Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
MBP 1,1-10,2 Force 2011 MacBook Pro 8,2 with failed AMD GPU to ALWAYS use Intel integrated GPU (EFI variable fix)
- Thread starter AppleMacFinder
- Start date
-
- Tags
- a1286 amd black screen blue and black screen discrete graphics dmg dmg files gfxcardstatus glitching gpu failure gpu panic gpu switch graphic card hardware fault hardware issue logic board failure macbook pro "15 2011 macbook pro (15-inch early 2011) macbook pro 2011 radeongate restart loop white screen
- Sort by reaction score
Hi Everyone
Thanks for your solution AppleMacFinder (efivar setting gpu-power-prefs-fa4ce28d-b62f-4c99-9cc3-6815686e30f9).
With this solution I can restart the Mac again and it runs well for a certain time.
Unfortunetaly it does not work for me for a longer time. After some time (or maybe reboots or using certain programms...not sure at the moment what it is) it freezes again.
When I check the efivars variables again after a freeze I can see that the gpu-power-prefs-fa4ce28d-b62f-4c99-9cc3-6815686e30f9 is missing. Crating it again and it will work fine again. It seems something removes the variable.
What is strange as well:
After creating the variable i am still able to change to discrete GPU in gfxCardStatus. I am using the version 2.4.3i from steveschow). I guess as long as I can change this it is not really fixed?
I checked that i made the variable immutable with the chattr command. I double checked it with the lsattr command and it returns the ...i.... in the result.
My Settings
- MacOS Seirra 10.12.6
- GeFore 640 instead of AMD
Thanks for your solution AppleMacFinder (efivar setting gpu-power-prefs-fa4ce28d-b62f-4c99-9cc3-6815686e30f9).
With this solution I can restart the Mac again and it runs well for a certain time.
Unfortunetaly it does not work for me for a longer time. After some time (or maybe reboots or using certain programms...not sure at the moment what it is) it freezes again.
When I check the efivars variables again after a freeze I can see that the gpu-power-prefs-fa4ce28d-b62f-4c99-9cc3-6815686e30f9 is missing. Crating it again and it will work fine again. It seems something removes the variable.
What is strange as well:
After creating the variable i am still able to change to discrete GPU in gfxCardStatus. I am using the version 2.4.3i from steveschow). I guess as long as I can change this it is not really fixed?
I checked that i made the variable immutable with the chattr command. I double checked it with the lsattr command and it returns the ...i.... in the result.
My Settings
- MacOS Seirra 10.12.6
- GeFore 640 instead of AMD
This thread covers mainly old and self-destructing AMD chips in 2011 MBPs. Forcing integrated GPU might not be your best option with Geforce chips. You might want to add the exact model you're trying this on for reference.
If the variable is active, then you still can choose Automatic Graphics Switching in SysPrefs or as you noticed in gfxCardStatus. This is only the GUI not keeping up with an unforeseen configuration. The dGPU will not be active. Check that in About This Mac/System Report.
No ordinary program should change the variables willy-nilly. If you find out that one does, please report that back here.
(That is assuming you didn't try to hack around the system before and there are remnants of scripts or whatnot stillö actively 'doing stuff'.) Yours just has to be a reboot/sleep/wake situation. If it freezes while running after just one successful boot with the hack, then I think it very likely that there are other/additional problems at play here. You might have to ry the whole procedure with a fresh and clean install of macOS to rule as much as possible of that out. (And keep in mind that we didn't invent a magic bullet cure-it-all here, every machine can also be quite toasty after all.)
Just a guess: The EFIvars not sticking seems to be a problem that is most often reported here from people using the linux method. Try again with this method: #875 for a much quicker route; adapt to your Geforce situation as needed.
The NVRAM hack should stick either way. But make sure to restart your journey with and SMC/NVRAM reset. If it still will not stick, use the force-iGPU-boot.sh script to get a good bit quicker back into the saddle.
Hi MikeyN,
I tried to do this today. First, sorry about my bad English and the fact that I have no previous experience on these issues...
So, I did everything until >
Reboot normally:
you will have an accelerated iGPU display.
A few observations:
- after
touch /System/Library/Extensions/
– wait for the kextcache process to finish
then
nothing happened until I rebooted. When I booted, MBP rebooted itself 2-3 times and opened in OS as normal. I have now rebooted this MBP for 3-4 times and it has opened in OS X every time but every time this starts like it opened in "single mode", recovery mode or the like; a lot of txt lines but after that it goes to login window normally. So is this normal behavior?
