How To Get El Capitan

OS X El Capitan (10.xi) on Unsupported Macs

macOS Extractor and MacPostFactor are apps that guide you through patching and installing OS 10 El Capitan (10.eleven), Yosemite (10.ten), Mavericks (10.9), or Mount King of beasts (ten.eight) on your older Mac. This thread focuses on Os Ten El Capitan.

MacPostFactor works for Mountain Lion, Mavericks, Yosemite, and El Capitan.
Delight note that older GPU (GMA 950, X3100, X1600, X1300, X1900, 7300gt, etc.) Graphics Acceleration on Mavericks, Yosemite, and El Capitan are non supported yet.
Installing on these models may crusade them to have graphical bug as stated in these pages. Kexts are provided to help a little chip.
macOS Extractor is somewhat for more advanced users and should

merely be used every bit an alternative to MacPostFactor. This thread consists of members prominent in these patches that can help you solve your problems. Please exercise not hesitate to mail service if you have questions.

Apple History

OS X x.6 Snow Leopard was the first Bone X version with optional support for a 64-bit kernel, allowing booting either with a 32-scrap or 64-bit kernel. Yet, Apple did non support booting the 64-bit kernel in Macs that shipped with EFI32 firmware, even if they had 64-bit processors capable of running the 64-bit kernel. When Apple tree dropped the 32-bit kernel entirely from Os X, starting with Os X 10.8 Mountain Lion, EFI32 Macs no longer had an Apple-supported mechanism to kicking newer OS 10 versions.
OS X 10.xi El Capitan includes rootless security. It makes sure that System file permissions are automatically protected, and updated during Software Updates. The Repair Permissions part is no longer available and access to system files that we need to utilise in this guide may exist locked.

Fortunately, we have found workarounds for this version of OS X. Hither we provide guides in Mail service one in support for Installing Os X El Capitan on your Unsupported Mac.

This first mail is usually updated with recently summarized information, updates, and more solutions.

For those who have 2006/2007 Mac Pros, you may be best suited to using Mr. Zarniwoop'south Guide hither. The MCPF and macOSE projects are not affiliated with them. We will not contact them for y'all either, that's your responsibility. Some confrontation has occurred both publicly and privately in MacRumors, the site, and other forms of communications and we don't want anything to do with them and their Mac Models. It'due south simple, don't ask Mac Pro questions to people who don't take Mac Pros. Your postal service volition be requested to be moved to their thread.

Prerequisites:
Tested Macs listed beneath. Here are the minimum requirements:
- Running 10.7 Panthera leo
- At least 2GB of RAM
- A copy of the Os X El Capitan Installer in Applications Folder (.app file from Mac App Shop preferred)
- 15 GB of free space from USB or HDD Partition to serve as your Installer Bulldoze.

-MacBook2,x
-MacBook3,x
-MacBook4,x
-MacBookPro2,ten
-MacBookAir1,i
-MacMini1,x with C2D
-MacMini2,10
-iMac4,ten with C2D
-iMac5,x

-MacPro1,ten
-MacPro2,x

We DON'T assistance with Hackintosh. All individual messages/emails involving installing OS X on non-Apple hardware will be redirected to another support team.

Guide to Installing Bone X El Capitan on Unsupported Macs

Whatsoever Damage OR DAMAGE Caused BY THIS GUIDE HAPPENED Under YOUR Own Responsibleness!

Be sure to take root privileges (administrator password) equally Os X volition prompt you for this on some stage.

