[Guide] Boot OS X from External USB drive - Complete HOWTO

[ptaylor874]

HOWTO: Boot Mac OS 10.4.8 on an AppleTV without opening the case

Goal: Boot up Mac OS X on an AppleTV from a USB drive without voiding warranty. This is done to allow the user to install hacks on the AppleTV internal drive itself.

Credits:
Modified Kernel by semthex [http://www.semthex.com/]
Partitioning portions taken from Turbo's "Creating a disk to boot from USB" notes [http://0xfeedbeef.com/appletv/]
Portions of this guide taken from semthex's "Mac OS X running on Apple TV" howto
Small portions written by Paul Taylor [http://www.addressplus.net]

Required materials:
An AppleTV
A boot.efi file from an AppleTV (don't ask me where to find this)
Intel Mac
Tiger Install CD
External USB 2.0 hard drive

Set up your USB drive
1. In Mac OS, open Disk Utility
2. In the left pane of Disk Utility, select the USB drive
3. Hit the Options button at the bottom of the screen.
4. On the resultant screen, select GUID Partition Table. This is required to be able to install Mac OS X.
5. Lay out your partitions the way you want.. (One big, two, whatever) and format them with Mac OS Extended (Journaled)
6. Let the format finish. When done, you should be able to mount the drive.

Install Mac OS X
1. Pop in your install disk with the external drive attached
2. Reboot, holding down the Option key on your keyboard
3. Select the CD icon to boot from your install CD
4. Run through the complete installation process, selecting your USB drive as the destination.

Customize your USB installation
1. Run through the normal 1st boot stuff (Add user, etc.)
2. Download this: http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/macosx1048comboupdateintel.html
3. Install the 10.4.8 combo update
4. Reboot. Go to software update and get all the updates EXCEPT 10.4.9
5. System Prefs > Sharing
6. Check Remote Login here (this enables SSH)
7. Check Apple Remote Desktop
8. Click "Access Privileges", check the "VNC viewers" box, and put in a password here. This will let you remote control your AppleTV after you boot it with this installation.
9. Do any other customization you desire, except update to a newer version of Tiger

Get ethernet working with PCGenRTL8139Ethernet 1.2.0
1. Download http://www.sendspace.com/file/4i62j1
2. Install per the instructions in the file
(Note: This is needed to get either the built-in Ethernet to work or the Airport. This doesn't break Ethernet support for an Intel Core Duo iMac - not sure about others.)

Install proper kernel
1. Boot back up to your internal hard drive
2. Download the kernel from one of the mirrors listed here:
http://www.hackint0sh.org/forum/showthread.php?t=541
3. Mount your external drive
4. From a Terminal window, do this: ls -la /Volumes/YourExternalDisk
5. You will see a file called mach_kernel there.
6. Delete this file (may have to sudo rm /Volumes/YourExternalDisk/mach_kernel). Be careful here NOT to delete the kernel on your Internal Boot disk!
7. Copy the unzipped kernel you downloaded in step 2 to /Volumes/YourExternalDisk

Install boot.efi
1. Replace /System/Library/CoreServices/boot.efi with the boot.efi file from the AppleTV boot drive (it is in the same path)
2. To do the above, you may have to do a "Get Info" on the boot.efi file on your external drive and uncheck the "Locked" checkbox.
3. Bless the installation from a Terminal:
sudo bless --folder=/Volumes/YourExternalDisk/System/Library/CoreServices --file=/Volumes/YourExternalDisk/System/Library/CoreServices/boot.efi --setBoot

Cleanup
1. Delete the Nvidia kexts (all begining with NVD, there are 5) from /Volumes/YourExternalDisk/System/Library/Extensions
2. Delete /Volumes/YourExternalDisk/System/Library/Extensions.mkext and Extensions.kextcache if they exist

