[Guide] 10.10 Yosemite on the Dell Venue 11 Pro [Core iX]

[alex.daoud]

Ok, so no change when using an actual hard drive, regardless of whether its through a USB hub or directly plugged into the DV11.  No combination of kexts or booting in safe mode changes the end result.  It always fails at waiting for root device.  Trying to boot without caches cause it to fail immediately without attempting a thing.  I'm using 10.10.2 downloaded yesterday from the app store as my base and am creating the installer on a real mac.  Since you guys have success with this particular setup, I'm starting to think that I have a motherboard variant or something.  Here's a pic of my latest fail.  I wish I knew more about this stuff, I can follow instructions with the best of them, but I'm pretty much useless at troubleshooting this type of install.

GenericUSBXHCI.kext is not loading I believe. Here are a few ways to check: during the boot process, does the caps-lock light on the battery keyboard ever work? (try toggling it). Also try booting into single user mode, are you able to type? Also, what happens if you disable the USB 3.0 controller in the BIOS?

[blankmac]

GenericUSBXHCI.kext is not loading I believe. Here are a few ways to check: during the boot process, does the caps-lock light on the battery keyboard ever work? (try toggling it). Also try booting into single user mode, are you able to type? Also, what happens if you disable the USB 3.0 controller in the BIOS?

I think you're right, the caps lock light works in the bootloader, but does not during the boot process at any point.  It also won't boot into single user mode -- fails at the same point.  Weird.  When the kexts get copied to the EFI partition, the perms get changed to 777 so it shouldn't be a permissions issue I wouldn't think, although I'm not able to change the user or group to root:wheel.  I've tried it with USB 3.0 enabled/disabled to no avail.  Is there a method to force it to load?  

[altleet]

Its Clearly a GenericUSBXHCI issue like I said from earlier.. I had the same problem But once I did a clean download with placing the kexts properly it just worked.. 

 

Try with disabling USB 3.0 Controller in bios like Alex mentioned.. Didn't make the difference for me.. but it just might be the issue..

 

also if that does not work,  give me your Skype  I can maybe try and help troubleshoot

[blankmac]

Its Clearly a GenericUSBXHCI issue like I said from earlier.. I had the same problem But once I did a clean download with placing the kexts properly it just worked.. 

 

Try with disabling USB 3.0 Controller in bios like Alex mentioned.. Didn't make the difference for me.. but it just might be the issue..

 

also if that does not work,  give me your Skype  I can maybe try and help troubleshoot

I think I'm going to hang it up for tonight.  I tried the disabling the USB 3.0 controller and there was no change.  I think it's clear that it's not loading, but I've installed everything to 3 different usb devices and nothing changes.  I may go back to chameleon and use your kexts to see if I can get the installer to load up that way.

[altleet]

try downloading a new GenericUSBXHCi.kext from an online source and replace the one i provided 

 

and let me know if the result changes.. 

[blankmac]

try downloading a new GenericUSBXHCi.kext from an online source and replace the one i provided 

 

and let me know if the result changes.. 

Yeah, tried that too.  No luck.  I'm really baffled.  I guess I could install the old SSD and see if that changes something but I don't know why it would.

[altleet]

Well yeah just try that too.. in any case i doubt it though.. Its but that issue is related to USB kext I am pretty sure.. I can't think of what else could be wrong.. 

[blankmac]

Ok, back from Europe and have a little time to work on this.  I put the Venue in airplane mode, lo and behold there's an attempt to load a kext related to USB.  Still gets an error and eventually times out with "waiting for root device" regardless  of whether it's an actual drive or USB thumbdrive.  Pic attached, any thoughts on what I should try next?

 

[alex.daoud]

Ok, back from Europe and have a little time to work on this.  I put the Venue in airplane mode, lo and behold there's an attempt to load a kext related to USB.  Still gets an error and eventually times out with "waiting for root device" regardless  of whether it's an actual drive or USB thumbdrive.  Pic attached, any thoughts on what I should try next?

