Q: 2011 MacBook Pro and Discrete Graphics Card

cbetsinger wrote:

 

I cannot believe my Macbook wont reboot. Grey screen of DEATH. I have recently converted ALL of my devices to Apple. Phone. Macbook Pro. iPad. Time Machine. now i have a big as fkn paperweight sitting in front of me.

 

People... do what it takes to get them to notice the repair...

 

STOP SUPPORTING APPLE.

 

Thats the only way they will get it through their heads. Look at this forum on just this issue... give me a break 750 pages and 3million+ views and they wont take back or recall their ****** bricks or offer a replacement.

 

Im never buying another apple product again. I lost 6 weeks of music production and what good is a time machine back up if your fkn machine wont even boot. stupidest fkn computer failure **** ever

The best way to get Apple to notice is by reporting your case directly to them. Have you contacted Apple support yet? We need more numbers.

For anyone new to the forum/experiencing this issue for the first time, try this:

Boot the machine. If you get the grey screen of death, do the following.

Leave the machine and wait. If you have a pouch or carrying case close the lid and put the MBP inside it.

Eventually the machine will shut itself down. When it does, do not wait for it to cool down but instead boot up again immediately.

The MBP will boot using the Intel chip, rather than the AMD card which will give you the opportunity to install/run gfxCardStatus and force the machine to use Integrated graphics only.

This is only a temporary solution; it will not solve the issue and no-one here paid a premium for a hobbled notebook, but it will buy you some time to complete any archive or backup you might need to do.

Good luck.

1- If the lid is closed and/or it is in a pouch, how can you know that is has shut down?

2-Does gfx remember the that you've selected the integrated GPU? sometimes when I reboot I need to reset gfx.

3-opening the MBP, disconnecting battery works for me, while it was open I removed the 2 fans and found a thick layer of dust between the fan and grid that was not visible without disassembling.

JroenVN wrote:

 

2-Does gfx remember the that you've selected the integrated GPU? sometimes when I reboot I need to reset gfx.

No, gfx does not remember the settings as far as I've seen.

MGSH wrote:

 

For anyone new to the forum/experiencing this issue for the first time, try this:

 

Boot the machine. If you get the grey screen of death, do the following.

 

Leave the machine and wait. If you have a pouch or carrying case close the lid and put the MBP inside it.

Eventually the machine will shut itself down. When it does, do not wait for it to cool down but instead boot up again immediately.

The MBP will boot using the Intel chip, rather than the AMD card which will give you the opportunity to install/run gfxCardStatus and force the machine to use Integrated graphics only.

 

This is only a temporary solution; it will not solve the issue and no-one here paid a premium for a hobbled notebook, but it will buy you some time to complete any archive or backup you might need to do.

 

Good luck.

I would also highly recommend the 'smc reset with a twist' workaround. That was the one that resurrected my MBP.

1) In this situation, the machine doesn't go to sleep as it normally would. It's more like closing the lid while using an external display.

2) Sadly, no - gfxCardStatus will not remember your preference.

3) Definitely open up the MBP and remove any dust from around the fans - this should be done periodically, whether the MBP has a an issue or not.  Not sure if disconnecting the battery would give Apple an 'out' (so they can refuse to repair/replace the machine), should they ever decide to deal with this mess.

@rennyz277:

I should really have said "if all else fails".

I tried the SMC reset, System Restore, PRAM, Single User Mode, none of which worked for me - couldn't even boot into SUM.

MGSH wrote:

 

@rennyz277:

 

I should really have said "if all else fails".

I tried the SMC reset, System Restore, PRAM, Single User Mode, none of which worked for me - couldn't even boot into SUM.

Did you try SMC reset with a twist?

So heres some update:

1. I had earlier bypassed the AMD/ATI Drivers on Yosemite when the Macbook Pro died while I was ripping a DVD. After that I had it shown to the geniuses and then accidentally moved the hard drive drivers to the backup folder which rendered my hard drive inaccessible. After a 4 week break I reinstalled Snow Leopard first and then after 2 weeks today I managed to install Mountain Lion in the 'twisted' / fan-blasting mode.

2. I again booted the system in single user and moved the ATI/AMD drivers. The system boots normally but with very low graphics functionality. I wanted to check which graphics it was using and lo and behold it told me that the AMD graphics is being used. Now I know this is not a new problem and it clearly shows that there is problem with the GPU, but after disabling the ATI drivers should it not just stick to integrated graphics? When I click system profile it shows that I have attached a display to the AMD graphics chip. This is not the case, as I do not have any external displays to attach. There are some drivers/dependencies that the mac osx boots to that cannot bypass the discrete graphics.

Can anyone suggest how to get out of this problem?

Hi,

To get out of this mess good and fast, get your GPU reflown.

It takes a good expert to do a 100% sure reflow, but I'd you get that, it'll be either the same quality as the board was when it rolled off the belt (assuming all balls WERE ever 100% soldered in the beginning and if connection breaks just appeared because of alternating thermal expansion stress over the years), OR it will be BETTER then original (assuming some balls were never soldered good during production, to it only took time to break the poor connection(s) loose and full then with an oxidation layer).

You can still report the machine, but I'd you just need it to work asap and affordable, not really being interested in the nonsense of Apple here, get a reflow...

I'm happy I did anyway..

Here's another 2011 MBP 15" having the exact same symptoms and difficult to boot without crashing.

Extremely frustrating.

Add another one, late 2011 model here that is now a $2200 paperweight with black lines for a screen, eventually leading to a blue screen... that is, when it is even able to make it past the grey screen when starting up.

landyfiesta wrote:

 

Here's another 2011 MBP 15" having the exact same symptoms and difficult to boot without crashing.

 

Extremely frustrating.

Call Apple Support or go to a Genius Bar. Report your case immediately.

I need help please

TitansBarthilas wrote:

 

Add another one, late 2011 model here that is now a $2200 paperweight with black lines for a screen, eventually leading to a blue screen... that is, when it is even able to make it past the grey screen when starting up.

Call Apple Support or go to a Genius Bar. Report your case immediately.