Lenovo ThinkPad T420 with UEFI Only

[tluck]

@Granty - well i suppose so if he is willing!  

 

here is what i did: use the imessage_debug tool to capture the MLB and ROM values on a MBP.

 

its seems there are 2 methods. i am using the RtVariable method.

 

put these into your config.plist in the RtVariables section.

Note:

MLB is string format (17 characters) where as ROM is entered as (encoded) data format.

ROM is a 12 character string before encoding.

 

Or i am hearing you can put into the SMBIOS section as

 

BoardSerialNumber = MLB

and

SmUUID (edit the current one and make last 12 chars = ROM string

which are both string formatted.

 

example for RtVariables... 

 

<key>RtVariables</key>

<dict>

<key>MLB</key>

<string>C1234567890ABCDEF</string>

<key>ROM</key>

<data>

encoded-12-character-string

</data>

</dict>

 

 

caveat - I'm just the messenger here.

[mircsicz]

@tluck

 

- I've installed 10.10

- Disk is GUID (but win8.1 just refused to install to another partition on the same SSD, sayd IT can't install to MBR Disk's!)

- I used the provided *.command script from your zip (and I went back to the installer and ran: 'chmod -R 755' & 'chown -R 0:0' on / S / L / E

 

As I can't boot to the GUI using USB I thought bout rerunning the setup...

 

I did that part2 of the install-procedure as you have it in your Guide.

 

Hope you can help!

 

@mircsicz

- what version of OS X are installing? seems like non of the custom kexts are loaded?

- is your disk GPT or MBR?

- how did you install the kexts exactly? meaning are the permissions right?

 

typically the systems boots up into the GUI after the install and one can use the kext utility to properly install the kexts (included in the zip).

[tluck]

well. if you are able to install 10.10 from the USB, then that same USB should be able to boot the installed OS.

On first boot after the install, Clover should inject the kexts from the USB to get things mostly working.  This means the GUI should show up.

you may want to wipe it and redo, since i have no idea what state your system is in. if your system has Optimus gfx - i suggest you disable that for now at least.

 

as far as windows not installing, then i presume the GUID has an MBR on it. that happens (one way) is if you use Disk utilitly to make a NTFS partition. 

so either use GPT to make the partitions, or make the partition from the (UEFI) windows installer. 

[mircsicz]

I'll try a new reinstallation approach, this time I'll try to install Win8.1 first and let it create the partitions... Curious if MacOS-Setup will be able to create the additional part's for restore if the Win one's are already there!

 

BTW: my T420s has no discrete GFX, it's HD3000 only... And I definitly didn't create a NTFS Part, but a ExFat Part for Filesharing.

 

Will post tomorow how it worked out

 

 

well. if you are able to install 10.10 from the USB, then that same USB should be able to boot the installed OS.

On first boot after the install, Clover should inject the kexts from the USB to get things mostly working.  This means the GUI should show up.

you may want to wipe it and redo, since i have no idea what state your system is in. if your system has Optimus gfx - i suggest you disable that for now at least.

[tluck]

well. adding an exfat by disk Utility - same story!

 

i recall doing this:

partition the disk with 2 partitions - OS X and free space. 

then install OSX.

when you start up the windows installer, use its disk tool to make another partition on the free space.

or use the "gpt" tool to make the windows partition as it will not convert the PMBR to MBR.

 

i recently went through this as one of my dual boot disks has bad blocks. so when i created the new partitions on the replacement, i merrily used OS X Disk Utility and then wondered why i could not boot or  fix my windows partition. well since i boot everything UEFI, it was the MBR on the GPT disk was the problem. 

[mircsicz]

THX, I've just finished the Win8.1, will run clonezilla to not have to reinstall 8.1 and then try the way you suggest after a goodnights sleep...

 

Did a fresh install on a GPT with 2Part's as suggested and it worked out nearly as expected! THX so far...

 

But:

- I ran into the iMessage & Facetime issue (even though it worked before reloading ..E1000e.kext and deleting NetworkInterfaces.plist)

- After reboot and wake I'm asked to look for a Bluetooth Keyboard

- USB3 Port seems dead

 

Hope we can sort that out?

 

P.S.: Didn't try to reinstall Win8.1 or Linux so far

[eilatuno]

THX, I've just finished the Win8.1, will run clonezilla to not have to reinstall 8.1 and then try the way you suggest after a goodnights sleep...

You can try WinClone Pro app to clone "bootcamp" partition, it automatically recreate generic BCD store to boot cloned Win.

I used this app to move windows part on the new SSD.

