Lifehacker Guide with GA-EP45-UD3P Motherboard

[bean5]

thanks, that worked like a charm.

 

i wish that was the only thing that was keeping me from enjoying my Hack, but now the system is KP'ing 2 seconds after opening into the finder...I'm getting KP messages. (direct links to pics below)

 

http://i846.photobucket.com/albums/ab30/hu...ton0101/kp1.jpg

 

http://i846.photobucket.com/albums/ab30/hu...ton0101/kp2.jpg

 

can anyone help me decipher what's going on?

 

Edit: whatever happened, DiskUtil is saying that my HD's catalog file has a unused node that's not erased and that there's an invalid key length so that it can't even verify the drive. wow. help?

 

(anyone in the nyc who would be down to get paid for some in-person tech support?)

 

I think when I first did my hack, the drive failed and I got that message. I freaked out and couldn't figure out what I'd did wrong, but it was just the drive acting up (actually, now that I think back it might have been the bad sata port on my board). I suggest you move that drive to another port (one of the yellow ones) format and reinstall. Hope that helps.

[huntington]

I think when I first did my hack, the drive failed and I got that message. I freaked out and couldn't figure out what I'd did wrong, but it was just the drive acting up (actually, now that I think back it might have been the bad sata port on my board). I suggest you move that drive to another port (one of the yellow ones) format and reinstall. Hope that helps.

 

 

 

 

thanks, i'll try that too. oy...

[Hello Mrs Brown]

What RAM are you using? In my system I installed DDR2 1066 RAM, however, because of timing issues I eventually found that under-clocking my RAM to 800Mhz was necessary to make my system stable (that and making sure I had the RAM voltage set correctly).

 

Apparently the UD3P has some issues with higher speeds of RAM. The recent FE bios update (for board rev 1.6) which supposedly addressed memory compatibility may have corrected the issue, but I haven't bother to check as of yet.

 

And I doubt I will until the issue I'm having with my USB keyboard and mouse is resolved. I've described it in an earlier post, but they're failing to respond after reboot until I log in remotely with LogMeIn and play around a bit. The time varies, but eventually they just start working. Needless to say, it's frustrating. Fortunately, I don't need to boot into Windows often and my computer is stable enough, that I rarely have to restart it. (I've tried everything I can think of from clearing/rebuilding caches to resetting the CMOS. The fact that the problems persists on my 10.6 installer flash drive while Win7 has no issue is also confusing. It also makes it impossible to try a clean install.)

 

Hi thanks for replying,

 

Sorry i was kinda vague..

 

Okaay..

 

I have the rev 1.6 UD3P board,

 

And the ram is 2x2GB in channel 1 (Banks 1 and 3)

 

and

 

2x1GB in channel 2 (Banks 2 and 4)

 

Ive been thinking.. Could that be the problem?

 

Uneven capacity of RAM?

Low Clock of RAM

 

Both OCZ DDR2 667 kits of the same latency and voltage..

 

I was running 10.6.2 with v3 of stell's installer and it seemed stable then time machine KP'ed without fail every time, and seemed to lose all stability..

 

So i did an install of 10.6 with v1 and it seemed stable and then it kernel panicked when i started running parallels

 

Thanks,

Daniel

 

What version of the installer did you use? Are you using the EXACT hardware?

What position are your cards in?

 

- Why not give us more to work with?

 

Sorry CoHPhasor!

 

I was quite vague..

 

Its not the exact hardware..

 

I am running:

Mobo: Gigabyte EP45 UD3P (Rev 1.6)

CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad 2.66Ghz 4MB L2 Cache Q8400

RAM: 2 x 2GB 667mhz OCZ in Channel 1 (Banks 1 and 3) and 2 x 1GB 667mhz OCZ in Channel 2 (Banks 3 and 4)

GFX: Asus Silent nVidia 8400GS

Other standard HDD's and stuff.

 

My Install method,

 

The first install i did i made a flash drive using the v1 installer then i installed v3 to the HDD and updated to 10.6.2, restarted and bingo it worked..

 

Until..

 

It started to kernel panic and lock up at random,

 

So in the smbios i changed it from 800mhz to 667mhz under memspeed..

 

It seemed to be rock solid until i tried time machine and then without fail it kernel panicked every time,

 

It seemed to lose all stability from there on,

 

So i tried to reinstall 10.6 with v1 of the installer..

 

(the osx installer KP'ed and locked a few times)

 

I flashed the bios to FA (an older version i was running FB)

 

Then installed 10.6 it seemed stable ( I started to hand out the high fives )

 

Then started importing my paralles 5 machines and Boom

 

Kernel Panic

 

And it wouldnt boot anymore it'd just KP or show the no entry sign..

 

Im started to think it may be the uneven ram capacity..

