MP 1,1-5,1 Installing Osx without EFI compatible GFX card (Mac Pro 5.1) ???

[oztig]

Hi,

I've got a Mac Pro 5.1 (Mid 2010) - which I bought as a raw machine (no drive or GFX).
I've plugged in a new drive, and have an Nvidia GTX1060.

My problem is:
How, or indeed can I install Mac OSX to this machine - As the GFX card is not native, so I don't get any boot options etc, so can't see what I'm doing, or if indeed the machine is attempting to boot.

I'm hoping there is a way, otherwise I'll have to start scouring eBay etc for a comparable GFX card, just to boot it.
I do have a NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT from a Mac Pro 1.1 - but this doesn't seem to work (EFI 32/64 bit issues, I believe)

Any help would be massively appreciated.

Many thanks,
Nick

 

[r6mile]

Pretty sure you need a Mac GPU for this. I've usually gone with a Geforce GT120 which is cheap enough, doesn't require extra power (so you can run it alongside your 1060 if you wish), and won't cause any compatibility issues with your 1060, which can happen if you're mixing ATI and Nvidia cards.

I would say you especially need a proper Apple GPU as your 1060 is Pascal, which not only means won't work beyond High Sierra, but you'll need to install the Nvidia webdrivers to get any picture at all - and sometimes I've found that the Mac likes to defaults to OSX drivers which means no picture, so I have to screen share into it to turn the webdrivers back on. If you have a free PCIe slot then just leave the GT120 in there so you can switch the monitor to it if it happens.

 

[macguru9999]

Do you have any other mac computers there ? You could make a high sierra boot drive and install the nvidia drivers onto that then pop it in the 5,1. But in the long run you will need a card that can run mojave, anyways, like a flashed nvidia 680,780 or a radeon 7xxx , rx5xx from ebay.

 

[oztig]

Thanks for the replies.

I have a bootable Mojave USB stick - I tried using that, and eventually I got an install screen (Patience was the key here, which I don't think I had enough of on the first few attempts)

Sadly my card isn't Metal compatible, so I'm going to try and build a bootable USB stick for an earlier version of OSX (El Capitan), and see if I can install from that to get me started.

If that works, I'll post how I got there, in case anyone else has similar issues



Cheers,
Nick

 

[macguru9999]

You need another mac, to bootstrap your efforts, or you need the right video card , flashed, for your mac.

 

[oztig]

You need another mac, to bootstrap your efforts, or you need the right video card , flashed, for your mac.

Cheers,

I've got an iMac27" and am following the instructions here, to build a bootable USB stick:

Create a bootable installer for macOS – Apple Support (UK)

Use an external drive or secondary volume as a startup disk from which to install macOS.

support.apple.com

I've nicked the Nvidia GTX465 card out of my Mac Pro 1.1 (upgraded BIOS to 2.1, CPU to Dual 4core 3GHz etc - The Mac Pro 1.1 Upgrade was relatively easy, as I had a compatible GFX card, so could see what was going on)

Thanks for all the help so far

I must update my sig with the machines I have.

 

[KeesMacPro]

I'm going to try and build a bootable USB stick for an earlier version of OSX (El Capitan), and see if I can install from that to get me started.

I think that's a smart decision, since you don't know the history of the MP.
High Sierra and Mojave installs include a FirmWare upgrade.
So depending the FW version installed now, you may have to install HS first to be able to install Mojave.
As @macguru9999 and @r6mile stated, you'll need a (cheap) OEM or flashed GPU to get started (e.g. GT120 Mac Version).
Once El Capitan works, you can install Nvidia webdrivers, swap the GPUs and check the FW version.

There's an excellent thread about how to install Mojave:

MP5,1: What you have to do to upgrade to Mojave (BootROM upgrade instructions thread)

Please fully read this first post, you will probably find that you have one or more problems described into the various notes below. Mojave will only install if you have upgraded your BootROM to the current release and your Mac Pro have a Metal capable GPU*. If you are trying to install Mojave...

forums.macrumors.com

 

[macguru9999]

Cheers,

I must update my sig with the machines I have.

You dont necessarily need to make an installer. You can get a drive in a case and CLONE a system onto it .... either hi sierra or something a bit older, then install the nvidia drivers manually , pull the drive from the case and pop it into the 5,1. That will work, and its less stressful as you dont have a boot screen in the 5,1

 

[KeesMacPro]

You dont necessarily need to make an installer. You can get a drive in a case and CLONE a system onto it .... either hi sierra or something a bit older, then install the nvidia drivers manually , pull the drive from the case and pop it into the 5,1. That will work, and its less stressful as you dont have a boot screen in the 5,1

Don't forget about the FirmWare version= compatibility

 

[macguru9999]

Don't forget about the FirmWare version= compatibility

I dont think that matters PRE-MOJAVE. And we are talking pre mojave because he has an nvidia 10xx series card.

 

[KeesMacPro]

I dont think that matters PRE-MOJAVE.

