[HOWTO] Boot Macs with Intel Chipset in AHCI Win7 Vista XP Linux

[johnsock]

Hello - amazing work guys.

 

I am expecting a new 17'' MBP i5 within the next week, along with a vertex 2e. On the vertex 2 i will have Snow leopard and bootcamped win7 64bit (the ssd will be replacing the HDD, not the optical drive)

 

Am i correct in assuming that with the 'AHCI enabler' program, i will be modifying the disk0s3(.Bootcamp) volume only?

Also, Is this done immediately after running the bootcamp assistant, and prior to rebooting with the windows7 cd?

 

Thanks for all the work put into this, cheers!

 

Running Windows setup will overwrite the MBR of your disk, so you should not run the AHCI enabler until after installing Windows. It is possible to enable AHCI during the Windows install process in certain cases, but I don't recommend attempting it unless you know what you are doing. The safest way is to install Windows and make sure everything is running properly, then use the AHCI enabler following the instructions in the included help file. If you are very familiar with the different phases of the Windows install process and want to enable AHCI at install time you must run AHCI enabler during the reboot after Windows setup has configured the boot disc, but before it has commenced device enumeration. If you don't know what this means, I recommend waiting until after Windows is installed for an easier setup.

 

The AHCI Enabler will write code to the first sector on the boot hard drive. If your Windows partition is on disk0s3, this would normally be on disk0. OS X does not care what is in the first sector of the disk since it doesn't use the MBR for booting.

 

Post here if you need any additional assistance and let me know if you get it working or have any troubles that I can assist with. I am currently using AHCI enabler on an i5 MBP using Vista with no issues.

 

Thanks for the solution, I've successfully enabled ACHI mode in my old MBP 3.1.

 

However, I met another question when I check my HDD in Intel Rapid Storage. It told me that my HDD was working under SATA I instead of SATA II as both Intel ICH8-M and my Fujitsu HDD supposed to support.

 

Can anyone tell me how to enable the full speed SATA II mode on my MBP 3.1?

 

What does OS X report as the link speed in system profiler for this drive?

[meanhoe]

please excuse any questions that may seem silly to you.

 

i recently purchased my first mac. a lot of the lingo here is very confusing for me. it took me such a long time to even realize how to use the terminal in sudo mode. i had no idea what sudo mode meant.

 

i am just curious to verify a few things before i proceed with the script.

 

will this work on a macbook air 11"?

 

am i suppose to change the disk4 in the script to what my windows partition is on? i already checked and it is disk0s3.

 

can i just copy and paste this into the terminal?

 

thank you for your help. again, i apologize for any questions that may make you "sigh".

[johnsock]

please excuse any questions that may seem silly to you.

 

i recently purchased my first mac. a lot of the lingo here is very confusing for me. it took me such a long time to even realize how to use the terminal in sudo mode. i had no idea what sudo mode meant.

 

i am just curious to verify a few things before i proceed with the script.

 

will this work on a macbook air 11"?

 

am i suppose to change the disk4 in the script to what my windows partition is on? i already checked and it is disk0s3.

 

can i just copy and paste this into the terminal?

 

thank you for your help. again, i apologize for any questions that may make you "sigh".

 

I will not sigh, don't worry. Please use the AHCI Enabler application instead of the script. It has not been tested with the new MacBook Air, but I will help you get it working. Run the AHCI Enabler application (from OS X) and it will tell you if you have a supported chipset and allow you to select the proper disk.

[meanhoe]

I will not sigh, don't worry. Please use the AHCI Enabler application instead of the script. It has not been tested with the new MacBook Air, but I will help you get it working. Run the AHCI Enabler application (from OS X) and it will tell you if you have a supported chipset and allow you to select the proper disk.

 

i started the process last night. i ran into a few problems though.

 

when i enable AHCI in the Windows registry by changing it to 0. nothing happens after reboot. it just sits idly by twiddling it's thumb, looking at me like a little kid waiting for me to do something interesting. wish i could just slap it and it would install the MS AHCI drivers.

 

even though that part didn't work. i opted to go ahead with the next part i get hands dirty in the Terminal. i'm pretty good with computers but man i felt stupid last night when i realized i wasn't suppose to copy and past the whole script into the terminal. it's my first time using that kind of interface. after an hour or so i realized i had to literally type it in.

 

then i ran into the problem of permission denied when trying to access the script. took me about half an hour to learn that i had to use the command "chmod +x filename" to get access.

 

after that it was smooth sailing. it all went by smoothly.

 

i was hoping that this would somehow trigger the AHCI to start working when i booted into Windows 7 but nothing.

 

 

anyways... sorry for the long rant.

 

thank you for your early morning reply. i appreciate it.