I didn't do the rest of the procedure yet as I wasn't sure what to do. So should I do only this
sudo kextload /System/Library/Extensions-off/AMDRadeonX3000.kext
and nothing else or everything after that....or all of it? And how, using terminal?
Sorry for stupid questions but like I said, I'm not familiar with these things.
Thanks
nonlen
From your description I gather that the procedure worked. So, first, congrats on that.
One detail that I noticed when doing the procedure again today on a system running High Sierra was that the kextcache is apparently not run in Single User at all. Then causing the reboot after the next reboot, since the touch-command results just in an invalidated cache that has then to be rebuilt. Guide might need update there, ahem/cough.
All those "lines" are the verbose mode?
If the system now comes up reliably and in one single go, then all is well/normal behaviour.
Verbose mode is useful to you now, because you immediately see where it would hang, if it hangs.
To check for this setting, type into Terminal.app:
nvram -p
If it outputs (among some other stuff):
boot-args -v
Then verbose mode is enabled.
To clear this setting alone (if it really bothers you, not recommended):
sudo nvram boot-args=" "
To set it again:
sudo nvram boot-args="-v"
The same effect can be invoked once by holding <Cmd>+<v> on starting up the machine.
First, you should get a detailed temperature monitoring application (iStat, TGPo…).
Then look at the GPU diode temp before you load the kext.
Now, while keeping an eye on GPU temp, open Terminal and issue the command you just cited.
The temperature should drop significantly in a short amount of time. This is only listed separately for demonstration purposes. I found it bothering to always put in this command to get halfway proper thermal management on the now circumvented GPU.
-> To always get this effect and spare you the chore of remembering the command, issuing it after every reboot etc., follow the rest of the guide. The LoginHook part wil automate the "demonstration part" to always run after a reboot.
Until the next update, this setup then should be quite stable.
Thanks again MikeyN,
I checked in terminal, verbose mode is enabled and it's ok for me. I installed smcFanControl and it says that gpu temp is between 50-58c when using only Safari; fixed fan speed 2600 rpm.
I copied the command sudo kextload /System/Library/Extensions-off/AMDRadeonX3000.kext into terminal and saw this warning:
WARNING: Improper use of the sudo command could lead to data loss
or the deletion of important system files. Please double-check your
typing when using sudo. Type "man sudo" for more information.
To proceed, enter your password, or type Ctrl-C to abort.
It didn't let me write my password?!
If I want to try "LoginHook part" in terminal.....here's another stupid question:
Can I just copy-paste all those command lines into terminal (without "demonstration part") and only hit "enter" after each line?
You really did never enter a single sudo command. That is why this warning appears. I didn't even remember the exact wording and had to netsearch it first/again. But this is normal. Don't worry too much, but reread it nevertheless, and remember it. The sudo command is powerful.
As long as your currently logged in user account is in the admin group (as is default on Macs for the first user set up) you just have to enter your login password. But Terminal app lacks indicators for characters entered, unlike other macOS password boxes of this type. This is also normal. Type it in blindly and hit enter.
Failure produces error message, success is just execution of your sudo command.
Your c&p plan should not only work, but I would recommend to do it in such a way. Less typos.
Copy this line:
sudo mkdir -p /Library/LoginHook
Copy this line:
sudo nano /Library/LoginHook/LoadX3000.sh
Copy this into the editor en bloc:
#!/bin/bash
kextload /System/Library/Extensions-off/AMDRadeonX3000.kext
exit 0
Now press, <Ctrl>+<x> and follow the instructions on screen in the lower left (save the file in the location and name as provided; basically just press 'y' then 'enter')
Copy this line:
sudo chmod a+x /Library/LoginHook/LoadX3000.sh
Copy this line:
sudo defaults write com.apple.loginwindow LoginHook /Library/LoginHook/LoadX3000.sh
To check if it worked: after the next reboot copy and paste into Terminal:
sudo kextstat | grep -i amd
You should get a line like:
172 0 0xffffff7f83567000 0x571000 0x571000 com.apple.AMDRadeonX3000 (1.5.1) F6F37414-893B-3F66-8AB7-F3327DE6AC55 <171 162 102 12 7 5 4 3 1>
If a line like this appears, you're set. Kext is loaded automatically and temps on the GPU should drop.
This is amazing. Worked like a charm.
Took me 1h to do it all but it paid out.