[mircsicz]

@tluck

 

tried this way to solve my iMessage/FaceTime prob, but it didn't work out. What I did in Detail was:

 

ran 'iMessage_debug' on my 2012 15" MBP scp'd the imessage_debug.txt to my T420s and then I modded your example so that my BoardSerialNumber is the MLB. But I don't get what the SmUUID shall be... Can you please ge'me a hint?

 

And do I need to run this through an encoder or is it simply manual "hand modified" encoding? ;-)

 

BTW: I've found http://www.insanelymac.com/forum/topic/285560-imessagemessages-fix-how-to/ but trying to only set the MLB is not successful

 

BoardSerialNumber = MLB

and

SmUUID (edit the current one and make last 12 chars = ROM string

 

example for RtVariables... 

 

<key>RtVariables</key>

<dict>

<key>MLB</key>

<string>MyMBPsMLB</string>

<key>ROM</key>

<data>

MyMBPsSmUUID

</data>

</dict>

 

 

caveat - I'm just the messenger here.

 

@eilatuno

THX for the hint, I'll keep it in mind... but currently there's nothing to clone from! Had a 7 installed before I tried 10.10, and planned to get 8.1 anyways...

You can try WinClone Pro app to clone "bootcamp" partition, it automatically recreate generic BCD store to boot cloned Win.

I used this app to move windows part on the new SSD.

 

[tluck]

@mircsicz

 

i have not used the SmUUID method myself. thats why i posted an example of config.plist with RtVariables.

i suggest everyone that fiddles config files, download a real xml/plist editor (like PlistEdit Pro for example). Then this xml/plist encryption thing is automatically handled. 

Note; SmUUID != ROM - I understand as such, if SmUUID is injected without ROM var set in RtVariables, then Clover will use the SmUUID to derive ROM.

 

search this thread for ROM - i posted another example in september that should light the way. 

[rolitab]

Hello everyone!  First I want to say thanks to @tluck for the manual, it is really helpful.

 

This is my second hackintosh experience, first was 3 years ago with Compaq\HP Mini 700ER, I installed 10.6.8 on it.

 

Now I own awesome T420 4178-C9U with i7-2640M 2.8GHz, 8GB RAM, Intel HD 3000 Only, 1600x900, 128 SSD, 1TB HDD in Ultrabay and of course Intel Centino N6205 (which doesn't work in OS X).

 

I followed @tluck manual and now I get working Mac OS X 10.10 Yosemite and several question to the community:

 

1) Boot menu duplicate and no Clover inside OS X.

For some reason I get two Mac OS X in Clover Boot Menu. Here is the photo how it looks like. It is the first time I'm using Clover and its obvious that I did something wrong, but I have no clue what exactly. Btw I formatted my SSD during the OS X installation process.

 

 

I tried to do my best to follow all the steps, regardless the fact that I didn't understand some terms. In Part 2 (Post OS Installation...), I installed Clover to HD (step 2). I selected recommended options. I tried to do my best to understand what is ESP, but finally it seemed to work without the understanding. But anyway I wish I understand it also. The hardest step for me was 2b which says:

(REPLACE the ESP (EFI folders) contents with the exact CLOVER folder as your setup on USB from steps above. If not still automatically mounted by the installer pkg, manually mount the ESP of your HD on say /Volumes/ESP. Then copy and replace the folders /Volume/ESP/EFI/CLOVER and BOOT from the USB installer you just built and used.) 

There were nothing automately mounted at that moment, but I did it like I understand it, and now I have EFI and EFI-Backups folders in my OSX volume, where I installed OS X. I had a doubt that I'm doing everything right because there was nothing to replace when I was copying these files. It will be great to make this step more clear, it was a big pain in my northern bridge to undersand it. Finally, I don't see Clover App installed in my Yosemite, it is not present in System Preferences and in Applications folder.

Here is what "diskutil list" says:

/dev/disk0

   #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER

   0:     FDisk_partition_scheme                        *1.0 TB     disk0

   1:               Windows_NTFS 1TB                     1.0 TB     disk0s2

/dev/disk1

   #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER

   0:      GUID_partition_scheme                        *128.0 GB   disk1

   1:                        EFI EFI                     209.7 MB   disk1s1

   2:          Apple_CoreStorage                         127.2 GB   disk1s2

   3:                 Apple_Boot Recovery HD             650.0 MB   disk1s3

/dev/disk2

   #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER

   0:                  Apple_HFS OSX                    *126.8 GB   disk2

                                 Logical Volume on disk1s2

                                 F80532A9-6A91-435B-9FB9-2FC367ABE8A1

                                 Unencrypted

 

As I mentioned above I only have 2 disks - 128 SSD and 1TB HDD. It seems to me that disk1 and disk2 are the same disk, but why it is duplicated?