It's trying to load the USB 2.0 kexts and failing. Usually indicative of the GenericUSBXHCI.kext being faulty. Are you using RehabMan's latest one for Yosemite? Also, I have had bad experience with some USB storage devices. Sometimes when copying a kext over to a USB, the contents dissapear. On the USB with the installer, go to where GenericUSBXHCI.kext. Right click, show package contents. Navigate to Contents. Make sure Info.plist is there and MacOS/GenericUSBXHCI as well. I don't know why this happens but it sometimes does if the quality of the USB device is not very good. Also make sure you are ejecting the USB drive safely after every use on your real Mac.

[blankmac]

Triple checked everything, tried every bios option/USB hub port/USB device option I can think of to no avail.  Either the kext fails during loading or doesn't attempt to load at all.  I think I'm going to try a more hybrid approach.  I was able to install OS X initially using Un**east, but after installation, I couldn't boot to the drive to get clover installed.   Or rather, it would eventually boot to the desktop, but everything was frozen up, etc.  I'm going to try installing via my first method and then try using my clover install drive to try booting the internal ssd.  Thanks for all your assistance.

[blankmac]

This is unbelievably frustrating.  OS X is successfully installed.  Utilizing @Altleet's config and clover settings, my OSX partition boots like lightning; however, USB is still not functioning and I cannot use a mouse or keyboard of any type.  I don't see how it could be the USB drive or the copy of GenericUSBxHCI -- I have used multiples of each.  I can only guess that there is some subtle difference in my motherboard or I have something set differently in my BIOS that is not immediately obvious to me.  If you guys have any other random thoughts, throw them out there, I'm so close I can almost taste it.

[alex.daoud]

This is unbelievably frustrating.  OS X is successfully installed.  Utilizing @Altleet's config and clover settings, my OSX partition boots like lightning; however, USB is still not functioning and I cannot use a mouse or keyboard of any type.  I don't see how it could be the USB drive or the copy of GenericUSBxHCI -- I have used multiples of each.  I can only guess that there is some subtle difference in my motherboard or I have something set differently in my BIOS that is not immediately obvious to me.  If you guys have any other random thoughts, throw them out there, I'm so close I can almost taste it.

I constantly have this issue with USB. In fact, my USB is broken right now.

 

There are multiple things you can check. First make sure USB 3.0 is enabled in the BIOS. Second, are you booting off of the USB installer or off an installed bootloader? Remember that you need to install the kext to /s/l/e after installing or put it in the installed bootloader's injection path if you're doing the latter. The fact that you had working USB in the installer means that you can definitely have working USB in the OS, there is no difference in your motherboard. Is USB working in single user mode? Safe mode?

 

If you're still booting with the installer USB, is it Chameleon/Chimera? Did you remember to put the GenericUSBXHCI kext inside the injection folder or is it in the installers own extensions folder?

 

The instructions in the OP are outdated with respect to graphics (and a few minor things like the BIOS settings). In specific, the config.plist I posted still has some kext injections which are no longer needed - that is the only case in which they are outdated. If you follow the OP instructions to the t, you will have a working installation guaranteed.

[blankmac]

I constantly have this issue with USB. In fact, my USB is broken right now.

 

There are multiple things you can check. First make sure USB 3.0 is enabled in the BIOS. Second, are you booting off of the USB installer or off an installed bootloader? Remember that you need to install the kext to /s/l/e after installing or put it in the installed bootloader's injection path if you're doing the latter. The fact that you had working USB in the installer means that you can definitely have working USB in the OS, there is no difference in your motherboard. Is USB working in single user mode? Safe mode?

 

If you're still booting with the installer USB, is it Chameleon/Chimera? Did you remember to put the GenericUSBXHCI kext inside the injection folder or is it in the installers own extensions folder?

 

The instructions in the OP are outdated with respect to graphics (and a few minor things like the BIOS settings). In specific, the config.plist I posted still has some kext injections which are no longer needed - that is the only case in which they are outdated. If you follow the OP instructions to the t, you will have a working installation guaranteed.