Patch AppleFileSystemDriver
NOTE: Perform these steps with a command line text editor or with TextWrangler (http://www.barebones.com/products/textwrangler/download.shtml). DO NOT USE TEXTEDIT!
1. Edit /Volumes/YourExternalDisk/System/Library/Extensions/AppleFileSystemDriver.kext/Contents/Info.plist
2. Search for "IOPropertyMatch". It will be found similar to this:

<key>media-match</key>
<dict>
<key>IOPropertyMatch</key>
<array>
<dict>
<key>Content Hint</key>
<string>48465300-0000-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC</string>
<key>Leaf</key>
<true/>
</dict>
3. Just after the line with <array>, copy/paste this in:

<dict>
<key>Content Hint</key>
<string>5265636F-7665-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC</string>
<key>Leaf</key>
<true/>
</dict>
<dict>
<key>Content Hint</key>
<string>Apple_Recovery</string>
<key>Leaf</key>
<true/>
</dict>

Change Partition Type
NOTE: Once you do this, you can't mount the disk on your Intel Mac anymore without reversing the change. If you mess up here, you'll need to start over.
1. Open Disk Utility
2. Select the external disk from the left pane. Right click and select "Information"
3. Take note of the "Disk Indentifier". In my case, it is "disk3". For safety reasons, the rest of this guide is written with "diskX". Replace the X with the number of your drive.
4. From Terminal:
gpt -r show /dev/diskX
5. You'll get something similar to this back:

start size index contents
0 1 PMBR
1 1 Pri GPT header
2 32 Pri GPT table
34 6
40 409600 1 GPT part - C12A7328-F81F-11D2-BA4B-00A0C93EC93B
409640 77757488 2 GPT part - 48465300-0000-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC
78167128 262144
78429272 77610032 3 GPT part - 48465300-0000-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC
156039304 262151
156301455 32 Sec GPT table
156301487 1 Sec GPT header

6. A little explanation here is in order. The first real partition is on the line beginning with 40. In this case, it runs from 40 through 409600. (I'm guessing these are bytes) Next to the size is the index, 1. The very next line is the one we are interested in. This is the partition that contains your bootable install. It is index 2. You may or may not have and index 3)

7. Unmount the disk:
disktool -u diskX

8. Now, we remove the entry in the table for the 2nd partition
gpt remove -i 2 /dev/diskX

I got this back:
gpt remove: /dev/disk3: 1 partition(s) removed

9. Mac OS will remount any remaining partitions. Unmount them:
disktool -u diskX

10. Now, we add a new entry to the table. For index 2, take note of the start, and the size, as you'll need them here. Replace the START and SIZE strings with your values.

gpt add -b START -s SIZE -i 2 -t "5265636F-7665-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC" /dev/diskX

Note that it doesn't tell you anything back.. You just get a prompt.

11. Performing step 5's command again gets me this:

start size index contents
0 1 PMBR
1 1 Pri GPT header
2 32 Pri GPT table
34 6
40 409600 1 GPT part - C12A7328-F81F-11D2-BA4B-00A0C93EC93B
409640 77757488 2 GPT part - 5265636F-7665-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC
78167128 262144
78429272 77610032 3 GPT part - 48465300-0000-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC
156039304 262151
156301455 32 Sec GPT table
156301487 1 Sec GPT header


Note that the index 2 partition type is now the required type for AppleTV to boot to.

Boot your AppleTV with OS X
1. Attach your external drive to the USB port
2. If already booted up, hit MENU and "-" on your remote and hold it until a reboot start
3. If your AppleTV isn't on, plug it in to power. No remote finagling required.
4. Watch in AWE as your AppleTV boots up OS X.

[guestlurker]

Thanks, ptaylor874. I followed the instructions exactly except for one step: I did not replace boot.efi from the appleTV, because to do so would require me to open the case and void the warranty.

Of course, the appleTV did not boot from external HD without this step. So, this boot.efi is really the missing piece in all of this -- everything else is freely available and understandable.

I know that you said not to ask where to get boot.efi. I just want to clarify that this boot.efi file looks to be critical for success with these instructions.

