I have a Mac mini (2018) running Monterey 12.2.1. In order to test Ventura, I attempted to install Ventura to an external disk. This resulted in a kernel panic boot loop at the very end of the installation process (final reboot). I had noticed the same problem when trying to apply a Monterey update: Monterey 12.3.1 boot failure - "Operation… - Apple Community.
Any suggestions?
- Pie Lover
Thanks for the response.
I did perform a forced hardware shutdown (by holding down the power button on the Mac mini (2018)). Below is the formatting of the external SSD (Samsung T5 512GB). The same formatting works fine with Monterey 12.2.1.
- Pie Lover
P.S. The Monterey 12.3.1 boot failure - "Operation… - Apple Community post better describes a problem which occurred when I tried to update from Monterey 12.2.1 to 12.3.1 (fsck boot task fails with "Operation not permitted" error which, in turn, results in the kernel panic).
Notice it says Owners is disabled. Are you running a T1/T2 chip?
Mac models with the Apple T2 Security Chip - Apple Support
It can prevent certain booting if functions in the security utility on recovery are not disabled.
If a clean install of macOS does not solve the problem, then I suggest "Restoring" the firmware procedure as outlined in this Apple article:
Revive or restore an Intel-based Mac using Apple Configurator - Apple Support
Once the system is updated, the macOS installer will not update it again. This can be seen when people use a third party internal SSD with the Monterey installer. Monterey will not install if the internal drive is a third party SSD. Once Monterey is installed with an internal Apple OEM SSD, then it is possible to install Monterey with a third party internal SSD installed. The macOS Monterey installer will not install with a third party internal SSD if a system firmware update needs to be applied.
The "Restoring" the T2 firmware procedure is for resolving "odd" situations which affect booting & installing macOS. It is basically the most drastic means of solving any 2018+ Mac issues. If a "Restore" procedure does not solve your problem (you must test the Mac before installing any third party apps or migrating/restoring from a backup, and with no unnecessary external devices connected), then it indicates some sort of hardware issue. Restoring the T2 firmware erases the internal SSD and pushes a clean OS onto it.
FYI, When M1 Macs were released there were reports that some Samsung T5 SSDs were not compatible due to the USB chipsets the drives used (T5 SSDs utilized more than one version of the chipset). Plus macOS Monterey is known for introducing compatibility issues with various minor point release updates. Make sure to perform a clean install of macOS to the external drive by erasing the whole physical drive as GUID partition and APFS (top option). Within Disk Utility you may need to click "View" and select "Show All Devices" so that the physical drive appears on the left pane of Disk Utility.
You may also want to check the health of the external SSD. Maybe it is some sort of problem. You can check the health of the SSD by running DriveDx and posting the complete text report here using the "Additional Text" icon which looks like a piece of paper.
Have you tried using any other external drive?
Does this T5 SSD have USB-A/B ports or USB-C ports? If you are using any adapters to connect to the Mac Mini, then maybe the adapter is the source of the problem.
FYI, Macs have always been picky about the external drives used for booting a Mac. Years ago I encountered a USB drive enclosure that would not work at all with a Mac, but worked perfectly fine on a standard PC.
Did you try a force shutdown and reboot to see if the installation would continue to completion?
How is the external drive formatted?
All of the software that I used with Monterey works fine with Ventura.
I tried booting into Recovery after setting the Startup Disk to the external disk with Ventura installed. Unexpectedly, the boot stalls at the Apple logo (I did a hardware reset after a few minutes).
Here's the diskutil list output which confirms that there is a Recovery volume.
Also, here is the report (displayed with Monterey) for the kernel panic when booting Ventura (macOS version: 22A380):
I am wondering if the Samsung T5 SSD is no longer a compatible boot device for macOS (since Monterey 12.3).
- Pie Lover
I have two additional APFS volumes. One serves as a backup for photos while the other is a second Time Machine backup volume (of the internal SSD running Monterey). This setup works well with Monterey and prior versions of macOS.
- Pie Lover
I made some progress. Turning SIP off (via terminal csrutil disable) allowed Ventura to boot. I then completed the installation using the Migration Assistant. However, once I re-enabled SIP, I could no longer boot Ventura (kernel panic returns).
With this insight, is there anything I can do to run Ventura (from an external SSD) with SIP enabled?
- Pie Lover
I followed-up with Apple Support. They suggested that I reinstall Ventura on a newly created APFS volume on the internal drive (retaining Monterey on its original APFS volume). They claimed that this would install the latest firmware even though I had previously verified that Monterey is running the latest firmware/Bridge OS (for the T2).
That said, it is possible that there's an unexpected side-effect of installing Ventura on the internal drive. I'm willing to give it a try to see if it resolves the issue.
Assuming it doesn't, what about running Ventura permanently with SIP disabled simply relying on SSV to provide some level of protection?
- Pie Lover
Check to make sure you aren't running any third party optimizers, and all your installed software is updated for Ventura compatibility. You can erase and install the installer on the external hard drive, formatting it APFS before running the installer.
Thanks very much for the reply. As far as I am aware, I'm not running any optimizers or anti-virus software. Also, I had assumed that my current software which runs on Monterey 12.2.1 would still function with Ventura.
I may give your suggestion a try. My initial approach was to install Monterey 12.2.1 (followed by the Migration Assistant to transfer user files) and then use Software Update to install Ventura.
- Pie Lover
Also, I had assumed that my current software which runs on Monterey 12.2.1 would still function with Ventura.
Never a valid assumption when dealing with kernel extensions. However, it may have just been something that went wrong in the Install. Try reinstalling on that drive through Recovery.
Thanks for that point. I did try booting using Safe Mode but the behaviour was the same.
When using Recovery, does the boot process use the Recovery on the external disk assuming that the selected boot device?
- Pie Lover
Thanks. The Mac mini (2018) has a T2 security chip. If I recall correctly, I had to use the Security Utility (set to Medium?) to allow booting from an external disk. My guess is that this isn't the root cause since Monterey 12.2.1 booted from the external drive. On the other hand, I wonder if there could have been a change in security behaviour introduced with Monterey 12.3 (and propagated to subsequent OS versions)?
- Pie Lover
To diagnose the issue if it truly is a problem with the boot strap process try booting your computer in single user verbose mode which should allow you to see the exact cause of the error. In the recovery os open Terminal and type nvram boot-args="-s -v" and then restart the computer the normal way which will then automatically go to single user verbose mode you can then attempt to fix it while in single user mode or at least diagnose it. Type exit to leave single user mode and see if it goes to the login screen. Clear your nvram after to stop it from booting like that everytime.
Thank you for you suggestion. If the issue is analogous to the one I had with Monterey (12.3), the exact error is "Operation not permitted" when fsck is invoked at the end of the boot process. There is then a 3 second delay before an emergency kernel panic is declared. Normally "Operation not permitted" error is addressed by granting "Full Disk Access" although I don't see how this could apply in this case.
BTW, I am unable to boot into the Recovery volume on the external disk with Ventura installed; the boot stalls at the Apple logo.
- Pie Lover
Kernel panic loop prevents boot (after attempted Ventura installation to external disk)