A: Preparing The Installation Drive

Make a Fill-in of your system if you can.
macOS Extractor has more often than not everything you lot need to patch Bone X (There are besides numerous other sources that tin can aid).
Go an OS 10 El Capitan Installer App (Recommended from the Mac App Store)
Make certain your Mac meets the minimum requirement above
A USB or Secondary Partition to put the patched Installer (A Installation Bulldoze for reference)

B: Start Patching

Install macOS Extractor.
A new drive might appear on your Desktop chosen 'Os Ten Install ESD'. Don't worry nearly that. The AutoPatch Tool will unmount that when it's done.
Become to Applications/OS X Hackers Patch Files and run the AutoPatch package.
During the AutoPatch installation. Select the USB or division you desire to use equally your Installer Drive that yous desire as the installer. (No, this is non the Mac OS 10 Install ESD) WARNING: Practice Not SELECT YOUR CURRENT PARTITION (i.e Macintosh Hd)
Once the installation is completed, turn off and restart your Mac holding the pick fundamental.

C: Installation

Reboot your Mac belongings option (alt) key
Select the Installation bulldoze "OS X Base Organisation" (and press enter)

If the Installation Bulldoze boots you back to the main partition, try approving the drive from your terminal app:

Lawmaking:

                      sudo bless --folder /Volumes/[Installation Drive Name] --file /Volumes/[Installation Drive Name]/boot --setBoot

When booted click install/continue until yous achieve the disk pick menu, select your main drive (probably Macintosh Hd) if you are sure about it, or select another empty bulldoze (at least 15GB for testing/bigger if it should be a secondary system). This is recommended.
Later on Installation, open the concluding in the menu bar and launch the PostInst.sh script to patch the sectionalisation where you installed OS X

D: If Reboot Fails

If the Mac does non reboot to the El Capitan desktop, boot to the installation drive again and perform the following.
Boot back into the El Capitan Install Partition, open the terminal at the top menu bar or boot into unmarried-user manner (hold Command-S immediately later on turning on) enter:

Code:

                  sudo rm /Volumes/[Main Drive Name]/System/Library/CoreServices/PlatformSupport.plist

E: Installing the 64bit-Kexts from the Kexts folder from macOS Extractor

(These will better the graphics by a little but yous will not take Graphics Acceleration. All the same in beta so they may not work well)

ensure that the System Integrity Protection is disabled
Navigate in your Finder and get to the 'OS X Hackers Patch Files' folder in your Applications Binder
Open up the 'Kexts' Folder
Cull your Graphics Bill of fare Kext Installer and launch it.
Select the Partition or Difficult Drive that you lot are currently using the patched Os X.Install information technology. (Admin privileges required)
Restart your Mac

IF your Macbook can't wake upwardly from sleep:

Because of the lack of working Graphics Acceleration. Your MacBook may non exist able to wake from a display slumber

Install the NoSleep Extension
Set the Preferences to Never Sleep on AC Adapter and Battery
Check the 'Start NoSleep Utility on arrangement startup' setting
Your Macbook screen will never turn off unless you actually close downwards your Macbook.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Method 2 - MacPostFactor

El Capitan Install is EXPERIMENTAL. Try this on a secondary partition.

El Capitan can be installed on all estimator only ONLY Mac Pros WITH AN UPGRADED GRAPHICS CARD can use graphics acceleration as of now!

Requirements for MacPostFactor to work

A Mac with Core ii Duo or Xeon Processor.
Bone 10 10.half-dozen or after
2GB RAM at least
At to the lowest degree 20GB of HDD space (8GB for USB)
Install Os X El Capitan.app with beta i or afterward in your Application Folder
Read our instructions on MacRumors at least twice

Friendly reminder.

Nosotros're not responsible if you screw upward your system. Technically, that won't happen as you can always get back to Lion, Mount Lion, Mavericks or Yosemite

Instructions — Installing directly on this computer

Make certain you accept Install OS X El Capitan.app in your Application Folder
Select "On this figurer" on the main MCPF window. And then, cull the sectionalisation you want to install El Capitan on.
Click install and prompt your password.
Click reboot. Your figurer should reboot with the OSXHackers logo.
Once booted, Click Continue, Hold and cull the only division showed.
Click reboot when you see "Installation succeeded!".
Relish!

