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Lenovo ThinkPad T420 with UEFI Only

K0gen

By K0gen,
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goodguess
goodguess
Posted
Posted

From my experience it is not possible to upgrade a T420 from Sierra to Catalina via Apple System Update.

I think Whalid should do, what most of us did.

Download DosDude1 Patcher for Mojave or Catalina.

Prepare a boot stick with the patcher (a macOS download may be done via the patcher).

Add the EFI folder from tlucks repo to the EFI partition of the boot stick.

Boot from the stick and install over the existing Sierra - or better to a spare SSD.

Install the patches for MBP 8,1 and add the EFI folder to the EFI partition of your SSD.

 

If you still want to use older 32bit apps like MS-Office, stick with Mojave.

Otherwise Catalina will be as good, even with the additional security features.

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Whalid
Whalid
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Posted

@goodguess @Sicole1811 thanks for the insight people. I decided to try Catalina. 

 

Everything went smoothly. There is just one thing that is weird: the external monitor connected trough display port works but the internal LCD panel does not. I get a ugly white screen.  

I tried to change the config.plist to the 1366x768. No dice.

Anyone have a clue on this issue?

 

BTW Catalina runs slow compared to my beloved Sierra. But expected right? 

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goodguess
goodguess
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@Whalid Catalina should not run remarkably slow, compared to Sierra.

I do have both instances on small SSDs and honestly can´t see a performance loss, if GPU support is working.

Be sure to install all patches from the Catalina Patcher boot stick for the MBP 8,1.

 

There are a few different LCD panels with the T420 - which one do you own?

I´m usually checking that first with a Knoppix Live DVD and hwinfo from Terminal.

Best try a Dual Link config.plist with Clover when in doubt.

The default config tluck has in his repo, is for a 1600x900 LG display, other panels may need adjustments.

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davidian
davidian
Posted
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19 hours ago, Whalid said:

@goodguess @Sicole1811 thanks for the insight people. I decided to try Catalina. 

 

Everything went smoothly. There is just one thing that is weird: the external monitor connected trough display port works but the internal LCD panel does not. I get a ugly white screen.  

I tried to change the config.plist to the 1366x768. No dice.

Anyone have a clue on this issue?

 

BTW Catalina runs slow compared to my beloved Sierra. But expected right? 

 

I had the white screen problem. For me it was solved by using the config.EDID-2e2.plist

 

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heavyhdx
heavyhdx
Posted
Posted
On 8/4/2020 at 7:05 PM, heavyhdx said:

Which drivers do I need to add to my EFI partition to get FileVault on APFS to work?

 

I'm using the latest zip and OpenCore and I'm trying to install Catalina on a T520. Without FileVault everything works fine.

 

Found the solution, you just need to make a few changes to config.plist

 

https://dortania.github.io/OpenCore-Post-Install/universal/security.html#filevault

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Whalid
Whalid
Posted
Posted
11 hours ago, goodguess said:

@Whalid

There are a few different LCD panels with the T420 - which one do you own?

Best try a Dual Link config.plist with Clover when in doubt.

 

I used DarwinDump and apparently the LCD panel is a 'AUO Model 313c' - VendorId: 6af - DeviceId: 313c

Will try the Dual Link. Thanks mate.

 

10 hours ago, davidian said:

 

I had the white screen problem. For me it was solved by using the config.EDID-2e2.plist

 

Hum... Thanks. Thats a start. I will try to mod this config since is a 1600x900

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theguy316
theguy316
Posted
Posted (edited)

i have catalina installed on my Lenovo Thinkpad T420 with a 1366x768  internal display..using the EFI from tluck... everything boots fine but i can only use the display port to see anything... the brightness works fine and am able to raise and lower the brightness on the internal display... ive tried the other included plist configurations as well as the one labeled 1366x768 but still have no internal display working.. some plists only lose the built in display resolution options under displays in system preferences.. i have manually tried to change the resolution in system preferences as well as the string 1600x900 in the plist configurations but nothing fixes it so far as well as changed the dual link.. only the displayport works and not the internal display stays blank ... any help or advice would be appreciated

 

p.s. anybody able to find a rtl8188su catalina kext for a usb wireless adapter.. thanks in advance

Edited by theguy316
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goodguess
goodguess
Posted
Posted (edited)
14 hours ago, theguy316 said:

i have catalina installed on my Lenovo Thinkpad T420 with a 1366x768…

p.s. anybody able to find a rtl8188su catalina kext for a usb wireless adapter.. thanks in advance

 

I think that you have to find out the exact device IDs for your internal display and paste those and the dual link setting into your config.plist.

