I finally got the windows 8 installed.
It requires none of the EFI hacks discussed on this thread and no slipstream of drivers required.
After the install, the best part is that it takes only
10 seconds to boot off a SSD.
This works on my mbp 8,3 (late 2011):
1. Take a blank SSD.
2. Clear NVRAM/PRAM. Command-Option-P-R keys during boot.
3. Add autounattend.xml to your usb or dvd install.
The key here is to enable Remote desktop through autounattend.xml.
4. Install Windows 8. It will reboot twice with black screen.
5. After it stopped rebooting you will still see a blank screen,
6. Attached it to cable/DSL router with an
ethernet wire. Router will assign it a DHCP address.
6. Using a different computer, rdesktop into the machine and go to the device manager and disable the Intel graphics card. I did not touch the ATI card driver.
7. Magically the blank screen goes away.
🙂
Here is my autoattend.xml that goes on root directory of dvd or usb:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<unattend xmlns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:unattend">
<settings pass="specialize">
<component name="Microsoft-Windows-TerminalServices-LocalSessionManager" processorArchitecture="amd64" publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" language="neutral" versionScope="nonSxS" xmlns:wcm="http://schemas.microsoft.com/WMIConfig/2002/State" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
<fDenyTSConnections>false</fDenyTSConnections>
</component>
<component name="Networking-MPSSVC-Svc" processorArchitecture="amd64" publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" language="neutral" versionScope="nonSxS" xmlns:wcm="http://schemas.microsoft.com/WMIConfig/2002/State" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
<FirewallGroups>
<FirewallGroup wcm:action="add" wcm:keyValue="RemoteDesktop">
<Active>true</Active>
<Group>Remote Desktop</Group>
<Profile>all</Profile>
</FirewallGroup>
</FirewallGroups>
</component>
<component name="Microsoft-Windows-Shell-Setup" processorArchitecture="amd64" publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" language="neutral" versionScope="nonSxS" xmlns:wcm="http://schemas.microsoft.com/WMIConfig/2002/State" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
<ComputerName>MacBookPro83</ComputerName>
</component>
</settings>
<settings pass="windowsPE">
<component name="Microsoft-Windows-International-Core-WinPE" processorArchitecture="amd64" publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" language="neutral" versionScope="nonSxS" xmlns:wcm="http://schemas.microsoft.com/WMIConfig/2002/State" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
<SetupUILanguage>
<UILanguage>en-US</UILanguage>
</SetupUILanguage>
<InputLocale>en-US</InputLocale>
<SystemLocale>en-US</SystemLocale>
<UILanguage>en-US</UILanguage>
<UserLocale>en-US</UserLocale>
</component>
<component name="Microsoft-Windows-Setup" processorArchitecture="amd64" publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" language="neutral" versionScope="nonSxS" xmlns:wcm="http://schemas.microsoft.com/WMIConfig/2002/State" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
<DiskConfiguration>
<Disk wcm:action="add">
<CreatePartitions>
<CreatePartition wcm:action="add">
<Order>1</Order>
<Size>100</Size>
<Type>EFI</Type>
</CreatePartition>
<CreatePartition wcm:action="add">
<Order>3</Order>
<Extend>true</Extend>
<Type>Primary</Type>
</CreatePartition>
<CreatePartition wcm:action="add">
<Order>2</Order>
<Size>128</Size>
<Type>MSR</Type>
</CreatePartition>
</CreatePartitions>
<ModifyPartitions>
<ModifyPartition wcm:action="add">
<Order>1</Order>
<PartitionID>1</PartitionID>
<Label>System</Label>
<Format>FAT32</Format>
</ModifyPartition>
<ModifyPartition wcm:action="add">
<Order>3</Order>
<PartitionID>3</PartitionID>
<Label>Windows</Label>
<Format>NTFS</Format>
</ModifyPartition>
<ModifyPartition wcm:action="add">
<Order>2</Order>
<PartitionID>2</PartitionID>
</ModifyPartition>
</ModifyPartitions>
<DiskID>0</DiskID>
<WillWipeDisk>true</WillWipeDisk>
</Disk>
<WillShowUI>OnError</WillShowUI>
</DiskConfiguration>
<ImageInstall>
<OSImage>
<InstallTo>
<DiskID>0</DiskID>
<PartitionID>3</PartitionID>
</InstallTo>
</OSImage>
</ImageInstall>
<UserData>
<ProductKey>
<WillShowUI>OnError</WillShowUI>
<Key>TK8TP-9JN6P-7X7WW-RFFTV-B7QPF</Key>
</ProductKey>
<AcceptEula>true</AcceptEula>
</UserData>
</component>
<component name="Microsoft-Windows-TCPIP" processorArchitecture="amd64" publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" language="neutral" versionScope="nonSxS" xmlns:wcm="http://schemas.microsoft.com/WMIConfig/2002/State" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
<Interfaces>
<Interface wcm:action="add">
<Ipv4Settings>
<DhcpEnabled>true</DhcpEnabled>
<RouterDiscoveryEnabled>true</RouterDiscoveryEnabled>
</Ipv4Settings>
<Identifier>Local Area Connection</Identifier>
</Interface>
</Interfaces>
</component>
</settings>
<settings pass="oobeSystem">
<component name="Microsoft-Windows-Shell-Setup" processorArchitecture="amd64" publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35" language="neutral" versionScope="nonSxS" xmlns:wcm="http://schemas.microsoft.com/WMIConfig/2002/State" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
<AutoLogon>
<Password>
<Value>test</Value>
<PlainText>true</PlainText>
</Password>
<Username>Administrator</Username>
<Enabled>true</Enabled>
<LogonCount>5</LogonCount>
</AutoLogon>
<UserAccounts>
<AdministratorPassword>
<Value>test</Value>
<PlainText>true</PlainText>
</AdministratorPassword>
<LocalAccounts>
<LocalAccount wcm:action="add">
<Password>
<Value>test</Value>
<PlainText>true</PlainText>
</Password>
<Name>testuser</Name>
</LocalAccount>
</LocalAccounts>
</UserAccounts>
<OOBE>
<HideEULAPage>true</HideEULAPage>
<NetworkLocation>Other</NetworkLocation>
<ProtectYourPC>3</ProtectYourPC>
<SkipMachineOOBE>true</SkipMachineOOBE>
<SkipUserOOBE>true</SkipUserOOBE>
</OOBE>
</component>
</settings>
<cpi
😱fflineImage cpi:source="wim:c:/w8image/sources/install.wim#Windows 8" xmlns:cpi="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:cpi" />
</unattend>
