ASUS P6T on 64-bit Snow Leopard 10.6
Comments(90) The ASUS P6T is one of the less expensive LGA 1366 motherboards at the moment. It features some cool overclocking BIOS settings, FireWire, external E-SATA onboard port, and is SLI/CrossFire-capable. SLI/CrossFire is the main difference between the P6T and the P6T SE but you could always cross flash the P6T SE into a P6T to get SLI support. I put a Core i7 920 CPU in it and populated three of the six RAM banks with 2 GB Patriot Viper DDR-3 DIMMs. This baby has OSX86 written all over it, it screams to be run on Snow Leopard :-)
You probably should have at least some OSX86 experience to understand what I’m talking about in this post. This is not an installation walkthrough, I just list the important points you need to take care of when running SL on the ASUS P6T. If you need installation support, please refer to the appropriate OSX86 forums.
There are quite a few catches when installing Snow Leopard (SL) 10.6.0 on an ASUS P6T motherboard. One thing that’s very important to me is that I’m able to use the vanilla XNU kernel. Vanilla simply rulez. It makes updating so much easier. With the ASUS P6T that’s no problem. Even sleep works with no additional kernel extensions. No kernel boot flags are needed with this board. I used one of the many USB stick based installation guides on the net. I’m using Chameleon v2 RC3 as EFI boot loader on the USB stick and on my SL installation drive.
One thing you may want to stay away from are DSDT.aml files created with DSDT-Patcher. DSDT-Patcher creates useful DSDT files for many boards but my P6T doesn’t seem to be one of them. If I use DSDT.aml created with DSDT-Patcher 1.0.1e the kernel always hangs early in the boot process:
Oct 12 00:28:20 localhost kernel[0]: IOAPIC: Version 0×20 Vectors 64:87
Oct 12 00:28:20 localhost kernel[0]: IOAPIC: Version 0×20 Vectors 88:111
It just wouldn’t boot any further. Only when I took out all the DIMMs leaving only the first bank populated I eventually was able to boot. But who wants to use only 2 GB of RAM in a nice triple-channel board?! After hours of experimenting I finally found the culprit: it’s DSDT-Patcher! The modifications the patcher adds to the DSDT are not compatible with my P6T board. That’s when I started to use the “vanilla” DSDT file. You can also use DSDT-Patcher to create the vanilla DSDT file. Call the GetDSDT script that comes with DSDT-Patcher. It will create a file named dsdt.dat. I renamed it to DSDT.aml and saved it to /Extra. Now I was able to start up SL with 6 GB of RAM for the first time. Use iASL (it also comes with the DSDT-Patcher archive) to decompile the DSDT.aml to the human-readable version which usually has the extension .dsl.
If you notice slow drive access on S-ATA > port #1 drives you will need to apply some IRQ modifications in your DSDT.dsl. See this thread for more information or just grab my DSDT below which has this IRQ patch already applied.
- DSDT.aml for ASUS P6T – ready to use with boot loader
- DSDT.dsl for ASUS P6T – human-readable version (mind you, I didn’t say human-understandable version)
- com.apple.Boot.plist for Chameleon v2 boot loader (yeah, I prefer that legacy logo too :-)) for SL installation drive
Hardware
I’m only using S-ATA/P-ATA drives, I don’t recommend using the IDE port.
- Flash BIOS revision v1004. This is essential! The provided DSDT below may not work properly in case you use an older BIOS version.
- Disconnect all unneeded drives
- Make sure your installation drive is connected to the first SATA port which is SATA1 on the P6T
BIOS settings
Start off with resetting to default settings.
- Set storage to AHCI
- Enable ACPI 2.0 support
- Enable ACPI APIC support
- Make sure the BIOS lists your installation drive as the first drive even if you boot from a prepared USB stick.
- Set DDR-3 rate to reflect correct memory timing (optional)
- Disable JMicron ATA (optional, unless you use those additional S-ATA ports)
- Disable ASUS Express Gate (optional, but it’s useless anyway)
- Disable IEEE 1394 (optional, unless you need FireWire)
Minimum kexts
The minimum kernel extensions to get a bootable OSX86 are:
- fakesmc.kext (see netkas.org for latest SL version)
- OpenHaltRestart.kext (needed for proper shutdown/restart)
- AHCIPortInjector.kext and IOAHCIBlockStorageInjector.kext are not needed
Optional kexts
Optional kernel extensions:
- Marionez’ AppleHDA.kext – Probably the easiest way to get sound from that Realtek ALC1200 chip. Install it using Kext Helper to /S/L/E. Download it here. If the volume meter works but you’re not hearing any sound, check your sound preferences if line out is selected.
