2011 MacBook Pro and Discrete Graphics Card

I agree, although I have not yet had any success in fixing this problem. I spoke with Apple on the phone as well as in store and they stated that because my product is 'vintage' there is nothing they can do. How is possible that company such as Apple can sell you a faulty product that they have admitted is their fault and then have them tell you there is nothing they can do about it? So now where I stand is having an inoperable computer because repair shops don't carry the logic boards (because it was known that these model logic boards were faulty and they do not make a practice of carrying faulty products) and Apple is pretty much telling me its my problem. Apple needs to figure out how to solve this problem as my MBP failed just a month after their extended repair programme. In other words, because my computer didn't fail on me in time, I am stuck with a broken laptop? It is completely illogical to put a time frame on one something that will continue to fail due to an error in the production of these model laptops. If anyone has any information on how to get this problem solved please post in reply to this message. It is very frustrating and time consuming to go through this process to try to get my computer either fixed or a refund for the faulty product I purchased.

I also had a conversation with Apple on the phone. They said that they would resolve the issue (whatever that means) and call me back! I'm still waiting for a phone call . I'm a musician and I'm away on a tour. Without my laptop working I can't do my job. So I've had to splash out over £2k on a brand new MacBook Pro just because Apple are stalling and yet to provide my with an actual solution. They either pay for the repair, give me a voucher with the amount of how much it would cost and I was told around £700+ or they provide me with a brand new like for like MacBook. I won't stop until this happens. I'll keep you posted on my correspondences with Apple and please also do with me.

Late-2011 15" MBP just failed due to defective GPU (confirmed at Apple Store). Recall program ended 31 Dec 2016.

I was told by the "Genius" at the Apple Store that nothing can be done to fix my MacBook because Apple is no longer making logic boards for the 2011 line. Only option offered was to purchase a new MacBook.

I DON'T WANT A NEW MACBOOK! I want the one I already own ... the one that was doomed from the start ... to be fixed by Apple!

So, I managed to fix my 2011 MacBook which had the Grey Screen of Death due to the Discrete GPU failure. I did the following:

1. Followed the instructions here, Macbook Pro 2011 AMD Graphics Card Fix Linux Solution (Using Ubuntu) gray death screen, to get a live USB version of Linux running

2. Ran the bash script here, https://github.com/0xbb/gpu-switch/blob/master/gpu-switch with the -i flag from within Linux to force the MacBook to use the integrated graphics chip on reboot.

This works across reboots and so far across software updates so my very expensive paperweight is again a fully functioning MacBook.

As disappointed as I am that Apple's repair program ended 6 weeks before the graphics card on my MacBook died I am happy to report that it is back working using the integrated chip exclusively. I hope these steps will benefit others in the same position.

Does anybody knows if can I use airplay mirroring with the integrated GPU?

My only need is to use an external monitor, so I was thinking to disable the discrete GPU and use the integrated GPU with an airplay device connected to my monitor, acting as extended monitor. The resolution is 2560px X 1080px.

Anyone knows?

Joining this megathread as a late 2011 MBP owner who had this happen last night. I might try the Apple store but I'm not holding out much hope for this...very annoying that my laptop chose to wait eight weeks after the repair extension program before dying.

The post above is asking a question, I am not. Your reply said "Posting your question on a thread with 895 pages of responses is futile at best."...but I didn't ask a question, I just made a comment.

Perhaps if any further comment on this thread is considered futile, it should be locked?

I assume given your username you are in Canada also? Doesn't bode well for me in that case 😟. I've been trying to find out about consumer rights in Canada about this but it's hard to find any concrete information. I might try the Calgary store anyway.

Excuse my English, ill try my best..

My first macbook pro was a late 2008 model. BTO 2.53 with two graphics cards. The issue was a flicker with the integrated graphics card. Apple replaced 3 logicboards in 3 years (apple care) and after one more fail that they gave me a late 2011 i7 2,5Ghz replacement. It failed once on February 2015 when the repair program was active and they replaced the logicboard for free. The next fail and logic board replacement was only after one week!!That (3rd) logic board lasted longer and failed on January 2017. I called them and they offered me another free repair because it was only a week after the end of the program. I didn't accepted and asked for a replace. After a lot of days and phone calls i received a negative answer. They told me that the "system" could not allow a computer replacement for second time. I took the free logic board repair. The "time bomb" as a call it (because it IS gonna blow but you don't know when) is still working but not in my external monitor as i prefer. gfxCardstatus keeps the discrete graphics card off to save some lifetime for this awful computer. I will never spend a cent to apple hardware again. Next stop...Hackintosh!

