Chimera 1.9 Update: Multiple NVIDIA Cards, Ivy Bridge and GTX 680 Support

Today MacMan updated Chimera to version 1.9. The most exciting change is the addition of a new bit of GraphicsEnabler code from the Chameleon team to enable multiple NVIDIA graphics cards without any extra DSDT edits necessary! He's also added support for Intel's soon to be released Ivy Bridge CPUs and GraphicsEnabler detection for NVIDIA's new GeForce GTX 680. This new version will be included in the next MultiBeast release.

 

Chimera v1.9 Changes:

• Back-ported the following Chameleon commit:
• r1903 "NVDA,Child" device_type support for non-primary NVIDIA cards.
• Multiple graphics cards work without any extra DSDT edits.
• Added support for Ivy Bridge CPUs.
• Added GraphicsEnabler detection code for NVIDIA GTX 680 and GT 620.
• Driver support is still missing in Mac OS X.
• Added additional missing NVIDIA cards.
• Added GT540M device id 0x0DF4 to memory detection work around.
• Cleaned up Sandy Bridge-E CPU detection and support code. 

NOTE: Proper drivers are required for full graphics support.

There is a standalone installer, available at tonymacx86.com/downloads. For bug reporting, feature requests, and general feedback please use the Chimera forum.

-tonymacx86 & MacMan

Related Posts:
Chimera 1.8 Update
Chimera 1.7 Update
Chimera 1.6 Update
Chimera 1.5.4 Update: FaceTime Fix
Chimera 1.5 Update- Sandy Bridge HD 3000 Onboard Graphics Support

For discussions on this and other topics, register today at tonymacx86.com!

Hackintosh Basics: Kernel Panics & Boot Flags

Our friend StingRay has been hard at work illustrating the basics of Hackintoshing through a series of helpful learning videos. These next two focus on troubleshooting your system. The first explains some of the causes and solutions to certain system crashes, or kernel panics. The other is an introduction to the uses of bootloader flags. Produced and narrated by StingRay. 

Related Posts:
All tonymacx86 Video
Hackintosh Under the Hood: Post-Installation System Overview 
UniBeast: Install Mac OS X Lion Using an All-In-One Bootable USB Drive
Building a Sandy Bridge CustoMac: Buyer's Guide

For discussions on this and other topics, register today at tonymacx86.com!

Chimera 1.7 Update

Today MacMan updated Chimera to version 1.7. This version will be included in the next MultiBeast release.

Chimera v1.7.0 Changes:

• Added support for additional ATI video cards. 
• Added support for additional NVIDIA video cards.
• Added additional cards to NVIDIA memory detection workaround.
• Added change to allow overriding ATI Null frame buffer.
• Back ported the following Chameleon commits:
• r1671 Updated credits
• r1674 Improved Multi-drive boot support from dmazar.
• r1710 Fix for kernel flags not being passed to kernel on RAID volumes.

NOTE: Proper drivers are required for full graphics support.

There is a standalone installer, available at tonymacx86.com/downloads. For bug reporting, feature requests, and general feedback please use the Chimera forum.

-tonymacx86 & MacMan

Related Posts:
MacManx86 Blog: Chimera 1.7.0 Change Log

For discussions on this and other topics, register today at tonymacx86.com!

Chimera 1.6 Update

Today MacMan updated Chimera to version 1.6. 

Chimera v1.6.0 Changes:

• Based on Chameleon 2.0 r1394
• Back-ported new FaceTime fix with RAID 0 support from Chameleon 2.1svn r1649
• Enhanced verbose messages from ati.c
• Added support for additional AMD graphics cards
• 0x68A1, ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5850 
• 0x68B8, ATI Radeon HD 5770 
• 0x68C0, ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5730  
• 0x68C1, ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5650 
• 0x6739, AMD Radeon HD 6850  
• 0x6740, AMD Radeon HD 6770M 
• 0x6741, AMD Radeon HD 6630M 
• 0x6758, AMD Radeon HD 6670 
• 0x6760, AMD Radeon HD 6490M 
• 0x6720, AMD Radeon HD 6900M Series 
• 0x6761, AMD Radeon HD 6430M Series 
• Added support for Nvidia Quadro NVS 4200M

NOTE: Proper drivers are required for full graphics support.

There is a standalone installer, available at tonymacx86.com/downloads. For bug reporting, feature requests, and general feedback please use the Chimera forum.

-tonymacx86 & MacMan

For discussions on this and other topics, register today at tonymacx86.com!

Chimera 1.5.4 Update: FaceTime Fix

Today MacMan updated Chimera to version 1.5.4 with a FaceTime fix for OS X Lion. 

