Q: SuperDrive broken cannot Boot Camp Windows to El Capitan
I have tried many schemes suggested in this forum and at least a dozen different ways to get El Capitan to boot camp Windows. I've run csrutil disable from recovery, and used the gdisk utility to rewrite the drive map to use GPT. I seem to get as far as installing all the Windows 10 files then I get the Windows message "Windows could not prepare the computer to boot into the next phase of installation. To install Windows, restart the installation." I've tried bcdboot c:\windows and manually entering the drive and also partition GUIDs I recorded from gdisk detail option. But I get errors co so there is something still not executing.
I have not yet tried Rufus. I used unetbootin to make my Windows 10 flash drive from the microsoft 64-bit ISO. I also have an OEM Windows 8 disc purchased three years ago. I'm a bit concerned about barking up multiple trees simultaneously.
It's a MacBookPro6,1 EFI and SMC confirmed current. 8GB Crucial RAM. The SuperDrive does not function, nor will my USB Pioneer BD-204 burner (with confirmed latest firmware, which effectively turns it into a BD-205) allow installation of Windows despite offering an optical EFI partition after option-reboot. I've been able to get Windows installed from a USB drive I made from a downloaded ISO from Microsoft Using unetbootin as described. Maybe Rufus solves this issue?
I'm fully prepared to scrub the entire drive (which I actually had done yesterday, by a Genius) and start from scratch if I just could find a step-by that would actually work. I really need to boot camp Windows 8 or 10 onto this machine again.
I am even prepared to install another internal drive in place of the SuperDrive to boot camp Windows, but I want to make sure I won't run into the exact same issues if I take that step.
Also boot camp simply does not offer me the option to specify an ISO, there's only two not three checkboxes, and every time I try from the disc, I get the black "system unboot press a key" lockup after it restarts.
I have also edited boot camp's info.plist to add my model to the 32-bit models list.
There are absolutely no backup issues etc., the Genius yesterday was so smart he told me to try a Microsoft store.
Please help this is going on 10 days I've been trying to solve this now. Should I go back to the Apple Store and ask them to put Mavericks on it? That's how I got Windows 8.1 boot camped three years ago.
MacBook Pro, OS X El Capitan (10.11.6), SuperDrive blocks discs, 8GB RAM
Posted on Jul 30, 2016 9:42 PM
I'm saying these things:
The local Apple Genius I took the unit to told me that my SuperDrive would no longer function because it was "legacy". He also told me to to take my Apple computer, OS, and Boot Camp problem to a Microsoft store.
Through at least a dozen system reinstall/hack partition table/csrfile disable/partition hacky hackersson sessions I've engaged in over the last ten days, not one person ever knew there was a soft reset possible of the SuperDrive from El Capitan, and that includes all Apple support techs I spoke to. They don't know or they don't say.
I'm saying my original Microsoft Windows disk has just completed successfully installed Windows 8 as task 1 after a stone-stock El Capitan reinstall.
I just got off the phone with Microsoft and they informed me the free Windows 10 upgrade has been extended to August 13th.
Lesson learned: before you try ANYTHING else, try resetting your SuperDrive using the technique this kid in England discovered. Apple should send that kid a Mac mini.
Posted on Aug 1, 2016 10:50 AM