[SCRIPT] Automating the installation of eGPU on OS X (inc display output)

[JamesGrean]

Uninstalled the script, backed up the iMac, just in case. Reset NVRAM. Booted up, installed script once, then 2nd time with -a. Reboot. 980ti reported! Success.

Did not need to reinstall OSX after all. 
 

Now to get this working with Octane Render...

Edited July 16, 2016 by JamesGrean
Correction - solved

[devild]

10.11.6 is working. Nvidia released updated drivers.

Now waiting only for updated drivers for 10.10.5 on 2nd macbook.

[Tooth]

Anyone have luck running this script on 10.12 public beta? I reset PRAM, uninstalled script, made sure SIP is disabled. The following errors show up when the script is ran:

 

Driver downloaded.

Removing validation checks...

Could not open package for expansion: /tmp/WebDriver-367.05.10.05b07.pkg

sed: /tmp/expanded.pkg/Distribution: No such file or directory

sed: /tmp/expanded.pkg/Distribution: No such file or directory

Could not open directory: /tmp/expanded.pkg

Modified package ready. Do you want to install (y/n)?

y

installer: Error the package path specified was invalid: '/Library/Application Support/Automate-eGPU/NVIDIA/WebDriver-367.05.10.05b07.pkg'.

Checking IOPCITunnelCompatible keys...

 

Missing IOPCITunnelCompatible keys.

IOPCITunnelCompatible mods done.

NVDARequiredOS does not match. Changed to 16A254g

All ready. Please restart the Mac.

 

I did roll back to 10.11.5 at some point, but had to upgrade again after my photos library would no longer open.

[euqlaog]

On 7/31/2016 at 5:08 AM, Tooth said:

Anyone have luck running this script on 10.12 public beta?

https://github.com/goalque/automate-eGPU/issues/31

[Tooth]

On 8/1/2016 at 2:44 PM, goalque said:

https://github.com/goalque/automate-eGPU/issues/31

 

Thank you for taking the time to reply! I'll do my best to try and figure out what those 6 characters are, haha.

Edited August 3, 2016 by Tooth

[dmak]

On 8/2/2016 at 7:46 AM, Tooth said:

 

Thank you for taking the time to reply! I'll do my best to try and figure out what those 6 characters are, haha.

 

I am also trying to understand how to get the script to work properly with Sierra (now 16A270f). Newly built eGPU was essentially plug and play on Windows 10 partition. However, Mac always restarts with internal monitor despite running the script, and also manually installing latest NVIDIA driver (367.10.10.05b01). This is my first time building/using an egpu with my retina macbook. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

[portwolf]

Hey @goalque I'm wondering when the new mBP comes out with Thunderbolt 3, do you intend to enable this script to work for the line of TB3 eGPUs that will surely come out. Particularly the Razer Core. http://www.razerzone.com/store/razer-core  I've been running successfully an AtiKo setup on TB2, and with your script and drivers it's perfect in OSX, but it's never been stable in Windows. And I look forward to upgrading to a box that has out of the box Windows support, but am hoping I get the same experience with OSX. I'm sure they wont immediately create OSX drivers themselves. Looking forward to your solution.

[euqlaog]

Version 0.9.9 is released with new licensing:

Copyright (c) 2016 Goalque

 

1. You are free to copy the script for personal use.

2. Backward modification or merging with earlier versions is prohibited, including changes to support macOS Sierra as described in issue #31.

3. No one is allowed to wrap the script into an installation tool or execute it from another program or script.

4. You may not use this script for commercial purposes.

What’s new in 0.9.9:

* native support (experimental) for R9 Nano and RX 480 with a Baffin personality (as hinted here).
(just remember to turn on -a mode)

* Nvidia web driver support (experimental) for macOS Sierra beta builds

[Muadi]

Has anyone tried the 1060 yet?  

 

This is gonna replace my GTX 970 : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125903

[jsofdc]

Hi everyone,

 

Ran into  a small snag and need your advise.  My iMac 5K with 10.11.6 has a 90 degree rotated screen after running the automate-eGPU script.  Everything else works prefect, I'm just at the 5 yard line and would love a bit of advise to how to correct.  

 

Thanks!

[MultiU]

Hi Goalque,

 

Thanks very much for the script. I had it successfully installed and it detected my GTX 980ti  using Akitio Thunder 2 and running 10.11 on my MBP 15" Mid 2014 GT 750m

 

After the issue with the eGPU crashing  and going through uninstalling it a few times, I finally got it going again. 

 

I used the -uninstall option of the script and reseated all the components and then retried 

 

then used  automate-eGPU.sh -a   

 

the first few times i had the " Nvidia Chip " issue and now it  recognised  as gtx 980ti 

 

I am now trying to get the programs to recognise the card in Resolve and CUDA core programs which is my primary concern but it seems I am missing something, I connected the card to an external monitor also and it is not recognised in the systems preference and just stays dark.