 

What do you think?

 

Thanks!

Daniel

[thepretender]

Daniel, I think the 8400gs is supported by chameleon RC3 but have you tried booting into 32 bit mode? Add "-x32" at boot time.

[D-an-W]

Now running a triple boot system with Snow Leopard, Windows 7 and Ubuntu. I have also updated all three OS's and when prompted about what I wanted to do with Grub I just told it to leave well alone.

If any of the Lifehackers would care to know how I did it I will type it up (It's pretty easy to be honest)...

[CoHPhasor]

Now running a triple boot system with Snow Leopard, Windows 7 and Ubuntu. I have also updated all three OS's and when prompted about what I wanted to do with Grub I just told it to leave well alone.

If any of the Lifehackers would care to know how I did it I will type it up (It's pretty easy to be honest)...

 

Did it the way I did, or you choose a different route?

 

Im started to think it may be the uneven ram capacity..

 

What do you think?

 

Thanks!

Daniel

 

No worries Daniel, anytime someone comes in fresh, it's a given they

that they've likely exhausted all they can come up with and they're frustrated.

(We're human)

I just like helping everyone get into the mindset that gets them the quickest and best results. ;-)

 

As for the RAM, you could be onto it. First thing to remember, if you suspect it,

and you can do it quickly/easily and can reverse it; Do it.

It'll help eliminate something right off the bat.

Go ahead and pull the extra set (banks 2+4 as you must have some in the 1st banks)

Try it for a while, you still get KP's? Switch in the other set.

BTW, switch back the RAM settings in the BIOS to make sure you test on the same platform.

 

Report back with results.

[D-an-W]

Yes but obviously added a few steps due to Ubuntu being so forceful.

[Hello Mrs Brown]

Daniel, I think the 8400gs is supported by chameleon RC3 but have you tried booting into 32 bit mode? Add "-x32" at boot time.

 

Haven't tried in 32 bit mode yet,

 

But the graphics enabler flag in com.apple.boot.plist made the card work perfectly under 64 bit,

 

I was actually quite taken back cause i was expecting to have to play with efi strings,

 

Anywho when I get back to the beast on Monday I'll give it a shot and let you know!

 

Thanks! :-D

 

No worries Daniel, anytime someone comes in fresh, it's a given they

that they've likely exhausted all they can come up with and they're frustrated.

(We're human)

I just like helping everyone get into the mindset that gets them the quickest and best results. ;-)

 

As for the RAM, you could be onto it. First thing to remember, if you suspect it,

and you can do it quickly/easily and can reverse it; Do it.

It'll help eliminate something right off the bat.

Go ahead and pull the extra set (banks 2+4 as you must have some in the 1st banks)

Try it for a while, you still get KP's? Switch in the other set.

BTW, switch back the RAM settings in the BIOS to make sure you test on the same platform.

 

Report back with results.

 

Haha thanks for understanding,

it took a week out of my life I should have spent developing :-P

 

thanks for the tip I'll try it and let you know,

 

Weird thing is after the last KP it wouldn't even get past the bootloader,

it'd either KP or show the drive is not there symbol I got when the drive in my iBook server died

 

So I ran disk utility in the installer cd (flash drive)

 

and first aid failed to repair the drive,

 

this is my secondary drive and the KP's occour on the primary as well..

 

Anywho will let you know about the RAM!

 

Thanks for your kind help!

[anotherloser]

It took a bit of time, but I finally got this build going. Ordered all the same parts, right down to the letter.

 

My only problem is I have the 2x4gb ddr2 sticks of RAM installed, though I'm only showing 4gb RAM total under "About this Mac". I'll admit, I'm new to OS X. I've pulled each stick in rotation, confirmed they are both working, rechecked the configuration that I have them seated in. On each individual stick, when installed alone, they only show 2 gigs for each of them. Anyone have any idea? I searched the topic for "RAM" and couldn't find any posts. Thanks for any help!

[backinmac]

It took a bit of time, but I finally got this build going. Ordered all the same parts, right down to the letter.

 

My only problem is I have the 2x4gb ddr2 sticks of RAM installed, though I'm only showing 4gb RAM total under "About this Mac". I'll admit, I'm new to OS X. I've pulled each stick in rotation, confirmed they are both working, rechecked the configuration that I have them seated in. On each individual stick, when installed alone, they only show 2 gigs for each of them. Anyone have any idea? I searched the topic for "RAM" and couldn't find any posts. Thanks for any help!

What does it say in BIOS?

[CoHPhasor]

It took a bit of time, but I finally got this build going. Ordered all the same parts, right down to the letter.