Instructions — Installing via USB

Brand sure you have Install Os 10 El Capitan.app in your Application Binder
Select "On an external drive" on the main MCPF window. And then, choose the disk yous desire to install the El Capitan installer on.
Click install and prompt your password.
Click exit. Boot the computer y'all want to install El Capitan on with 'alt' held and select your USB drive.
Once booted, Click Continue, Hold and cull the partition you want to install El Capitan on.
Click reboot when you see "Installation succeeded !".
Enjoy!

OS Ten Recovery Patch

Go to Applications/Os X Hackers Patch Files/Recovery Patcher/
Install the 'Recovery Patcher' pkg (Not working for El Capitan)

Os X Software Updates

Go to Applications/Bone X Hackers Patch Files/Software Update Patch/
Install the 'Software Update Patch' pkg
(EFI32 Mac just) Using Pike'south Boot.efi, Install the EFI Daemon patch.

Blitheness Disabler

Yous don't have Graphics Acceleration, right? And so you don't need excess Animation slowing down your system.

Go to Applications/OS X Hackers Patch Files/Blitheness Disabler/
Install the 'Disable Graphical Animations' pkg

Airdrop

Go to Applications/OS Ten Hackers Patch Files/AirDrop Enabler/
Open the 'Enable Airdrop' shell script in the Terminal
Restart

You lot tin can ship a file with AirDrop to other Macs only. Sometimes newer Macs can't notice your model.

Endeavour this method on an external HDD. The method has been updated to v3 and successfully tested on MB two,x, MB3,10 and MBP 2,x. It can work on eventually all the other EFI32/EFI64 unsupported Macs if you accept the kexts you demand, although method 3 v3 is recommended for EFI32 Macs; and method 3 v2 in post #926 is recommended for EFI64 Macs.
Notation: You tin can find the method 3 v1 in post #892 of this same thread, merely it'due south obsolete

Prerequisites: A reckoner with El Capitan installed and SIP disabled (or a calculator with Yosemite and -no_compat_check kext-dev-mode=1 boot flags in /Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration/com.apple.Kicking.plist), and an external HDD.

i- Offset of all, y'all need an external two,5" HDD or SSD. It has to be GUID HFS+ formatted. If you lot format information technology from El Capitan, it formats the difficult disk in this way by default. I will suppose its name is "Capitan". This will create an HFS+ partition and an EFI sectionalisation automatically.

2- Using the computer with El Capitan/Yosemite installed, clone the segmentation where you accept El Capitan to your external HDD, the one you have formatted on pace 1. The source estimator can be a real Mac or even a Hackintosh. You tin can apply Carbon Copy Clone (CCC) or SuperDuper! I take used both of them and they worked well.
If y'all use El Capitan, y'all need SIP disabled. To do that, boot from your El Capitan Mac from Recovery Segmentation, go to utilities, open a last, and write csrutil disable and reboot. You lot need to do all the next steps from an El Capitan with SIP disabled. Yosemite doesn't need this, considering it doesn't have SIP.

3- Kicking.efi we demand. There are two possibilities:
If you lot take an EFI64 unsupported Mac (similar MB4,1, for example), you can use the EFI64 boot.efi El Capitan has got by default. You should follow, as mentioned, method three v2.

If you have an EFI32 Mac, you need this boot.efi, designed to always disable SIP, created past @skyfly555, taking as base the boot.efi created by @vsbalint70, who created his kick.efi modifying the code from Superhighway R Alpha original boot.efi.

In one case downloaded, we need to change flags. From final (remember I'm supposing your Capitan partitioning is called "Capitann"):

Code:

                  cd /Volumes/Capitann/System/Library/CoreServices/ sudo chflags nouchg boot.efi cd /Volumes/Capitann/usr/standalone/i386/ sudo chflags nouchg kick.efi

iv- From Finder, apply the "Go" carte and select "Get to binder..."
Open /Volumes/Capitan/System/Library/CoreServices/ and re-create in that location the EFI32 boot.efi from where y'all have it (probably your Downloads folder).
Of import: If you find hither a file called firmware.scap, y'all must delete information technology and empty trash.
Open /Volumes/Capitann/usr/standalone/i386/ and do the same.
Important: If you discover here a file chosen firmware.scap, too, you must delete it and empty trash.

