or Linux) in order to eliminate any software issues.

  3. MVC had reported that for video cards without a backplate being inserting into Mac Pro, many people hit the edge of the rubber pad that's mounted to the case and so accidentally dislodge surface mount components. Yours doesn't have a back plate and who knows how many times this old card has been in and out of Mac Pros. Check over the back side surface mount components very carefully to see if any have been knocked off or one end loose.
Click to expand...

Lol this is incorrect, without a flashed 680, you won't see jack until the mac boots up into its log in screen, so you'll be without boot screens, and you sure as heck won't be seeing any kernel panics if there are any.

not that it matters though.

;)
 
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VanneDC said:
Lol this is incorrect, without a flashed 680, you won't see jack until the mac boots up into its log in screen, so you'll be without boot screens, and you sure as heck won't be seeing any kernel panics if there are any.
Click to expand...

No, I'm not incorrect, because I didn't say that an unflashed 680 will show boot screens and kernel panics.
  • I said a GTX 680 will work, flashed or not, Apple drivers or web drivers, doesn't matter. This is true.
  • Then in a separate paragraph I provided step-by-step instructions to OP to capture his kernel panics, which will work for OP because he has a flashed card.
You merged two separate, correct points together into a third, incorrect point that I never made.
 
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