Chimera v1.5.4 Changes:

• Based on Chameleon 2.0 revision 1394
• FaceTime Fix for OS X Lion 10.7.x - Credit to olegpronin
• New boot flag required for RAID 0 boot only - SkipFTFix=Yes
• Disables the FaceTime Fix code that is currently incompatible with RAID 0. Thanks to Lnx2Mac for the idea.
• Added additional GTX 570 device id
• Changed default frame buffer to Bullrushes for all 6670 and 6450 models
• Added card-specific GraphicsEnabler information for the following: 
• 3 additional Radeon HD 6870 models
• 1 additional Radeon HD 6850 model
• 1 additional Radeon HD 6750 model
• 2 additional Radeon HD 6670 models

NOTE: Proper drivers are required for full graphics support.

There is a standalone installer, available at tonymacx86.com/downloads. For bug reporting, feature requests, and general feedback please use the Chimera forum.

To read the full list of changes, and detailed explanation behind them, check out MacMan's Blog.

-tonymacx86 & MacMan

For discussions on this and other topics, register today at tonymacx86.com!

Chimera 1.5 Update: Sandy Bridge HD 3000 Onboard Graphics Support

Today MacMan updated Chimera to version 1.5.0. 

Chimera v1.5 Changes:

• Intel HD 3000 Onboard Graphics now supported with full acceleration via GraphicsEnabler!
• No DSDT edits or kext edits necessary
• Multiple connectors available with MacBookPro8,x or MacMini5,x smbios.plist.

• /Extra/com.apple.Boot.plist is now depreciated
• /Extra/org.chameleon.Boot.plist MUST be used
• Chimera installer automatically renames this file
• Added GraphicsEnabler auto-detection for 12 additional AMD 6000 cards
• Supports both 10.7.x Lion and 10.6.x Snow Leopard
• Based on Chameleon 2.0 source

Chimera 1.5 is recommended for all systems. There is a standalone installer, available at tonymacx86.com/downloads. For bug reporting, feature requests, and general feedback please use the Chimera forum.

-tonymacx86 & MacMan

For discussions on this and other topics, register today at tonymacx86.com!

MultiBeast 3.7 Update

Today MultiBeast was updated to version 3.7.  The latest version is now available at tonymacx86.com/downloads.

Please do not upload or redistribute MultiBeast to any other sites. 

Full list of changes:

• Upgraded Chimera to v1.4.1 r877
• Upgraded Chameleon 2.0 RC5 - Prerelease to trunk r877
• Replaced IntelThermal with IntelCPUMonitor in FakeSMC Plugins.
• Removed Chameleon 2.0 RC5 - ATI Experimental; superseded by Chimera.
• Removed Chameleon 2.0 RC5 - Sandy Bridge; superseded by Chimera.

If this utility has helped you, please consider a contribution to support further MultiBeast development.  Thanks in advance, and enjoy!

-tonymacx86 & MacMan

For discussions on this and other topics, register today at tonymacx86.com!

Chimera 1.4.1 Update

Today, Chimera has been updated to version 1.4.1. iBoot has been updated to 3.0.4, including this version. Until MultiBeast is updated, we've created a standalone installer for Chimera, available at tonymacx86.com/downloads. 

Chimera v1.4.1 Changes:

• Based on Chameleon 2.0 RC5 trunk r877
• Fixed 32x multiplier BIOS limitation on Gigabyte Sandy Bridge Motherboards
• Fixed reboot loop with vanilla kernel on ASRock, Intel, and MSI Sandy Bridge Motherboards
• Fixed reporting incorrect Processor Interconnect Speed on LGA 1155/1156 systems
• Fixed RAM speed detection on LGA 1366 systems (Thanks Kabyl)
• Added Xeon CPU detection and reporting for System Profiler
• Added memory detection workaround for GeForce GT 420
• Added GraphicsEnabler auto-detection for the following cards:
• NOTE: Proper drivers are required for full support.

  

  Chimera 1.4.1 installer available

  at tonymacx86.com/downloads

  
  

• Gigabyte Radeon HD 6850
• AMD Radeon HD 6950 Series
• AMD Radeon HD 6870 Series
• AMD Radeon HD 6850 Series
• AMD Radeon HD 6790 Series
• GeForce GT 440
• GeForce GT 520
• GeForce GT 520M
• GeForce GT 530 
• GeForce GTX 560 Ti 
• GeForce GTX 570
• GeForce GTX 590
• GeForce 8400 GS additional ID
• GeForce GTS 450 additional ID

Chimera 1.4.1 is recommended for all systems. To update, simply overwrite your previous Chameleon version using MultiBeast. For bug reporting, feature requests, and general feedback please use the Chimera forum.

To read the full list of changes, and detailed explanation behind them, check out MacMan's Blog.

-tonymacx86 & MacMan

For discussions on this and other topics, register today at tonymacx86.com!