We will assign the correct owner to them. From terminal:

Code:

                  cd /Volumes/Capitann/Organization/Library/CoreServices/ sudo chown root:wheel boot.efi cd /Volumes/Capitann/usr/standalone/i386/ sudo chown root:bike kick.efi

5- We need kexts. We are using tones of kext from TMRJIJ - OS X Hackers. To make things like shooting fish in a barrel, you have them all zipped here (all the kexts come from OS X Hackers). Download information technology, unzip the file, yous will get some folders and one kext, copy the kexts you need (EC-Base-kexts are mandatory, LegacyUSBInjector.kext is optional and is used only if you have some known USB problems, re-create the graphical kexts you need from its binder) into /Volumes/Capitann/System/Library/Extensions/.

Note 1: If you lot have cloned from a Hackintosh, check your kexts into /Volumes/Capitan/System/Library/Extensions/ and /Volumes/Capitann/Library/Extensions/. Maybe y'all have things you don't need. Some of them can requite yous issues, for example, AppleACPIPS2Nub.kext, ApplePS2Controller.kext, FakeSMC.kext, NullCPUPowerManagement.kext or some HDAEnablerx.kext or whatever, that is "very Hackintosh". If you have these kexts in these folders, remove them now.
Notation ii: If yous have an ATI graphics menu, to get the 128 MB of RAM recognized, y'all have to go into /Volumes/Capitan/System/Library/Extensions/ and delete this file: AMDSupport.kext

6- Before doing footstep vii, yous need to be sure you lot have an of import folder, which is not ever cloned.

Open in Finder /Volumes/Capitann/System/Library/Caches/ Practise you have com.apple.kext.caches/ binder?
If not, open /System/Library/Caches/ in some other window of the finder, and elevate and drib com.apple.kext.caches/ from /System/Library/Caches/ to /Volumes/Capitann/System/Library/Caches/.

After that, open a last and:

Lawmaking:

                  cd /Volumes/Capitann/Organization/Library/Caches/ sudo chown -R root:wheel *.*

Note: If you don't have com.apple tree.kext.caches/, in step nine yous can get a message like:
Tin't create /Volumes/Capitann/Arrangement/Library/Caches/com.apple tree.kext.caches/Startup/kernelcache.l9a9 - No such file or directory and El Capitan won't kick.

vii- At present we will set up boot flags and apply them every fourth dimension we kick. From terminal:

Code:

                  cd /Volumes/Capitann//Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration/ sudo nano com.apple tree.Boot.plist

You will come across:
<cardinal>Kernel Flags</key>
<string></string>

You want to accept:
<key>Kernel Flags</fundamental>
<string>-no_compat_check kext-dev-mode=one mbasd=ane</cord>

Or, if you want verbose mode, too, add together -v flag:
<primal>Kernel Flags</fundamental>
<string>-no_compat_check kext-dev-style=one mbasd=1 -v </cord>

Notation: nosotros need these flags, they are mandatory to take all the kexts loaded, excepting mbasd=1, that is just required by MBAirs.

To become out from nano editor, Ctrl+X and say "y".

8- Now we want to accept our kexts permissions in good condition. From terminal:

Code:

                  cd /Volumes/Capitan/Organisation/Library/Extensions/ sudo chown -R root:wheel *.* sudo chmod -R 755 *.*

Annotation: These commands sometimes fail. Cheque them typing from the concluding and exist sure you lot see root:wheel everywhere. If that's non the case, you lot need to become to Finder, select your external HDD, and tick/untick the choice "Ignore ownership on this volume" (Correct-click on book > Read info > Option below permissions) - if it's ticked, untick it; if it'due south unticked, ticked it. Although when you lot go your permissions inverse to root:wheel, you need the "Ignore buying on this volume" pick unticked.

