Dual monitors not working

[Jeff Hester]

Hi all,

I'm having problems getting dual monitors to work and hope someone can help. I got a new 1920 x 1080 monitor and hooked it up the the VGA port. The other monitor is connected via DVI.

When the computer boots up both monitors are up. Both monitors are up while Mac OS X loads. As soon as the screen dims for the login screen to be presented the DVI connected monitor goes into "standby mode" and the VGA connected monitor stays on and is fine. I've tried another monitor and it still doesn't work with dual monitors.

I have a ga-g41m-es2l with a 8400 GS 512 MB and am running 10.6.8. Any suggestions I could try?

Thank you.

-- Jeff

[mosslack]

Do both ports work by themselves? IIRC there were some issues with certain ports not working for some cards.

Just a message from mosslack...

______________________________

GG <+> TBIE <+> Hack List <+> Alt-OS

[Jeff Hester]

Yes. If only the DVI monitor is plugged in it works fine. The same
with the VGA monitor. It's only when both are plugged in that I lose
the DVI monitor just as it goes to the login screen.

Thanks.

-- Jeff

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[mosslack]

On Feb 27, 2012, at 8:30 PM, Jeff Hester wrote:

Yes.  If only the DVI monitor is plugged in it works fine.  The same
with the VGA monitor.  It's only when both are plugged in that I lose
the DVI monitor just as it goes to the login screen.

Thanks.

-- Jeff

There still could be an issue of both not working under SL for that card. There were some strange video issues for certain cards under SL IIRC. Might do a Google search to see what's out there. Also does the card have HDMI out? If so, perhaps it would work in conjunction with either the DVI or VGA. Just a thought.

[mosslack]

On Feb 27, 2012, at 8:30 PM, Jeff Hester wrote:

Yes.  If only the DVI monitor is plugged in it works fine.  The same
with the VGA monitor.  It's only when both are plugged in that I lose
the DVI monitor just as it goes to the login screen.

Thanks.

-- Jeff

If you have a bootable copy of Linux around you might try booting that to see if it works okay with both monitors. If it doesn't that would surely be a clue as to why it's not working under SL.

[Jeff Hester]

Good idea. I just booted up with the Ubuntu 10.04 LTS and both
monitors are working great (dual screen). In fact, I'm typing from
that setup now. I would love to have it working with Mac OS X. I'm
not sure what to try though.

I guess this rules out an issue with the Nvidia 8400GS.

Thanks.

-- Jeff

[Jeff Hester]

These are the items that are in my Extra folder:

AHCIPortInjector.kext NullCPUPowerManagement.kext
AppleVIAATA.kext OpenHaltRestart.kext
IOAHCIBlockStorageInjector.kext PlatformUUID.kext
JMicronATA.kext SleepEnabler.kext
Legacy888bHDA.kext fakesmc.kext

A strange thing is that if I remove the arch=i386 from the Kernal
flags I still lose the DVI monitor to "stand by" mode but the VGA
monitor just goes to a blue screen and I never get the login.

For some reason I can boot in 64 bit mode.

-- Jeff

[mosslack]

On Feb 27, 2012, at 10:13 PM, Jeff Hester wrote:

These are the items that are in my Extra folder:

AHCIPortInjector.kext NullCPUPowerManagement.kext
AppleVIAATA.kext OpenHaltRestart.kext
IOAHCIBlockStorageInjector.kext PlatformUUID.kext
JMicronATA.kext SleepEnabler.kext
Legacy888bHDA.kext fakesmc.kext

First, I take it you mean these are in your /Extra/Extensions folder, 2nd, do you need all of these kext in here?

A strange thing is that if I remove the arch=i386 from the Kernal
flags I still lose the DVI monitor to "stand by" mode but the VGA
monitor just goes to a blue screen and I never get the login.

For some reason I can boot in 64 bit mode.

-- Jeff

This is the project system right? It should be able to boot without that flag. What about graphics enabler? Try booting with is set opposite the way it is now set and see if that makes any difference. Also what about your DSDT? Possibly something there to keep both monitors from working? 

[Jeff Hester]

On Feb 27, 2012, at 9:29 PM, mosslack wrote:

>
> On Feb 27, 2012, at 10:13 PM, Jeff Hester wrote:
>
>> These are the items that are in my Extra folder:
>>
>> AHCIPortInjector.kext NullCPUPowerManagement.kext
>> AppleVIAATA.kext OpenHaltRestart.kext
>> IOAHCIBlockStorageInjector.kext PlatformUUID.kext
>> JMicronATA.kext SleepEnabler.kext
>> Legacy888bHDA.kext fakesmc.kext
>
> First, I take it you mean these are in your /Extra/Extensions folder, 2nd, do you need all of these kext in here?