Finding the specs may be done with a Knoppix Live DVD and hwinfo from Terminal or other utilities.

 

For Realtek based USB WLAN sticks, you may be out of luck.

There were drivers for older chipsets and Snow Leopard: https://macintoshgarden.org/apps/mvix-usb-20-wifi-dongle-driver

In theory, OSX kernel extensions may still work with Catalina. To have the kext installed, you have to mount the System partition read/write.

Such a procedure is working for me with my PCIe card reader.

In the long run, I would recommend buying a Dell DW1510 from a Chinese seller.

The mPCIe cards are fully compatible, if you are using a NWL (no white list) BIOS.

The WLAN cards are about USD 4,- atm.

 

Edited by goodguess
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theguy316
theguy316
Posted
Posted
18 hours ago, goodguess said:

 

I think that you have to find out the exact device IDs for your internal display and paste those and the dual link setting into your config.plist.

Finding the specs may be done with a Knoppix Live DVD and hwinfo from Terminal or other utilities.

 

For Realtek based USB WLAN sticks, you may be out of luck.

There were drivers for older chipsets and Snow Leopard: https://macintoshgarden.org/apps/mvix-usb-20-wifi-dongle-driver

In theory, OSX kernel extensions may still work with Catalina. To have the kext installed, you have to mount the System partition read/write.

Such a procedure is working for me with my PCIe card reader.

In the long run, I would recommend buying a Dell DW1510 from a Chinese seller.

The mPCIe cards are fully compatible, if you are using a NWL (no white list) BIOS.

The WLAN cards are about USD 4,- atm.

 

thanks for the reply i wasnt able to find any info about my display other than its a LP140WH2 (TL)(M2), LGD40A0 or LEN40A0.. specs here https://www.panelook.com/LP140WH2-TLM2_LG Display_14.0_LCM_overview_12380.html ....i wasnt able to run the live linux so i am unable to find the device or vendor for this display but i was able to find a usb wifi adapter that is compatible... hoping someone who has this display can help fill in some blanks for me.

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Whalid
Whalid
Posted
Posted
On 8/7/2020 at 6:49 AM, goodguess said:

@Whalid AUO does need the DUAL Link setting on my side.

I did post that config.plist in this thread. Its tluck´s work, just to mention that. :)

 

Here is the config.plist from March 13, should work for you too, hopefully.

config.plist.zip

Thanks mate. Your file was not the answer but it pointed me to the right direction.

I managed to get it working messing with your file and the original config.1366x768 and voilá.

Here is my config.plist if anyone need something that work for the display in case.

 

Cheers 

 

config.plist.zip

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theguy316
theguy316
Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, Whalid said:

Thanks mate. Your file was not the answer but it pointed me to the right direction.

I managed to get it working messing with your file and the original config.1366x768 and voilá.

Here is my config.plist if anyone need something that work for the display in case.

 

Cheers 

 

config.plist.zip

worked like a charm thanks a million.. now gonna reinstall from scratch and remove all the unnecessary stuff i added installing kexts, fixes n whatnot.. after the install is it best to keep it vanilla or install the post install patches?

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tluck
tluck
Posted
Posted (edited)

guys you need 2 things for Catalina/Mojave

1) the Clover or OC bundle for the EFI

2) make/use the Dosdude1 installer and let it automatically patch post-install

and you need to know your system specs!

 

is your display 1368x768 or 1600x900?

i diffed the config file recently posted and the one in my repo and i see the differences are all in the graphics section showing

- disable nvidia

- no EDID inject

- inject ATI and Inject Nvidia? why?

- why the extra boot arg -igfxnohdmi - (which is about sound patching)? 

 

generally for 1600x900

- one needs to inject an alternate EDID - otherwise white screen, glitches and freezup are common problems.

- DualLink=1 required 1600x900 not 1366x768

  