- JMicronATA.kext- (if you’re using those additional S-ATA ports)
Once everything is up and running: remove fakesmc.kext from /Extra/Extensions and install it using Kext Helper to your SL installation partition. This will speed up booting. I deliberatly run my OSX86 PC in 64-bit kernel mode so there’s no RAM page swapping when the OS accesses the memory above 4 GB.
There’s one more thing…
Bonjour discovery doesn’t work out of the box. That’s why you may not (reliably) see other Macs in your network. Or why you’re unable to pair your Apple TV to your iTunes Library. Apparently, the onboard network chip doesn’t see any multicast network traffic. One way to fix this is to put the network interface into promiscuous mode. See here for details. Promiscuous mode is just a temporary solution until a proper multicast fix will be available, i.e. a working 64-bit version of RealtekR1000.kext.
Check out this implementation of the RealtekR1000 LAN driver. It’s working for the RTL8168C/8111C LAN chip in 64 bit mode and multicast is working as well, which means, no more troubles seeing other Apple devices on the network. There is some support for this driver in this thread over at insanelymac.com.
Looking for kexts? Here’s the kext package I’m using on my P6T based system.
Once everything is up and running, check out this blog post for some speed enhancements using a fine tuned DSDT.
You may also be interested to read:
- Snow Leopard 10.6 on MSI Wind U100 netbook
This is not a how-to guide, tutorial or walk-through, I just list the kexts and settings needed to get Snow Leopard 10.6.0 or 10.6.1 up... - ASUS P6T & Mac OS X Lion 10.7 dev preview using XPC boot loader
I finally managed to run Mac OS X Lion 10.7 developer preview on my ASUS P6T Hackintosh rig. Installation from a USB thumb drive is... - ASUS P6T Hackintosh Geekbench tuning using DSDT
I always thought that my 12400 Geekbench score using an overclocked i7 920 CPU on my ASUS P6T Hackintosh was pretty fast. Today, fleebailey left...
By the way, updating to 10.6.1 was a breeze. I’m looking forward to 10.6.2 as it’s going to bring a new Darwin kernel version (10.2.0). I hope everything will as run rock solid as with the current 10.0.0 kernel.
I have the same system setup but unable to get OSX up and running under vmware 6.5 or 7 workstation. I wonder if you are able to create the vmware image and upload it via torrent or somewhere to download?
Any chance you could recommend one of the USB stick guides to follow? I have the same board and was looking into trying this out. There appears to be a few guides… Was just going to pick one and run with it, but if one worked better for you all the better.
Thanks
@Jason: I started off with this one:
http://www.insanelymac.com/for.....pic=189052
…to create a bootable USB stick with SL on it but I did not use their kexts and scripts.
Cheers,
Jan
Updating to 10.6.2 was a breeze again, everything is still working as expected.
Hi
Ive been trying to get osx snow leopard on my pc for a few days with no success.
My machine is
P6t (normal) bios 801
i7 920
nvidia gtx 295
6gb ram
Which guide could you solidly recommend for installing osx? I have tried one which was for the se board, but someone had modified it for p6t (normal) . I had no success. What i need are. Concrete bios settings, installation files and installation method.
I hope you can help, getting rather desperate to get this to work. Dont feel like spending on a new mac, just yet!
Thanks again
Alexdbad
Alexdbad, you’ll find the BIOS settings in this post. I don’t know if there are any P6T guides out there in the OSX86 community. Installing a Hackintosh from retail DVD can be a pretty time consuming adventure sometimes. It involves a lot of digging, reading, searching, trying, experimenting, tuning…
Cheers,
Jan
Alexdbad,
I have the same exact setup as you (minus the GFX card).
Asus P6T (reg) bio 0801
i7 920
Nvidia 8800GTS 640mb
8gb Corsair XMS3 1600mhz DDR3
My bios settings:
Storage (1st page) -> ACHI
Enable ACPI
3rd page -> Onboard Devices -> Jmicron -> Enabled w/ ACHI
Use this guide:
http://www.insanelymac.com/for.....pic=189052
With these files instead:
http://redirectingat.com/?id=2.....f6e8ebb871
To get to 10.6.2 follow this guide:
http://www.aymansworld.com/fil.....7c5-4.html
Hope that helps!