Yes, that was what I meant. Sorry. I removed several of them and it wouldn't boot. I'll have to do some trial and error to see what I can remove from the E/E

>> A strange thing is that if I remove the arch=i386 from the Kernal
>> flags I still lose the DVI monitor to "stand by" mode but the VGA
>> monitor just goes to a blue screen and I never get the login.
>>
>> For some reason I can boot in 64 bit mode.
>>
>> -- Jeff
>
> This is the project system right? It should be able to boot without that flag. What about graphics enabler? Try booting with is set opposite the way it is now set and see if that makes any difference. Also what about your DSDT? Possibly something there to keep both monitors from working?

Yes, it is that box. I have GraphicsEnabler set to true. I thought if I set it to false it wouldn't work. But I can try removing it.

I doubt it is the DSDT. Peter did that and I'd be surprised if it weren't perfect. :)

-- Jeff

[mosslack]

On Feb 27, 2012, at 11:15 PM, Jeff Hester wrote:

On Feb 27, 2012, at 9:29 PM, mosslack wrote:

On Feb 27, 2012, at 10:13 PM, Jeff Hester wrote:

These are the items that are in my Extra folder:

AHCIPortInjector.kext NullCPUPowerManagement.kext

AppleVIAATA.kext OpenHaltRestart.kext

IOAHCIBlockStorageInjector.kext PlatformUUID.kext

JMicronATA.kext SleepEnabler.kext

Legacy888bHDA.kext fakesmc.kext

First, I take it you mean these are in your /Extra/Extensions folder, 2nd, do you need all of these kext in here?

Yes, that was what I meant.  Sorry.  I removed several of them and it wouldn't boot.  I'll have to do some trial and error to see what I can remove from the E/E

It's not a huge deal, I just thought that seemed like a lot. Trial and error is a good way, and I'm sure you always have a backup way to make changes for those times it won't boot. You might start with the 2 ATA kexts as I'm pretty sure they both are not required and possibly neither. I believe the PlatformUUID.kext is no longer necessary if you are using a later boot loader like Chimera. Do let us know which ones you can do without.

A strange thing is that if I remove the arch=i386 from the Kernal

flags I still lose the DVI monitor to "stand by" mode but the VGA

monitor just goes to a blue screen and I never get the login.

For some reason I can boot in 64 bit mode.

-- Jeff

This is the project system right? It should be able to boot without that flag. What about graphics enabler? Try booting with is set opposite the way it is now set and see if that makes any difference. Also what about your DSDT? Possibly something there to keep both monitors from working?

Yes, it is that box.  I have GraphicsEnabler set to true.  I thought if I set it to false it wouldn't work.  But I can try removing it.

I doubt it is the DSDT.  Peter did that and I'd be surprised if it weren't perfect.  :)

-- Jeff

Understand, this is just the way I would approach the problem, someone else may have a better suggestion, but changing things which relate to the gfx just seems like a good idea to me. 

[faithie999]

i have an 8400GS on lion (i know you are on snow leopard). i just
connected a second monitor, and after rebooting, both monitors work
(both are vga monitors; i am using a dvi to vga adapter for one of the
monitors).

you probably know this, but...

when i first set up the hack which contained the 8400GS card, i
discovered that lion's NVDANV50Hal.kext info.plist does not include
the vendor ID and device ID for the 8400GS. i had to add it
(VendorID 10ec, DeviceID 10c3) in order to to get more than the
default resolution. unless you have added the vendor and device id's
to your nvdan50hal.kext, i would suggest trying it: drag to desktop,
show pkg contents, open info.plist in text edit, look for the section
that contains all the device and vendor ID's, add

0x10c310de&amp;0xffe0ffff

save the file, then reinstall the kext with kext utility.

reboot and see what happens.

Ken

[pete...@cruzio.com]

> when i first set up the hack which contained the 8400GS card, i
> discovered that lion's NVDANV50Hal.kext info.plist does not include
> the vendor ID and device ID for the 8400GS. i had to add it
> (VendorID 10ec, DeviceID 10c3) in order to to get more than the
> default resolution. unless you have added the vendor and device id's
> to your nvdan50hal.kext, i would suggest trying it: drag to desktop,
> show pkg contents, open info.plist in text edit, look for the section
> that contains all the device and vendor ID's, add
>

> 0x10c310de&0xffe0ffff

>
> save the file, then reinstall the kext with kext utility.
>
> reboot and see what happens.

Late eVGA 8400GSes have DDR3 VRAM in them (all the earlier ones had DDR2
VRAM).

The DDR3 versions will deliver only default resolution when using
NVDANV50Hal.kext.

The recommendation to modify the plist is a good one.

[Jeff Hester]

Ken,

Thanks for the suggestion. I just tried your steps exactly and I'm still not getting the other monitor at login (it goes to standby).

I also have a NVDANV40HAL.kext but I didn't modify that one.

Any other suggestions? I have a useless 2nd monitor attached. Maybe I can offer to buy someone a lunch if they can help me. My hours of googling and trying different things aren't working.

Thanks.

