2006/2007 Mac Pro (1,1/2,1) and OS X El Capitan

[PowerMac G4 MDD]

Anyone ever get the piker/yose fix to install and work yet? New beta out again, no desire to manually change the efi.

If only SFOTT would chime in. There hasn't been any activity from them for a while now. If all is well, they could release an El Capitan boot-key preparer and have this process be easier for everyone. However, since it seems as though they are dormant, I may just do it manually like everyone else is.

So, are you saying that the latest version of the beta won't install? I think I may just wait until El Capitan is released.

 

[GreekCanuck]

The latest beta (beta 6) works fine for me, but the pike/yose fix does not work for me. I just recopy the boot.fi manually to the two folders each time I update. With the latest beta the fans seem to have calmed down for me and boot/reboot time is much faster. Only issue really remaining for me is getting my USB 3.0 PCI card to work. I have tried installing the Yosemite drivers for the card, it won't boot at all then and I have to manually remove them to restore the system. I also tried the GenericUSBXHCI and got that one to load and boot but it doesn't work either.

 

[PowerMac G4 MDD]

The latest beta (beta 6) works fine for me, but the pike/yose fix does not work for me. I just recopy the boot.fi manually to the two folders each time I update. With the latest beta the fans seem to have calmed down for me and boot/reboot time is much faster. Only issue really remaining for me is getting my USB 3.0 PCI card to work. I have tried installing the Yosemite drivers for the card, it won't boot at all then and I have to manually remove them to restore the system. I also tried the GenericUSBXHCI and got that one to load and boot but it doesn't work either.

It's weird that your PCI card isn't working... maybe a driver update for El Capitan could come in the future?

BTW, I am currently running Mountain Lion on my 1,1. I wonder if El Capitan could run the same or better than this; overall, THIS seems pretty speedy, except for my old, slow HDD bogging certain things down.

 

[djeeyore25]

I was able to install the pike/yose fix, but it doesn't work on my system (Mac Pro 1,1). I can live with just having to change the two boot files each time. As long as that doesn't change things are golden.

I have to say that for a nine year old computer my Mac Pro still runs great, even with El Capitan. On an SSD it boots in about 20 seconds. I installed Windows 10 on the system over the weekend and that runs great, even though it's installed on a standard hard drive. Pretty remarkable.

 

[PowerMac G4 MDD]

I was able to install the pike/yose fix, but it doesn't work on my system (Mac Pro 1,1). I can live with just having to change the two boot files each time. As long as that doesn't change things are golden.

I have to say that for a nine year old computer my Mac Pro still runs great, even with El Capitan. On an SSD it boots in about 20 seconds. I installed Windows 10 on the system over the weekend and that runs great, even though it's installed on a standard hard drive. Pretty remarkable.

That's great to hear! I was a little skeptical about El Capitan at first, but from what I have heard from others, it is (for the most part) working just fine and running well as well. I never touched past Mountain Lion, especially on my HDD... Mavericks was slow, and I expected Yosemite would be as well.

I have a 1,1 as well (3Ghz model), and I am also surprised at how nicely it runs. This machine feels a peppy as a brand-new budget computer w/ an i3 or something. However, what it has hidden behind its responsiveness is muscle and raw power. Sure, it may not be as responsive as a nicer MacBook Air (although graphics-wise, it's better than that integrated crud), but it delivers a bigger punch. Even if someone compared a Xeon HP workstation from 2006, it wouldn't be as great as this thing, it would only match it in sheer specifications... and we know that specs (especially just processor speed) aren't everything! (But, it seems like some Windows fanboys don't know that) So, I guess, once I get an SSD in my system (and once El Capitan is released--hopefully working as well [or better] than this past beta), I'll upgrade this thing to El Capitan.

By the way, I am interested in Windows 10 on a separate partition. Are you running the 32-bit or 64-bit version? I used to have Windows 7 on this Mac Pro, and I recall it being 64-bit, but when I recently wanted to put Windows back on it, the Bootcamp files for 64-bit Windows weren't compatible with my machine--no surprise. I put 32-bit Windows 7 instead, and all the drivers are applied correctly; however, it does have some lag spikes, which is why I am interested in a lighter, nicer, Windows 10. Were the Bootcamp drivers for the 1,1 able to work with Windows 10 just fine, or were there any hoops through which you had to jump?