Using yours or Altleet's install method did not work for me, I always ended up with the waiting for root device error.  I was, however, able to install OSX using Uni*east.   Post install, the Uni*east stick would not get me to the Desktop to finish setting up or get a bootloader installed.  Using Altleet's config and booting from the USB drive into clover, I can get to the Desktop, but USB is broken so I can't finish the installation, although in all cases USB works in the bootloader (clover and chimera).  USB 3.0 is enabled, but the result is the same regardless of that.  The result is also the same no matter whether or not GenericUSBxHCI is in S/L/E in chimera or kexts/10.10 in Clover.  Since clover works for both you and Altleet, I feel like I must be overlooking something simple or fundamental, but I'm at a loss to put my finger on it.

[altleet]

Good work on the progress.. at first I had the same issue with kext not registering with my usb port.. but then it just started working.. not sure what changed that.. btw there is a clover patch for appleusbxchi that eliminates the need for genericusbxhci.Kext and I haven't gotten around it yet.. I'll try to prepare in the config.plist and send you.. until then see if you figure something out

[alex.daoud]

Good work on the progress.. at first I had the same issue with kext not registering with my usb port.. but then it just started working.. not sure what changed that.. btw there is a clover patch for appleusbxchi that eliminates the need for genericusbxhci.Kext and I haven't gotten around it yet.. I'll try to prepare in the config.plist and send you.. until then see if you figure something out

Will be interesting to see if it works. The DSDT patch for AppleUSBXHCI support required some custom modifications.

[blankmac]

Good work on the progress.. at first I had the same issue with kext not registering with my usb port.. but then it just started working.. not sure what changed that.. btw there is a clover patch for appleusbxchi that eliminates the need for genericusbxhci.Kext and I haven't gotten around it yet.. I'll try to prepare in the config.plist and send you.. until then see if you figure something out

Cool.  If you're able to get that working then that seems like it will solve my troubles.  I did notice that your config mentions AppleUSBxHCI in the Kexts to Patch section.  Out of curiosity, what does that part patch?  Had a strange little bit of what seems to be progress today, I used paragon from windows to copy GenericUSBxHCI to clover and now it attempts to load, but fails because the permissions aren't correct.  Won't have access to a regular mac until later to attempt to fix it, but maybe that means it will be recognized now.

[alex.daoud]

Cool.  If you're able to get that working then that seems like it will solve my troubles.  I did notice that your config mentions AppleUSBxHCI in the Kexts to Patch section.  Out of curiosity, what does that part patch?  Had a strange little bit of what seems to be progress today, I used paragon from windows to copy GenericUSBxHCI to clover and now it attempts to load, but fails because the permissions aren't correct.  Won't have access to a regular mac until later to attempt to fix it, but maybe that means it will be recognized now.

I'm a bit confused as to whether this is in the installer or not now. If you've already installed then setting the permissions is a trivial task. Just navigate to where the kext is in single user mode on the installer and execute sudo chown -R root:wheel GenericUSBXHCI.kext.

[blankmac]

I'm a bit confused as to whether this is in the installer or not now. If you've already installed then setting the permissions is a trivial task. Just navigate to where the kext is in single user mode on the installer and execute sudo chown -R root:wheel GenericUSBXHCI.kext.

I'm still attempting to boot into the installation from the USB drive.  OSX is installed on the internal hard drive (that was done through Un**east, but there is no bootloader yet nor have I gone through the initial set up since no matter what I try gets me a working keyboard.  So at this point, booting into single user mode doesn't get me anything.   Previously, I don't think it was even attempting to load it, but now it seems like it may be trying.  Copying over the kext via paragon seems to have done something, albeit a corrupted something.  I'll be home in a few hours and I'll try to correct the permissions on the kext from my wife's MacBook.  I was under the impression that clover didn't care about that as long as it was in the 10.10 folder, but apparently it does matter.  I think what may be confusing is that after installing, I'm not able to boot back into the installation from the Un**east stick.  There's something that causing enough of a conflict that it's unusable,  it will get to the first setup screen, but thereafter it's frozen into uselessness.  Doesn't make sense, but there it is.