9- Now we are going to build the prelinked kernel and kernelcache:

Lawmaking:

                  sudo kextcache -prelinked-kernel /Volumes/Capitann/System/Library/Caches/com.apple tree.kext.caches/Startup/kernelcache -Chiliad /Volumes/Capitann/System/Library/Kernels/kernel /Volumes/Capitann/System/Library/Extensions /Volumes/Capitann/Library/Extensions

The concluding should give y'all messages like these:
/Volumes/Capitan locked; waiting for the lock.
Lock acquired; proceeding.
kext-dev-mode allowing invalid signature -67054 0xFFFFFFFFFFFEFA12 for kext IOUSBHostFamily.kext
(...)
kext-dev-style allowing invalid signature -67054 0xFFFFFFFFFFFEFA12 for kext AppleStorageDrivers.kext
kext-dev-mode allowing invalid signature -67050 0xFFFFFFFFFFFEFA16 for kext AppleIntelIntegratedFramebuffer.kext
kext-dev-mode allowing invalid signature -67061 0xFFFFFFFFFFFEFA0B for kext AppleIntelGMA950.kext
(...)
AppleDataSetManagement.kext - dependency for com.apple.iokit.IOAHCIBlockStorage lacks valid OSBundleCompatibleVersion.
AppleDataSetManagement.kext is missing dependencies (including anyway; dependencies may exist available from elsewhere)
Created mkext archive /Volumes/Capitann/System/Library/Caches/com.apple tree.kext.caches/Startup/Extensions.mkext.
Annotation 1: AppleDataSetManagement.kext messages will be shown if you have an SSD and TRIM enabled.
Annotation 2: If you get messages maxim permissions are not correct, or omitting... repeat steps 5, six and 8 until you get these messages maxim "kext-dev-mode allowing invalid signature..". Exist sure you are doing all the steps (especially the terminal commands) correct, and in the correct order. If you take an ATI and have deleted AMDSupport.kext, y'all will get some "omitting from prelinked..." messages, information technology'southward ok.
Note iii: If you get a message saying "Can't create...", practise step half-dozen once again, it hasn't been washed.

Notation iv: if y'all are on a Hackintosh, y'all can become messages like:

SoftRAID.kext has incorrect permissions; omitting.
(...)
ACS6x.kext has incorrect permissions; omitting.
Some of these kexts are from Hackintosh and will not be needed. Other ones, like HandsOff.kext, tin can be from some app you have installed. Be sure y'all are non omitting something of import, as the kexts the prior control has loaded (AppleHDA.kext or similar), and don't intendance for the rest.

10- Now we can change flags to boot.efi, and protect it again. From terminal:

Code:

                  cd /Volumes/Capitann/System/Library/CoreServices/ sudo chflags uchg boot.efi cd /Volumes/Capitann/usr/standalone/i386/ sudo chflags uchg boot.efi

xi- Now El Capitan can kick and it should boot with SIP disabled, but we have to exist sure there'due south no firmware.scap into the EFI folder on our Capitan sectionalization. If this is the case, El Cap won't boot at all (and nosotros volition get Kernel Panic).
Go to the terminal, blazon diskutil list, and bank check the name of your EFI sectionalization. If it's internal, it's usually called disk0s1; if it's external, it can be called disk1s1 or disk2s1. If you see several EFI partitions, practise this pace with all of them. I'll do that with disk0s1 equally an example. Y'all can do the same several times just changing the proper name of the deejay to diskXs1.
So, we will mount the EFI partition of our internal HDD (information technology's chosen disk0s1). We will name it "ESP".
From concluding:

Code:

                  mkdir /Volumes/ESP sudo mountain -t msdos /dev/disk0s1 /Volumes/ESP

Now go into /Volumes/ESP from Finder (maybe it will exist called EFI on Finder sidebar). Go into the binder called EFI. Delete everything inside this EFI folder (/Volumes/ESP/efi/) and empty trash. If you run into an Apple tree binder, you have the firmware.scap at that place, you must delete it!

