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Helpful answers
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May 21, 2014 5:40 PM in response to h4ndsby Semih_TX,I noticed that the update 10.9.3 included the old ATI drivers, version 1.6.6. So, after updating,instant freeze, starting in safe mode, all I had to was to delete AMD kexts. Everything is working again, slow but working!
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May 22, 2014 2:44 PM in response to DazzaGby mvinca,I just want to say thank you for this thread. I've been struggling over a year with my iMac freezing and crashing. I remember when first upgrading, doing a search and seeing the theory that it had to do with the video card. There was talk about booting into BootCamp and upgrading the video card, but that didn't apply to my model. I don't know why the searches never brought up this thread.
But last week I was logged into my admin account, which brought up the question of whether to send another report to apple, so I studied the trace and tried another search and got this thread. Oh what a lifesaver! My mac is so much happier. While it has only been a week, it had been crashing more often lately, and I really think I would have hit the problem by now.
You've made me like my Mac again, which can now happily run 10.8.5. (I'm not upgrading to Mavericks... I figure it will be just as awful as iOS 7.)
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May 27, 2014 7:36 AM in response to mvincaby forevermacintoe,Well I upgraded to the latest Mavericks and booted the mac back up again.... It worked for a little bit, but then after the monitor went to sleep and I jiggled it back on, I was faced with this... http://imgur.com/wMFWgup
I used to simply go black, but at least now I know it's not an issue with the screen's power system - it does look like a video driver software/firmware issue.
Where can I get the "kext fix" everyone is talking about? It is sponsored by Apple?
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May 27, 2014 3:27 PM in response to DazzaGby autumnbliss,Just updated and keeps freezing, crashing, producing crashes with white/striped/blue screens so Apple failed again.
Never gave this kext fix a shot, anyone know how to do it?
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May 27, 2014 4:28 PM in response to autumnblissby forevermacintoe,autumnbliss, here are the instructions...
http://www.pauloamgomes.net/blog/fix-weird-os-x-freeze-imacs-late-2009
Just remember that you are essentially downgrading your drivers to the version from 10.6.2 - that's all this really does.
If you upgrade to a new Maverick version, I think you'll need to do it again.
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May 30, 2014 4:39 PM in response to forevermacintoeby freandc,With all due respect to pauloagomes.net, there are a few inaccuracies in the post including the idea that there is any longer a debate about whether SMC fan controller can stop this problem and that the title of the page refers to late 2009 iMacs when the problem actually covers a wider time period. Also, the solution provided asks the user to go into a UNIX shell and execute 'mv', 'chmod', and 'chown' commands including some file specifications that use wildcards which I think may be intimidating and dangerous to non-technical iMac owner. And finally, we all owe props to Krysztof Turek who discovered the fix and I think any solution needs to mention that.
That said, the real reason for my post is to try and reduce the pain that folks experience even after they find this thread. To do that we need to state and restate certain things clearly:
- You only have this problem (meaning the one that this thread can help) if you have an ATI Radeon Graphics card (go to About This Mac -> More Info) and your machine was most likely purchased between late 2007 and late 2009. It would help if we could find the earliest/latest models. I know I'm "Early 2008" and I've definitely seen late 2009. Anybody outside those bounds, please weigh in.
- If you have this problem, the only solution proven to work is the Krysztof Turek kext fix which allows your system to use an earlier version of the drivers for your graphics card. It works very well. If you correctly execute the kext fix and you still have a problem, it isn't this one.
- *IMPORTANT* - Apple is not going to fix this problem. Period. Ever. Period. Stop wondering whether that update is going to help -- IT IS NOT.
- When there is an OS X update, it will include drivers. They may not always be newer than the ones you had but they will always be newer than the ones you need and your system will try to use them. So, after an OS X update, you must fix your machine again.