You just need to follow all the instructions corectly and at the end Eliminate AMD Kexts, then you can test it with the gfxcardstatus to see it will not switch to the discrete again.
I have 15" MBP early 2011, with the classic video problem.
Thanks so much you guys!
Took me 1h to do it all but it paid out.
You just need to follow all the instructions corectly and at the end Eliminate AMD Kexts, then you can test it with the gfxcardstatus to see it will not switch to the discrete again.
I have 15" MBP early 2011, with the classic video problem.
Thanks so much you guys!
Thanks for this. When I do the reboot it gets to the login screen and reboots. I disabled verbose mode and the it looks like it’s using the integrated chip as the distortion is gone. Any ideas on how to get past this? Thanks again.
OK, I did this rest of the procedure and got this
106 2 0xffffff7f82eb5000 0x125000 0x125000 com.apple.kext.AMDSupport (1.4.2) 2B580087-CCBA-355B-8A20-431461A717E5 <105 93 12 11 7 5 4 3 1>
107 0 0xffffff7f8301d000 0x5f6000 0x5f6000 com.apple.kext.AMD6000Controller (1.4.2) 131713C7-08DB-395D-B024-87C4F6798E67 <106 93 12 11 5 4 3 1>
132 0 0xffffff7f82fe8000 0x22000 0x22000 com.apple.kext.AMDFramebuffer (1.4.2) 58917ED0-06C5-3FF0-AFB5-48BA784CBDA4 <106 93 12 11 7 5 4 3 1>
Doesn't look the same?
Nonlen
No, it does not. Your X3000 kext is not loaded and temps are likely too high.
If you followed every step of the guide it should get loaded.
First possible reason it did not: kext is not where it should be, according to the guide. Where did you put it?
My guide assumes that it should be in:
/System/Library/Extensions-off/AMDRadeonX3000.kext
So try this in Terminal first:
sudo kextload /System/Library/Extensions-off/AMDRadeonX3000.kext
sudo kextstat | grep -i amd
If it's now listed then it is loaded and from the right place: something with the LoginHook alone must have gotten wrong.
If you can't remember or do not find the kext at first then use this command:
sudo find / -name "AMDRadeonX3000.kext" #takes quite a while as it looks through all of your hard drive.
It has to be in this location and has to have its permissions right:
( type this into Terminal:
ls -la /System/Library/Extensions-off/AMDRadeonX3000.kext #should give you the following:
drwxr-xr-x 3 root wheel 102 Mar 17 02:24 AMDRadeonX3000.kext
)
If the part in bold doesn't match your output then you have a problem.
This is not diagnosed easily so you have to retrace your steps for the LoginHook.
Second possible reason: you missed or mistyped a command. Likely resulting in using a wrong path or wrong permissions.
Type in Terminal:
ls -la /Library/LoginHook/LoadX3000.sh
and post the output here.
Mikey,
I did this:
So try this in Terminal first:
sudo kextload /System/Library/Extensions-off/AMDRadeonX3000.kext
sudo kextstat | grep -i amd
I got this:
/System/Library/Extensions-off/AMDRadeonX3000.kext failed to load - (libkern/kext) not found; check the system/kernel logs for errors or try kextutil(8).
I believe I did everything according to the instructions.....But.... my original AMDRadeonX3000.kext is still on the Desktop as I understood earlier that there is no need to replace it anywhere? So, should I put it in /System/Library/Extensions-off and repeat the rest of the procedure (LoginHook part)?
I did this:
So try this in Terminal first:
sudo kextload /System/Library/Extensions-off/AMDRadeonX3000.kext
sudo kextstat | grep -i amd
I got this:
/System/Library/Extensions-off/AMDRadeonX3000.kext failed to load - (libkern/kext) not found; check the system/kernel logs for errors or try kextutil(8).
I believe I did everything according to the instructions.....But.... my original AMDRadeonX3000.kext is still on the Desktop as I understood earlier that there is no need to replace it anywhere? So, should I put it in /System/Library/Extensions-off and repeat the rest of the procedure (LoginHook part)?
That is a problem on several fronts.
"#####__ The Guide __#####
This guide assumes that you run a stock system. Problem just occured. That means:
This guide assumes that all kexts are still in their default location /System/Library/Extensions.
Having all AMD-kexts there except one is beneficial for 'proper' operation."
To solve this, it all now depends on in what state your kext is.
The following now assumes you entered every command correctly, just that the X3000 kext is misplaced.