Cheers!

agodeo wrote:

I will never spend a cent to apple hardware again. Next stop...Hackintosh!

That is probably the wisest thing to do, as Apple cares zip about its customers.

Good luck getting this to work!

<Link Edited by Host>

A quick and terrible fix.

When the graphics chip locks up...

Hold command-option-shift-control-power. The power should immediately turn off.

Release command-option-shift-control and continue holding power for about 5 seconds. This causes the PMU/SMC to crash.

Quickly tap the power key again to turn on the computer. You'll know this hack works because the fans will blast at full speed.

The computer will boot and complain that ACPI is broken.

The computer will work semi-normally except all ACPI information and SMC control will fail to operate. (Can't read or control fan speeds, always full blast.)

Consider this a "limp" mode. I'm not sure if anything that requires the discrete AMD graphics chip will work or not as I just discovered this and I need to get work done that only requires the Integrated graphics.

Some really $h1ty and terrible apps link against the motherboard serialization and will report that your license is invalid. I would recommend that you not relicense your software, but use this as incentive to replace or repair your failing computer.

This leads me to believe that someone could come up with an ACPI/DSDT hack that forces integrated graphics to be in use at every bootup, by faking the temperature readings for the GPU/motherboard and/or hiding the discrete GPU completely.

--Steve

Followup. If you run an app that requires discrete graphics, expect the same fault as before. All this workaround seems to do is get you more reliably to the desktop, without having discrete graphics activate during the boot thermometer.

If you last had an app open that used discrete graphics, expect a GPU fault/freeze when the Finder relaunches it.

So, an ACPI/DSDT hack might only support getting the system to at least reliably make it back to the Finder.

--Steve

I am having the same problem and now I cannot use my computer. In 2015 April, Apple replaced the graphic card for me for free but in less than 2 years this issue happened again. Now they are going to charge me for replacement, a very expensive fee, as the repair extension program has expired. I feel this is unfair to me as I only use this " new replaced graphic card" less than 2 years and plus if I would have known the computer has a flaw, I wouldn't have purchased it in the first place. Currently I am traveling in Taiwan. In the past a week, I have tried several authorized local Apple stores in Taiwan but no one cares to help me to contact Apple Inc. in the USA and they simply told me to buy a new MacBook pro...... I have no access to speak with the right/main person from Apple Inc. as I don't think it is fair for me to pay for their failure because they should not have sold the MacBook pro 2011 with a major flaw in the first place. ( Also, to my best sense, I thought Apple replaced me a new graphic card so I expected it could last longer time. Now this unfortunate incident makes me think the one they replaced was a fixed one, a second hand graphic card, so that is why having a malfunction in less than 2 years.) I don't know what to do now....because I have some important files from work and other important web links that I saved in the computer....( please ignore my previous post as there are wrong spelling, thanks.)

So I run a late 2011 i7 15" with AMD graphics and it was repaired 3 years ago. 10 days ago it just turned black on my lap while I watched a video. Note: lap and video, so the thing was hot. I thought, well again, the chip needs to be repaired.

I found this gfxstatus app and it helped work around the problem for a while. I sometimes couldn't restart the machine though. In the end I opened the computer because it also began to give me 3 beebs.

Cleaned out a lot of dirt, sprayed some contact spray on some connections and amazingly the Macbook behaves really good for 5 days now. I ran 2 tests with discrete card and external display and had 4 Videos open at the same time in quicktime to check the heat. It went to 70° at the GPU, but no problems so far. I am very careful and would rather use the Macbook with the Intel chip, but is this a possibility it was just the dirt in the fans or something like that?

Well darn, I'm also amongst the users with bad luck. MacBook pro, late 2011, failed on me just a week after the repair extension program ended. Used to use it together with a Thunderbolt Display (which has the failed connector syndrome already too).

I tried the "put the bare stripped logic board inside the oven at 170°C for 7 minutes"-trick, which bought me another month. Can't re-find the source where I got that tip though.

Now I'm on integrated graphics only. The machine has to span 7 more months, or as long as it takes for Apple to release the Kaby Lake Macbook family, for the 2016 line up is shytti at best.

In order to do so, I'm investigating DIY ways of exchanging the faulty AMD chip with an ebay bought new one. This will cost about $40 for the chip, plus a heat gun and some soldering flux I guess. And a night of work. If it works, I'll hang on to this macbook until it dies on me again. Driving two displays and a complete audio studio, having 16GB of RAM, AND all the necessary different ports, make it hard to replace - even by the new standards Apple's reinventing again to render current infras obsolete.