Thanks for sharing your valuable feedback on your machine and El Capitan,
-MDD

 

[djeeyore25]

That's great to hear! I was a little skeptical about El Capitan at first, but from what I have heard from others, it is (for the most part) working just fine and running well as well. I never touched past Mountain Lion, especially on my HDD... Mavericks was slow, and I expected Yosemite would be as well.

I have a 1,1 as well (3Ghz model), and I am also surprised at how nicely it runs. This machine feels a peppy as a brand-new budget computer w/ an i3 or something. However, what it has hidden behind its responsiveness is muscle and raw power. Sure, it may not be as responsive as a nicer MacBook Air (although graphics-wise, it's better than that integrated crud), but it delivers a bigger punch. Even if someone compared a Xeon HP workstation from 2006, it wouldn't be as great as this thing, it would only match it in sheer specifications... and we know that specs (especially just processor speed) aren't everything! (But, it seems like some Windows fanboys don't know that) So, I guess, once I get an SSD in my system (and once El Capitan is released--hopefully working as well [or better] than this past beta), I'll upgrade this thing to El Capitan.

By the way, I am interested in Windows 10 on a separate partition. Are you running the 32-bit or 64-bit version? I used to have Windows 7 on this Mac Pro, and I recall it being 64-bit, but when I recently wanted to put Windows back on it, the Bootcamp files for 64-bit Windows weren't compatible with my machine--no surprise. I put 32-bit Windows 7 instead, and all the drivers are applied correctly; however, it does have some lag spikes, which is why I am interested in a lighter, nicer, Windows 10. Were the Bootcamp drivers for the 1,1 able to work with Windows 10 just fine, or were there any hoops through which you had to jump?

Thanks for sharing your valuable feedback on your machine and El Capitan,
-MDD

I have a 2013 Mac Pro as well and while it's certainly faster, it doesn't feel as smooth as my Mac Pro 1,1. Maybe there is just a coolness factor to the older machines. Personally I think Windows 10 and El Capitan are very efficient and simplistic systems, which may be why they run smooth on older machines. I also have Yosemite on my machine and I think El Capitan is faster, though I can't back that up with statistics.

I'm running 64-bit Windows 10 Pro, which I upgraded from 64-bit Windows 8 Pro. I never used the Boot Camp Assistant at all (the Mac Pro 1,1 only officially supports up to Windows 7), instead just making a partition with disk utility. After I upgraded Windows I downloaded the latest Boot Camp support software available and tried to install it in Windows, but kept getting an error message about it not being compatible with my system or something like that. After some research I discovered that you can start the install through the command prompt instead. After that the drivers installed without a problem. I haven't had any compatibility issues or lag so far. Results may very depending on your system configuration.

 

[PowerMac G4 MDD]

xD Funny how Apple doesn't support Windows 10 on a Mac Pro, and not even Mountain Lion+... yet we've found ways to do all of it so easily.

Thanks for explaining the process; I also received error messages when trying to install 64-bit Windows 7, and didn't really research them any further. I guess once I get THAT working, I can upgrade straight to Windows 10.

Oh, BTW, you may or may not know this already: Windows 10, by default, 'invades your privacy' and 'steals your bandwidth.' I didn't read in full detail about the privacy issues, but MS monitors your system in some way. However, simple changes in the advanced Windows Update settings can fix this.

As for the bandwidth thing... Microsoft is currently hosting millions of Windows 10 upgrades, and their servers aren't able to handle it all; to achieve hosting all of these upgrades, they are currently using people (whose machines have already been upgraded to Windows 10) as seeders for their little project. Frankly put, they're stealing existing users' bandwidth in order to host more Windows 10 upgrades. Another simple change in the system settings can disable Microsoft's silly process. There isn't one specific article on this, so just Google these two things and you'll find articles that tell you exactly which options to disable in the settings.