Chimera 1.3 Update

Today Chimera has been updated to version 1.3. iBoot and MultiBeast have been updated to include this version, and are available at tonymacx86.com/downloads.

Chimera v1.3 Changes:

• Based on Chameleon 2.0 RC5 trunk r760
• Added UseKernelCache=Yes|No to BootHelp
• Added basic support for AMD 6400 / 6500 / 6600 cards (Chimera 1.2)
• Additional smbios default edits (Chimera 1.2)

Chimera 1.3 is recommended for all systems. To update, simply overwrite your previous Chameleon version using MultiBeast. For bug reporting, feature requests, and general feedback please use the Chimera forum. 

-tonymacx86 & MacMan

For discussions on this and other topics, register today at tonymacx86.com!

MultiBeast 3.6 Update

Today MultiBeast was updated to version 3.6.  The latest version is now available at tonymacx86.com/downloads.

Please do not upload or redistribute MultiBeast to any other sites. 

Full list of changes:

• Upgraded Chimera to v1.3.0 r760
• Added ATI 1.6.34.13 to Graphics. This is the latest complete ATI drivers from the Mac OS X 10.6.7 Update for iMac (early 2011) that provides Radeon HD 6000 support.
• Removed ATI 1.6.32.12 from Graphics.
• Added NVIDIA 256.02.05f01 to Graphics. This is the latest complete NVIDIA drivers from the Mac OS X 10.6.7 Update for iMac (early 2011). 
• These drivers support 4xx Fermi cards, making this option a replacement for tonymacx86 NVIDIA Update 1.0, and equivalent to tonymacx86 NVIDIA Update 2.0. 
• Added iMac12,1 and iMac12,2 to System Definitions.
• Removed iMac11,3 from System Definitions.
• Renamed Chameleon Instant Menu to Instant Menu as it for Chimera and Chameleon.
• Changed the boot menu Timeout in all com.apple.Boot.plists from 1 to 2.

If this utility has helped you, please consider a contribution to support further MultiBeast development.  Thanks in advance, and enjoy!

-tonymacx86 & MacMan

For discussions on this and other topics, register today at tonymacx86.com!

Chimera Now An Official Chameleon Branch - Source Available!

Chimera has been officially accepted by the Chameleon team as a branch, and the source is now available for download. You can find it at:

http://forge.voodooprojects.org/p/chameleon/source/tree/HEAD/branches/Chimera

For bug reporting, feature requests, and general feedback please use the Chimera forum first before opening an issue at voodooprojects.

-tonymacx86 & MacMan

For discussions on this and other topics, register today at tonymacx86.com!

Chimera 1.1 Update

Today Chimera has been updated to version 1.1. iBoot and MultiBeast have been updated to include this version, and are available at tonymacx86.com/downloads.

Chimera v1.1 Changes:

• Based on Chameleon 2.0 RC5 trunk r753
• Fixed LGA 775 reboot loop
• Added Xeon CPU detection and reporting code
• Fixed DMI Table Overflow on Sandy Bridge
• Thanks to forum user AndyStubbs
• Added AMD 6xxx support to GraphicsEnabler 
• Thanks to forum user AndyStubbs
• Added GeForce GTX 560 Ti and GeForce GTX 590 Device IDs to GraphicsEnabler

Chimera 1.1 is recommended for all systems. To update, simply overwrite your previous Chameleon version using MultiBeast. For bug reporting, feature requests, and general feedback please use the Chimera forum. 

-tonymacx86 & MacMan

For discussions on this and other topics, register today at tonymacx86.com!

Chimera: Unified Chameleon Bootloader

Chameleon is an open-source project with numerous development teams working in parallel creating various branches containing new and exciting features. The source code is organized using the Subversion version control system (SVN). SVN repositories are comprised of a trunk and branches. The Chameleon team keeps the trunk as the 'stable' version, whereas side-line or experimental development projects are done in branches.

The problem is some branches have features that other branches don't have, and many new features are still not merged into the trunk. While this is an inevitable side-effect of rapid open-source development, it creates some confusion for new users. The result of multiple branches not only increases the difficulty of choosing which version of the bootloader to use, but makes it impossible to support certain hardware.

To assist new users, MacMan started a project to merge the best features from the branches into a new branch based on the latest Chameleon 2.0 RC5 trunk version. He's also added some new capabilities and fixes to support the latest hardware. 

Today we're announcing the results of that project, Chimera. This version consolidates the best features from all of the available sources for maximum compatibility across platforms. We've decided to use the name Chimera to differentiate the project from the Chameleon trunk. Our focus for Chimera going forward is to support current, new, and future hardware, not to add legacy support for older hardware. 

Chimera Includes:

• All Current Features of Chameleon 2.0 RC5 Trunk 
• Intel Sandy Bridge Support 



In mythology, a Chimera is a creature
with parts from various animals. 