(Of course it wouldn't hurt if you double check the rest of the LoginHook commands for correctness.)
(Just to make sure: you use backups. Which backup system do you use, TimeMachine?)
Wrong permissions or ownership on the kext means that the system will not load the kext at all. [If you 'moved' it previously with Finder, then you are a bit out of luck. With Finder you did not move it, but copied it (giving the copy your ownership), and you then deleted the original kext from the System folder.]
So try this in Terminal first:
sudo kextload ~/Desktop/AMDRadeonX3000.kext
sudo kextstat | grep -i amd
If that is a success, i.e. the output is 4 lines long and has X3000 in it as shown previously, then; in Terminal:
sudo mv ~/Desktop/AMDRadeonX3000.kext /System/Library/Extensions-off/
If that went well, reboot and enjoy.
#####
Otherwise, these are your options:
You may have to jump a few hoops. If the kextload command gives an error, post the ouput of
ls -la ~/Desktop/AMDRadeonX3000.kext
But be prepared for a setback. You may have to resort to a backup copy of that kext or copy it from a different install; or just reinstall it.
It is probably easiest for you to restore your copy of the one kext from your backup.
Once it is again in /System/Library/Extensions:
sudo mv /System/Library/Extensions/AMDRadeonX3000.kext /System/Library/Extensions-off/
If that went well, reboot and enjoy.
Mikey, I bought this second hand MBP a month ago and at the moment I don't use it for anything else than surfing on the internet. My plan is to use it as a second machine for music production, mixing etc when I'm not able to use my studio machine cMac Pro 12-core. So, I don't have any back ups yet as there hasn't been any need for it. Which also means that my AMDRadeonX3000.kext is only a copy and I don't have an original anymore. I tried to put it (AMDRadeonX3000.kext) back to /System/Library/Extensions but it failed. So what are my options? Reinstall OS X and start the whole procedure again? Or do I really need this "LoginHook part" as I don't think I have huge heating problems, at least for now....
Start backups. Now. Especially since this is a failing machine. (Please excuse the lecture.)
But if the heat and shorter battery life are of no concern: quite a few posts here seem to indicate that many people skip this last part (whether they think they do not need it or do not know better?) My guess is that skipping it will shorten the estimated remaining life-span needlessly. But it will work kind of OK if not pushed too hard.
Options, sorted from short, quick and more likely to fail to long, tedious and surely to succeed.
1. Transfer the copy of the kext from your second Mac.
Fastest way to do that: make a zip of of the kext on the MacPro, saving it to the Desktop, copy to usb, extract that zip on MacBook Pro, (SIP has to be disabled), then use the usual
sudo mv
to not copy but move it into your /System/Library/Extensions-off folder.
That should give you the desired results.
Or mount your laptop in TargetDiskMode as drive on your 12core and transfer directly.
2. Make sure SIP is still disabled on laptop. Type into Terminal:
csrutil status
If csrutil (SIP) is enabled, reboot into Recovery and disable it (then reboot normally); if it is disabled, proceed with:
sudo chown root:wheel ~/Desktop/AMDRadeonX3000.kext
sudo mv ~/Desktop/AMDRadeonX3000.kext
3. Downloading the latest ComboUpdate and extract from there:
https://support.apple.com/kb/DL1931?locale=en_US
open with Pacifist from http://www.charlessoft.com
Dig through the files, only extract AMDRadeonX3000.kext "with administrator privileges" to Desktop, then sudo mv the kext to
4. Reinstall of the whole system and reapply the whole procedure. That is the sure way. And the longest.
Mikey, thanks again. And yes Sir, I will start backups, now. I promise. 
I think I'll choose #4. and start from the scratch. Will do it later today or tomorrow and report back.
Nonlen
Btw. I still have to stay in El Capitan as that's in my studio machine as well. I guess that is not a problem...?
I think I'll choose #4. and start from the scratch. Will do it later today or tomorrow and report back.Nonlen
Btw. I still have to stay in El Capitan as that's in my studio machine as well. I guess that is not a problem...?
El Capitan should not be a problem. It just invalidates the option to copy the kext from that machine if the laptop is on Sierra or Yosemite. The option remains valid if you have the same OS version on both machines.
If a whole reinstall is your way then keep in mind that during the install process the second reboot (that is the first reboot into the full system) will hang because the X3000.kext is then activated.
That is then the place to start with the guide. Wait for the hang, then force a shutdown.