[blankmac]

Hey guys, if you don't mind me asking, what brand/model of usb drive did you use for your installs?  I just keep hitting brick walls and it doesn't make any sense at all to me given that you both are able to get things working.  I'm using a non-powered USB 2.0 hub and a seagate slim USB 3.0 hard drive.

[altleet]

SanDisk cruiser fit usb 2.0/ Kingston datatraveler old usb 2.0/ transcend Jetflash usb 3.0.. they all work just fine..

 

As for the appleusbxchi, it might as well require a dsdt patch.. I'll need to consult with rehabman first.

[blankmac]

That's so weird, I've used two SanDisk Cruisers (an 8GB and 16GB).  Both have the waiting for root device problem.  However, after I install with Uni*east, they will boot to the setup screen, but with no keyboard/mouse.  I almost had it licked, I was able to get to the Desktop and install clover with your settings/kexts, and while it will boot, there's still no USB.  :-/  Since I'm not having any luck with clover, I'm going to try to repeat my steps and install chimera instead.  I'll let you know if I get anywhere.

[blankmac]

Ugh, still no progress. A question for the experts tho -- I've seen on other systems that AppleHPET can cause USB issues at times because it's randomly conflicting with interrupts. Any chance that is a contributing factor here?

[alex.daoud]

Ugh, still no progress. A question for the experts tho -- I've seen on other systems that AppleHPET can cause USB issues at times because it's randomly conflicting with interrupts. Any chance that is a contributing factor here?

I've seen this mentioned before. I have it on my system and it doesn't affect USB (although i've tried removing it to try and get the trackpad to work), you could try removing it though.

[blankmac]

I've seen this mentioned before. I have it on my system and it doesn't affect USB (although i've tried removing it to try and get the trackpad to work), you could try removing it though.

Yeah, didn't help.  I've only been able to boot into the desktop from the installer USB one time out of probably a hundred attempts and when I did I was able to install Clover, but no matter how many times I re-install, neither Clover nor Chimera have been able to get me anywhere.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqNBByU0ZBc

 

That's with Altleet's Clover set up, which boots nicely, but still no USB.  I've also tried adding AppleUSBXHCI patches in the Clover config using the configurator, but either I didn't do it correctly or they aren't having an effect.  One thing that may be different in my setup is that I do have the WWAN card installed.  I've tried disabling it in the BIOS, but it didn't help.  I'm going to go through each BIOS page and post up my settings to see if you guys see anything obviously wrong/different.  I also still have the Intel WLAN card installed and was planning to use a USB wifi dongle until I can grab a broadcom card.  Do you suppose that could be causing an issue?  I'm grasping at straws, but it doesn't make sense to me that I'm having soooo much trouble when you guys did all the hard work already.

[blankmac]

Somewhat in order:

Boot Options:

- Enable Legacy Option ROMs is checked.

USB:

- Boot Support is checked

- Enable External USB Port is checked.

- Enable USB 3.0 controller is checked.

- Enable USB Powershare is NOT checked.

Audio:

- Enable Audio is checked.

Miscellaneous:

- Enable Microphone is checked

- Enable Media Card is selected

- Enable Camera is checked

Security

- The only thing that is enabled is CPU XD Support

Secure Boot is disabled

Performance

- MultiCore Support is set to all

- Intel Speedstep is enabled

- C-states Control is enabled

- Intel Turboboost is enabled

- HyperThread control is enabled

- Rapid Start Technology is NOT enabled

Nothing is enabled under Power Management and the battery charge is set to adaptive

POST behavior

- Adapter warnings are NOT enabled

- Fastboot is set to Thorough

Virtualization Support

- Virtualization is enabled

- VT for Direct I/O is enabled

Wireless Device Enable

- WWAN, Bluetooth, and WLAN/WiGig are enabled

- NFC is NOT enabled

 

My model also has the fingerprint scanner as well as a SmartCard reader tho I use neither.  I have an SD card in the slot and upgraded the hard drive to a 512GB model.

 

Probably a shot in the dark, but if you guys see something different than what you're using, let me know and I'll match your settings to see if it makes a difference.