• Based on valv r709 and enhanced
• ATI 5xxx Graphics Support
• All known Device IDs and Framebuffers
• From Kabyl r748
• Improved NVIDIA Graphics Support 
• All known Device IDs
• From valv r709 and other sources
• Improved Core i CPU Detection and Reporting
• Intel LGA Socket 1155/1156/1366
• Hexacore i7 Support

This project will be maintained with full source available shortly. We have asked the Chameleon team to add Chimera as an official branch. In the meantime, we've set up a dedicated area in the tonymacx86 Forum for bug reporting and feature requests.

We've added Chimera to iBoot and MultiBeast as our default recommended bootloader. It contains all of the current features that were previously available in iBoot and MultiBeast along with these new capabilities. The updated versions are now available for download at tonymacx86.com/downloads.

This wouldn't have been possible without the Chameleon team, and especially Kabyl and valv for their hard work and effort. Stay tuned for updates!

-tonymacx86 & MacMan

For discussions on this and other topics, register today at tonymacx86.com!

MultiBeast 3.5 Update

Today MultiBeast was updated to version 3.5.  The latest version is now available at tonymacx86.com/downloads.

Please do not upload or redistribute MultiBeast to any other sites. 

Full list of changes:

• Added Chimera v1.0.0 r750 bootloader. This is MacMan's branch of Chameleon that merges Kabyl's ATI code and some of valv's Sandy Bridge code. 
• Changed EasyBeast and UserDSDT to use the Chimera bootloader by default
• Updated Chameleon 2.0 RC5 - Prerelease to r750
• Added ATI 48xx Patch for 10.6.7 from netkas
• Added Realtek Gigabit Ethernet 2.0.6 plugin
• Changed UserDSDT script to install without a DSDT for a DSDT-Free install. Notification is in /private/var/log/install.log for whether a DSDT was installed or not.
• Added Marvell Yukon Ethernet, a patched AppleYukon2 plugin that adds support for the Marvell Yukon-88E8056 and Yukon-88E8057 ethernet controllers. (Removed 3.5.1)

If this utility has helped you, please consider a contribution to support further MultiBeast development.  Thanks in advance, and enjoy!

-tonymacx86 & MacMan

For discussions on this and other topics, register today at tonymacx86.com!

iBoot 3.0 Update

Today, iBoot has been updated to 3.0. Pick up the latest version at tonymacx86.com/downloads.

• Added 10.7.3 Kernel for native Sandy Bridge support
• Updated bootloader to Chimera v1.1.0
• Added iBoot Theme by Complx

Please do not upload or redistribute iBoot to any other sites.  

If this utility has helped you, please consider a contribution to support further iBoot development.  Thanks in advance, and enjoy!

-tonymacx86 & MacMan

For discussions on this and other topics, register today at tonymacx86.com!

MultiBeast 3.4 Update

Today MultiBeast was updated to version 3.4.  The latest version is now available at tonymacx86.com/downloads.

Please do not upload or redistribute MultiBeast to any other sites. 

Full list of changes:

• Added ATI 1.6.32.12 Drivers to Graphics. These are all of the updated ATI drivers from the Mac OS X 10.6.7 Update for early 2011 MacBook Pro (Sandy Bridge). This option will backup the currently installed versions to a folder on the desktop.
• Added MacBookPro8,1 System Definition
• Corrected description for Voodoo PS/2 Controller to "Enables non-USB keyboard/mouse and is 32-bit only."
• Added Voodoo PS/2 Trackpad to Miscellaneous. This adds trackpad support for Laptops and requires Voodoo PS/2 Controller to also be installed. 32-bit only.

If this utility has helped you, please consider a contribution to support further MultiBeast development.  Thanks in advance, and enjoy!

-tonymacx86 & MacMan

For discussions on this and other topics, register today at tonymacx86.com!

How To Get iBoot Functionality From MultiBeast

One of the top questions on the forum these days seems to be how to get the functionality of iBoot when booting from the hard drive. For novices, it seems like the process ends after the Combo Update. But iBoot was designed as an installation tool only- not as a permanent solution for post-installation. It is NOT a boot crutch. By using it as such, you are limiting the functionality and upgradeability of your system. Fortunately, MultiBeast contains the same drivers and files as iBoot and can allow most things to work without using a DSDT.

We created MultiBeast to solve the post-installation problem. When installed, the following MultiBeast options will allow boot from a 1 TB or less hard drive or partition, universal audio, network, and graphics. These are not the only drivers available, and may not give optimized performance. However, these options will allow you to be rid of iBoot as a boot crutch.

ATI Graphics

NVIDIA Graphics

Good luck, and see you on the forum!

-tonymacx86 & MacMan

For discussions on this and other topics, register today at tonymacx86.com!