macOS 10.15 Catalina on Unsupported Macs

[joevt]

Can you see the name of your startup partition in the boot selector that you get while booting while holding the option key or you get a “EFI Boot” option instead?

Because according to dosdude:
So either you did something that he didn’t anticipate or document or you remember wrong.

APFS Rom Patch has been a thing for a long time for the MacPro3,1.
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/apfs-rom-patcher.2211396/
I use the Driver#### method instead of modifying the rom.
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/mac-pro-3-1-nvme-support-upgrade-guide-questions.2194878/
In either case, the apfs volumes will appear in the Apple Startup Manager (hold option key at boot). I can boot any macOS (10.4.11 Tiger to 10.15.7 Catalina) on my MacPro3,1 using the Apple Startup Manager (only Mojave and Catalina are on APFS). Big Sur and Moterey require booting through OCLP.
EFI Boot will always exist if there's a bootx64.efi in an EFI partition (OpenCore, OCLP, Ubuntu, Windows UEFI, etc.)

I think that dosdude1's comment refers only to using Mojave or Catalina on Macs that support up to High Sierra - those Macs get a APFS firmware update by installing High Sierra. Older Macs must use the APFS Rom Patch method, or the Driver#### method, or the APFS patch method from dosdude's Mojave or Catalina Installer patchers (which puts files in the EFI partition - a bootx64.efi which is actually a EFI Shell which launches a startup.nsh script that loads a apfs.efi driver) or OpenCore method. The first two methods happen before Apple Startup Manager. The last two methods happen afterward.
http://dosdude1.com/highsierra/
http://dosdude1.com/mojave/
http://dosdude1.com/catalina/

 

[lcubed]

Can you see the name of your startup partition in the boot selector that you get while booting while holding the option key or you get a “EFI Boot” option instead?

Because according to dosdude: View attachment 1940059
So either you did something that he didn’t anticipate or document or you remember wrong.

i don’t think you are parsing what dosdude is trying to convey properly.

 

[jackoverfull]

You didn’t answer my question.

As per your original comment:

did you update the firmware for APFS? there's a link to it on dosdudes catalina page under important information

And THIS firmware update is the one made by apple and, as far as I know, only works on machines that officially support high Sierra.

The several patches that allow APFS booting have zero to do with the firmware and are not linked on dosdude’s page, but one is automatically installed with the postinstall tools on the modified installer. With this one you get a “EFI Boot” icon and a verbose booting script before the OS loads and it’s the only way to boot APFS on machines that don’t support it starting from dosdude’s page. Other ways exists, but, afaik, none involves apple’s firmware updates.

 

[lcubed]

You didn’t answer my question.

As per your original comment:

And THIS firmware update is the one made by apple and, as far as I know, only works on machines that officially support high Sierra.

The several patches that allow APFS booting have zero to do with the firmware and are not linked on dosdude’s page, but one is automatically installed with the postinstall tools on the modified installer. With this one you get a “EFI Boot” icon and a verbose booting script before the OS loads and it’s the only way to boot APFS on machines that don’t support it starting from dosdude’s page. Other ways exists, but, afaik, none involves apple’s firmware updates.

yes, i installed the APFS firmware from dosdude1's link.

joevtt's post has more than enough details to cover your lack of comprehension

macOS 10.15 Catalina on Unsupported Macs

APFS Rom Patch has been a thing for a long time for the MacPro3,1. https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/apfs-rom-patcher.2211396/ I use the Driver#### method instead of modifying the rom. https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/mac-pro-3-1-nvme-support-upgrade-guide-questions.2194878/ In either...

forums.macrumors.com

 

[jackoverfull]

Sure you did.

Anyway, whatever odd thing you may say, it worked eventually, it just was super slow installing for some reason (note that it had nothing to do with booting in APFS, as by the black screen the installed base system is already booted).

 

[richie8]

Hey all. I successfully installed dosdude Catalina to my iMac 8,1 but the VDA decoder is failed. I tried the whatevergreen and lilu kexts with no luck. Anyone has an idea to my problem?
Spec: 2,4GHz C2D, 4GB RAM, Radeon 2400 XT 128MB VGA. (OS X seems the VGA and the VRAM).

Thanks for the helping, and sorry for my bad English.

 

[Ausdauersportler]

Hey all. I successfully installed dosdude Catalina to my iMac 8,1 but the VDA decoder is failed. I tried the whatevergreen and lilu kexts with no luck. Anyone has an idea to my problem?
Spec: 2,4GHz C2D, 4GB RAM, Radeon 2400 XT 128MB VGA. (OS X seems the VGA and the VRAM).

Thanks for the helping, and sorry for my bad English.

