Opencore on 2010 MacBook Pro

[Grumpus]

How about the Apple Maps and FileVault? Does it work well under Big Sur or Monterey on you unsupported Mac?

For me, on a mid-2010 15" MacBook Pro, OCLP-installed Monterey 12.5.1 works well for web-browsing (Firefox) and email (built-in Mail app), but other apps are problematic. The Maps app doesn't actually display maps, for example, and the Podcasts app is barely usable due to settings controls being either unresponsive or difficult to operate (you have to use Accessibility key combinations). I suspect that a lot of the other built-in apps will have the same problems, but I haven't tried them, nor have I tried FileVault. It's my understanding that these problems stem from not having a metal-capable GPU, and if you have a 2012 or newer metal-capable machine things should work much better.

OCLP provides more security than older patchers, which in itself can be a problem. SIP is partially turned on, and you can't turn it off. They have a library validation patch that keeps some things from working (iTunes installed with Retroactive, for example). If you install other versions of macOS along with OCLP, SIP will be partially on for them too.

On the plus side, OCLP-installed Monterey and Big Sur are still getting security updates, and the updates can be installed "over the air." But, the updates are huge, pretty much as large as an install app, so you might as well download the latest installer and make a new USB.

The OCLP developers have done a remarkable job, and it seems to be getting better all the time. But you need to temper your expectations.

 

[avz]

For me, on a mid-2010 15" MacBook Pro, OCLP-installed Monterey 12.5.1 works well for web-browsing (Firefox) and email (built-in Mail app), but other apps are problematic. The Maps app doesn't actually display maps, for example, and the Podcasts app is barely usable due to settings controls being either unresponsive or difficult to operate (you have to use Accessibility key combinations). I suspect that a lot of the other built-in apps will have the same problems, but I haven't tried them, nor have I tried FileVault. It's my understanding that these problems stem from not having a metal-capable GPU, and if you have a 2012 or newer metal-capable machine things should work much better.

OCLP provides more security than older patchers, which in itself can be a problem. SIP is partially turned on, and you can't turn it off. They have a library validation patch that keeps some things from working (iTunes installed with Retroactive, for example). If you install other versions of macOS along with OCLP, SIP will be partially on for them too.

On the plus side, OCLP-installed Monterey and Big Sur are still getting security updates, and the updates can be installed "over the air." But, the updates are huge, pretty much as large as an install app, so you might as well download the latest installer and make a new USB.

The OCLP developers have done a remarkable job, and it seems to be getting better all the time. But you need to temper your expectations.

Thanks for the feedback. The reason I asked about FileVault is that usually for it to work you'll need a working Recovery, so if Recovery is not working there is a chance that FileVault will not work but I might be wrong about this.

I dual boot Sierra and Mojave 10.14.3 on my Late 2008 unibody MacBook and I am getting pretty much a native macOS experience running fast even on a 5400rpm rotational HDD(HFS+) with working Recovery, FileVault, Maps and so on. I guess I will stick with my setup for now and try to be careful while browsing the web as I am fairly behind on the security updates(since 2019), although MRT, XProtect have been updated recently.

 

[Grumpus]

OCLP has a working recovery, but you don't access it in the usual way - you have to hit the spacebar when the OCLP boot picker appears. Patience is needed, because you have to look at a black screen for an uncomfortably long time before recovery appears. I say "working" because it does appear, but I haven't tested it beyond looking at menus and launching disk utility.

I tried Monterey on my late-2008 unibody MacBook with disappointing results. It works, very slowly, but a primary consideration for me is if smooth scrolling in Firefox is smooth enough not to drive me mad. Alas, no, and even with Mojave (which I love) the scrolling is too jerky, so that machine is back on a dosdude1-patched High Sierra.

Firefox is my choice on all of my computers and is still supported on High Sierra and newer. I wouldn't use an unpatched Safari on these old clunkers. Even a supported web browser is still taking a chance though, because they're using system libraries which haven't been patched in years. How vulnerable you actually are is anyone's guess, but I don't see a lot of posts on these forums from people complaining that their Macs were compromised, so I cross my fingers and hope for the best.

MRT is at version 1.93 and hasn't been updated since late April 2022. It might be going away. The various (free!) tools offered by Objective-See are worth a look. I use KnockKnock along with frequent Malwarebytes scans. I've been wondering if I should shell out for Malwarebytes premium for real time scanning on these old machines. Amazon in the US has a deal - 18 months for 2 devices for US $40.

 

[avz]

OCLP has a working recovery, but you don't access it in the usual way - you have to hit the spacebar when the OCLP boot picker appears. Patience is needed, because you have to look at a black screen for an uncomfortably long time before recovery appears. I say "working" because it does appear, but I haven't tested it beyond looking at menus and launching disk utility.

I tried Monterey on my late-2008 unibody MacBook with disappointing results. It works, very slowly, but a primary consideration for me is if smooth scrolling in Firefox is smooth enough not to drive me mad. Alas, no, and even with Mojave (which I love) the scrolling is too jerky, so that machine is back on a dosdude1-patched High Sierra.

Firefox is my choice on all of my computers and is still supported on High Sierra and newer. I wouldn't use an unpatched Safari on these old clunkers. Even a supported web browser is still taking a chance though, because they're using system libraries which haven't been patched in years. How vulnerable you actually are is anyone's guess, but I don't see a lot of posts on these forums from people complaining that their Macs were compromised, so I cross my fingers and hope for the best.