USB Result: The USB kexts nosotros are using could requite you trouble, depending on the machine you have. One USB could not be recognized, Check your USB ports using a USB memory stick after booting El Cap for the very first fourth dimension to know if you are affected by this issue. If this is the case, try leaving the USB stick in the non recognized port, reboot again, and check if, after rebooting, the USB stick is recognized. If information technology's recognized, you volition have to kick El Cap with some USB device connected on that USB port when booting to take it working with El Cap (not all the time, only while you lot are booting). Y'all can endeavor installing LegacyUSBInjector.kext, maybe it can help you.
Effulgence adjustment: Shady app can help you lot. It'southward included in the OS 10 Hackers graphical kexts installers.

12- Boot your Mac, pressing the "alt" key" and select Capitann partition. If you have followed all the steps, it will kicking.

13- The last check.
Once booted from El Cap on your unsupported Mac, open a concluding and blazon:

You should get this bulletin: System Integrity Protection condition: disabled.
And the last bank check, from the terminal, let's rebuild caches:

Yous should come across the same output you got when you lot did step 9.
Smashing. Y'all got information technology. Welcome to EC.

Of import notes near updating-upgrading and cloning:
1- If you do a major upgrade, for case, from El Cap x.11.five to ten.11.6 or similar, you lot will get all the kexts we added to /Arrangement/Library/Extensions in step 5 deleted, kicking.efi deleted the firmware.scap file volition reappear everywhere... Then, I recommend you having a bootable backup on an external HDD before upgrading anything, and exist sure it boots correctly; then, later on the upgrade, you can boot from there and echo the process, from steps 3 to 12.
Your three goals: reinstalling the correct boot.efi, reinstalling kexts with the right kext cache and prelinked kernel rebuilding, and deleting firmware.scap from your system once again.
And so, and basically, you will repeat m3v2, but not with some other machine, but with yours.
2- When you clone El Cap partition to your internal HDD, El Cap may non boot. If this is your case, exercise steps half-dozen and 9 booting from your external drive. So, your internal El Cap will boot.

Back up

Feel free to post your questions, concerns, or success stories in this thread. If yous tin't post us back because your only usable device is bricked, Skype at TMRJIJ, MLforAll, or email us at Support@OSXHackers.net. We'll

effort

to respond within 3-5 days.
There should be some keen support Applications that we will use to assist you.

Be sure to thank our awesome developers who have contributed greatly.

Back up Documentation (Construction)

Docs for macOS Extractor:

No Sound Fix
Installation Failed
Updating macOS Extractor
Disabling Animations (Mavericks and Yosemite)
Enabling AirDrop
Os X Software Updates
Recovery Patch

Docs for MacPostFactor:

Mistake Lawmaking References
Error Code 3 - Partition Issue
Graphics Lag
Re-patching
Enabling AirDrop
Disabling Animations (Mavericks and Yosemite)

Downloads/Files for Patching

The macOS Extractor v1.45 for OS Ten/macOS 10.8 - 10.fourteen [March 31, 2020]:
Download Link
View Release Notes

MacPostFactor 2.0.1 [July 8, 2016]:
Download Link

Boot.efi support for El Capitan (Bone 10 ten.eleven) for unsupported Mac hardware with a 32-bit just EFI [by Pike R. Blastoff]:
Download Link

OS X Hackers are is not affiliated with Apple Inc. Mac OS Ten (X), Mac, iOS, iPhone, iPad, and all other Apple product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of Apple tree Inc. All other company and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.
MacPostFactor was made by Wayne Wong (@Wayne_819) and Kelian Dumarais (@MLforAll)

Guide and OSXH site/app designed past Isiah Johnson (@TMRJIJ) and Robby Sharpero and is provided by Johnson Network.

Developers/Contributors:

Liem Mai, Birtha Åbel, Wayne Wong, Kelian Dumarais, Nolen Johnson, Mr. Zarniwoop, Tiamo, Thruway R. Alpha, oem, atvusr, Jesse Samluk, Mike Hennessie

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