Will not work on Catalina, you need either a 2011+ CPU with iGPU or a more recent AMD GPU (2012+).

 

[richie8]

Will not work on Catalina, you need either a 2011+ CPU with iGPU or a more recent AMD GPU (2012+).

Thanks for the reply, sorry to hear that Same with Mojave? I guess...

 

[K two]

🪓Each macOS is installed on their own separate partition on a Mini3,1 with an UNPATCHED bootROM. The Mojave and Catalina installs are originally via @dosdude1 patchers installing his APFS boot patch PRIOR to the use of OCLP for Big Sur and Monterey. 🚧 And as stated clearly in the OCLP docs, the patching of the bootROM is not required using OCLP - https://github.com/dortania/OpenCore-Legacy-Patcher#readme >see fifth bullet down. And in-fact, the original dosdude1 APFS boot patches are completely bypassed during start-up, yet @dosdude1 Mojave and Catalina installs boot and run as expected. All four (4) macOS installs run on the same unpatched bootROM machine w/o issues.

 

[K two]

SU 2022-001b via CatalinaOTAswufix, OC and @dosdude1 Catalina Patcher v.1.4.4 updated in <25 mins. Runs as expected.

 

[zfrogman]

SU 2022-001b via CatalinaOTAswufix, OC and @dosdude1 Catalina Patcher v.1.4.4 updated in <25 mins. Runs as expected.

View attachment 1942910

Same here on MBP 8,2 (2011) all good, smooth... thanks Jackluke's OTswufix and Dosdude1 1.44 patcher!

 

[Finbarr Cnaipe]

Same here on MBP 8,2 (2011) all good, smooth... thanks Jackluke's OTswufix and Dosdude1 1.44 patcher!

Does anybody know of any "killer" reason to update w/beta rather than wait for the GA release?

 

[K two]

Does anybody know of any "killer" reason to update w/beta rather than wait for the GA release?

No "killer" reason just natural curiousity. Also, fools rush in and get the best seats. Betas can be too much for some to handle. 🧐

 

[Finbarr Cnaipe]

Does anybody know of any "killer" reason to update w/beta rather than wait for the GA release?

I guess I am out of the loop and have not heard the news about what SU 2022-001b (beta) will fix/enhance for an Unsupported MBP 8,2 running Catalina that is necessary for "needing" to upgrade to the Apple beta release, as opposed to waiting for the GA version (if in fact we know one will be released eventually... ). (Or even for an actual supported Mac either)? I appreciate very much all the work folks are doing here, so thanks guys!

 

[Finbarr Cnaipe]

No "killer" reason just natural curiousity. Also, fools rush in and get the best seats. Betas can be too much for some to handle. 🧐

Thank you Sir! That is what I was thinking, and I appreciate the confirmation! In my case, it is just a matter of priorities for screwing around with my MBP 8,2. I'm not really using the machine for anything other testing out what it can do w/being dMux(ed) and unsupported macOS initiatives. So far, I've concluded that current state for my machine and unsupported macOS is:

1.) Mojave and Catalina really close, and just preference. Right now Catalina wins due to new features...but if I find a use that needs 32bit apps, I would go back to Mojave.
2.) Big Sur - Too buggy due to Video challenges from lack of Metal Support
3.) Monterey - Same as Big Sur.

I'm keeping an eye out on OC Big Sur & Monterey and may revisit in the future if any additional progress is made supporting HD3000 in MBP 8,2....but I'm not holding my breath. I just don't see the same issues with Catalina (or Mojave) with dosdude1's patcher solutions.

 

[Squatting Hen]

Thank you Sir! That is what I was thinking, and I appreciate the confirmation! In my case, it is just a matter of priorities for screwing around with my MBP 8,2. I'm not really using the machine for anything other testing out what it can do w/being dMux(ed) and unsupported macOS initiatives. So far, I've concluded that current state for my machine and unsupported macOS is:

1.) Mojave and Catalina really close, and just preference. Right now Catalina wins due to new features...but if I find a use that needs 32bit apps, I would go back to Mojave.
2.) Big Sur - Too buggy due to Video challenges from lack of Metal Support
3.) Monterey - Same as Big Sur.

I'm keeping an eye out on OC Big Sur & Monterey and may revisit in the future if any additional progress is made supporting HD3000 in MBP 8,2....but I'm not holding my breath. I just don't see the same issues with Catalina (or Mojave) with dosdude1's patcher solutions.

Just picked up a 27” i5 16gb iMac from a neighbor for free. According to this, looks like I can install Catalina. Might give it a shot.
With it installed will I still get security updates?