Regarding everything I said - what I could do wrong? Should I see Clover inside my OS X and why I have two OS X in Clover Boot menu?

 

2) Bluetooth.

It is not working. I did not try to fix it because I have no clue what to do. I installed custom kexts as it mentioned in the manual.

 

3) DisplayVendorID.

I skipped step 2.4 where I had to install DisplayVendorID Folders because I have no clue where I can find it. Any suggestions please?

 

4) VGA & DisplayPort.

Are they working? At the moment I don't have equipment to check it, but it will be nice at least to know do they work or not.

 

5) Replacing WiFi Adaptor.

Is there any real difference between Atheros AR5BHB92 and Broadcom BCM94322HM8L? I found Atheros for 16$ and Broadcom for 7$ on eBay. Tech specs I could find say that they are the same, andof course I prefer to pay less. If there is no difference I would go for cheaper Broadcom chip. My BIOS is 1.46, I see that I have to patch it to remove whitelist. What else should I do to make it work, any special kexts, something else?

 

6) Will WWAN work?

At the moment my machine is WWAN ready (only antennas installed). I had a plan to buy GOBI3000 ERICSSON F5521GW which is whitelisted model as far as I know. Is there a way to make it work in OS X? 

 

7) Virtualization.

What is the reason to turning it off? As far as I know that it is needed to use virtual machines, so turning it off takes this away from me. When I was on Windows Seven VMWare didn't work with this option turned off. So am I right to think that I have two choices:

1) Using OS X natively without being able to use Virtual Machines.

2) Using Virtual Machines without being able to use OS X natively.

 

Thanks everyone for being such a helpful community!

 

[tluck]

@Rolitab 

- read the guide at bottom - some of you questions are addressed there.

 

1) its because of logical volume - run: sudo diskutil corestorage revert disk2

2) turn on bluetooth from your windows and leave on. then rebuild OS X caches.

3) Display overrides - copy to /System/Library/Displays/Overrides - the link is a hint! ;0

4) VGA - yes. read Guide for more details.

5) take your pick - i got an atheros for about $6 - there are Dell and HP versions that are same. and search the forum for links to modded bios

6) no idea?

7) you don't have to turn VT-d off in BIOS anymore - the config.plist will drop that table for OSx. but OS X Virtual servers do not take advantage of VT-d anyway. so no loss here. leave on for windows. 

[tluck]

New bundle posted today here: Clover UEFI on T420 Guide.

 

clover has minor improvements to GUI look and feel

add fixes/tweaks for Restart disk selection.

 

29-October-2014 Update

• Clover r2980 - or download r2976.
• Tweaked config to actually use NVRAM boot drive selection on startup. (Can specify startup disk in System Prefs and restart will use it.)
• Tweaked config (add kernel location for Yosemite) so boot without caches works.

[verleihnix]

 

6) Will WWAN work?

At the moment my machine is WWAN ready (only antennas installed). I had a plan to buy GOBI3000 ERICSSON F5521GW which is whitelisted model as far as I know. Is there a way to make it work in OS X? 

 

Hello rolitab,

 

I have a F5521GW in my T420 and it works pretty well.

It works natively recognized as modem or with modified CellPhoneHelper.kext as WWAN device.

 

This is a pretty cool feature, which MBP owner don't have. 

They have to use a ugly stick instead. 

CellPhoneHelper_T420.kext.zip

[glasgood]

Hello rolitab,

 

I have a F5521GW in my T420 and it works pretty well.

It works natively recognized as modem or with modified CellPhoneHelper.kext as WWAN device.

 

This is a pretty cool feature, which MBP owner don't have. 

They have to use a ugly stick instead. 

I can also confirm that the gobi 3000 works. Yes indeed it's a nice feature that mbp don't have.

[rolitab]

@tluck

 

1 - It worked!! thanks!

2 - What will be the best workaround if I don't have Windows installed on this computer? I formatted hard drive before OS X installation.

3 - I just got the instruction wrong, I thought that I have to find out exact vendor of my machine Thanks!