But: your NVRAM should have remained in place (it is not touched by the install process).
You can spare yourself a few steps by starting in the line:
"– Boot into Recovery by holding"
that is still needed to disable SIP.
but then skip:
# – disable dGPU on boot
#
#nvram fa4ce28d-b62f-4c99-9cc3-6815686e30f9:gpu-power-prefs=%01%00%00%00
#
#– enable verbose boot mode:
#
#nvram boot-args="-v"
Also, it might be good idea to make an install medium for your OS of choice with e.g. diskmakerx.com.
To get the cleanest results possible, Format the drive in the laptop from the installer and do not touch Migration Assistant afterwards.
Good luck.
OK, thanks Mikey. Could it cause any harm if I still go through the whole procedure? I have a great, complete list that has been done by one person at the forum!
[doublepost=1504547957][/doublepost]hi, I was able to get my late 2011 MacBook pro working again as someone posted a you tube of this and it worked. i am so happy about it. My problem now is connecting my larger LG monitor to my MacBook pro, seems it is not recognized, i tried another samsung monitor as well and the MacBook pro does not know it. Will it be possible, in any way, to connect the remote monitor? I do not even care if I cannot use the laptop monitor and I only use the larger one. Any insight would be great. Thanks everyone. TuesdayTues...If you don't have time to read my story (which also describes some interesting technical approaches) just scroll down this thread until a "100% WORKING SOLUTION" text
Discrete AMD GPU of my 2011 MacBook Pro 8,2 has finally failed because of the reasons mentioned here ( http://logicboardmac.blogspot.ru/ ) and there ( https://www.macrumors.com/2015/02/19/2011-macbook-pro-repair-program-apple/ ) . It has been working perfectly for 6 years under quite a high load, even tried SETI@HOME mining at background! So I was confident that my MBP is not affected by bad solder / bad soldering quality and didn't want to bring it to Apple for a free repair program - partially because couldn't find the time to pause my important software projects, partially because I was afraid that Apple might give me a less reliable logic board or refuse a free repair because of the several unrelated repairs that I did manually by myself earlier to save money: changed thermal paste a few times, replaced the internal battery 2 times, replaced a keyboard with broken buttons, etc. But it finally broke down last week: laptop's screen image became distorted, it refused to boot OS X (always freezing half-way), and - Apple free repair program has already ended! I know there are affordable solutions like $50 BGA resoldering at unofficial local repair shop and that its possible to get a new replacement HD 6750M chip from AliExpress for $35 or cheaper ( http://www.aliexpress.com/item/DC-2...0028-216-0810028-BGA-Chipset/32764872143.html or https://www.aliexpress.com/item/DC-2015-New-216-0810001-216-0810001-Graphic-Chipset/32718112928.html , because don't know if this is true - https://www.rossmanngroup.com/board...0604-replace-216-0810005-gpu-with-216-0810028 ) to guarantee a successful repair, so the total price of repair would be either $50 or $50+$35=$85 - less than $100 in any case. But I don't like investing money to the old computers, so I have thought - what if there is some hack to force MBP to use integrated graphics ALL THE TIME, even while booting ? And then started to explore the possible solutions...
===
First of all, it is possible to successfully boot a MBP to OS X while still using the failed GPU, after you remove the AMD drivers by booting in command line mode (CMD+S) and entering these commands:
1) fsck -fy (to check a disk)
2) mount -uw / (mount a root filesystem with read/write permissions)
3) sudo mkdir /AMD_Kexts/ (make a directory to store the AMD drivers in case you'll need them in future)
4) sudo mv /System/Library/Extensions/AMD*.* /AMD_Kexts/ (move the AMD drivers)
5) sudo rm -rf /System/Library/Caches/com.apple.kext.caches/ (remove the AMD drivers cache)
6) sudo mkdir /System/Library/Caches/com.apple.kext.caches/ (just in case OS X will be dumb and will not recreate this directory, I am creating it for OS X)
7) sudo touch /System/Library/Extensions/ (to update the timestamps so that new driver caches - without AMD drivers - will be definitely rebuilt)
8) sudo umount / (umount a partition to guarantee that your changes are flushed to it)
9) sudo reboot
The degree of your inconvenience while doing these steps - strongly depends on how heavily a screen's image is distorted in your case. In my case it was even more difficult because the OS X partition became a "read-only" partition (because of too many emergency shutdowns I did while desperately trying to boot OS X with a failed GPU) so I had to remove a hard drive from MacBook Pro and (using a USB to SATA 2.5" adapter taken from my portable HDD) attached it to a computer with Linux, then followed these instructions:
https://superuser.com/questions/961401/mounting-hfs-partition-on-arch-linux (1st answer) - carefully executed a number of commands, calculated a sizelimit for my parition layout, and finally ran sudo mount -t hfsplus -o force,rw,sizelimit=YOURNUMBER /dev/sdb2 /mnt to mount this HFS+ partition to /mnt directory in read-write mode. Then I performed these "1)-7)" steps you see above, and also repaired a filesystem by running sudo fsck.hfsplus -f /dev/sdb2 before unmounting a partition with sudo umount /mnt and putting a hard drive back to MBP...