[meanhoe]

i ran the AHCI Enabler program in OS X.

 

Disk To Modify: /dev/disk0

Windows Version: Windows 7 (Modified)

Chipset: NVidia MCP89 AHCI

 

do you have any tips for enabling AHCI within Windows even though i've already changed the registry?

[V_l_a_d_i_m_i_r]

I've got a 15" MacBook Pro, mid 2009 (MacBookPro5,3) with the Nvidia MCP79. Just wanted to report success using the following method:

 

1. In Device Manager, find the Standard Dual Channel PCI IDE Controller.

2. Choose 'Update Driver Software', 'browse ...', 'let me pick ...'.

3. Uncheck 'Show compatible hardware'.

4. Choose 'Standard AHCI 1.0 Serial ATA Controller' in the manufacturer list, and the same for model (should be the only model)

 

Finally, in the registry, check that in HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\msahci Start is set to 0.

Note: only do this with a MCP79! Normally, forcing a driver on hardware it doesn't expect is dangerous. However, in this case, it appears to be safe. I've found that Linux can use AHCI on MCP79 in legacy IDE mode, and this is why: http://fixunix.com/kernel/258426-patch-ahc...ler-ahci-c.html

I confirm, this way AHCI does work on MCP79 Macbook Pro without any extra tricks! See attached HDTune results for both modes. The improvement is obvious!

 

IDE:

 

 

AHCI:

 

[johnsock]

i ran the AHCI Enabler program in OS X.

 

Disk To Modify: /dev/disk0

Windows Version: Windows 7 (Modified)

Chipset: NVidia MCP89 AHCI

 

do you have any tips for enabling AHCI within Windows even though i've already changed the registry?

 

I have bad news for you. The method described here for enabling AHCI mode is only compatible with Intel chipsets. Your MacBook Air appears to have a newer nVidia chipset and I have been unable to obtain the necessary information from nVidia to make this work with their chipsets. Sorry.

[meanhoe]

i was afraid of that.

 

thank you for your help. i appreciate it. hopefully, there will be a solution for this in the future. till then, i'll have to just enjoy my MacBook Air without AHCI.

[em606]

Hi CK,

 

Unfortunately I've installed Snow Leopard, updated everything, but I'm still getting the same error, so it looks like I do need to do something else...

 

Thoughts?

 

Thanks,

 

em

 

This fix will not work on your machine because you have the MCP79 chipset, but all is not lost for you. This fix only enables the AHCI mode while in Windows and does not prevent or enable installing any specific version of Windows on your Mac. I was not able to pull up the link you posted, but I can tell you that I have definitely installed Vista 64 on a 'Mid 2009' MacBook Pro in the past. I'm not sure what version of the BootCamp drivers are required for installing Vista 64, but I know they exist. You may have to pick up a Snow Leopard disc if your computer did not ship with one in order to get the drivers (unless they can be downloaded somewhere, back me up on this someone).

At any rate, if you use the BootCamp assistant to install Vista 64 and just follow the instructions it will be very difficult to mess up anything on your computer. You will not be able to have AHCI mode while in Windows, but this is of little significance unless you use a fast SSD.

Let me know if you need more info.

 

CK

[johnsock]

Hi CK,

 

Unfortunately I've installed Snow Leopard, updated everything, but I'm still getting the same error, so it looks like I do need to do something else...

 

Thoughts?

 

Thanks,

 

em

 

What error are you getting? Were you able to install the Widows drivers from the Snow Leopard Disc?

[em606]

What error are you getting? Were you able to install the Widows drivers from the Snow Leopard Disc?

 

Hi Johnsock,

 

My original post is here http://www.insanelymac.com/forum/index.php...p;#entry1569268 - I'm getting error 0x8030001 'Windows is unable to install to the selected location'. I've read that my particular Macbook Pro isn't compatible with 64 bit Vista but been told I should definitely be able to get it on.

 

Thanks for any help!

 

em

[johnsock]

Hi Johnsock,

 

My original post is here http://www.insanelymac.com/forum/index.php...p;#entry1569268 - I'm getting error 0x8030001 'Windows is unable to install to the selected location'. I've read that my particular Macbook Pro isn't compatible with 64 bit Vista but been told I should definitely be able to get it on.

 

Thanks for any help!

 

em

 

Are you getting this error message while running Vista setup after booting with the install disc? After selecting the partition to install onto? Did you partition your disc with Bootcamp Assistant? Did you try reformatting the bootcamp partition (make sure it's the correct one!) from within Windows Vista setup?