[ptaylor874]

Yes - That file is absolutely critical to get it to work.

You may be able to convince a friend to buy an AppleTV and borrow it for an evening, extracting the boot.efi file from his... That way your warranty would be completely in tact.. :)

[semthex]

Thanks for this guide :-D Realoly great work.

[barbro66]

Works beautifully....

http://www.flickr.com/gp/51035591025@N01/X40Bt4

[GoodOmens]

Hmm that means booting from a USB thumb drive might be possible.

[DxQ]

I attempted this with an install from my brand new (two weeks old, 10.4.8) MacBook Pro restore DVD, and when I tried to boot up, I was presented with the grey apple, then with the "invalid" sign (circle with a line through it), and the drive failed to boot. I tried the install again with the same results.

Am I doing something wrong, is my DVD too new?

[yujean]

I attempted this with an install from my brand new (two weeks old, 10.4.8) MacBook Pro restore DVD, and when I tried to boot up, I was presented with the grey apple, then with the "invalid" sign (circle with a line through it), and the drive failed to boot. I tried the install again with the same results.

Am I doing something wrong, is my DVD too new?

This happened to me too. I just rebooted it again... and then it showed me the Apple Logo... then it rebooted automatically *again* ... and then booted up to the Mac OS just fine thereafter...

So just keep rebooting it I guess... let it grind away~

*****

Question about boot.efi

I don't want to void my warrentee either with my Apple TV... Is a boot.efi file unique to each ATV? If it's not, then what's keeping people from providing it online...? Or should I not be asking that question...?

Thanks,

Eugene

[ptaylor874]

DxQ,
I don't know what the problem could be. If you are replacing the kernel with the semthex kernel, deleting the specified files, and handling the boot.efi as directed, it should work as long as you don't run into an issue with the partitioning.

Yujean,
The boot.efi file is not unique to an individual AppleTV, as far as I know.

With that in mind, I guess that it, or perhaps even a copy of the AppleTV OS that you could pull it from, may be somewhere on the Internet.

Whether it would be legal to download it is another question... I'm almost of the opinion that you could get away with it legally since you own an AppleTV box, but what do I know? I'm not a lawyer.

One good bit of news that I read last night was that Apple wasn't planning to do anything to stop people from hacking their AppleTVs.

[DxQ]

I am following the given instructions EXACTLY, and I've done it twice.

I am not using the boot.efi from my image, as I haven't opened my case (I got one somewhere else, if you understand what I'm saying). Would a bad boot.efi give me this problem?

[ptaylor874]

If you are getting to the white apple screen, that indicates to me that you have probably got the partition set up properly. The fact that it fails there may indicate a boot.efi problem, or perhaps an issue with the mach_kernel. Someone who knows more details on the boot process of Mac OS would probably be able to tell you more.

You may be able to do some google searches looking for this problem without AppleTV in the search string... You might find someone with the same symptoms with a PC running Mac OS or even with a real mac.

[ptaylor874]

Oh - Another thing you can try before making the last partition changes... Try to boot your mac from the external drive.. I believe I did that several times, even though I had installed semthex's kernel and the AppleTV's boot.efi file.

Assuming the boot works at that point, make sure you do Cleanup step 2.. (Those files may be recreated since they are cache files)

[Huxley]

I get the prohibitory sign.
Cmd v shows it loads to the itunesPhoneDriver then waiting for root device.

[latapeze]

When you boot from the external drive (USB) does the ATV drive mount on the desktop and then are you able to easily mod the ATV drive?
If so, what would be the steps to do so?
Thanks.

[iMags]

The aTV partitions are automaticly mounted on the desktop when you boot your USB drive.
The next step would be to install SSH, and then you can easily access it remotely.

[iMags]

I can't get this to work!
I have tired 4 times now, doing exactly what ptaylor874 described.