-- Jeff

On Feb 28, 2012, at 10:38 AM, faithie999 wrote:

> i have an 8400GS on lion (i know you are on snow leopard). i just
> connected a second monitor, and after rebooting, both monitors work
> (both are vga monitors; i am using a dvi to vga adapter for one of the
> monitors).
>
> you probably know this, but...
>
> when i first set up the hack which contained the 8400GS card, i
> discovered that lion's NVDANV50Hal.kext info.plist does not include
> the vendor ID and device ID for the 8400GS. i had to add it
> (VendorID 10ec, DeviceID 10c3) in order to to get more than the
> default resolution. unless you have added the vendor and device id's
> to your nvdan50hal.kext, i would suggest trying it: drag to desktop,
> show pkg contents, open info.plist in text edit, look for the section
> that contains all the device and vendor ID's, add
>

> 0x10c310de&0xffe0ffff

>
> save the file, then reinstall the kext with kext utility.
>
> reboot and see what happens.
>
> Ken
>

[faithie999]

not to insult your intelligence, but i assume you rebooted after
reinstalling the modded kext.

if so, inspect the info.plist to make sure the mod is there.

the only other idea i have is that your 8400GS has a different vendor
ID and/or device ID than mine. go into system profiler, under
graphics/displays, and see what the vendor id and device id are. if
they are different than the ones you used in the mod, change them (in
the plist table, device ID comes first, then vendor ID).

if system profiler reports that the dev and ven ID are the same as
added to the plist, i suppose it wouldn't hurt to make the same
info.plist mod to the "40" kext. perhaps in SL, that is the kext that
the system looks for for this video card.

one more question--before you made the mod, were you getting full
resolution from the 8400GS? if so, i would think the device and
vendor ID were already in the info.plist of one of the kexts. not
sure what that tells us, though.

after that, i'm out of ideas--we'll have to wait for the Level 2
tech's to weigh in!!

Ken

[Jeff Hester]

Don't worry.  Nothing can insult my intelligence.  I know I don't have much.  :)

I did reboot and the mod was there.  Before making the changes to the kext, yes I was getting full resolution with either monitor I had hooked up (via VGA or DVI).

My device ID was different so I made the change and reinstalled using Kext Utility.  My device ID is 0x01d3 (see attached).

So I added 0x01d310de&0xffe0ffff to NVDANV50Hal.kext.

Still the same result.  No dual monitors except during startup.  Bummer.

The contents of my org.chameleon.Boot.plist is:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>

<!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">

<plist version="1.0">

<dict>

<key>GraphicsEnabler</key>

<string>yes</string>

<key>Kernel</key>

<string>mach_kernel</string>

<key>Kernel Flags</key>

<string>arch=i386 pmVersion=23</string>

<key>Timeout</key>

<string>5</string>

<key>EthernetBuiltIn</key>

<string>yes</string>

</dict>

</plist>

Thanks.

 -- Jeff

[mosslack]

On Feb 28, 2012, at 9:58 PM, Jeff Hester wrote:

Don't worry.  Nothing can insult my intelligence.  I know I don't have much.  :)

I did reboot and the mod was there.  Before making the changes to the kext, yes I was getting full resolution with either monitor I had hooked up (via VGA or DVI).

My device ID was different so I made the change and reinstalled using Kext Utility.  My device ID is 0x01d3 (see attached).

So I added 0x01d310de&0xffe0ffff to NVDANV50Hal.kext.

Still the same result.  No dual monitors except during startup.  Bummer.

The contents of my org.chameleon.Boot.plist is:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>

<!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">

<plist version="1.0">

<dict>

<key>GraphicsEnabler</key>

<string>yes</string>

<key>Kernel</key>

<string>mach_kernel</string>

<key>Kernel Flags</key>

<string>arch=i386 pmVersion=23</string>

<key>Timeout</key>

<string>5</string>

<key>EthernetBuiltIn</key>

<string>yes</string>

</dict>

</plist>

<Screen shot 2012-02-28 at 8.54.48 PM.png>

Thanks.

 -- Jeff

Hey Jeff, FYI, I had a similar problem when I upgraded my MSI system with 3 video cards and 6 monitors to 10.7.2. Prior to that update, all monitor displays worked as they should. The problem was so simple that it was funny, but it was nothing I had ever heard of until that time. This is the thread I read to fix my problem:

http://www.insanelymac.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=270123&st=0&p=1759594&#entry1759594

I'm not saying this will fix yours, but it might be worth a look to see what you think. HTH

[mosslack]

Forgot to mention, it was the simple change in the DSDT (post #9) which fixed the problem for me.

[Jeff Hester]

Thanks.  I tried modifying the DSDT per post #9 and still no dual screen.  Attached is my DSDT (text version).  I'm thinking it might have something to do with me not providing enough information for "Display-B".  What do you think?

[Kris Tilford]

On Feb 27, 2012, at 7:12 PM, Jeff Hester wrote:

> 8400 GS 512 MB

I'm not up-to-speed on the current levels of nVidia graphics in OS X,
but here is my experience. When I bought a 7300GS 512MB AGP for one of
my hacks during the Leopard 10.5.8 era, none of the 512MB nVidia AGP
cards would recognize in a Mac as the full 512MB, they all recognized
as 256MB instead and were hampered. I had to flash the ROM (BIOS) of
my 7300GS for it to work 100% in my hack. There was a site in France
called nvinject.free.fr that had a modified ROM repository for these
512MB nVidia cards, BUT, that site no longer exists. Luckily for us,
the internet archive WayBack machine archived the site, so this
information is still available.

