iMac 24" Continuity upgrade

[vinesy]

Hi folks,

I'm looking for any assistance upgrading my iMac for continuity/handoff.

Specs:

• 24" early 2009 iMac, 2.93Ghz
  
• running MacOS 10.14.5, installed using dosdude patches.

Here's what I have done:

• installed BRCM94331CD Wifi/Bluetooth card (with v3 adaptor, extra antennas, etc)
• WiFi works.
• Bluetooth was not recognised, until I attached D+/D- wires from old bluetooth socket on logic board to plug on Wifi adaptor (see attached image)
• run CAT (Continuity activation tool)

Here's the problem:

• With Bluetooth attached, iMac will not boot. It gets four lights on the logic board, a chime, but then can't get past the white screen. It will not accept any boot modifier keys (e.g. option, command-V, NVRAM reset, etc), and even when set to verbose mode, won't get past the white screen into any text.
• If I take the front cover off, boot the iMac, AND THEN, once the Apple logo shows, I attached the D+/D- wires to the Bluetooth, then Mac boots successfully, and Bluetooth is recognised as a
  20702B0 chipset.
• If I boot into dosdude installer with Bluetooth unplugged, then plug it in, I get a kernel panic and reboot. So there must be something in the patched installer that conflicts with my bluetooth card.

And yes, I've tried multiple NVRAM, SMC resets.

Can anyone suggest anything to get past the white screen?

 

[Petri Krohn]

I'm looking for any assistance upgrading my iMac for continuity/handoff.

• 24" early 2009 iMac, 2.93Ghz

I just got Catalina and Continuity working on my 24 inch iMac 7,1 from 2007. I used the same BCM94331CD card as you have, but with a different adapter. The 2007 iMac has USB connected to the miniPCIe connector, so there is no need to connect a USB data wire to the Bluetooth header. The adapter I used is the simple model without the extra connector for USB.

Continuity and Catalina on 2007 iMac 7,1

After removing and reattaching the LCD I got the iMac to boot into El Capitan. As the aluminum bezel was still missing, the WiFi and USB cards were exposed. I tried the BCM94331CD card and adapter I had ordered from AliExpress from my Mac Pro 3,1 for $13.99. Turns out the miniPCIe slot on the iMac has the needed USB connection. (For some reason the adapter in question failed to work on the Mac Pro, preventing the Mac from even booting or chiming. On the iMac it works fine.)

View attachment 925993

At first the Bluetooth function on BCM94331CD card did not show up on the System Profiler. After I removed the original BT card it showed up. I then ran Continuity Activation Tool on El Capitan to check that everything worked. I had trouble securing the BCM94331CD card as the only screw hole on the adapter was on the wrong side. I ended up securing a bag sealer to the single stud, hoping that the bezel would put additional pressure on the card.

I originally ordered the adapter for my Mac Pro 3,1 but having the adapter in place (without the Wifi card) prevented the Mac from booting or even chiming. Evidently the firmware was not able to enumerate PCIe devices.

Also have a look how I secured the adapter in place. I pulled the blue Bluetooth antenna wire away from under the aluminum tape strip so that it would better reach the new connector.

 

[Painkiller]

The 2008 and 2007 seems to have different pcie signaling compared to the early 2009 iMac 9,1 . Without d+, d- and the bt signal for the usb part there will be no Bluetooth show up in the system. So the version 3 adapter card won’t work. I got the OSxwifi card as well with the same problems. Plus it freezes after a short while. So something is different in the early 2009 iMac.

 

[sassemblyman]

I'm wondering if there was ever any advancement on this. I've upgraded a 2007 24", a 2010 27", and a 2011 21.5" all with the same card and adapter. The 2007 did not need D+/D- soldered. The 2010 and 2011 did.

I am experiencing the exact same issue as the OP now that I am trying to upgrade a 2009 3.06ghz 24".

 

[christiann]

I'm wondering if there was ever any advancement on this. I've upgraded a 2007 24", a 2010 27", and a 2011 21.5" all with the same card and adapter. The 2007 did not need D+/D- soldered. The 2010 and 2011 did.

I am experiencing the exact same issue as the OP now that I am trying to upgrade a 2009 3.06ghz 24".

Were you ever able to do it? I’ve been having trouble with mine too (24” 3.06).

 

[sassemblyman]

Were you ever able to do it? I’ve been having trouble with mine too (24” 3.06).

No, I have not resolved this issue yet. I bought clips, which I will solder onto each end of the usb wires, run through the ram door, and thus plug in at the appropriate dime during boot.

Before I do that, I wanted to try a few other wireless modules to see if its the BCM94360CD specifically that is the issue, which is the card I always use. But seems that many have used the BCM94331CD with the same results. Not sure we'll find an elegant solution here.

 

[Ausdauersportler]

No, I have not resolved this issue yet. I bought clips, which I will solder onto each end of the usb wires, run through the ram door, and thus plug in at the appropriate dime during boot.

Before I do that, I wanted to try a few other wireless modules to see if its the BCM94360CD specifically that is the issue, which is the card I always use. But seems that many have used the BCM94331CD with the same results. Not sure we'll find an elegant solution here.

On Early 24" iMac 2009 the BCM94360CS2 enabled WiFi, but connecting the D+/D- lines stopped booting (black screen).

According to @dfranetic cutting the D+/D- lines on the adapter board near the miniPCI slot - i.e. disconnecting the signals from the slot - solves this problem. We can confirm this after multiple tests and implementations in several iMac9,1 - where we originally only upgraded the GPU with a more recent AMD Metal compatible one. So you need to solder the D+/D-lines like in later iMacs, but you need to make sure those signals do not make it to the miniPCI slot itself.

I ruined several adapter boards on the way to success.