 

 

Any suggestions on what I need to look out for?

 

I read that if i was only using CUDA programs I can comment out 

 

"A quick fix,

 

1) sudo ./automate-eGPU.sh -uninstall and restart the Mac

2) Change the line 62 of the script to: config_board_ids=()

3) sudo ./automate-eGPU.sh and restart the Mac

 

"  

 

but i only found the line 52 of the v 0.9.9

 

TIA

Edited August 31, 2016 by MultiU
update

[MartyF81]

@goalque  Thank you so much for your efforts on this!  I got my device today and was up and running in 5 mins after plugging it in thanks to your script.

 

I have a 2015 MBP 11,5 with 16GB RAM,  2.8ghz i7 and the AMD R9M370X dGPU.

 

I am running a GTX970 in an Aikito Box.  Driving a LG 34UM95 34″ UltraWide Screen.  Right now for some reason it is only getting to 30hz instead of 60hz. I think this is because of my Redmere HDMI Cable. So I am waiting for a DP to DP cable coming tomorrow to test that out.

 

I just wanted to say thank you for your work on this, and if you are ever looking for donations, I am willing!

 

One question: I read all 31 pages of this... and I saw you are working on a new project.  Is THIS project going to continue and be developed for Sierra?  I am kinda confused on that front.

[MartyF81]

So I am all working now. Switching to the DP to DP cable took care of my 30hz issue.

 

Now I made the mistake of installing the security patch that Apple Released today.  Is this going to affect my eGPU?  if I just run the script again will it work? I don't know what I was thinking....

[JayinNJ]

Everything seems to have installed properly and is working with the benchmarking tests. Am I right in that the eGPU really isn't used when watching things like videos (YouTube, Netflix, HBOGO, etc.)? I noticed I still get some stuttering and/or tearing on my 4K monitor when watching 4k videos on YouTube and other shows on my external monitor. I also hear my fan kicking into high gear on the laptop (13" 2015 MacBook Pro), indicating it is doing a lot of work.  I know obviously the eGPU is involved somewhat sine it is outputting the video to my monitor, but doesn't seem to be giving a huge performance increase. My setup is with a GTX 950 card. Any chance this can be improved or it may be improved when Sierra comes out with official support.

[superquadric]

Hello,

 

The Gigabyte RX460 4G in the Akitio with a universal 144W charger (overkill) just works on my Skylake laptop running Windows 10. This card does not have a power connector, but I had to remove the Akitio's fan for it to fit (I will check about putting a thinner one). It is connected via the Startech TB3TB2 converter and has no problem going through a Startech TB2 dock.

 

It puzzles me that the specs of this card announce a TDP of 84W when PCIe can only provide 75.

 

In general, the RX460 under TB2 seems to be performing more or less similarly as the GTX960 in the notebook. Good thing I did not buy it for that, and no dual purpose is simpler.

 

I benchmarked the PC ant it seems that placing the eGPU first in the chain instead of after a dock has a non-negligible small beneficial impact.

 

Sometimes the image on the external display goes away and I have to put the computer to sleep to get it back. It could be heat, AMD firmware, TB converter, driver, or Windows.

 

Mac:

 

On my 17" MBP Early 2011 Windows 10 boot gives a black screen and in Sierra the card is not recognized.

 

So I tried this script with Sierra, but it's just using the dGPU via the eGPU's HDMI.

 

I tried disabling the LCD but it did not help, and gfxCardStatus won't allow me to switch to iGPU to see if switching to discrete then activates eGPU rendering.

 

So, I checked out the EFI demo, but I just get a grey LCD screen when it tries to start OSX. And it doesn't work for Windows either.

 

Thanks

 

NOTE:

 

The script is wrong, Baffin is not a variant, but an eGPU name, I had to edit it.

 

 

Edited September 7, 2016 by superquadric

[superquadric]

 It is not possible to have AMDRadeonX3000.kext and AMDRadeonX4000.kext loaded at the same time. They have conflicting definitions.

 

And gfxCardStatus only supports 1 discrete card, so it's not possible to choose which.

 

I had no choice but to take away the old card kexts. The automation script needs to be able to remove them on boot, and restore them on shutdown.

 

Now the eGPU provides a big boost. But no way to choose 4K@60Hz.

 

The Heaven benchmark stalls seriously. This does not happen on the PC under TB2 but this is TB1.

 

Maybe it's some other process.

Edited September 8, 2016 by superquadric

[euqlaog]

On 8/30/2016 at 2:32 AM, MartyF81 said:

One question: I read all 31 pages of this... and I saw you are working on a new project.  Is THIS project going to continue and be developed for Sierra?  I am kinda confused on that front.

automate-eGPU.sh is discontinued. I found new opportunities from the EFI side.