Unfortunately for you, there wasn't any modified ROM for the 8400GS in
the BIOS repository. I don't believe it's still necessary to modify
the ROM, instead it should be handled by some other method, either an
injected code in the graphics portion of the Boot.plist (handled by
Chameleon), or by modified DSDT. If the BIOS is modified these other
corrections are probably not necessary, but I'm not certain of that?

You can see how to manually modify the 512MB ROM (BIOS) at the
archived nvInject site:
<http://web.archive.org/web/20081112115656/http://nvinject.free.fr/>

[mosslack]

On Feb 28, 2012, at 11:51 PM, Jeff Hester wrote:

Thanks.  I tried modifying the DSDT per post #9 and still no dual screen.  Attached is my DSDT (text version).  I'm thinking it might have something to do with me not providing enough information for "Display-B".  What do you think?

I don't think that is your problem. Normally, a dual display on a single card is handled by OS X without too much hassle. You know the card is capable of dual displays on that system from your Linux experiment, so this has to be something to do with OS X. I do recall a lot of difficulty with 512 Mb cards in the past and perhaps that has something to do with it. I've got one here now that I cannot get to work properly, so incompatabilities do happen from time to time. 

You didn't mention the results of booting without graqhics enabler set to true, have you tried that? Have you tried booting from another version of OS X? IIRC, there were a lot of gfx enhancements during the SL run, perhaps one of those might be the problem. Knowing that your system using that card works fine with another OS means the problem lies with OS X. 

One of the fun (not)  aspects of working with Hackintoshes is their odd behavior sometimes. I know some people had problems with certain ports on the card not working with certain versions of the OS, so you are not alone. 

[Jeff Hester]

Yes, I think it's an OS X issue. I can't understand why both displays
are up even while Mac OS X boots (the big Apple with the spinning
"fan"). It's only when the display blanks before the blue screen
appears and is immediately followed by the log in screen before the
DVI attached monitor goes into "stand-by" mode.

I don't think I tried setting GraphicsEnabler=no. I'll try that this evening.

-- Jeff

[Jeff Hester]

Thanks Ken.

I did try an EFI string but I might not have implemented that
correctly. I'll follow your steps and see if that gives me better
results. I will report my findings this evening.

Be blessed.

-- Jeff

On Wed, Feb 29, 2012 at 6:33 AM, faithie999 <faith...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> we will make this work if it kills us!
>
>
> i found a thread on tonymac about 8400gs problems.
>
> on this page
> http://www.tonymacx86.com/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=12646&start=40
> just below halfway down there is a post by wargod212 that starts with
>
>
> Here is what finally worked for me.
>
> I have a zotac nvidia 8400gs 256mb.
>
> Loaded 10.6.6/multibeast.
>
> Downloaded osx86tools.
>
> In osx86tools:
> 1. Click Add EFI Strings/Boots Flag
> 2. Click GFX Strings
> 3. Choose Custom Geforce from the list of graphics cards. (last option on
> the list)
> 4. Enter the model number of your card. (8400 GS in my case)
> 5. Choose ram size (256MB in my case)
> 6. Choose a display output. (VGA-DVI in my case)
> * I tried DVI/VGA option first which didn't work
> 7. Copied the EFI String output to my com.apple.Boot.plist
> * I added the following lines to my com.apple.Boot.plist:
>
>
> i've never used osx86 tools.  i googled for it and found the download at
> google code.
>
> http://code.google.com/p/osx86tools/downloads/detail?name=OSX86Tools_1.0.150.zip&can=2&q=
>
>
> worth a try, i would think.   i've never used an EFI string in boot.plist so
> i can't offer any other advice about that approach.
>
> ken
>
>

[mosslack]

On Feb 29, 2012, at 7:41 AM, Jeff Hester wrote:

Yes, I think it's an OS X issue.  I can't understand why both displays
are up even while Mac OS X boots (the big Apple with the spinning
"fan").  It's only when the display blanks before the blue screen
appears and is immediately followed by the log in screen before the
DVI attached monitor goes into "stand-by" mode.

I don't think I tried setting GraphicsEnabler=no.  I'll try that this evening.

-- Jeff

Only reason I thought about the graphics enabler is b/c I have to have mine off for use in my situation. It is odd that both displays give the gray apple screen with the spinning clock, can't say I've ever experienced that. My system will only have one display active until the desktop is ready to appear, then they all magically come to life. I'm sure that is a clue, but I just don't know what it means. Let me know the results of booting without the graphics enabler when you try it.

[Jeff Hester]

I set GraphicsEnabler to "no". That had no effect. I still only get
on monitor and it's at the proper resolution with Quartz and
everything enabled. I might try to removing it all together from the
plist.