[yigosan]

I've got a 15" MacBook Pro, mid 2009 (MacBookPro5,3) with the Nvidia MCP79. Just wanted to report success using the following method:

 

1. In Device Manager, find the Standard Dual Channel PCI IDE Controller.

2. Choose 'Update Driver Software', 'browse ...', 'let me pick ...'.

3. Uncheck 'Show compatible hardware'.

4. Choose 'Standard AHCI 1.0 Serial ATA Controller' in the manufacturer list, and the same for model (should be the only model)

 

Finally, in the registry, check that in HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\msahci Start is set to 0.

 

Note: only do this with a MCP79! Normally, forcing a driver on hardware it doesn't expect is dangerous. However, in this case, it appears to be safe. I've found that Linux can use AHCI on MCP79 in legacy IDE mode, and this is why: http://fixunix.com/kernel/258426-patch-ahc...ler-ahci-c.html

 

As mentioned above do not try this procedure with MCP89, I got a blue screen after reboot.

 

I was able to fix the windows partition back by Windows Recovery rolling back to a previous state.

 

If anyone get AHCI on MCP89 please enlighten us.

[em606]

Are you getting this error message while running Vista setup after booting with the install disc? After selecting the partition to install onto? Did you partition your disc with Bootcamp Assistant? Did you try reformatting the bootcamp partition (make sure it's the correct one!) from within Windows Vista setup?

 

Hi Johnsock,

 

Yes, the partition is correctly formatted and the disc was partitioned with Bootcamp, and I've tried it both ways - formatting prior to Vista install and formatting during - nothing works!

 

I got the 32bit version of Vista on here no problems - I have read that the 64 bit version is unsupported on this particular model, but also that people have got round it - which was what led to this thread!

[Bitbron]

Hi everyone,

 

I'm thinking about buying a new MBP 15 i5/i7, but being a Windows Network Admin, I do want to run Windows 7. Because I like to do research on (possible) issues on products I'm interested in, I ended up here.

 

I have one question, as far I've read through the posts it seems I have to run a script from within OSX in order to enable AHCI for Windows 7. Is it also possible to do this step without using OSX? I would like to have only Windows 7 installed and no other OS.

 

Thank you for your answer(s).

[slow4runner]

Intel released new drivers:

 

Download Intel Rapid Storage 10.1

 

 

I tried this a couple of weeks ago on my brand spanking new MacBook Pro i7. But I was experiencing issues (freezes / BSOD) after waking up from sleep (I think someone else on here was having the same problem). I am going to try the AHCI hack again with these drivers. Hopefully I'll have better luck this time around.

 

I will report back later....

 

------------------

 

EDIT:

...... no joy. Still having issues after waking up from sleep.

[novarconda]

hello guys,

 

at first: amazing work you all did here. past 2 days i got my 12-core mac pro working in ahci with the help of the enabler on an ocz-ssd. so far i was not able to switch the driver of the standard microsoft-ahci to intel matrix storage driver. i got ntoskrnl.exe-bluescreens in 124-error mode at systemstart, wich points to hardware-failure. stresstesting the hardware under standard microsoft ahci-mode shows no problems. yet i have no idea but the iastor.sys from intel causes the error. maybe there is other ways to rewrite the mbr on the windows7 hd. maybe it is the 64-bit-windows i use. two things left to say: machine does not awake from sleep (sometimes) and the windows7-startscreen stays 2 minutes and then it all goes well. its fine so far and i will stay tuned reading your comments and keep working the flaws to a minimum.

 

best regards from germany

[gtelliott]

With my apologies, I am a bit unfamiliar with posting here, so I have previously sent this as a message to Johnsock, but post here in case any information is useful to others. My son has an early 2008 Mac Pro, updated with Snow Leopard and all updates thereto. We have installed Windows 7 64 bit on a 400 plus GB partition on a 1 TB hard drive in Bay 2, and Windows 7 has been fully updated. We also replaced one of the original optical drives with a multi-blu, connected via one of the ODD SATA ports on the motherboard. In order to recognize and use in Windows I have edited the registry (Start to 0), and have updated the driver for the SATA device found in IDE/ATA/ATAPI in the device manager to the Standard AHCI 1 driver. I then shut down computer, booted in OSX, and am prepared to do the MBR mods tonight (ran out of time). First question: There was also an "Ultra ATA" device above the SATA device in the IDE/ATA folder of device manager. . . should I have changed that driver to AHCI 1, as well? Second, is the AHCI Enabler (beta) program the latest version of that application? I have scoured the hundreds of entries since that Sept 2010 post to see, but did not see any. Thank you for any help and I am very thankful for the hardwork of those smarter than on this issue.

