winload.efi issue code 0xc000000f while installing Windows 7 on a mac

It was an ISO file found on the web + product key purchased online (legally).

The Windows icon never showed in the boot menu, but I eventually managed to install W7 without BootCamp through the following steps :

• create a FAT-32 partition for Windows
• begin the installation on a virtual machine with a VMDK that was a replication of that partition
• from there, use diskpart to make that partition NTFS (+ convert the disk to MBR)
• shut down the VM when W7 installation program was attempting to reboot it
• reboot the mac instead, with the CD still in the superdrive : from there, the installation process went on on the mac instead of the VM
• finish W7 installation
• manually implement desired drivers from the bootcamp support software folder (I couldn’t find a version of the support software that would run on my mac)

Maybe a little twisted, but it worked.

Thanks again for your kind help.

Thanks. The SuperDrive seems to work fine with every other disk. I’ve tried and cleaned it though.

When I reboot the computer, one time out of three, the CD will appear twice in the boot menu (“Windows” and “EFI Boot”). The other times it doesn’t show up. I’m not sure but I think it appears when it has just been used (for instance when I’ve just ejected the W7 disk and inserted it back again).

From that point : when I try to boot from the Windows volume, I get the grey Apple screen and it stays there forever (I don’t hear anything working, either the SuperDrive or the internal hard drive). When it’s from EFI Boot, the screen simply freezes on the boot menu and nothing more happens. In either case the startup is aborted without being able to load the W7 installation process.

Thank you, I will try this. Meantime I was able to install W8.1 via USB but since I’d prefer to use 7 I’ll give it a shot.

Well, I started over with a W7 installation disk via Bootcamp. BC creates the Windows partition then restarts the computer, which stays locked on a black screen showing “No bootable device”.

When I restart and hold the option key, the startup CD doesn’t show, only my MacOS startup disk.

When I try and select the W7 CD in the startup control panel, and then reboot, the mac stays stuck on the grey Apple screen. Eventually a “deny” sign will a appear (it did once).

This precision may be useful : I’m using a SuperDrive (I don’t have an internal drive). Would you think this is the reason why the mac can’t seem to boot from it ?