I guess I'll update with whatever happens... Windows 10 may go on first, and El Capitan will be installed once it's released.

Thanks for your valuable input - I was a little skeptical about El Capitan at first, and thought it sounded like a daunting task to install manually--without tools like SFOTT.

P.S. One last question: 4GB of RAM is just a tad skimpy for my current Mountain Lion installation... do you think 4GB would be pretty unbearable with El Capitan?

 

[djeeyore25]

xD Funny how Apple doesn't support Windows 10 on a Mac Pro, and not even Mountain Lion+... yet we've found ways to do all of it so easily.

Thanks for explaining the process; I also received error messages when trying to install 64-bit Windows 7, and didn't really research them any further. I guess once I get THAT working, I can upgrade straight to Windows 10.

Oh, BTW, you may or may not know this already: Windows 10, by default, 'invades your privacy' and 'steals your bandwidth.' I didn't read in full detail about the privacy issues, but MS monitors your system in some way. However, simple changes in the advanced Windows Update settings can fix this.

As for the bandwidth thing... Microsoft is currently hosting millions of Windows 10 upgrades, and their servers aren't able to handle it all; to achieve hosting all of these upgrades, they are currently using people (whose machines have already been upgraded to Windows 10) as seeders for their little project. Frankly put, they're stealing existing users' bandwidth in order to host more Windows 10 upgrades. Another simple change in the system settings can disable Microsoft's silly process. There isn't one specific article on this, so just Google these two things and you'll find articles that tell you exactly which options to disable in the settings.

I guess I'll update with whatever happens... Windows 10 may go on first, and El Capitan will be installed once it's released.

Thanks for your valuable input - I was a little skeptical about El Capitan at first, and thought it sounded like a daunting task to install manually--without tools like SFOTT.

P.S. One last question: 4GB of RAM is just a tad skimpy for my current Mountain Lion installation... do you think 4GB would be pretty unbearable with El Capitan?

You'd think Apple would want to brag about how well their older systems keep up, but I guess they are more concerned with selling new systems instead. I'm just happy my Mac Pro 1,1 keeps on being useful.

I used SFOTT to install Mavericks and thought it was great. But once you used to changing the boot files on El Capitan it becomes easy. It takes me about 30 seconds now. I still wish the pike/yose fix worked, but no worries.

I'd read about the Windows 10 hosting feature and turned it off on my computers. I'm not sure why they don't make you opt in instead of out. If I were in a workplace with a local network I'd leave it on for all the computers logged in. I didn't notice a difference after turning it off, but I'd rather not be uploading and downloading all the time. If Microsoft wants to pay for my internet I'll be more than happy to turn it back on.

When I installed 64-bit Windows 8 Pro on my Mac Pro 1,1 I had a few problems. I'm not sure if they are 64-bit related or not, though I think Windows 7 may give the same issues. The first was a screen during install that asked me to select my CD-Rom type, but froze so I couldn't make a selection. To fix it I had to go to a working Windows computer and use the command prompt to modify the ISO file (I found the instructions on the internet somewhere). I burned the modified ISO to a disk, made a boot disk from that ISO, then tried to install from that boot disk. It worked after that. I didn't get the same error message on my other two Macs during install with the regular ISO so there is something about the early Mac Pro that gives that error.

The second problem was while I was choosing the partition in the installer. It kept giving me an error saying it couldn't install after choosing the Windows partition. It turns out if your computer has more than 4 partitions total Windows 8 will not install (at least on my machine). I pulled out all my other hard drives and removed all USB devices and it ran fine after that.

Upgrading to Windows 10 was flawless using the ISO from Windows website.

I'm not sure how a direct install of Windows 10 would go, but I'd try and see if that works. If not, you can always reinstall Windows 7 and upgrade.

My 2010 Macbook Air has 4GB of Ram and a lousy process but runs El Capitan and Windows 10 well. I think that the hard drive type may be a bigger factor as all my computers run either solid state drives or hybrid drives (Windows 10 in the Mac Pro 1,1 is on the hybrid drive). As long as you are not doing intense gaming or graphics work the computer should run fine.