 

Versions up to 0.9.8 can still be modified under the MIT license as long as taking into account the new license condition of v0.9.9 [2]:

Backward modification or merging with earlier versions is prohibited, including changes to support macOS Sierra as described in issue #31.

 

The v0.9.9 cannot be developed further unless I change the conditions. Copying for personal use is only allowed. If you make changes to v0.9.9, you cannot distribute it on the web.

 

Why such a restrictive license? Because people blindly buy the amazing BizonBox and they don’t have a clue that the box includes my script:
https://www.techinferno.com/index.php?/forums/topic/6224-diy-egpu-macbook-experiences/&do=findComment&comment=125354

 

Without my script, it’s just a brick.

 

I’m optimistic that a group of Harvard students have chosen the right way. However, I’ve a feeling that a part of the inner mechanism is derived from my work. There is one interesting detail in their “internal screen” demo: the eGPU doesn’t show any displays under the Graphics/Displays, or did they forget to press Command+R? Also “Metal: supported” is not in the list. Some readers might remember my posts how to run Valley benchmark and play some games on the retina screen in OS X, accelerated by the eGPU, only the TB cable plugged in. I really hope that their method is a kernel extension.

Edited September 8, 2016 by goalque

[MartyF81]

So when Sierra Launches next week, basically this script isn't going to function make eGPU's work any longer for users running Sierra?  Will your new EFI program work for Sierra soon?

 

Basically... I was capable of putting the "Hardware" together myself... but software isn't my "Cup of Tea"... so the way this worked for me was using your script.  I am wondering what my options are come next week.

 

I really appreciate your time and effort. So I am not trying to be difficult, just trying to understand what I should and should not do when Sierra Launches.

 

 

 

 

[euqlaog]

@MartyF81

It’s up to Nvidia. Sierra GM says:

Searching for matching driver...

No web driver yet available for build [16A319].

v0.9.9 remains the last one, let’s hope for an extended life cycle. If it doesn’t work, I don’t have time to provide support. Unfortunately. It has been a great adventure with you all!

I am not in a hurry with the EFI app.

Edited September 8, 2016 by goalque

[euqlaog]

On 8/9/2016 at 3:31 PM, portwolf said:

Hey @goalque I'm wondering when the new mBP comes out with Thunderbolt 3, do you intend to enable this script to work for the line of TB3 eGPUs that will surely come out. Particularly the Razer Core. http://www.razerzone.com/store/razer-core  I've been running successfully an AtiKo setup on TB2, and with your script and drivers it's perfect in OSX, but it's never been stable in Windows. And I look forward to upgrading to a box that has out of the box Windows support, but am hoping I get the same experience with OSX. I'm sure they wont immediately create OSX drivers themselves. Looking forward to your solution.

The script just had its funeral. The EFI app will replace it. I’m confident that Nvidia continues releasing web drivers.

 

Boxes are boxes, they don’t automate anything. Drivers and apps do.

[Uhlhorn]

On 14. Juni 2015 at 2:25 AM, goalque said:

4. You may not use this script for commercial purposes.

I am sell my renderings for use in ads. So, my renderings are clearly for commercial purposes. In this case I may not use Your script.

But I need a script like this to do my daily work. Is is possible to buy a license for commercial purposes? Where can I buy it? And how much is it?

Edited September 12, 2016 by Uhlhorn

[Dschijn]

3 hours ago, Uhlhorn said:

I am sell my renderings for use in ads. So, my renderings are clearly for commercial purposes. In this case I may not use Your script.

But I need a script like this to do my daily work. Is is possible to buy a license for commercial purposes? Where can I buy it? And how much is it?

 

I am very certain that is not what he meant!

As long as you are not going to release your own commercial eGPU like Bizon/Kickstarter you are fine

Edited September 12, 2016 by Dschijn

[Uhlhorn]

4 minutes ago, Dschijn said:

I am very certain that is not what he meant!

But this is not relevant. The license is clear: „You may not use this script for commercial purposes.“ There are no exceptions. So, it’s not allowed to use it in any commercial purpose.

Edited September 12, 2016 by Uhlhorn

[euqlaog]

3 hours ago, Uhlhorn said:

I am sell my renderings for use in ads. So, my renderings are clearly for commercial purposes. In this case I may not use Your script.

But I need a script like this to do my daily work. Is is possible to buy a license for commercial purposes? Where can I buy it? And how much is it?

“For commercial purposes” means, for example, selling or advertising the script itself, its abilities and functions in OS X, or using the script with some product/software to make profit. That is prohibited.

 

Your personal renderings are not direct outputs from the script. There is a rendering software in between which allows commercial use, I suppose. However, the condition [1] says “for personal use”, so as long as your renderings are not done in a corporate environment, you can still use the script for your daily work.

[Dschijn]

AFAIK he is making a living from rendering and is using an eGPU for accelerating his work flow. (One man company)

He is just worried you might sue him.

Edited September 12, 2016 by Dschijn