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Black screen + Cursor with NVidia GeForce 8600M GT


Der_Phoenix
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Hi! I hope you can help me! I'm trying to get this working for 2 weeks now... I have used google and the forum search several times, but no method works for me.

First of all: I'm german, so maybe there are some sentences that sound strange. :P

 

I'm using the iAtkos v7 Version, updated to 10.5.8 with all available updates.

Dual boot with Win7, works fine with the Windows Bootloader

Using an Inspiron 1520 with a GeForce 8600M GT and a T7250. If you need any more infos or logs, please ask, I will try to provide them as soon as possible!

 

My problem in detail:

I want to use the full potential of my NVidia GeForce 8600M GT (256 MB).

 

Some things I've tried until now and results of these:

 

-Installing NVKush and the driver pack available on the same website (http://diabolik1605.com/DHF/)

-Installing NVInject in different versions

Remark: Yes, I mostly tried only one of them at the same time.

Results: Kernel Panics or no change, after some googling I decided to use an EFI String, because some people reported better results with them.

 

-Using an EFI String for my Card, generated and saved with the OSX86Tools.

Results: Native Resolution, recognized VRAM amount correctly, no QE/CI

 

Then I decided to use a modified DSDT, because again I read, it delivers better performance and the most Vanilla-like system. So:

 

-Using the modified DSDT, uploaded by a gui, who seems to have nearly exactly the same system, got sound as a side-effect, tested successfully in Safe Mode.

Results:

- Best overall results of all experiments

- In Safe Mode: Native Resolution (and many other to choose from, No QE/CI, Recognized VRAM amount correctly, everything working fine

- In Normal Mode (with -v and sometimes -f flag): After much text, I'm getting the usual light blue screen, but then, instead of the darker blue one and then the background image, I get a black screen with different constellations of the cursor: Sometimes there's one cursor in the upper left corner (stuck), sometimes there's one cursor, which I can move via Touchpad and which sometimes changes to the spinning rainbow wheel and sometimes it's both of these cursors at the same time.

- With an EFI String used at the same time, I get the same results as before or in Safe Mode, everything recognized except QE/CI.

- Because I have read about that, I also edited the kexts: NVDANV50HAL, NVDAResman and later on additionally: NVDANV40HAL, GeForce by adding the ID of my graphics card to the IOPCIMatch / IOPCIPrimaryMatch. Now it loads the drivers (it says so in verbose mode), but there's no change.

- When I delete the NVDANV50HAL and the NVDAResman and boot into normal mode, I get a 1024x768 screen - but it's working (no QE/CI anyway)

 

Further ideas of mine:

- Adding the GraphicsEnabler-String (tried it once, couldn't start in any mode, had to restore com.apple.boot.plist)

- Changing the NVCAP and NVDM values in my modified DSDT (I have the working one of the EFI, I think it's ASCII, but don't know, how to transfer into hexadecimal value. I think, this idea has the biggest potential to work, I will attach the code in the DSDT.aml and the code in the EFI String)

 

Excerpt of DSDT.aml

            Device (AGP)
           {
               Name (_ADR, 0x00010000)
               Device (VID)
               {
                   Name (_ADR, Zero)
                   Name (_SUN, One)
                   Method (_DSM, 4, NotSerialized)
                   {
                       Store (Package (0x18)
                           {
                               "@0,built-in", 
                               Buffer (One)
                               {
                                   0x01
                               }, 

                               "@0,compatible", 
                               Buffer (0x0B)
                               {
                                   "NVDA,NVMac"
                               }, 

                               "@0,device_type", 
                               Buffer (0x08)
                               {
                                   "display"
                               }, 

                               "@0,name", 
                               Buffer (0x0F)
                               {
                                   "NVDA,Display-A"
                               }, 

                               "@1,compatible", 
                               Buffer (0x0B)
                               {
                                   "NVDA,NVMac"
                               }, 

                               "@1,device_type", 
                               Buffer (0x08)
                               {
                                   "display"
                               }, 

                               "@1,display-cfg", 
                               Buffer (0x04)
                               {
                                   0xFF, 0xFF, 0x00, 0x01
                               }, 

                               "@1,name", 
                               Buffer (0x0F)
                               {
                                   "NVDA,Display-B"
                               }, 

                               "NVCAP", 
                               Buffer (0x18)
                               {
                                   /* 0000 */    0x04, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x03, 0x00, 
                                   /* 0008 */    0x0C, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x07, 
                                   /* 0010 */    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00
                               }, 

                               "VRAM,totalsize", 
                               Buffer (0x04)
                               {
                                   0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x10
                               }, 

                               "device_type", 
                               Buffer (0x0D)
                               {
                                   "NVDA,GeForce"
                               }, 

                               "model", 
                               Buffer (0x18)
                               {
                                   "NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT"
                               }
                           }, Local0)
                       DTGP (Arg0, Arg1, Arg2, Arg3, RefOf (Local0))
                       Return (Local0)
                   }
...

Followed by some other methods and devices belonging to the AGP Device.
Do you need these infos?

 

Working EFI String (without QE/CI)

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">
<plist version="1.0">
<dict>
<key>PciRoot(0x0)/Pci(0x1,0x0)/Pci(0x0,0x0)</key>
<dict>
	<key>@0,compatible</key>
	<string>NVDA,NVMac</string>
	<key>@0,device_type</key>
	<string>display</string>
	<key>@0,name</key>
	<string>NVDA,Display-A</string>
	<key>@1,compatible</key>
	<string>NVDA,NVMac</string>
	<key>@1,device_type</key>
	<string>display</string>
	<key>@1,name</key>
	<string>NVDA,Display-B</string>
	<key>NVCAP</key>
	<data>
	BAAAAAAAAwAMAAAAAAAABwAAAAA=
	</data>
	<key>NVPM</key>
	<data>
	AQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA==
	</data>
	<key>VRAM,totalsize</key>
	<string>0x10000000</string>
	<key>device_type</key>
	<string>NVDA,Parent</string>
	<key>model</key>
	<string>nVidia GeForce 8600 GT</string>
	<key>name</key>
	<string>display</string>
	<key>rom-revision</key>
	<string>nVidia GeForce 8600 GT OpenGL Engine [EFI]</string>
</dict>
</dict>
</plist>

 

My wish: Get rid of the EFI String and get QE/CI. And when this is working, it would be the coolest thing on earth, if VGA or TV-Out is working, too (but this is a secondary problem).

 

My questions:

- Do you have any suggestions to get this working under 10.5.8?

- Do you believe, it will be easier using Snow Leopard? Then which release should I try?

 

Thank you so much for your help! I will post any news as far as I have some!

And I'm sorry for so many words!

 

P.S.: There are some other posts out there from people who say, they have got that thing working with the DSDT, but none of them says, how!

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