 

[PowerMac G4 MDD]

You'd think Apple would want to brag about how well their older systems keep up, but I guess they are more concerned with selling new systems instead. I'm just happy my Mac Pro 1,1 keeps on being useful.

I used SFOTT to install Mavericks and thought it was great. But once you used to changing the boot files on El Capitan it becomes easy. It takes me about 30 seconds now. I still wish the pike/yose fix worked, but no worries.

I'd read about the Windows 10 hosting feature and turned it off on my computers. I'm not sure why they don't make you opt in instead of out. If I were in a workplace with a local network I'd leave it on for all the computers logged in. I didn't notice a difference after turning it off, but I'd rather not be uploading and downloading all the time. If Microsoft wants to pay for my internet I'll be more than happy to turn it back on.

When I installed 64-bit Windows 8 Pro on my Mac Pro 1,1 I had a few problems. I'm not sure if they are 64-bit related or not, though I think Windows 7 may give the same issues. The first was a screen during install that asked me to select my CD-Rom type, but froze so I couldn't make a selection. To fix it I had to go to a working Windows computer and use the command prompt to modify the ISO file (I found the instructions on the internet somewhere). I burned the modified ISO to a disk, made a boot disk from that ISO, then tried to install from that boot disk. It worked after that. I didn't get the same error message on my other two Macs during install with the regular ISO so there is something about the early Mac Pro that gives that error.

The second problem was while I was choosing the partition in the installer. It kept giving me an error saying it couldn't install after choosing the Windows partition. It turns out if your computer has more than 4 partitions total Windows 8 will not install (at least on my machine). I pulled out all my other hard drives and removed all USB devices and it ran fine after that.

Upgrading to Windows 10 was flawless using the ISO from Windows website.

I'm not sure how a direct install of Windows 10 would go, but I'd try and see if that works. If not, you can always reinstall Windows 7 and upgrade.

I'll look into replacing the EFI files; it seems easy enough. It DOES say to repair permissions, though... wasn't that feature taken out of Disk Utility in El Capitan, or am I thinking about something else?

Okay, I'll see if I can find those instructions on modifying the ISO. As for that issue with the partitions, I actually ran into that when installing Windows 7 in the first place. I also found out about the solution of removing all other HDDs; I did so and it worked.

-Thanks

My 2010 Macbook Air has 4GB of Ram and a lousy process but runs El Capitan and Windows 10 well. I think that the hard drive type may be a bigger factor as all my computers run either solid state drives or hybrid drives (Windows 10 in the Mac Pro 1,1 is on the hybrid drive). As long as you are not doing intense gaming or graphics work the computer should run fine.

 

[djeeyore25]

Repair permissions was eliminated from El Capitan, but I didn't have any issues by not using it. Overall, disk utility is very different in El Capitan. I keep a partition of Yosemite on my Mac Pro and when I get an El Capitan update I boot into Yosemite and change the EFI files from there, then reboot into El Capitan. One of my folders wouldn't let me replace the EFI, but I fixed it by changing the sharing and permissions setting.

You shouldn't have any problem finding a fix to the 64-bit Windows select CD-Rom error online. It appears to be only the 64-bit versions that have this problem. If you have access to a Windows machine it'll be an easy fix. I'm not sure if there is a way to modify the ISO on Mac yet. Once it's installed the 64-bit Windows runs smooth.

 

[PowerMac G4 MDD]

Repair permissions was eliminated from El Capitan, but I didn't have any issues by not using it. Overall, disk utility is very different in El Capitan. I keep a partition of Yosemite on my Mac Pro and when I get an El Capitan update I boot into Yosemite and change the EFI files from there, then reboot into El Capitan. One of my folders wouldn't let me replace the EFI, but I fixed it by changing the sharing and permissions setting.

You shouldn't have any problem finding a fix to the 64-bit Windows select CD-Rom error online. It appears to be only the 64-bit versions that have this problem. If you have access to a Windows machine it'll be an easy fix. I'm not sure if there is a way to modify the ISO on Mac yet. Once it's installed the 64-bit Windows runs smooth.