 

My only problem is I have the 2x4gb ddr2 sticks of RAM installed, though I'm only showing 4gb RAM total under "About this Mac". I'll admit, I'm new to OS X. I've pulled each stick in rotation, confirmed they are both working, rechecked the configuration that I have them seated in. On each individual stick, when installed alone, they only show 2 gigs for each of them. Anyone have any idea? I searched the topic for "RAM" and couldn't find any posts. Thanks for any help!

 

This rig was designed for 8GB. (Though some such as myself run 4)

There isn't any problem with using 8.

 

Make sure they're a mated pair, that you're using the paired slots, and most importantly, make sure you didn't get the wrong sticks shipped on accident!

(As you mention individually they show 2)

 

And as mentioned, check your BIOS

[Hello Mrs Brown]

Soo...

 

I tried taking the 2 x 1GB sticks out leaving just the 2 x 2GB annnndd...

 

YAAAAY!!!

 

Completed a 230GB time machine where a 2GB Crashed Before!

 

Time will tell how stable it is butits looking good!

 

Thanks for your advice guys!

 

Now i've just gotta bump up to 8GB of RAM and its gonna be "all up in da buisness!"

 

Praise God!!

[CoHPhasor]

Soo...

 

I tried taking the 2 x 1GB sticks out leaving just the 2 x 2GB annnndd...

 

YAAAAY!!!

 

Completed a 230GB time machine where a 2GB Crashed Before!

 

Time will tell how stable it is butits looking good!

 

Thanks for your advice guys!

 

Now i've just gotta bump up to 8GB of RAM and its gonna be "all up in da buisness!"

 

Praise God!!

 

Now you can either try getting another set the same size as you have to increase it further, or forget about it.

[sirlou]

Has anyone out there tried to get an Apple Remote to work on their Lifehacker setup?

 

I came across this surfing the topics on this site and it looks like it would work:

 

http://twistedmelon.com/mira/

 

Only $31 for the USB IR Receiver and the software, but I thot I'd check before shelling out the dough.

 

THANKS!

[D-an-W]

Cool, it looks like I can use my MCE Receiver and Harmony remote.

 

Something else to play around with now triple boot is sorted!

 

I can confirm Chameleon RC5 (Pre build of course) works well and allows full customisation of the boot screen, renaming, hiding and default boot partition etc.

[rallymatt]

Hey everyone, been lurking this thread for a while. First post.

 

I have the Lifehacker build. Exact same specs, even the same case. Been having a few minor issues with it. I used the V3 installer.

 

First of all, I have been having semi frequent crashes, perhaps 1-2 every 10 hours of using it. Hard system crashes requiring reboot. It isnt that big of a deal, but it makes me feel something is wrong. Every time it is in a web browser. Though it may be a Firefox issue so switched to Safari, and same thing happens. Intermittent crash.

 

Also, I updated to 10.6.3 using the combo installer on Monday. After installing it it rebooted no problem. I then installed Final Cut Studio 3, upgrading from 2. (To fix the annoying 10.6 Final Cut Gamma Issue). When I rebooted after installing FCS 3 I had a kernel panic on start. I almost coughed up my lunch and then turned the system off with power button and powered back on. It came right back up and booted fine, no panics. WTF?

 

Also, I cannot awake from sleep using keyboard/mouse. Only the power button.

 

Any ideas? Thanks!

[bean5]

my first instinct would be to reintall SL. Also make sure ALL settings are the same as LH. Not assuming anything, but maybe something slipped by. If the problem persists, it could be a bad sata port on the board. That happened to me and put me in a panic. Luckily, it happened soon after I did the build when I was tinkering around to get it to a place where I won't have to open the case anymore. My port was bad and it just randomly messed up my build. Switched to a new port, reinstalled, and everything has been fine since. Make sure everything is seated right and that the cpu heatsink is doing it's job. Other than that, I don't know what's going on.

 

As for the mouse/keyboard wake up, I have the same issue. Supposedly you have to try different usb ports til you find one that will wake the computer...I haven't bothered.

[aBall]

great thread Thanks

[D-an-W]

Possible overheating rallymatt? Have you tried it with Windows (To monitor temps) or checked the temp in the BIOS?

[huntington]

i think i've drawn the short straw here... my first build worked but would KP after about 10 minutes of use and fry the HDs to the point of DiskUtil saying it couldn't fix them. after spending an incredibly long time researching/troubleshooting, i figured up pinpointing the problem was beyond my resources...and i RMA'ed the PSU, the mobo, and the processor.

 

my first build with the new parts, and the mobo doesn't beep on startup. it does, however, boot fine...and I had a successful SL install...except i had the same experience as my first build:  where after about an hour or so of use, i get a KP, the HD is fried, and i have to literally let the thing sit there for a day and then switch SATA port and cables before DiskUtil says the drives are OK.

