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[GUIDE] Enabling eGPU display output in Yosemite


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Hi,

I recently figured out a way to enable eGPU display output in Yosemite. I'm using a 750m rMBP but this might work for Iris models as well.

post-33851-14494999950179_thumb.png

1. Install the newest web drivers, patch the required kexts and install gfxCardStatus.

2. Boot into OS X (no eGPU attached) and switch to the web drivers. Reboot.

3. Continue to keep the eGPU unplugged and boot into Yosemite (with web drivers loaded)

4. Now the weird part

5. In gfxCardStatus, switch from integrated>discreet>integrated>discreet

6. On the second switch to discreet mode, the macbook display should immediately go black (hit the volume keys and you will still hear sound). At this point the output has been switched to the eGPU which hasn't been plugged in yet.

7. When the display goes black, hold the power button to force a shutdown.

8. Power on the eGPU but don't plug it in yet. Plug in an external monitor with HDMI and turn it on.

9. Power on the macbook and hold alt to get to the boot menu

10. Click to boot the Yosemite installation and immediately plug in the eGPU.

The key element seems to be using gfxCardStatus when the web drivers are loaded to switch to the eGPU. This doesn't work unless they're active, as the internal display will never go blank.

I assume the only reason I need to switch from integrated>discreet>integrated>discreet is because of the the already present 750m. This might be unnecessary with the Iris models- hopefully someone can test this out.

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750M (both the late 2013 and mid 2014) model has been already confirmed to have Nvidia eGPU screen output partially on Yosemite:

http://forum.techinferno.com/implementation-guides-apple/8619-tb2-macbooks-allow-monitors-used-nvidia-egpus-osx.html#post117570

Does this enable it 100%?

gfxCardStatus cannot be installed on Iris Pro only models. Won't help. The reason is specific Mac hardware and AppleIntelFramebufferAzul.kext.

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  • 1 month later...

Adding two other links regarding eGPU output to an external monitor from Yosemite that I think are extremely useful:

VIDEO LINK & GUIDE LINK

Here's the info from the guide. Credit to megalithic for compiling and drafting the info below. Thanks Megalithic!

AKiTiO Thunder2 & EVGA 960 GTX SC setup

Publicly shared as a gist


NOTE: The AKiTiO Thunder2 SHOULD NOT be plugged in yet


  • Download latest nVidia Web Drivers
  • Download latest CUDA Drivers and extract the pkg file
  • Download PackageMaker
  • Download CUDA-Z
  • Uninstall all previous versions of the nVidia Web Drivers
  • Restart your MacBook Pro
  • Execute <code style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Consolas, 'Liberation Mono', Menlo, Courier, monospace; font-size: 14px; padding: 0.2em 0px; margin: 0px; background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0392157); border-top-left-radius: 3px; border-top-right-radius: 3px; border-bottom-right-radius: 3px; border-bottom-left-radius: 3px;">sudo nvram boot-args="kext-dev-mode=1 nvda_drv=1"</code>
  • Restart your MacBook Pro
  • Open WebDriver-[latest_version].pkg using Flat Package Editor.app (lives inside of PackageMaker.app/Contents/Resources)
  • Drag Distribution to your Desktop
  • Edit ~/Desktop/Distribution with TextEdit.app
  • Delete or comment out these two lines:
    if (!validateHardware()) return false;
    if (!validateSoftware()) return false;
  • Save and exit
  • Drag ~/Desktop/Distribution back into Flat Package Editor.app
  • Close Flat Package Editor.app and choose Save
  • Double-click WebDriver-[latest_version].pkg to install it
  • Restart your MacBook Pro
  • Double-click CUDADriver.pkg to install it
  • Open the following kext files:
    # 2 occurrences
    /System/Library/Extensions/NVDAStartup.kext/Contents/Info.plist
    # 4 occurrences
    /System/Library/Extensions/IONDRVSupport.kext/Info.plist
    # 2 occurrences
    /System/Library/Extensions/AppleHDA.kext/Contents/PlugIns/AppleHDAController.kext/Contents/Info.plist
    Edit them each by adding the following lines of code to just above each of the closing <code style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Consolas, 'Liberation Mono', Menlo, Courier, monospace; font-size: 14px; padding: 0.2em 0px; margin: 0px; background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0392157); border-top-left-radius: 3px; border-top-right-radius: 3px; border-bottom-right-radius: 3px; border-bottom-left-radius: 3px;"></code>tags that contain a <code style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Consolas, 'Liberation Mono', Menlo, Courier, monospace; font-size: 14px; padding: 0.2em 0px; margin: 0px; background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0392157); border-top-left-radius: 3px; border-top-right-radius: 3px; border-bottom-right-radius: 3px; border-bottom-left-radius: 3px;">CFBundleIdentifier</code> key:
    <key>IOPCITunnelCompatible<!--<font color="#63A35C"-->key>
    <true/>
  • Save all 3 kext files and exit
  • Clear caches <code style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Consolas, 'Liberation Mono', Menlo, Courier, monospace; font-size: 14px; padding: 0.2em 0px; margin: 0px; background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0392157); border-top-left-radius: 3px; border-top-right-radius: 3px; border-bottom-right-radius: 3px; border-bottom-left-radius: 3px;">sudo kextcache -system-caches</code>
  • Shut down your MacBook Pro
  • Connect your AKiTiO Thunder2 to your MacBook Pro via the Thunderbolt 2 cable
  • Turn on the PSU
  • Turn on your MacBook Pro
  • Profit! :D

Additional links and credits:

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