I think it does.
Pre-Mojave or not, the Firmware version should correspond to the installed OS.
As a side note: newer FW versions are backwards compatible with older OS.

 

[macguru9999]

I doubt it, but even if it did, he could start with sierra, vid drivers, any firmware then run the high sierra installer from the 5,1.

 

[KeesMacPro]

I doubt it, but even if it did, he could start with sierra, vid drivers, any firmware then run the high sierra installer from the 5,1.

Exactly.
EC or Sierra will be compatible with any possible MP5,1 FW version.

 

[KeesMacPro]

... we don't seem to agree on a lot of things LOL

 

[macguru9999]

... we don't seem to agree on a lot of things LOL

we dont even know what firmware the 5,1 has....

 

[oztig]

Thanks to all for their help

I now have a working Mac Pro 5.1, running OSX El Capitan.

Steps to get Here:-
Built a bootable USB sticking - https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT201372
Replaced the GTX1060 with a GTX465

Rebooted machine with the USB stick in, wait for what seems forever (patience definitely a virtue here)
Eventually an install menu appears:
Partition disk as usual
Install OS, after the install finished, I have a working Pro 5.1 - no boot screen, but to be expected, but otherwise the 465 works well

1 Problem I did hit while installing is detailed below (no eligible products to install), with relevant fix

El Capitan. no packages were eligible for… - Apple Community

discussions.apple.com

FYI: Boot Rom Version = 144.0.0 SMC version system and tray = 1.39f11

My next steps are to upgrade from where I've got so far.

Thanks to everyone for their help

 

[KeesMacPro]

we dont even know what firmware the 5,1 has....

That's why i wrote:

EC or Sierra will be compatible with any possible MP5,1 FW version.

Anyway, the MP seems to have the latest BootRom, so with a METAL GPU could directly install Mojave.

Boot Rom Version = 144.0.0 SMC version system and tray = 1.39f11

 

[oztig]

Cheers All,

I just need to find a Metal GPU now, at a 'reasonable' price - for now though, will keep upgrading with the 465 in place, until I get to a version I can get the GTX1060 working - that will be a good starting point

I'll post any issues along the way, in case it's of any use / interest to anyone

Once again, thanks to all for help / advice

 

[jbarley]

Cheers All,

I just need to find a Metal GPU now, at a 'reasonable' price - f

For what it's worth I use the Nvidia GT 640, I have both a 1GB and the 2GB versions, both work well for my purposes.

Gt 640 Mojave for sale | eBay

Get the best deals for Gt 640 Mojave at eBay.com. We have a great online selection at the lowest prices with Fast & Free shipping on many items!

www.ebay.com

 

[startergo]

For what it's worth I use the Nvidia GT 640, I have both a 1GB and the 2GB versions, both work well for my purposes.
View attachment 948283

Gt 640 Mojave for sale | eBay

Get the best deals for Gt 640 Mojave at eBay.com. We have a great online selection at the lowest prices with Fast & Free shipping on many items!

www.ebay.com

I got 2 EVGA GT-640 with MVC (single slot PCIE power), but even GT-710 non EFI, works alas no boot screen. All 700 series have GOP support in the vbios for Windows 10.

 

[oztig]

I've now got a Nvidia GT640 2GB on it's way - so all should be good.

Thanks All.

 

[sanfrancisofont1984]

FWIW:
- An Nvidia Pascal card (like 1060) means either Sierra or High Sierra. No Web driver in Mojave.
- RX 580 is the go to easy choice for Metal support in Mojave with good GPU performance.

 

[DFP1989]

As above, I picked up an RX580, though I probably should have saved 30% and gone for the RX570 since I don’t expect to be editing video on my 5,1.

What I did when installing Mojave on mine was format the SSD on another Mac (GUID with APFS) and the system automatically booted from the only drive with something on it, the Mojave install USB. You could do the same with High Sierra.

Another option is to use OpenCore to get a boot screen on a non EFI card, but it really isn’t necessary.

 

[oztig]

I've just had a reply from the eBay seller who says : "I just wanted to know if you have bought this card for use in an apple Mac. If it's for use in WINDOWS PC then it's all good. If it's for an apple Mac OS then I am afraid it needs software update." (I've replied and am awaiting an answer)

I presume by this it means I'll need to flash the BIOS - Is this just so that I'll get boot screens etc, or will it just not work if not flashed ?

Obvious next question is how / where do I get the stuff from to flash it?

Thanks again for any help

 

[KeesMacPro]

I've now got a Nvidia GT640 2GB on it's way

The GT640 is a Kepler Nvidia GPU and will work unflashed or flashed.
Under OS El Capitan up to High Sierra you can install webdrivers if you want, but it will work with the Apple default drivers too.
Under Mojave (and up) there are no Nvidia webdrivers available , but the Kepler cards are natively supported .

I presume by this it means I'll need to flash the BIOS - Is this just so that I'll get boot screens etc, or will it just not work if not flashed ?

For this card flashing is not needed to work, only to get a bootscreen.