 

Also I've noticed some strange behavior in graphics, for example background of Apple Developers Login Page is flickering very intensively! I tried to visit same website from my Lenovo C200 All-In-One with Windows 7 and background is just fine, solid color. Also I see same flickering on the Youtube deleted video page. It is very irritative and it seems to me that I'm missing something obvious about that. I hope its software problem, not hardware, and I also hope that there should be some easy fix. Btw refresh rate is set to 60Hz. It is happening in Google Chrome browser, in Safari everything runs smooth, but I got used to Chrome and not ready to switch.

 

@verleihnix, @Glasgreat

Thanks for confirming that it works and even for kext! It is very good option especially when you travelling a lot.

[rajesheber]

I have mavericks and yosemite isntalled and all working except for the bluetooth devices. The magic mouse is jumping around when i loginto the desktop after a reboot. So i have to physically switch off the BT switch on and off to have it working normally again. If i shutdown and start the computer also i dont have this problem and all is fine. I have clover as the bootloader. Any help here would be helpful.

[myeyre]

@rolitab

 

I got same problem with Chrome, background flickering on some website.

 

Can't tell it is a hackintosh problem or a Chrome problem:(

[tluck]

@rajesheber

 

sorry - no advice here. i have an apple magic mouse and don't see this. not sure but do you think it is an issue with the mouse itself?

 

@rolitab, myeyre

 

hmm, I don't see any weird artifacts with Chrome. i wonder if its mixed gfx (NVS + HD3000)? is quartz  (full gfx) working? test by adding a widget in dashboard and see ripples. do they go away if you disable NVS? these are the kexts i have: 

 

$ kextstat |grep Graphic

   77   15 0xffffff7f8159e000 0x47000    0x47000    com.apple.iokit.IOGraphicsFamily (2.4.1) <12 7 5 4 3 1>

   78    0 0xffffff7f81eb5000 0x2e000    0x2e000    com.apple.driver.AppleIntelSNBGraphicsFB (10.0.0) <77 12 11 7 6 5 4 3 1>

   80    0 0xffffff7f81f42000 0x67000    0x67000    com.apple.driver.AppleIntelHD3000Graphics (10.0.0) <77 12 7 5 4 3 1>

  102    2 0xffffff7f822ca000 0x3000     0x3000     com.apple.driver.AppleGraphicsControl (3.7.21) <77 12 11 7 5 4 3 1>

  120    1 0xffffff7f822a9000 0x6000     0x6000     com.apple.AppleGraphicsDeviceControl (3.7.21) <7 6 5 4 3 1>

[sot_22]

Hi tluck, i installed clover 2976 on x220 and did the EmuVariableUefi-64.efi migration and deleted the script rc.shutdown.d which clover creates to save nvram.plist.

 

The x220 boots and works without EmuVariableUefi-64.efi alright but the brightness and audio volume setting does not hold their values after boot (it goes to max) , with nvram.plist they hold their pre-boot values (with volume i'm not so sure). 

 

my nvram -p shows these values (with EmuVariableUefi-64 i have more like platform-uuid) but volume and brightness dont change after boot :

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

psys-mbp:~ psy$ nvram -p

security-mode none

fmm-computer-name psy%e2%80%99s MacBook Pro

SystemAudioVolumeDB %ea

acpi-backlight-level @%02

SystemAudioVolume 4

backlight-level %ff%ff

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

it is holding the values ok on T420? thanks!

[sot_22]

i decided to do a clean nvram test without migration :

 

i set bios to boot uefi only (probably it wasnt working right because of Legacy boot)

delete EmuVariableUefi-64.efi

delete /nvram.plist

delete /etc/rc.shutdown.d

 

reboot and change brightness and reboot again , now the brightness stays to what i set it before reboot without nvram.plist and without EmuVariableUefi, it works!  

 

nvram -p shows these values without platform-uuid :

 

psys-MacBook-Pro:~ psy$ nvram -p

security-mode none

SystemAudioVolumeDB %ed

acpi-backlight-level %00%04

SystemAudioVolume 7

backlight-level %ff%ff

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

 

then i set in config.plist (it was true): 

 

<key>InjectSystemID</key>

<false/>

 

reboot and nvram -p shows platform-uuid

 

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

 

set it again to true and reboot ... now it does not show uuid ... then i set it to false and shows uuid and then again i set it to true and it shows uuid!

 

I think clover is getting crazy...

 

i'll leave it that way for now to see how is going , my nvram -p now is :

 

psys-MacBook-Pro:~ psy$ nvram -p

fmm-computer-name psy%e2%80%99s MacBook Pro

security-mode none

SystemAudioVolumeDB %e7

platform-uuid my number here

SystemAudioVolume 1

backlight-level %ff%ff

acpi-backlight-level %c0%02

 

is that alright for nvram? i need more values? i use clover 2976 now (i'll do some more testing)

 

****

 

i did the test i posted earlier :

 

How to test NVRAM ?