===
This gave me a MBP which could boot to OS X although STILL using a broken AMD GPU: so it screen's image is very distorted (could browse the Internet but quite inconvenient to read a text), Launchpad is super laggy, and you can't switch to Integrated GPU using gfxCardStatus because: without AMD drivers (which we had to remove to successfully boot to OS X) Macbook Pro thinks its' internal screen is External Display and gfxCardStatus tells it is impossible to switch because External Display is using AMD GPU. Somewhere I found a suggestion that it is possible to rebuild a gfxCardStatus from the source code - https://github.com/codykrieger/gfxCardStatus - with removed or commented out 156-166 lines in the ./gfxCardStatus/Classes/GSProcess.m to make it to ignore the external display:
// find out if an external monitor is forcing the discrete gpu on
CGDirectDisplayID displays[8];
CGDisplayCount displayCount = 0;
if (CGGetOnlineDisplayList(8, displays, &displayCount) == noErr) {
for (int i = 0; i < displayCount; i++) {
if ( ! CGDisplayIsBuiltin(displays))
[list addObject:[NSDictionary dictionaryWithObjectsAndKeys:
Str(@"External Display"), kTaskItemName,
@"", kTaskItemPID, nil]];
}
}
So I rebuilt a gfxCardStatus using the instructions from the last reply of this issue -
https://github.com/codykrieger/gfxCardStatus/issues/229
(also had to download a MacOSX10.11.sdk from here - https://github.com/phracker/MacOSX-SDKs/releases - unpack and copy it to XCode's /Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer/Platforms/MacOSX.platform/Developer/SDKs/MacOSX10.11.sdk - because of the Apple's stupidity the latest XCode for El Capitan does not include SDK for El Capitan!) However, it still didn't work - gfxCardStatus only pretended that it has switched to Integrated GPU, while in reality OS X did not let it switch! Even after I edited ./gfxCardStatus/Classes/GSGPU.m file to enable the mysterious "Nuke it from orbit switching" option, it still couldn't switch...
===
Then I discovered this interesting repository - https://github.com/0xbb/gpu-switch - which is partially similar by its' source code to gfxCardStatus but also has the "Login Hooks" (install_hooks.sh) to "automate the switching process for login/logout". Sadly it didn't work for me... However, there is a very interesting gpu-switch text file right at the root of this repository, which describes the EFI variables!
https://github.com/0xbb/gpu-switch/blob/master/gpu-switch
After studying it and also reading this issue's comments - https://github.com/0xbb/gpu-switch/issues/11 - I became confident to try this solution, but found out that my MacBook Pro 2011 8,2 with OS X El Capitan 10.11.6 is in a VERY problematic situation:
1) rEFInd is not installed, and to install it - must disable SIP protection. But I cannot boot to Recovery mode (Command+Option+R) or to OS X Installation DVD/USB (hold Option), (to disable SIP), because they freeze while booting! - although I removed AMD kexts from my system, of course these recovery tools are using AMD kexts integrated to their design. Also cannot use Rootfool hack ( https://github.com/gdbinit/rootfool ) to disable SIP during runtime, because it works only at OS X version older than 10.11.4
2) Tried overheating my Macbook Pro on purpose (forcing CPU usage to 100% and putting it to a tightly closed bag) to force it to shutdown from overheating and then quickly reboot so that Integrated graphics will be enabled during the boot time - making it possible to boot to Recovery. But because of the wonderful high end thermal paste I have applied not so long ago - cannot overheat it even after waiting for a long time! At this point I thought that could either: a) remove AMD kexts from Installation media, or b) to connect MBP's hard drive to a Linux machine again and run a bunch of chmods to remove the SIP flags from the directories mentioned here ( http://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/193368/what-is-the-rootless-feature-in-el-capitan-really ) which could potentially make a system unbootable, or c) to try installing rEFInd to HFS+ partition directly from a Linux machine with root rights because it will bypass SIP --- but have not explored these options, although some of them might have worked...