Ah, yeah, I almost forgot to consider that I need to keep some other version of MacOSX handy on the side. I'm used to SFOTT, which has a built-in re-patching option within the boot key it makes for you. No issue, though.

(Yeah, I have access to a Windows machine. Even Mac users must have a Windows PC around for mundane little tasks!)

 

[PowerMac G4 MDD]

Anyone ever get the piker/yose fix to install and work yet? New beta out again, no desire to manually change the efi.

I hope someone makes an 'El Capitan fixer' for when it comes out.

 

[PowerMac G4 MDD]

Odd... so I decided to try Yosemite for the heck of it (just to get practice with this and see how Yosemite would run). I decided to just clone my Yosemite installation from my MBP to the Mac Pro's drive. I placed the new boot EFI in the two locations (making sure to eliminate the original). I then repaired the disk permissions w/ Disk Utility and restarted the Mac Pro once it was finished. The Mac Pro had been in Target Disk Mode, which is how I was cloning this over.

I selected the partition I had cloned Yosemite to, but it wouldn't boot from it... instead, it immediately booted to my current Mountain Lion installation. I even selected the Yosemite partition as my boot disk, and it still refused to boot. I wonder what the issue could be.

 

[djeeyore25]

Odd... so I decided to try Yosemite for the heck of it (just to get practice with this and see how Yosemite would run). I decided to just clone my Yosemite installation from my MBP to the Mac Pro's drive. I placed the new boot EFI in the two locations (making sure to eliminate the original). I then repaired the disk permissions w/ Disk Utility and restarted the Mac Pro once it was finished. The Mac Pro had been in Target Disk Mode, which is how I was cloning this over.

I selected the partition I had cloned Yosemite to, but it wouldn't boot from it... instead, it immediately booted to my current Mountain Lion installation. I even selected the Yosemite partition as my boot disk, and it still refused to boot. I wonder what the issue could be.

I've found that a clean install directly on the Mac Pro works best. I had the same problem trying to install El Capitan, but when I did a clean install it worked. The good thing with Yosemite is there are pre-patched versions available, just like using SFOTT. You can just download it, make a boot USB, install it on the Mac Pro, run PikeYoseFix, reboot twice, then update to the most current Yosemite version.

One last thing to try would be blessing the drive on the Mac Pro.

 

[PowerMac G4 MDD]

I've found that a clean install directly on the Mac Pro works best. I had the same problem trying to install El Capitan, but when I did a clean install it worked. The good thing with Yosemite is there are pre-patched versions available, just like using SFOTT. You can just download it, make a boot USB, install it on the Mac Pro, run PikeYoseFix, reboot twice, then update to the most current Yosemite version.

One last thing to try would be blessing the drive on the Mac Pro.

Ah, that's what I was thinking. I originally DID try a pre-patched version, but for some reason, I got an error when I tried opening the installer; I tried it directly on my Mac Pro, and also tried it from my capable MacBook Pro w/ Target Disk mode enabled on the Mac Pro. The Mac Pro's error had to do with some sort of check that Apple did... I guess in order to make sure my Mac could run it or something. As for the MBP, it said something similar, but I forget exactly the wording. In all, the installer just didn't want to continue past the first window.

I guess if blessing the disk doesn't work, I'll force myself to be patient and just wait for El Capitan.

 

[Mrewright]

Hi all,

I've been following the various threads on running Yosemite on my Mac Pro 1,1 with much interest. This is my first post and I am relatively new, I was wondering if there is a good step by step DIY available which illustrates the exact steps one needs to take to make the jump to Yosemite, since a lot of the techniques and references here are over my head.

Thanks,
Ernie

 

[PeterHolbrook]

I was wondering if there is a good step by step DIY available which illustrates the exact steps one needs to take to make the jump to Yosemite, since a lot of the techniques and references here are over my head.

I suggest that you minutely study the first message of https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/2006-2007-mac-pro-1-1-2-1-and-os-x-yosemite.1740775/. It contains everything you need to successfully install Yosemite on an old Mac Pro. Just use Pike's boot.efi and the PikeYose fix and everything should be all right. The same approach will work in a few weeks in El Capitan, although Pike has said that he'll change a few things in his boot.efi. In any case, as you know, even his old boot loader is working just fine with El Capitan's beta builds we've seen so far.

