That's not an acceptable solution to me. But according to the 2 comments above, if you don't use FileVault the problem goes away, and I don't. So that is all I need if that indeed solves the problem.
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Mac Mini and Blackmagic eGPU
- Thread starter inmnbob
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PROBLEM SOLVED.
Okay finally the Blackmagic eGPU and Mac Mini are working together correctly without hacks. It will require one change that some of you may not care about with FileVault.
Having FileVault turned on created that extra level of security what prevented the Mac from booting into the eGPU and then the monitor.
I deactivated FileVault and now I can reboot the Mac and I will get the normal startup login screens that are visible with the monitor. The eGPU is connected correctly and active on boot as indicated by the icon in the menu bar. Whew!!!!
Thanks for all the different tips and ideas ultimately it was a combination of all of those ideas that got me to the solution
My only remaining problem is that the monitor I am using (new Samsung Thinderbot) doesn’t go into full sleep mode connected to the eGPU. The MacOS software does go into sleep mode and blanks the screen but the monitor keeps trying to connect to a video source. I would love someone else to figure that one out.
Okay finally the Blackmagic eGPU and Mac Mini are working together correctly without hacks. It will require one change that some of you may not care about with FileVault.
Having FileVault turned on created that extra level of security what prevented the Mac from booting into the eGPU and then the monitor.
I deactivated FileVault and now I can reboot the Mac and I will get the normal startup login screens that are visible with the monitor. The eGPU is connected correctly and active on boot as indicated by the icon in the menu bar. Whew!!!!
Thanks for all the different tips and ideas ultimately it was a combination of all of those ideas that got me to the solution
My only remaining problem is that the monitor I am using (new Samsung Thinderbot) doesn’t go into full sleep mode connected to the eGPU. The MacOS software does go into sleep mode and blanks the screen but the monitor keeps trying to connect to a video source. I would love someone else to figure that one out.
Great! But it sounds as if the Black Magic may not be powering off completely then?
My Sammy TV does this. I turned on the setting for “switch off after x minutes of no signal“ option. But it does require manual turn on.
While it's great that there's a solution, turning off FileVault is a nonstarter for a lot of us. If this is the "solution" I think I still consider it a broken implementation.
Fair enough. Apple used the word currently when indicating that the eGPUs don’t work at boot up with FileVault. Maybe that is something coming. So the other options are typing in passwords blind, getting a second monitor or waiting.
I strongly recommend against disabling FileVault: The MacMini is very portable and therefore easily taken away when someone brakes into your house.
But you can still use it with an eGPU, provided that there is only one user account:
If there is only one user account (disable the guest user!) you can still use FileVault by switching on the Mac, wating a few seconds and then typing blindly the FileVault/account password. This works, because with only one user the password box will be active by default and waiting for input. It does not work with more than one user, because then you have to choose the user by mouse first.
But you can still use it with an eGPU, provided that there is only one user account:
If there is only one user account (disable the guest user!) you can still use FileVault by switching on the Mac, wating a few seconds and then typing blindly the FileVault/account password. This works, because with only one user the password box will be active by default and waiting for input. It does not work with more than one user, because then you have to choose the user by mouse first.
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SAPPHIRE Radeon RX Vega 56 DirectX 12 100420L
Is the one I bought, it's one of the original reference cards. I've been thrilled with it, I also bought it on day one when it came out, so I was thrilled with the original intro price before crypto destroyed them.
I'm having the same problem and I don't have FileVault nor Firmware Password on. My setup is Viewsonic VX3211-4K monitor connected to Sonnet eGFX Breakaway Box 650 eGPU with Sapphire Radeon RX Vega 64 via HDMI and then from eGPU to my Mac Mini connected via USB-C. I do have an external drive that I boot from and not sure if that's causing problem. I'm also waiting for my DisplayPort cable to come in and hopefully I don't get the same problem. What cables are you guys using from your external display to your eGPU?
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What cable do you use to connect your eGPU to your Monitor?SAPPHIRE Radeon RX Vega 56 DirectX 12 100420L
Is the one I bought, it's one of the original reference cards. I've been thrilled with it, I also bought it on day one when it came out, so I was thrilled with the original intro price before crypto destroyed them.
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An interesting point, but I guess this only is relevant if you push the iGPU at the same time as the CPU.
So will likely be workflow-dependent. Possibly dependent on total RAM and 4K/5K (and scaling) screens attached too...
I know that if I stress the iGPU on my 2011 mac mini and 4K iMac, it can cause the CPU speed to throttle down.
So finally got my Displayport cable. Bad news and good news. I plugged the DP cable from my monitor to the eGPU and then I plugged the USB-C cable from my eGPU to the Mac. As usual the monitor is not getting any signal during the process, I cannot see the Apple logo. But the good news is, after the boot up, the monitor will get a signal finally and show me the login screen. I tried to restart and it's the same result. I'm not sure what will happen if it goes to sleep.
So for now I'm happy but if I ever need to do a recovery mode, that's when I'm going to have to do a direct connection from my monitor to the Mac instead. It's a bit hassle but I guess I'll have to live with it hopefully for now. I hope Apple find a fix. If anybody else has a suggestion, I will greatly appreciate it. Thank you.
The card not displaying anything until fully booted is mostly a BIOS/firmware thing. There are cards that can do this (and companies that can flash certain cards to do this) but IMO it's usually easier to just connect your Mac to one of the other inputs on your monitor and switch inputs if you need to see the boot menu/screen. That's what I do.
Since I turned off that "second" display in Windows, after booting the iGPU goes idle and no actual signal is passed over the monitor cable connected to the back of the Mini.
That's awesome. Now anyone can get into your computer. All you have to do to get your grossly overpriced Apple-Taxed machine to work as it should out of the box is give up encryption.
Tim Cook said that security was very important to Apple.
That is true-- I took the BM eGPU back --too many problems with everything. I am hoping that this is fixed in the next release and I think if I read between the lines and the marketing images that the eGPU Pro will work better with the Mac Mini. let's see if I am correct
Just set up a mini today with the bm. Noticed this issue. I won’t turn off FileVault. Any other workarounds since last post?
Get a separate monitor. I looked into a small 5 in so I could login but just decided to turn FileVault off
I suppose I could actually get another 27”. I am kind of waiting for the glasses—hoping to avoid spending more on today’s display tech.