3) Wanted to boot a Linux LiveCD to edit the EFI variables from there, but no matter what I did: tried booting straight without GRUB option modifications, tried editing GRUB boot options (with "e" key) to add nomodeset / remove quiet splash / or both in every combination , or like suggested in this article ( https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/MacBookPro8,1/8,2/8,3_(2011) ) also add i915.modeset=0 radeon.modeset=0 or radeon.modeset=0 i915.modeset=1 i915.lvds_channel_mode=2 ; and then pressed Fn+F10 or Shift+Ctrl+Fn+F10 to boot with these options: but the Linux boot process always failed at different boot stages, no matter what popular user-friendly Linux distribution or what version of it I am trying: tried many releases of Ubuntu / Lubuntu / Fedora , even the old "AMD64 Mac" and "Alternate AMD64 Mac" images, but they always failed - either at the very beginning of boot process (black screen, or a black screen with a blinking or stuck _ character at the left upper corner) or failed at the very end of it - right before it is supposed to show a graphical desktop environment...
Later, totoe_84 wrote that he was able to boot Ubuntu in graphical mode using the following setup for GRUB:
- To disable the AMD graphics card I added the following lines after set gfxpayload=keep
outb 0x728 1
outb 0x710 2
outb 0x740 2
outb 0x750 0(based on https://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2157775 )
- Next I added the following after quiet splash
i915.lvds_channel_mode=2 i915.modeset=1 i915.lvds_use_ssc=0
===
Then I remembered that there are not-mainstream Linux distributions for advanced users, which have a LiveCD without any graphical interface: you are dropped to a pure console and you are supposed to install the system along with only those graphical interfaces and software packages / groups of packages which you explicitly select. For example: Arch Linux (https://www.archlinux.org/) and Gentoo Linux (https://gentoo.org/) . Because their LiveCD does not have a graphical interface, they could be booted without a problem to a pure Linux console and there you could edit the EFI variables ! So here is a...
===
=== 100% WORKING SOLUTION
===
=== Force your MBP to ALWAYS use Intel integrated GPU (EFI variable fix)
===
=== to make it great again !
===
1) Create the Arch Linux LiveCD/LiveUSB :
You need a working computer for that and a spare CD/DVD/USB drive. Download the latest Arch Linux ISO image from this page - https://www.archlinux.org/download/ , at the time of writing it is archlinux-2017.03.01-dual.iso . Then you could either simply burn this ISO to CD/DVD (which later could be either inserted to MBP's SuperDrive or External DVD Drive connected to MBP by two USB cables) or create a bootable USB: use the great detailed instructions from this page, https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/USB_flash_installation_media
2) Boot to it: insert this CD/DVD/USB to Macbook Pro, hold Option key while booting, choose "EFI boot" (that is your bootable installation media), press "e" key to edit the GRUB options of the Arch Linux archiso x86_64 UEFI CD menu entry while it is selected at the main screen, add nomodeset to the end of this line and press Enter. If everything is done correctly, you will find yourself at the Linux console!
3) Edit EFI vars: looks like efivarfs filesystem is mounted by default! So you can already cd /sys/firmware/efi/efivars and ls to explore this directory and see if there is a "gpu-power-prefs-..." variable (where ... is UUID of this variable). If there is such a variable, its better to remove it with rm. In my case the efivarfs has been mounted by default with read/write permissions, but if you are getting the "operation not permitted" message while attempting to rm, it means that in your case efivarfs has been mounted as read-only and you need to remount it with read-write permissions and try again (credits to totoe_84 for this valuable addition) :
*) cd /
*) umount /sys/firmware/efi/efivars/
*) mount -t efivarfs rw /sys/firmware/efi/efivars/
*) cd /sys/firmware/efi/efivars/
If your screen is so distorted that it is difficult to see the letters, just start typing the rm gpu-power-pre and then press TAB key for autocompletion. In my case there were not such a EFI variable, only "gpu-active-..." and maybe somehow related "gfx-saved-config-restore-status-..." . Then I looked again at that gpu-switch text file (mentioned above, https://github.com/0xbb/gpu-switch/blob/master/gpu-switch),
and entered THESE COMMANDS:
*) chattr -i "/sys/firmware/efi/efivars/" <----- skip this command
Actually a gpu-switch script had "${sysfs_efi_vars}/${efi_gpu}" but I didnt have a "gpu-power-prefs-..." variable - so, partially by mistake, I didn't add that efi_gpu suffix and entered this incomplete path accidentally
*) printf "\x07\x00\x00\x00\x01\x00\x00\x00" > /sys/firmware/efi/efivars/gpu-power-prefs-fa4ce28d-b62f-4c99-9cc3-6815686e30f9
Did not have a EFI "gpu-power-prefs-" variable so I thought that it will be OK to create a new one with a random UUID - in this case, taken directly from a gpu-switch script
*) chattr +i "/sys/firmware/efi/efivars/gpu-power-prefs-fa4ce28d-b62f-4c99-9cc3-6815686e30f9"
http://www.tecmint.com/chattr-command-examples/ - chattr (Change Attribute) is a command line Linux utility that is used to set/unset certain attributes to a file in Linux system to secure accidental deletion or modification of important files and folders, even though you are logged in as a root user.