 

[Finbarr Cnaipe]

Just picked up a 27” i5 16gb iMac from a neighbor for free. According to this, looks like I can install Catalina. Might give it a shot.
With it installed will I still get security updates?

For my MBP 8,2, I used dosdude1 Catalina for Unsupported Macs patcher USB boot disk install.

Then, CatalinaOTAswufix to check for updates.

Do a search on CatalinaOTAswufix for guidance recommendations on how to use it.... But basically, it will help you find updates (beta or non-beta) and then you can apply them. After applying updates, you can then run the dosdude1 post-install patcher (from the USB boot disk if necessary) to re-apply any necessary patches that may be needed after the update.

I also use SilentKnight to confirm updates:

 

[DouglasCarroll]

Sorry for the stupid question, but doe the "SilentKnight" program let you install updates to gatekeeper that would otherwise not get installed? I'm confused how and what exactly SilentKnight does.

Thanks!

 

[makra]

Sorry for the stupid question, but doe the "SilentKnight" program let you install updates to gatekeeper that would otherwise not get installed? I'm confused how and what exactly SilentKnight does.

Thanks!

Especially about Gatekeeper the makers of SilentKnight write quite a bit on their webpage:

Why is my Mac’s Gatekeeper data so out of date?

When you check the version of Gatekeeper data on a new Mac, why should it show one which was pushed by Apple nearly 5 years ago for El Capitan?

eclecticlight.co

 

[K two]

Sorry for the stupid question, but doe the "SilentKnight" program let you install updates to gatekeeper that would otherwise not get installed? I'm confused how and what exactly SilentKnight does.

Thanks!

Some Macs may show low version numbers for Gatekeeper, (e.g: 94, 8,0 or 181, 8,0) This is nothing to worry about, as Gatekeeper has been depreciated. X-Protect and MRT s/b kept up-to-date, however.

 

[djsaeng]

Some Macs may show low version numbers for Gatekeeper, (e.g: 94, 8,0 or 181, 8,0) This is nothing to worry about, as Gatekeeper has been depreciated. X-Protect and MRT s/b kept up-to-date, however.

Hi, thanks for this hint.
I've run it, although the MRT is messaged as "version not known", it informs on new version available 1.85 - but here it lists that same version 1.85. Maybe, I bricked the update installer ? It is a imac7,1 with Catalina, but all seems to work great. Any ideas ?

 

[zfrogman]

RE: WiFi erratic behavior; will not turn back on.

Hello all, I have been experiencing Wifi connection issues. I have tried to "delete" wifi and reinstall as per explanations found on Net; sometimes I get a connection that lasts about 15' and turns off without being able to turn back on. My Lan connection works fine as well as using my iPhone 12 mini and/or portable modem (Huawei) via USB/Bluetooth only connection. I know the Wifi/Bluetooth is working as it appears in system report. Actually swapped out a defective original wifi card with a compatible Wifi n and BT 4.0. which worked after install but began disconnecting shortly after. I have even tried PRAM and SMC reset to no avail. this has occurred with Catalina 10.15.7 official release as well as latest security/beta updates. Anyone have any ideas? Thanks.

 

[K two]

Hi, thanks for this hint.
I've run it, although the MRT is messaged as "version not known", it informs on new version available 1.85 - but here it lists that same version 1.85. Maybe, I bricked the update installer ? It is a imac7,1 with Catalina, but all seems to work great. Any ideas ?

View attachment 1946135

Often it takes more than one try to update MRT.

 

[K two]

RE: WiFi erratic behavior; will not turn back on.

Hello all, I have been experiencing Wifi connection issues. I have tried to "delete" wifi and reinstall as per explanations found on Net; sometimes I get a connection that lasts about 15' and turns off without being able to turn back on. My Lan connection works fine as well as using my iPhone 12 mini and/or portable modem (Huawei) via USB/Bluetooth only connection. I know the Wifi/Bluetooth is working as it appears in system report. Actually swapped out a defective original wifi card with a compatible Wifi n and BT 4.0. which worked after install but began disconnecting shortly after. I have even tried PRAM and SMC reset to no avail. this has occurred with Catalina 10.15.7 official release as well as latest security/beta updates. Anyone have any ideas? Thanks.
View attachment 1946160

You just discovered why the replacement card, used was sold.

 

[zfrogman]

You just discovered why the replacement card, used was sold.

The same happened with the original card before failing. Many have been using thé updated card without a problem and is also sold by ifixit, I seriously doubt they would be staking their reputation on a ‘bogus” card IMHO. Many have also reported the disconnect issue on Catalina , Iwas hoping someone had encountered the problem and found a solution for the wifi as the BT works fine.