The next thing I'm going to try is Ken's instructions for the EFI string.

Also, when the machine first boots and the Chimera is loading it shows
Vesa .... at 256 MB. Would that have anything to do with it? How
would I change that to 512 MB?

Thanks.

-- Jeff

[Jeff Hester]

Just so you don't think I'm making this up here are three photos.  :)

[mosslack]

On Feb 29, 2012, at 7:01 PM, Jeff Hester wrote:

Just so you don't think I'm making this up here are three photos.  :)

No, didn't think that, it's almost like you have it set to mirror and that doesn't work on Hacks. Doubt that it will help any but Chimera is up to version 1.8 now. You might update just to see if it makes any difference.

[Kris Tilford]

On Feb 29, 2012, at 5:49 PM, Jeff Hester wrote:

> Also, when the machine first boots and the Chimera is loading it shows
> Vesa .... at 256 MB. Would that have anything to do with it? How
> would I change that to 512 MB?

You have to flash the ROM with a modified ROM file.

Now that I see your 512MB card is actually recognized as 256MB at boot
I am certain you'll need to flash the ROM on the card to get it
working correctly.

Here are instructions again:
<http://web.archive.org/web/20081112120236/http://nvinject.free.fr/512Mb.html
>

[Jeff Hester]

Any chance flashing it will brick the card? :)

I wonder if it would be better to just get another graphics card that will support dual display OOTB. Any suggestions?

Thanks.

[On the move with iOS.]

[Kris Tilford]

This card of yours, the eVGA 8400GS 512MB PCIe is reported as working
out-of-the-box for dual display under 10.6.8 if you use
"GraphicsEnabler=Yes" in the boot.plist. The specific card reported
working out-of-the-box was identified as VID#=0x10de PID#=0x06e4, so
if your card has different PID#, then you may need to edit this to
match in the /System/Library/Extensions/NVDANV50Hal.kext/Contents/
Info.plist

See:
<http://www.tonymacx86.com/wiki/index.php/Graphics_Card_Database#NVIDIA>

After modifying any of these files you'll want to remember to do
something to delete any cache files that would load older unmodified
versions from cache. (i.e. Safe Boot once & reboot; or use -f boot
flag at boot; or use utility to rebuild cache files prior to reboot;
or delete the cache files and reboot)

[Jeff Hester]

Well, unfortunately none of these worked. I tried adding the string in to both NVDANV50 and 40 using KextUtility. Rebuilt the cache. Also rebooted multiple times with the -f option.

I thought I had solved my problem from this link:

http://www.tonymacx86.com/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=37071

But installing the Nvidia package didn't work either.

I guess I need to buy another video card that would work. Any personal recommendations?

I can't flash the ROM on this one because I don't have DOS or Windows.

Thanks.

-- Jeff

[Jeff Hester]

Yes, I agree with you. I'm not sure that still not the issue (display ID).

I don't have Windows so I will dig around with Ubuntu and see if I can
find a way to get the 8400 gs device information.

I'm also wondering if the issue is with a mirror display flag.
Looking at my dual screen at work with a Apple Mac Pro... during
startup only one screen is displayed. It's not until the login screen
appears before the other monitor comes to life (this is two DVI
connected displays). Also, when looking at the Display Preferences
only one of the monitors has the extra "Arrangement" tab. It is this
tab that shows where I can mirror the displays. I assume the system
considers this the main display.

When I bring up Display preferences at home the monitor that is
working (VGA) doesn't have the "Arrangement" tab on it. I don't know
if it's because the System is thinking this is the 2nd display or if
it only thinks one display is connected.

More debugging to do...

Thanks.

-- Jeff

On Thu, Mar 1, 2012 at 10:42 AM, faithie999 <faith...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> jeff--i'm still not convinced the problem is not an incorrect device ID.  i
> have had a case where system profiler reports the wrong device id, as well
> as a case of looking up a device ID from a database based on the label on
> the video card.   i have had the best luck in discovering the correct device
> id by booting into windows, then (for win xp; vista or win7 may have a
> slightly different path to the display adapter info)
> control panel--system--hardware or device manager--display adapter--right
> click on your display adapter--click details--then you may have to pull down
> a choice for hardware id or something like that.  then the device and vendor
> id's will be displayed.
>
> there is a way to do this from linux, such as booting from a ubuntu live CD,
> but i'm not fluent enough in linux to know how to do it.
>
> ken
>
>

[Kris Tilford]

On Mar 1, 2012, at 10:52 AM, Jeff Hester wrote:

> I don't have Windows so I will dig around with Ubuntu and see if I can
> find a way to get the 8400 gs device information.

Look in System Profiler. If you think that's wrong, use DPCIManager 0.3:

<http://www.osx86.net/downloads.php?do=file&id=370>

> When I bring up Display preferences at home the monitor that is
> working (VGA) doesn't have the "Arrangement" tab on it.

When the Arrangement tab is missing OS X is only detecting a single
display.

The fact the 512MB card is only recognizing as 256MB is a major hurdle
in my opinion, which I'd work on first.