When I boot the the USB drive (with Apple TV of course) I get the white Apple screen and the circle-thing, but then I get the "invalid" sign, same as DxQ described and the USB drive HDD-led stops blinking.

I have rebooted 3 times, same result...

What can I possibly be doing wrong???

[Raven]

I had the same problem booting up from a Lacie porche USB drive with no external power supply. I then did the install on an older USB drive with power supply and it worked like a charm! :)

[Professr]

I'm not one to advocate piracy of any kind. If someone does find it in their hearts to make the boot.efi file available to others (perhaps if they provide an appletv serial number to prove they own one), though, please let me know. There's got to be a way to get this without opening up every single device and voiding the warranty...

[smarm]

another one with the prohibitory sign here.

will keep working on it, but it sounds like there's something else that needs to be done.

ryan

[DxQ]

I obtained another boot.efi (completely legal, of course). I'll try a new install with it + whatever other changes might work and let you know what happens. If anyone wants instructions on how to obtain a boot.efi, send me a PM.

[mbd]

Could someone please post a checksum output of the boot.efi?

E.g.,

$ cksum boot.efi
1435602359 298800 boot.efi

I went through the steps and the appletv seemed to entirely ignore the fact I had the usb drive connected. Startup was black background with silver apple logo, then straight to appletv intro video.

[DxQ]

Matches mine.

[smarm]

macbookpro:~ ryan$ cksum /Users/ryan/Desktop/Downloads/boot.efi
1435602359 298800 /Users/ryan/Desktop/Downloads/boot.efi

[mbd]

Well, second time through and I've got a bit further. I now get the grey apple on light background for a while, the spinner starts and then after a couple of minutes I get the ghostbusters (err, prohibitory) sign.

FYI, I'm using a MacBook Core Duo.

[pheno]

hi folks,

very interesting thread and thanks to ptaylor874!

am I right that without the apple tv's efi.boot I cannot boot up mac os x?!?!
thx,
pheno

[iMags]

I uploaded my boot.efi at OiNK for the people that doesn't want's to open their Apple TV.
I got it up on Demonoid too.
(can I say that or will I get banned or something???)

[luke]

OK, I managed to USB boot OSX, and get SSH and VNC running.

However, now when I SSH into the Apple TV, and try to change anything on the OSBoot section (copy files to it, rename Finder.app, etc...), I get the message "Read-only file system".

Any ideas?

[mbd]

I'm unsure if this will work, since i'm still in 'prohibition'-land, and can't try it myself, but you could try typing

$ mount -uw </Volume/name>

and see if that helps

[iMags]

in Terminal:
sudo mount -o rw,remount /dev/disk0s3 /
to get read-write.



To automatically mount it as read-write, go to the root of OSBoot and in Terminal:
touch .readwrite

[pheno]

hi iMags,

thanks a lot. I found the file. Now I'll start to boot up from usb.
wish me all the best....
I'll post my experiences later on.
gtx,
pheno

[iMags]

I still can't get it to work myself...
I am using an external USB harddrive with a USB cable split into two USB connectors... I guess one is for the connection and the other one is for power.

Does it work with my external harddrive?
...or can I use my iPod?

[luke]

Thanks iMags, that did the trick.

[luke]

I still can't get it to work myself...
I am using an external USB harddrive with a USB cable split into two USB connectors... I guess one is for the connection and the other one is for power.

Does it work with my external harddrive?
...or can I use my iPod?
I used my iPod. I tried my old iPod Photo first, but that just kept giving an error when I tried to create a GUID partition.

The first time I tried creating a boot drive, I couldn't get it to work (it started, but kept hanging with a no-entry logo on the screen half way through start-up), so I tried starting over.

On my second time through, I tried using my Keyboard as a USB hub, so I could boot in verbose mode easily (command-v), when I did that, the logs said something like "unable to configure device "iPod" not enough power" - I guess your problem could be similar (although, it doesn't seem to be seeing your drive at all - is that right?).