I don’t know what I’m doing wrong but I can’t get past Waiting for DSMOS…
I followed the directions above. Replaced the dsdt with the one from here and waiting for dsmos
Replaced dsdt and removed dsmos.kxt and still waiting for dsmos.
p6t with 0801 bios. ACHI with acpi enabled.
Someone please help. this is insane!
Actually forget what I wrote up there. The problem was the drive I was installing to had a previous bootloader in there causing some confusion. Once I formatted the drive it went away.
Just one question. Are you replacing the dsdt from the file linked above with the one on this website? Are you doing anything else or just formatting a usbstick and restoring sl on there. Then running boot prep from the p6t essentials from the link above. Did you make any changes?
Thanks
Hi –
Thank you for posting this. I am, however, having problems just getting into install.
When I boot and the USB drive initiates, I get the legacy boot screen and the spinning circle, which goes on for some time. Then it simply freezes and then – nothing. It just all hangs like that.
I created my USB installer by following this post:
http://prasys.co.cc/2009/09/in.....-easy-way/
I also included your DSDT.aml, DSDT.dsl, and your com.apple.Boot.plist in the USB install’s /Extra folder. All kext requirements you mentioned above are there.
Could you please help me out?
Thanks!
Hi, on the P6T this usually happens when your boot drive is not on the first SATA port and/or AHCI is not enabled. If that doesn’t help, try to boot in verbose mode (-v) and post your findings in one of the OSX86 community boards. I’m sure someone will be able to help you.
Cheers,
Jan
i got SL installed but upon reboot the USB stick goes back into install mode and my HD with Sl installed on it is not coming up. I can go into disk utility from the OSX installer and see my HD as a startup disk but it does not come up after reboot. What do i need to do to make this SL disk work? Thanks so much for the info so far which got me to this point.
AB
acbionic, do you see the created SL HD partition when you boot from your USB stick in the blue partition selection screen with the chameleon on top?
When I do the install i see it but after the install in done and i restart it just goes back into the install screen. You said to make sure you use Sata port1, but the drive only comes up on port 0. When i put it on port one its not seen by the Osx installer.
Just use the first SATA port, it’s labeled SATA 1 on all P6T boards, there is no SATA 0. From the distance it’s really hard to tell what’s missing. Usually, after the installation is complete, you just boot into Chameleon with the USB stick, (remove the USB stick after Chameleon shows up to make sure you can’t continue with the stick), and select the HD in Chameleon and that should boot into the Mac OS UI. There’s no way you land back at the Mac OS installation screen in that case.
if i remove the Extra folder from the USB stick then I fet the CHameleon screen to choose my HD, I choose my SL drive and the wheel just keeps spinning it never boots up OSX properly. What am I missing?
Regards,
AB
If you have the ASUS P6T board and if you have to remove the Extra folder on your USB stick so your HD shows up in Chameleon, there’s something seriously wrong in the first place.
After the initial installation it’s impossible to successfully boot without the kexts in /E on your USB stick because those kexts are needed.
Thanks for that info. i do have the p6t board. If something is wrong any clue on how I might go about trying to fix it? WHen the extra folder is present on my USB stick, i’m stuck in the install loop. When I remove the EXTRA folder from the stick both the USB stick and my HD show up. But I can not get the HD to boot into OSX. Which additional kexts do I need to get my HD to boot normally? As you can tell this all is new to me, so be gentle.
Warm Regards,
AB
I’m afraid, I’m running out of ideas. You may want to ask in the OSX86 scene forums for further advice.
Cheers
Jan
Hi Jan,
can you contact me (I provided my email in the form) I have a special proposition to make to you. (but wasn’t able to find any contact form anywhere else … probably because there isn’t any :)
thanks
Cheers
A.
Thanks to you I did get this far. So you did give me a gimmer of hope. I think i’m just a few edits away from getting this hack to work. If you come across anything you think might help i would be greatful if you pas it on. I’ll check the OSX86 furoms for more info.
peace & Blessings,
AB
Hey~ I got the USB stick to boot but it keeps freezing when I load disk utility….. any ideas?
In my case this always happened when the target disk was not on SATA 1 (the first SATA port).
Cheers,
Jan
Hey Jan, Thanks for the tip….. I just tried it still not working…… freezing on gathering information in disk utility