[faithie999]

jeff--i was rereading this thread.  in one message you said your card was reported as 10de 01d3.  i looked that up in a pci database--and it comes back as an nvidia 7300SE/7200GS.  obviously that's not the card you have.

[pete...@cruzio.com]

> i was rereading this thread. in one message you said your card was
> reported as 10de 01d3. i looked that up in a pci database--and it comes
> back as an nvidia 7300SE/7200GS. obviously that's not the card you have.

The 7200GS is a wierd bird.

It can appear as 128 MB, 256 MB, 512 MB card and possibly more.

It can also be found in a version which is compatible with a 64-bit
kernel; otherwise, arch=i386 is a required boot loader flag.

Finally, it can be found in a version which reports itself as a 7300 and
not as a 7200.

The eVGA 7200GSes have been the most consistent, for me. YMMV.

nVidia sells chips and prototype ROMs to its customers, who are
responsible for manufacture and system integration, including regression
testing and user documentation.

You can get some real eye-openers with second- and third-tier producers of
nVidia-based cards.

[Jeff Hester]

Yes, that is also exactly what DPCIManager 0.3 says it is too.  DPCIManager 0.3 did confirm the same numbers that are reported in About this Mac so that's a good sign.  About this Mac also reports it as a Nvidia Geforce 8400 GS.  Who do I believe?

 -- Jeff

On Mar 1, 2012, at 6:42 PM, faithie999 wrote:

jeff--i was rereading this thread.  in one message you said your card was reported as 10de 01d3.  i looked that up in a pci database--and it comes back as an nvidia 7300SE/7200GS.  obviously that's not the card you have.

[Kris Tilford]

On Mar 1, 2012, at 10:02 PM, Jeff Hester wrote:

> Yes, that is also exactly what DPCIManager 0.3 says it is too.
> DPCIManager 0.3 did confirm the same numbers that are reported in
> About this Mac so that's a good sign. About this Mac also reports
> it as a Nvidia Geforce 8400 GS. Who do I believe?

I believe that 0x10de 0x01d3 is for an nVidia GeForce 7300 SE/7200 GS.
I do not believe it's a GeForce 8400 GS because these are reported
working out of the box identified as 512MB with very minimal tweaking
necessary for complete function.

In the time we've spent discussing this I could have extracted the ROM
from the card, made a back-up copy, patched the ROM, and flashed the
card with the patched ROM. Too much talk, not enough action. That
would require a Windows computer.

I'm having a hard time with the 512MB thing. The 7200 GS/7300 SE is
reported as working perfectly with correct EFI string here:

<http://projectosx.com/hardware/browse.php?step=2&hwCa=3>

I think this report of perfect function is for 128MB & 256MB cards
only? I believe you will need to patch the ROM for perfect 512MB
function. Since this appears to not be in the cards, you can:

1) use the correct EFI string for the 7300 SE and only get 256MB.
2) buy a different card

I'd probably patch the ROM, but that's me. It wasn't that difficult
when I did it, and my card works perfectly (mine was a 7300 GT).

[faithie999]

jeff--did you ever add  the device and vendor id    01d3  10de   to the nvdan40  kext?  IIRC that is where os x looks for info re 7000 series cards, with the nvdan50 kext for newer cards.  i may be wrong (i often am--ask my wife!!), but worth a try.

ken

[mosslack]

On Mar 1, 2012, at 11:02 PM, Jeff Hester wrote:

Yes, that is also exactly what DPCIManager 0.3 says it is too.  DPCIManager 0.3 did confirm the same numbers that are reported in About this Mac so that's a good sign.  About this Mac also reports it as a Nvidia Geforce 8400 GS.  Who do I believe?

 -- Jeff

About this Mac can be fooled rather easily. If the DSDT says 8400 GS, then that is what is reported in About this Mac. HTH

[mosslack]

On Mar 2, 2012, at 9:03 AM, mosslack wrote:

On Mar 1, 2012, at 11:02 PM, Jeff Hester wrote:

Yes, that is also exactly what DPCIManager 0.3 says it is too.  DPCIManager 0.3 did confirm the same numbers that are reported in About this Mac so that's a good sign.  About this Mac also reports it as a Nvidia Geforce 8400 GS.  Who do I believe?

 -- Jeff

About this Mac can be fooled rather easily. If the DSDT says 8400 GS, then that is what is reported in About this Mac. HTH

Not sure if this is relevant or not, but I found my reply to the group about this system from Feb 27, 2010:

And elaborate I shall, it seems I was overlooking one key piece of the puzzle when I spoke before.  I had forgotten that Peter is using a 8400GS 512 Mb video card, while the one in the project system is a 7200GS 256 Mb card.  We had agreed on the 8400GS 512 Mb card early on, but I had several of the 7200 GS cards still here so I thought I would just use one of those.  Of course Peter did all the DSDT work and made the necessary patches for the 512 Mb card.  