 

i've checked BIOS settings ten times - the only difference is that my cpu vcore is 1.300 and Adam's was 1.275, but I figured it would be best to keep that setting on auto. my temps are ice cold - i have an arctic freezer 7 pro.

 

the no beep at startup is likely a problem. any suggestions or troubleshooting tips about what to do from here? i'm not even opposed to buying a different mobo at this point. i just really need this to work. what started out as a fun project has turned into a months long nightmare.

[rallymatt]

Possible overheating rallymatt? Have you tried it with Windows (To monitor temps) or checked the temp in the BIOS?

 

Looks like this may have been a problem. I rebooted and checked temps in the BIOS. It was about 65C and fluctuating. I'm not dual booting, so I can't check under load, but that seemed high.

 

I pulled the extremely hard to re-seat cooler off and spread the paste out and tried reseating it. Also turned my case fan to high. Booted it back up and temps are ~55C. Which seems better, but could be cooler I believe? I set my bios CPU temp alarm to 60C so it should beep at me, and hasnt yet after using it for an hour or so.

[bean5]

holy {censored}, that's hella high. Are you on the stock heatsink? if so, spend a bit more for a bigger heat sink. Mine idles (in bios) in the low 30's. If yours was at 65C in bios, it would easily be in the 70's in SL and most likely in the 80's under load. As for the thermal paste, did you use alot? A little goes a long way...and I don't think you have to spread it out...does it on its own when the heat sink gets pressed down.

 

@huntinton: are you using the purple sata ports? On my board they messed up my drive. Switched to the yellow and everything has been fine since.

 

as for the beep, isn't that dependent on the case? my case didn't come with a speaker so I get no beep on boot either.

[huntington]

holy {censored}, that's hella high. Are you on the stock heatsink? if so, spend a bit more for a bigger heat sink. Mine idles (in bios) in the low 30's. If yours was at 65C in bios, it would easily be in the 70's in SL and most likely in the 80's under load. As for the thermal paste, did you use alot? A little goes a long way...and I don't think you have to spread it out...does it on its own when the heat sink gets pressed down.

 

@huntinton: are you using the purple sata ports? On my board they messed up my drive. Switched to the yellow and everything has been fine since.

 

as for the beep, isn't that dependent on the case? my case didn't come with a speaker so I get no beep on boot either.

 

@rallymatt: i'm using an arctic cooler freezer 7 pro rev 2 - works perfectly with this board, great reviews on newegg. my idle temps are in the low 30s as well. sounds like it might be worth the $35 bucks for you...

 

 

@bean5: thanks -- wish that it would be so easy for me. haven't ever used the purple ports (picked that up somewhere along from reading the 79 pages on this thread). right now i've only got 1 HD plugged into the Port_1. (the most recent SL install that KP'ed was on Port_0, so I switched ports). on my first build, my first mobo beeped when i started up (i've got the same Antec case as on the LH build page).googled around, and no beep supposedly means "bad cpu, loose peripherals, or a short on mobo". i checked for loose cards, RAM, etc., & i couldn't imagine it would be my newly RMA'ed CPU. my only other thought is if it's the mobo (again?!), if Gigabyte had returned the same bad mobo to me. but i don't really have a way of testing the mobo out in another case or build, etc. 

 

the RAM was the only thing i didn't RMA the last time round, but it's always shown up as ok in BIOS and system profiler, and it just passed a run with Rember, so I think it's safe not to fault that.

[D-an-W]

That is high from the BIOS!

 

Mine idles at around 40degC when overclocked to 4.33GHz

[backinmac]

@rallymatt: i'm using an arctic cooler freezer 7 pro rev 2 - works perfectly with this board, great reviews on newegg. my idle temps are in the low 30s as well. sounds like it might be worth the $35 bucks for you...

 

 

@bean5: thanks -- wish that it would be so easy for me. haven't ever used the purple ports (picked that up somewhere along from reading the 79 pages on this thread). right now i've only got 1 HD plugged into the Port_1. (the most recent SL install that KP'ed was on Port_0, so I switched ports). on my first build, my first mobo beeped when i started up (i've got the same Antec case as on the LH build page).googled around, and no beep supposedly means "bad cpu, loose peripherals, or a short on mobo". i checked for loose cards, RAM, etc., & i couldn't imagine it would be my newly RMA'ed CPU. my only other thought is if it's the mobo (again?!), if Gigabyte had returned the same bad mobo to me. but i don't really have a way of testing the mobo out in another case or build, etc.

 

the RAM was the only thing i didn't RMA the last time round, but it's always shown up as ok in BIOS and system profiler, and it just passed a run with Rember, so I think it's safe not to fault that.

 

Buy a new board. Unfortunately, Newegg doesn't carry them anymore but I got mine from Amazon after mine somehow shorted. Actually, before you do that. Have you used a different SATA cable?