 

[dfritchie]

I was bored yesterday so I made a El Capitan USB installer using the guide for Yosemite. My Mac Pro 1,1 booted from it and ran the installer just fine. But when it came time to reboot to finish the install, it boots into Yosemite instead. Can not get it to boot El Capitan at all. Anybody have suggestions?
P.S. It was a clean install using the latest beta.

 

[djeeyore25]

I was bored yesterday so I made a El Capitan USB installer using the guide for Yosemite. My Mac Pro 1,1 booted from it and ran the installer just fine. But when it came time to reboot to finish the install, it boots into Yosemite instead. Can not get it to boot El Capitan at all. Anybody have suggestions?
P.S. It was a clean install using the latest beta.

The first time I tried to boot into El Capitan it went directly to Yosemite. In the settings in Yosemite I changed the startup disk to the El Capitan partition and it has booted into that ever since. Try that and see if it works.

 

[djeeyore25]

Hi all,

I've been following the various threads on running Yosemite on my Mac Pro 1,1 with much interest. This is my first post and I am relatively new, I was wondering if there is a good step by step DIY available which illustrates the exact steps one needs to take to make the jump to Yosemite, since a lot of the techniques and references here are over my head.

Thanks,
Ernie

There is a pre-patched Yosemite download here. All you have to do is download the file, mount the iso and make a boot USB or CD to install (all the boot files are already changed). After it is installed run PikeYoseFix, restart twice, then you can run the Yosemite updates without having to change the boot files at all.

 

[dfritchie]

The first time I tried to boot into El Capitan it went directly to Yosemite. In the settings in Yosemite I changed the startup disk to the El Capitan partition and it has booted into that ever since. Try that and see if it works.

First thing I tried :-(

 

[djeeyore25]

First thing I tried :-(

I don't know why it worked on mine when I did that. So odd. If I can think of anything else I'll let you know.

 

[dfritchie]

I don't know why it worked on mine when I did that. So odd. If I can think of anything else I'll let you know.

I fixed it! I went to the drive it installed to and replaced both boot.efi files and it nows boots. I've gone over the steps to making the installer, but don't know what went wrong yet.

 

[djeeyore25]

I fixed it! I went to the drive it installed to and replaced both boot.efi files and it nows boots. I've gone over the steps to making the installer, but don't know what went wrong yet.

Awesome! I'm glad it's working.

 

[PowerMac G4 MDD]

Awesome! I'm glad it's working.

Man, I can't wait until El Capitan is released! This sounds like a blast. I'm pretty sure that the last time I had a CURRENT version of Mac OSX on my computer/s was back when I got my OG iMac G5 w/ 10.3.9 Panther. I may have upgraded to Tiger while it was still current, but I definitely didn't get Leopard until it had already been out for a while... or possibly once Snow Leopard was already out. Sure, my 2009 MBP can run Yosemite (I have a partition), but I don't use it; Snow Leopard (which I didn't switch to until around 2012 or 2013) serves me just fine. Maybe once El Capitan is here, I'll overwrite Snow Leopard altogether.

BTW, sorry if I may have missed this, but are you running El Capitan from an SSD or an HDD? I was convinced that something was fishy with my Mac Pro, as I run into certain lag spikes when trying to open applications... but then I realized that my HDD was old, slow, and messed up. I replaced it with this HDD that I pulled from another computer, but it's an old WD Blue drive--who knows if it's even a 7200RPM drive.

I may just end up getting an SSD, but I wonder if a 7200RPM drive could be enough. After all, my second HDD IS a 7200RPM drive, but I use that for backups. Maybe I ought to transfer my user to it.

EDIT: I saw in an older post that you had an SSD, which is what I remembered. In spite of the fact that the Mac Pro uses a SATA II interface (unless I'm wrong), it may just be worth it to pick up a SATA III drive that could end up being used on any other machine. What are your read and write speeds with your 1,1 Mac Pro's SSD?