I still don't know if this is the problem or not, but it seems logical given the way the problem arises after the display initializes to the correct resolution.  One thing I don't understand is why the problem doesn't happen with 10.6.0.  I had a family day today, but I am back at home now to work on this problem.  My plan is to remove the card completely and just use the onboard video to see if the 10.6.2 update will work or not.  I realize the resolution will suck, but this will at least let me know if the card is the problem.  My only question is if the DSDT will allow this, being as it is written for the 512 Mb nvidia card.  Anyone have any other thoughts?

I do remember the original specs called for the 8400 GS to be used, but there were some problems even back then, so a 7200 GS (with 256 Mb) was substituted. The problem with the 7200 GS was that it would not work in 64 bit mode, but worked fine using the code in the Boot.plist to force 32 bit mode. Could this be the source of the current confusion?

[Jeff Hester]

Yes, I did.  Same result.  :)

On Mar 2, 2012, at 7:12 AM, faithie999 wrote:

jeff--did you ever add  the device and vendor id    01d3  10de   to the nvdan40  kext?  IIRC that is where os x looks for info re 7000 series cards, with the nvdan50 kext for newer cards.  i may be wrong (i often am--ask my wife!!), but worth a try.

ken

[Jeff Hester]

That's interesting.  I wonder how likely it is that the problem lies with the dsdt.

What I am still struggling to understand is why both monitors work during boot of Mac OS X and it's only at the login screen where one goes away.  At what point is the dsdt "read in"?

I ordered a Zotac 256 MB 8400 GS from NewEgg.  Hopefully it will be in today and I'll swap it out.  I will also try to see if I can flash this current card using Windows XP in virtual space (I use virtual box).

Thanks.

  -- Jeff

[Jeff Hester]

That does explain why it won't work correctly if I remove the arch=i386.  :)

 -- Jeff

[mosslack]

On Mar 2, 2012, at 9:35 AM, Jeff Hester wrote:

That does explain why it won't work correctly if I remove the arch=i386.  :)

 -- Jeff

On Mar 2, 2012, at 8:31 AM, mosslack wrote:

On Mar 2, 2012, at 9:03 AM, mosslack wrote:

On Mar 1, 2012, at 11:02 PM, Jeff Hester wrote:

Yes, that is also exactly what DPCIManager 0.3 says it is too.  DPCIManager 0.3 did confirm the same numbers that are reported in About this Mac so that's a good sign.  About this Mac also reports it as a Nvidia Geforce 8400 GS.  Who do I believe?

 -- Jeff

About this Mac can be fooled rather easily. If the DSDT says 8400 GS, then that is what is reported in About this Mac. HTH

Not sure if this is relevant or not, but I found my reply to the group about this system from Feb 27, 2010:

And elaborate I shall, it seems I was overlooking one key piece of the puzzle when I spoke before.  I had forgotten that Peter is using a 8400GS 512 Mb video card, while the one in the project system is a 7200GS 256 Mb card.  We had agreed on the 8400GS 512 Mb card early on, but I had several of the 7200 GS cards still here so I thought I would just use one of those.  Of course Peter did all the DSDT work and made the necessary patches for the 512 Mb card.  

I still don't know if this is the problem or not, but it seems logical given the way the problem arises after the display initializes to the correct resolution.  One thing I don't understand is why the problem doesn't happen with 10.6.0.  I had a family day today, but I am back at home now to work on this problem.  My plan is to remove the card completely and just use the onboard video to see if the 10.6.2 update will work or not.  I realize the resolution will suck, but this will at least let me know if the card is the problem.  My only question is if the DSDT will allow this, being as it is written for the 512 Mb nvidia card.  Anyone have any other thoughts?

I do remember the original specs called for the 8400 GS to be used, but there were some problems even back then, so a 7200 GS (with 256 Mb) was substituted. The problem with the 7200 GS was that it would not work in 64 bit mode, but worked fine using the code in the Boot.plist to force 32 bit mode. Could this be the source of the current confusion?

Funny how the mind works, but seeing that old post does jog mine a bit more. It seems at the time there were problems with the 512 Mb version of that 8400 GS card. The 256 Mb and the 1 Gb cards worked fine, but not the 512 Mb card. Hopefully the 256 Mb card you have coming should work just fine. Not sure if the DSDT will need to be changed or not, doesn't seem like it has a lot to do with memory specs.

[Jeff Hester]

Ok.  Update.  Making better progress.

I now have both monitors working (at log in and have logged in) but they are mirrored.  System Preferences::Display doesn't give me an option to mirror or unmirror.  Also, I"m fixed at a resolution of 1024 x 768.

This is with GraphicsEnabler = yes and with no EFI string.

Now, to figure out what I did.  :)  And to also find out how to do extended desktop and more resolutions.  Thanks.

 -- Jeff

[mosslack]

On Mar 2, 2012, at 10:55 AM, Jeff Hester wrote:

Ok.  Update.  Making better progress.

I now have both monitors working (at log in and have logged in) but they are mirrored.  System Preferences::Display doesn't give me an option to mirror or unmirror.  Also, I"m fixed at a resolution of 1024 x 768.