$ diff -bw /opt/Extra/Systems/T420/Lenovo-T420-Clover/EFI/CLOVER/config.plist /Users/tluck/Downloads/config.plist
149c149
< <string>slide=0 -no_compat_check -lilubetaall -alcbeta -wegdbg amfi_get_out_of_my_way=0x1</string>
---
> <string>slide=0 -no_compat_check -lilubetaall -alcbeta -wegdbg amfi_get_out_of_my_way=0x1 nv_disable=1 -igfxnohdmi</string>
269,271c269,271
< <key>DualLink</key>
< <integer>1</integer>
< <key>EDID</key>
---
> <key>#DualLink</key>
> <integer>0</integer>
> <key>#EDID</key>
273,281d272
< <key>Comment</key>
< <string>LCD 1600x900</string>
< <key>Custom</key>
< <data>
< AP///////wAw5GYDAAAAAAAVAQSQHxF4AvxFlVhVkiggUFQAAAAB
< AQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBAQEBWC9A+GGEPDCgYDUANa4QAAAakB9A+GGE
< PDCgYDUANa4QAAAaAAAA/gAzTlBSNoAxNDBXRDIKAAAAAAAAQTGe
< ARAAAAIBCiAgAKc=
< </data>
283c274
< <true/>
---
> <false/>
286a278,279
> <key>ATI</key>
> <true/>
287a281,282
> <false/>
> <key>NVidia</key>
289a285,286
> <key>#snb-platform-id</key>
> <string>0x00010000</string>

 

2132635416_ScreenShot2020-08-15at10_24_16AM.png.d04e57e01e3eb1a42aed0b7b583ddebc.png

Edited by tluck
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theguy316
theguy316
Posted
Posted (edited)

thanks alot for for the reply.. originally everything on the install was great except for display only working though the display port and my laptop having a blank screen.. i have a  1368x768 screen and after various fresh installs and renaming your different config.plist configurations.. and other "fixes", nothing worked until that config.plist whalid shared.. not really sure why though hopefully you guys can collab on that part and let me know the results please.. 

 

ps.. you all are a great community here and i have nothing but respect and admiration for the time and effort you all put to make this easy for others.. thank again

Edited by theguy316
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tluck
tluck
Posted
Posted
On 8/16/2020 at 10:07 AM, theguy316 said:

thanks alot for for the reply.. originally everything on the install was great except for display only working though the display port and my laptop having a blank screen.. i have a  1368x768 screen and after various fresh installs and renaming your different config.plist configurations.. and other "fixes", nothing worked until that config.plist whalid shared.. not really sure why though hopefully you guys can collab on that part and let me know the results please.. 

 

ps.. you all are a great community here and i have nothing but respect and admiration for the time and effort you all put to make this easy for others.. thank again

i suspect the problem was with injecting the EDID - which i now have taked out the config.1366x768.plist and pushed a new bundle out.

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Whalid
Whalid
Posted
Posted
On 8/17/2020 at 7:09 PM, tluck said:

i suspect the problem was with injecting the EDID - which i now have taked out the config.1366x768.plist and pushed a new bundle out.

Thanks tluck. I tested your config.plist and it works great.

 

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goodguess
goodguess
Posted
Posted

@kaosnews 

I know there were patches in the past to get Intel WLAN working, but I did not know about this.

From what I read, a custom app (HeliPort) is needed to manage the Intel cards properly?

Did you manage to have a working LAN connection by using the kext in Clover?

I could try, as I have Intel cards kicking around, but would have to swap them for the working Broadcom ones.

 

@tluck

Thanks for your 2020.08.16 update!

I can´t seem to boot OC / Catalina from my mPCI SSD, the previous version did that fine.

Maybe just a glitch on my side.

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kaosnews
kaosnews
Posted
Posted
20 minutes ago, goodguess said:

@kaosnews 

I know there were patches in the past to get Intel WLAN working, but I did not know about this.

From what I read, a custom app (HeliPort) is needed to manage the Intel cards properly?

Did you manage to have a working LAN connection by using the kext in Clover?

I could try, as I have Intel cards kicking around, but would have to swap them for the working Broadcom ones.


Yes, so I have Heliport installed and that works fine but also Ethernet Lan connection is working. Both works fine. If you check Network in System Preferences you will notice two Ethernet connections (2nd is 'WiFi')

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tluck
tluck
Posted
Posted
5 hours ago, goodguess said:

@kaosnews 

I know there were patches in the past to get Intel WLAN working, but I did not know about this.

From what I read, a custom app (HeliPort) is needed to manage the Intel cards properly?

Did you manage to have a working LAN connection by using the kext in Clover?

I could try, as I have Intel cards kicking around, but would have to swap them for the working Broadcom ones.

 

@tluck

Thanks for your 2020.08.16 update!

I can´t seem to boot OC / Catalina from my mPCI SSD, the previous version did that fine.

Maybe just a glitch on my side.

whoops forgot update the OC config.plist with the new item needed

 

            <integer>2147483648</integer>
            <key>ScanPolicy</key>
            <integer>2163459</integer>
            <key>SecureBootModel</key>
            <string>Disabled</string>
            <key>Vault</key>
            <string>Optional</string>
        </dict>

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