...
Syntax of chattr ---> chattr [operator] [flags] [filename]
...
A file is set with ‘i‘ attribute (+i as you see in this command) ---> cannot be modified (immutable). Means no renaming, no symbolic link creation, no execution, no writable, only superuser can unset the attribute.
...
Operator
This chattr command is supposed to lock a file to make it accessible only by "superuser" - and so that, while booting, your EFI will have no chance to screw up your gpu-power-prefs-... variable under any circumstances
- + : Adds the attribute to the existing attribute of the files.
- – : Removes the attribute to the existing attribute of the files.
- = : Keep the existing attributes that the files have.
*) cd /
Could not unmount efivars if you are inside this directory, so change to the root directory
*) umount /sys/firmware/efi/efivars/
Guarantees that your EFI variables are flushed to efivarfs filesystem, please unmount it safely before rebooting)
*) reboot
===> IF YOU DID EVERYTHING CORRECTLY, MOST LIKELY THAT YOUR MACBOOK PRO IS NOW USING INTEGRATED GRAPHICS WHILE BOOTING, AFTER BOOTING, AND IS WORKING GREAT AGAIN !
In the future maybe you could need to re-apply this solution if you would have to reset your PRAM / NVRAM / SMC because of some other problems, so remember this solution somewhere... Funny thing: now you can't switch to Discrete GPU even using gfxCardStatus, it is forever stuck at Integrated
I spent two working days to discover this solution, and really hope that it will work flawlessly for every MBP owner with a broken discrete GPU. Good luck!
If you disable your discrete graphics ( the one that is messing up your computer) , then you have pretty much disabled that ability. Sorry for the bad news.
Thanks for the quick reply. I guess when I did all the changes in single user mode I was not really sure what I was doing only that it WORKED and that was good enough for me. If that means I disabled the ability for an external monitor, that is OK, just good to know so I do not keep searching for a solution. I am just THRILLED i was able to bring the MacBook pro back up, and back up everything on an external hard drive. I am not very high tech but feel great i was able to solve this with this website and all the great people who show on the internet how to fix things. I am excited about that. Yes bummed that my MacBook pro is only 5 years old (from when I purchased it) and will probably need to buy another one so I can use my larger monitor. Thanks again for the quick reply.
[doublepost=1504550626][/doublepost]
is there an easy way to add back a new external graphics card or is it best, in your opinion, to buy a new apple
Could it cause any harm if I still go through the whole procedure? I have a great, complete list that has been done by one person at the forum!
I would not expect any problems, especially since you have gained experience by now and already did more than ~90% of the work successfully before. Hack away.
If you are going to want to use that monitor, I would recommend buying a new one, and not fixing this one. The problem will just come back, as it has for many on this forum, and likely many more not on this forum.
Mikey, I did a clean installation of El Capitan 10.11.6, security update and went through the whole procedure. Now, I'm basically in the same situation as I was before the "new start"...this machine is booting as before, in verbose mode and I when I try to do the rest of the procedure ("LoginHook part"), it fails. I entered your "test commands" in terminal and AMDRadeonX3000.kext was not found. And actually now this thing is getting really hot; 88-90c, 6200 rpm using only Safari. In finder, I didn't see that AMDRadeonX3000.kext was in either System/Library/Extensions or System/Library/Extensions-off folders. Is it possible that AMDRadeonX3000.kext did not exist in basic El capitan installation?