This is with GraphicsEnabler = yes and with no EFI string.

Now, to figure out what I did.  :)  And to also find out how to do extended desktop and more resolutions.  Thanks.

 -- Jeff

So this is the original card? You've done better than me, I never could get a 7200 GS to do dual monitors on the same card.

[Jeff Hester]

Actually, it's probably worse (for me).  Now, I can't get back to where I was.  I've got a fixed resolution, no QE/CI, and the mirroring is not even recognized by the system because I can't "unmirror".  I remember when 1024 x 768 was an awesome resolution.  It's not now.  :)

 -- Jeff

[pete...@cruzio.com]

> I do remember the original specs called for the 8400 GS to be used, but
> there were some problems even back then, so a 7200 GS (with 256 Mb) was
> substituted. The problem with the 7200 GS was that it would not work in 64
> bit mode, but worked fine using the code in the Boot.plist to force 32 bit
> mode. Could this be the source of the current confusion?

A 7200GS may or may not croak if booted in 64-bit mode.

When Doug and I were simultaneously working on the first give-away system,
Doug was, indeed, working with a 7200GS, where I was, indeed, working on a
8400GS.

Naturally, Doug was having all kinds of problems, whereas I was not.

After the 7200/8400 deviation was identified and confirmed, I did a lot of
regression testing, and I discovered that a 7200GS ... well, at least
certain 7200GSes ... could indeed be booted in 64-bit mode, but these
would either KP immediately, or these would KP after an amount of time,
certainly more than several minutes, and which only complicated the
process of identifying the problem. Or, certain 7200GSes would NEVER KP.
Go figure!

Now, you have 7200GSes which are seen as 7300GTs, or whatever, and I
believe SOME 7200 cards are indeed 64-bit compatible.

However, I DO NOT tempt fate, and I ALWAYS run my 7200s as 32-bit.

Lion still supports a 32-bit kernel, although Mountain Lion is reliably
reported not to support a 32-bit kernel, although there are still 32-bit
kexts.

[Jeff Hester]

This is part of the DSDT.  It is saying it's a 8400 GS so you are right in that it was fooling the About this Mac.

I've still not been successful in getting back to where I was last night.  Hmm.

 -- Jeff

               Device (GFX0)

                {

                    Name (_ADR, Zero)

                    Name (_SUN, One)

                    Method (_DSM, 4, NotSerialized)

                    {

                        Store (Package (0x16)

                            {

                                "@0,compatible", 

                                Buffer (0x0B)

                                {

                                    "NVDA,NVMac"

                                }, 

                                "@0,device_type", 

                                Buffer (0x08)

                                {

                                    "display"

                                }, 

                                "@0,name", 

                                Buffer (0x0F)

                                {

                                    "NVDA,Display-A"

                                }, 

                                "@1,compatible", 

                                Buffer (0x0B)

                                {

                                    "NVDA,NVMac"

                                }, 

                                "@1,device_type", 

                                Buffer (0x08)

                                {

                                    "display"

                                }, 

                                "@1,name", 

                                Buffer (0x0F)

                                {

                                    "NVDA,Display-B"

                                }, 

                                "NVCAP", 

                                Buffer (0x18)

                                {

                                    /* 0000 */    0x04, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x03, 0x00, 

                                    /* 0008 */    0x0C, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x07, 

                                    /* 0010 */    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00

                                }, 

                                "VRAM,totalsize", 

                                Buffer (0x04)

                                {

                                    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x20

                                }, 

                                "device_type", 

                                Buffer (0x0C)

                                {

                                    "NVDA,Parent"

                                }, 

                                "model", 

                                Buffer (0x17)

                                {

                                    "nVidia GeForce 8400 GS"

                                }, 

                                "rom-revision", 

                                Buffer (0x25)

                                {

                                    "nVidia GeForce 8400 GS OpenGL Engine"

                                }

                            }, Local0)

                        DTGP (Arg0, Arg1, Arg2, Arg3, RefOf (Local0))

                        Return (Local0)

                    }

                }

            }

[Jeff Hester]

Well, I'm crying "Uncle" on getting this to work. I tried many different things, to the point I hosed up the system and had to reinstall SL. I'm back up and running to where I was originally. I'm going to just sit tight and wait for the 8400GS to arrive next week. Hopefully I will be having dual displays working then. A big "thank you" for all those who have helped in different ways.

-- Jeff

[mosslack]

On Mar 3, 2012, at 8:35 PM, Jeff Hester wrote:

Well, I'm crying "Uncle" on getting this to work.  I tried many different things, to the point I hosed up the system and had to reinstall SL.  I'm back up and running to where I was originally.  I'm going to just sit tight and wait for the 8400GS to arrive next week. Hopefully I will be having dual displays working then.  A big "thank you" for all those who have helped in different ways.

-- Jeff

Don't feel too bad Jeff, I worked like a dog to get it to work at all before realizing it had to run in 32 bit mode. Hopefully the new card will just work and that will be that.