[johnsock]

hello guys,

 

at first: amazing work you all did here. past 2 days i got my 12-core mac pro working in ahci with the help of the enabler on an ocz-ssd. so far i was not able to switch the driver of the standard microsoft-ahci to intel matrix storage driver. i got ntoskrnl.exe-bluescreens in 124-error mode at systemstart, wich points to hardware-failure. stresstesting the hardware under standard microsoft ahci-mode shows no problems. yet i have no idea but the iastor.sys from intel causes the error. maybe there is other ways to rewrite the mbr on the windows7 hd. maybe it is the 64-bit-windows i use. two things left to say: machine does not awake from sleep (sometimes) and the windows7-startscreen stays 2 minutes and then it all goes well. its fine so far and i will stay tuned reading your comments and keep working the flaws to a minimum.

 

best regards from germany

 

Guten Tag,

 

I have heard of some others having issues with the latest Intel drivers running on Apple hardware, but I have been unable to replicate them on the hardware I have available. I'm not sure if it is something unique to the latest Mac Pro models (AHCI Enabler is untested on this model) or if the problem lies with the driver. The MBR modification is very basic and just reconfigures the chipset before booting Windows. It is possible that additional configuration is needed for the latest Mac Pro to work properly with the Rapid Storage drivers. If I ever get my hands on one, I'll definitely do some testing. I recommend trying an earlier version of the Intel drivers to see if that makes any difference. If I think of anything else I'll post it here.

[novarconda]

Guten Tag,

 

I have heard of some others having issues with the latest Intel drivers running on Apple hardware, but I have been unable to replicate them on the hardware I have available. I'm not sure if it is something unique to the latest Mac Pro models (AHCI Enabler is untested on this model) or if the problem lies with the driver. The MBR modification is very basic and just reconfigures the chipset before booting Windows. It is possible that additional configuration is needed for the latest Mac Pro to work properly with the Rapid Storage drivers. If I ever get my hands on one, I'll definitely do some testing. I recommend trying an earlier version of the Intel drivers to see if that makes any difference. If I think of anything else I'll post it here.

 

guten abend,

 

i did just as you told and the bluescreens are gone (i cross fingers and knock on wood). the older drivers from intel (9.6) seem to run the machine like a bat out of hell. i will do some more testing later and give you the results.

 

"good night and good luck"

[novarconda]

guten morgen,

 

i just did a test with ssd-benchmark. seems to run fine so far.

 

thanks for the help.

 

 

[joker42]

hi everyone,

 

i am trying to get ahci to work on my macbook pro 6,2, but i am not running windows, but ubuntu 10.10.

 

the beta ahci enabler doesnt work at all ( cause i dont have a NTFS partition).

 

the 1.1 script just kills grub .... no problem, the backup.mbr is working fine!

 

so what should i do? i saw there where stage1 and stage2 files for grub if i go "the old way" but they dont work either ... i think they are not up to date to use em on macbook pro 6,2.

 

so i guess my question is ... could someone provide updated versions of these files?

 

or did i miss something completly?

 

greetings

 

EDIT:

 

ok ... i figured it out!

 

you can use grub2 to directly write to the configuration space of pci devices.

 

following this blogpost: http://darkfader.blogspot.com/2010/04/wind...-ahci-mode.html

 

- install grub2

- reboot and chainload into grub2

- press c to get the console

- use lspci to find the pci device id (set pager=1 helps a lot) of the ide controller

- setpci -d 8086:3b28 90.b=60 (8086:3b28 is the device id)

- lspci to check again ... wow its a sata controller now

- set root = (hd0,gpt3)

- linux /vmlinuz root=/dev/sda3

- initrd /initrd.img

- boot

 

check dmesg if ahci is loaded

 

hdparm -t /dev/sda went from 150mb/s to 210 mb/s

 

ok once you checked everthing is working and you like ahci simple put a file in /etc/grub.d called 01_mbp_ahci (name doesent matter ... 01 is important) containing:

 

#!/bin/sh -e
echo "setpci -d 8086:3b28 90.b=60"

 

run "sudo update-grub2"

 

so that was Linux.. I am quite confident I can install Windows the same way.

Boot through Grub2 (set the pci configuraten space) then boot Windows from Grub.

 

NOTE:

this has been done on a MacBookPro 6,2 having Ubuntu 10.10 on /dev/sda3

IF YOUR HARDWARE OR YOUR DISK SETUP DIFFERS THIS WILL NOT WORK NOT WORK!

 

Good Luck!

[alexcls]

MBP 17" i5 Win7 x64

http://www.zimagez.com/full/bfcd683f0191ee...ca5cb08097f.php

After reboot on win7 x64 i get this error:

a disk read error occurred

press crtl+alt+del to restart.

[ludacrisvp]

That most likely means that you didn't mod your mbr properly or you didn't install the drivers in windows. Did you modify the registry so that it would attempt to use the ms provided ahci drivers?

[alexcls]

"HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\Msahci"

"HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\IastorV"

start value = 0