- The good news is that, since Mavericks, the driver files have been renamed and now begin with 'AMD' instead of the old 'ATI'. As a result, an OS X update will no longer overwrite your old drivers but will most certainly replace any new ones that you've moved our the Extensions directory. What does this mean? It means that if you've applied the kext fix before, you should not need to run kext_helper again. All you should have to do is remove the appropriate 'AMD' files from the Extensions directory and reboot.
- The bad news is that Apple is in the process of tightening up security on extensions and there may be a point where Mac OS will no longer accept and run these old extensions. They have already indicated that this is the direction in which they are moving. When those security changes happen, unless someone can figure out how to appropriately sign the kexts, i.e. imbed a validatable certificate, we will reach the point where, as a group, we will no longer be able to upgrade our OS. I'll ask all tech savvy participants to be on the lookout and notify this thread, hopefully in time to avoid forcing a lot of full system restores.
If you are hitting this thread for the first time and want to try the kext fix, see the guide on page 102.
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May 30, 2014 5:45 PM in response to freandcby TK111,Well said, freandc. Good points and an important post. Thanks.
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May 30, 2014 6:27 PM in response to freandcby dukelukic,Excellent post, freandc. The thread has wandered a little bit from the original very specific topic.
You made many important points. There will come a time when we will not be able to hook the old drivers into some newer operating system, and we can never expect Apple or AMD to fix this--they've moved on. Just being realistic. Having a good backup of the last system that works on your machine will be quite vital (of course, we know that's always vital ;^) )
Anyway, thanks again, and of course, thanks to Krysztof Turek.
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May 31, 2014 12:39 PM in response to freandcby Phil_O_,freandc wrote:
- I know I'm "Early 2008" and I've definitely seen late 2009. Anybody outside those bounds, please weigh in.
Mines is a mid 2007 iMac, which I think was the initial launch of the Aluminum iMac's.
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May 31, 2014 12:50 PM in response to freandcby forevermacintoe,freandc wrote:
- *IMPORTANT* - Apple is not going to fix this problem. Period. Ever. Period. Stop wondering whether that update is going to help -- IT IS NOT.
I take issue with this point. I paid for a product, and the latest OSs break that product. It's rediculous that I need to jump through hoops to downgrade my video drivers (this is what the Krysztof Turek "fix" does) in order to get my computer to turn on.
How do you know that AMD & Apple will never fix this issue? I think if it gets enough attention, then they should. It doesn't even seem like it should be that difficult if a rollback fixes the problem.
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May 31, 2014 1:06 PM in response to forevermacintoeby Phil_O_,forevermacintoe wrote:
I take issue with this point. I paid for a product, and the latest OSs break that product. It's rediculous that I need to jump through hoops to downgrade my video drivers (this is what the Krysztof Turek "fix" does) in order to get my computer to turn on.
How do you know that AMD & Apple will never fix this issue? I think if it gets enough attention, then they should. It doesn't even seem like it should be that difficult if a rollback fixes the problem.
Given that this bug appeared at 10.6.3 and we are now on 10.9.3 which I make is about 21 updates ago. During which time they have ignored mine and everyone elses requests for a fix. This hasn't been a problem for a few months but for over four years now, so I really doubt they are even listening.
I don't like it and it has put me off ever buying another Apple product but I accepted I had been left high and dry by Apple over two years ago, so lets just face facts, the chance of an Apple fix now isn't even a pipe dream.
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May 31, 2014 1:09 PM in response to forevermacintoeby freandc,It's not that I don't think, in some way, that they should fix it but I'm sure they won't. The economics of fixing this, assuming that there isn't an outright conflict with newer machines which would make it impossible, we are a finite group who are still hanging on and choosing not to buy newer machines. My machine is more than 5 years old. I'd like it to last forever but sooner or later the newest CPU speed and hardware features will tempt be and this group shrinks by one. And that's the fact, Jack!
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May 31, 2014 1:19 PM in response to freandcby Fred1723,Not to mention most of all our machines are already considered vintage or on the verge of going vintage. That doesn't help the hope of a permanent fix from Apple.