MRT is at version 1.93 and hasn't been updated since late April 2022. It might be going away. The various (free!) tools offered by Objective-See are worth a look. I use KnockKnock along with frequent Malwarebytes scans. I've been wondering if I should shell out for Malwarebytes premium for real time scanning on these old machines. Amazon in the US has a deal - 18 months for 2 devices for US $40.

This is what I sort of meant with regards to Recovery. If I understand the mechanics of the process correctly FileVault automatically reboots to Recovery before starting the encryption and of course it is not going to give you a time to enact your manipulation with a spacebar and will likely just throw up an error. Then again I am not sure if this process differs between the HFS+ and APFS systems.
With regards to security my personal experience is that even an outdated Mac has been rock solid for me. I used my Late 2008 MacBook with Mac OS X Leopard for internet banking on outdated Safari and Firefox ESR until May 2018 without any issues. The layout of the page has been obviously broken but the transactions were going through. Of course I would not recommended this to anyone but I would say that as a Mac owner you'll have more than enough time to decide what your plans with regards to security solutions are going to be without the need to unnecessary rush things.

 

[ww2_1943]

I ended up getting this to work. I have 12.6, 10.13, 10.6, and Windows 10 all running on my MBP.

One of the unforeseen issues was SSD compatibility. I bought a new 500GB Samsung 870 EVO that did not work with OpenCore for the most part. I had no issues installing 12.5 from OpenCore on some other SSD drives I had laying around, but the same issues kept replicating themselves with the Samsung drive. I decided to buy a 500GB SanDisk Ultra 3D NAND which ended up working fine.

At some point during my install process, the firmware on my MBP was updated. Once that happened I could actually netboot and install 10.13 that way. After you install 12.5, you will get a disk compatibility error message in 10.13. It doesn’t matter if you install 12.5 or 10.13 first. The error still shows up. It also doesn’t matter if you make a new partition instead of volume in APFS. I found that both are still under the same container even if you “partitioned” as opposed to create a new volume. I am not worried about the error. From what I gather, it may, and I haven’t seen any solid proof of this, cause an issue if you try to access and move files between 12.5 and 10.13.

After 10.13 and 12.5 were installed, I made a partition for 10.6 and installed it. I think it was at this point, maybe sooner, that I could only boot 10.13 from the EFI bootloader that OpenCore installs. This is despite 10.13 being officially supported on this model. Not a big deal.

The real challenge was installing Windows. I followed Mr. Macintosh’s video. According to him and most sources, my 2010 MBP could not install from a USB and had to be done from a DVD. This was true before the firmware update. Since the firmware update, I could only install from a USB and not a DVD. Windows 10 installs does an EFI install and boots from EFI. That is where the issues begin. My issues were not unique as other experienced similar. To make a long story short, you have to install and boot from a simulated BIOS. The only way I was able to do that and bypass EFI boot was by installing Refit bootloader. It is a neat program. I think I can boot to 10.6 and 10.13 from that bootloader. You cannot boot to 12.5 from there. You can select the OpenCore bootloader from there and then boot into 12.5.
If I had to do this all again, I do not think it would be such a difficult process. The hard part was trial and error.

 

[Grumpus]

I ended up getting this to work. I have 12.6, 10.13, 10.6, and Windows 10 all running on my MBP.

Well done, congratulations!

 

[ww2_1943]

Well done, congratulations!

I was determined!

 

[Alex68]

Hi,
I am hesitating to install Opencore and Monterey on my Macbook Pro 13 mid-2010, because of the lack of hardware acceleration(?). You appear to have installed it successfully on the same machine.
May I ask you a feedback on how smooth Monterey runs on it? (I am on Mojave)
Thank you!

 

[Grumpus]

Hi,
I am hesitating to install Opencore and Monterey on my Macbook Pro 13 mid-2010, because of the lack of hardware acceleration(?). You appear to have installed it successfully on the same machine.
May I ask you a feedback on how smooth Monterey runs on it? (I am on Mojave)
Thank you!

I ran Monterey on my 15" 2010 MacBook Pro for a while, but eventually went back to High Sierra because many (most?) of the built-in apps are simply unusable without a Metal-compatible GPU. For example, the Podcasts app launches and runs, but none of the controls work. The Music app likewise runs but is only semi-usable because you have to use accessibility key sequences to navigate and use controls. The Maps app launches but displays nothing. I didn't try Safari, but few of the Apple apps I did try worked without user interface problems.

EDIT: I used OCLP 0.4.11. The latest 0.5.1 release may work better, although since using it for Ventura requires a Metal-compatible card, I would guess that it won't. Can't hurt to try, if you have the time.

 

[ww2_1943]

I ran Monterey on my 15" 2010 MacBook Pro for a while, but eventually went back to High Sierra because many (most?) of the built-in apps are simply unusable without a Metal-compatible GPU. For example, the Podcasts app launches and runs, but none of the controls work. The Music app likewise runs but is only semi-usable because you have to use accessibility key sequences to navigate and use controls. The Maps app launches but displays nothing. I didn't try Safari, but few of the Apple apps I did try worked without user interface problems.

EDIT: I used OCLP 0.4.11. The latest 0.5.1 release may work better, although since using it for Ventura requires a Metal-compatible card, I would guess that it won't. Can't hurt to try, if you have the time.

I second this. 12.5 overall runs slow. Not unbearably, but it is not as smooth as 10.13. Safari works fine as does Chrome.

 

[theMarble]

I second this. 12.5 overall runs slow.

Monterey is just as bad on my 2015 Pro as when I tried it on my 7,1. Big Sur and even Ventura runs way better.