 

Open Terminal in OS X, type:

 

sudo nvram MyVar=TestValue

 

Then type this to show the current NVRAM:

nvram -p

 

You will see:

 

MyVar   TestValue

 

after rebooting, type nvram –p in Terminal and if you can still see the previous result then your NVRAM is working

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

 

and it works! the value is there after reboot , wtf how nvram got permanent write access and working without nvram.plist? i thought it was bios locked before, maybe clover is cheating here and stores the values somewhere else? anyway x220 still surprise me after all this time and clover team does a great job!

[juxtaposse]

(Resolved)

Here are some tips:

1. Speaking of T420, wifi does not work from the bottom slot (which is for mSATA and WWAN). you will need to take your keyboard out and replace your intel chip.
2. If you hacked your bios, you will go with ANY card. In official bios If an unsupported card is detected, the BIOS prints a message on the screen and stops the system.
3. To use the half-size card into a full-size slot, you need a special bracket. on ebay it will cost you a couple of dollars; the keywords are "bracket for wireless mini pci-e pci express half size card to full size". But actaully a DIY bracket can be cut from an old plastic card. I did that, trying "to wind the card up"
4. dell dw1510 goes without any additional efforts in Mac OS: it is detected as a third party adapter. to turn it to a "real apple adapter" - e.g. to be able to use airdrop feature - you will need to rebrand (flash) it.

 

--------Original post--------

probably offtop,

but guys, i need your help. =)

 

Im on T420, and received my Dell 1510 mini PCI-E wifi card from ebay. It is half size, and i had to use the duct tape to fix it in the PCIE slot.

Though i modded the bios (removed whitelist), the card is not recognized in none of OSes.

I cannot rebrand it because i dont see it in the list by running lspci

i'm puzzled - and have plenty of ideas but have no proof.

 

• the card may be dead on arrival
• it doesnot sit well in the slot
• my bios mod did not removed the whitelist

 

Anybody installed 1510 to T420? Please share your experience please!

1. How to check if my bios is modded? 
2. Should the wifi card appear somehow in system report in MacOS? in Windows?
3. How to fix the half-size card into a full-size slot?
4. Is there some solution to check whether the card is alive?

Note: I did not attach antennas but i believe it doent matter for device showing up in system

[tluck]

@sot_22 - well good news. I figured the x220 would behave the same as T420 for native NVRAM - i.e. without EmuVariable.

 

@juxtaposse - you will need to take your keyboard out and replace your intel chip ... then you will have instant happiness! wifi does not work from the bottom slot (which is for mSATA and WWAN).

[juxtaposse]

@tluck haha, that is what ive just tried and it worked! so glad am not dumb)) and now when i'm reading your advice, and you are 100% right) thank you!

now will take a look at wifi in Mac OS. probably will need some rebranding

 

UPD: rebranded as describe at

http://www.osxlatitude.com/rebranding-broadcom-802-11abgn-cards-as-airport-extreme/

now i'm a happy owner of airport extreme.

 

Thank you guys for creating and contributing to t420 clover guide!!

[Manwe150]

I use the Dell DW 1510. Rebranding is a bit excessive, since it is supposed to support Airdrop OOTB.

 

I've also had wifi cards plugged into both the top and bottom port and the computer was fine with running both. (I briefly used a full-size card from an T61 while pioneering the T420 hack, after doing the bios mod and before buying my DW 1510)

 

@tluck thanks probably doesn't get said enough to you for all of your hard work keeping the downloads up-to-date. the upgrade to yosemite was an easy affair running off of the harddrive, just like a real mac

 

i had to call apple to fix my iMessage (clover got confused on some boot and filled in my MLB/ROM parameters wrong since I had some invalid data there from a really old version of Chameleon). I'm now using the native clover-calculated values, since didn't have a real MBP smbios value to fill in. It was a fairly quick phone call to apple to get it corrected – they just wanted to verify who I am from the recovery questions on my apple account.

[rajesheber]

@rajesheber

 

sorry - no advice here. i have an apple magic mouse and don't see this. not sure but do you think it is an issue with the mouse itself?

 

                   I did test the mouse on a real macbook pro and it works without an issue on many reboots also. I doubt the BT/wifi seems to be interfering or values are not cleared on reboot. Anyway we can have clover clear the values on reboot. Since when i turn the BT/WIfi switch on and off things get to work perfectly.