I then tried again, just booting straight, and it worked fine (I guess my second attempt at creating a drive worked better).

[iMags]

So.. Is it working to boot from your iPod now?
I mean... When it worked, were you still using your iPod or did you use another disk?

[iMags]

How do you install Mac OS X on your iPod???
The installer tells me that it can't install on iPod because Mac OS X can't boot from it.

[luke]

You need to create a GUID partition.

- Open Disk Utility
- Select the iPod (not any of the partitions on it)
- Select the partition tab
- Click "options"
- Select "GUID partition table"
- OK
- Partition

WARNING: This will wipe all data on your iPod, so back up anything important first (and find something to do when all your MP3s are copying back afterwards).

[iMags]

Yeah..I've already tried that.
I got this message back from Disk Utility:
Partition error-something and:
"Invalid argument"

Now what?

[pheno]

YIPPIE-KAY-YA!!!

after following the instruction I rebootet my Apple TV and it bootet directly with macosx..

although I did not pressed the menu + '-' buttons!
the doesn't accept a vnc connection via wlan but I'll try to connect a keyboard right now.
thanks to all,
pheno

[luke]

Yeah..I've already tried that.
I got this message back from Disk Utility:
Partition error-something and:
"Invalid argument"

Now what?
I got an error when trying with my iPod Photo, so had to use my 5th(?) Gen instead.

There are instructions here of building a valid disk image:

http://0xfeedbeef.com/appletv/usbboot

(second half of tutorial)


You could maybe do that then restore to your iPod (I've not read the instructions, as I didn't need to, but they may help)

[mickygivesme]

In order to patch the AppleFileSystemDriver I had to use nano -w in terminal. The directions on these boards are not very newb friendly. Anyhow, after numerous hours of trying it finally booted. Pretty cool to have osx externally and not have to crack open your Atv. The only problem now is getting a keyboard and mouse. I tried my usb hub but since it was old and 1.0 it didn't load the drive. My guess is it'll need a USB 2.0 hub to load the drive and be able to use a keyboard and mouse. Either way though the USB drive will never mount on your Mac anymore after changing partition types, so this won't make a practical solution for putting files into you Atv, since you won't be able to put files into your external drive. If anybody is looking for the boot.efi file just get the Atv.dmg from bittorent or whatever and mount it. The file will be in the mounted drive.

[neztik]

Worked Great for Me! Thanks OSX running without opening my ATV. Now to figure out how to do the rest of the hacks to the OS itself. I am backing up the original partitions now. Thanks again!

Plugged in my MAC Keyboard to the ATV and Jumped the Drive and the Mouse off of it and it works perfectly.

[mbd]

Hmmm, I wonder what the difference is between those who followed the directions and got it working vs those who followed the directions and are getting the prohibitory logo on boot...

[luke]

These are the differences between my first (failed with the no-entry logo) and second (worked) attempts:

- First time I'd done a full install of OSX, second time I did a customised install, with as little as possible.

- First time I missed a few things initially (deleting all the ktext stuff I was meant to), and did some bits after my first try at booting, and then tried again.

- First time I initially added IOPropertyMatch stuff after what was there, and then changed to having it before what was there. Second time, I had it before from the start.


It's possible I also missed something else the first time, but I'm pretty sure I didn't.

[S_Bruv]

Hi all,

I think I'm getting most of this right (total Terminal n0ob), but can I check one thing?

In the bit below, does it mean to paste the new stuff in over the top of everything below <array>, or in between <array> and everything that comes after it, ie, not actually losing anything from the original Info.plist, but adding the new text to it?

Cheers!

S_Bruv

Patch AppleFileSystemDriver
1. Edit /Volumes/YourExternalDisk/System/Library/Extensions/AppleFileSystemDriver.kext/Contents/Info.plist
2. Search for "IOPropertyMatch". It will be found similar to this:
PHP Code:
<key>media-match</key>
<dict>
<key>IOPropertyMatch</key>
<array>
<dict>
<key>Content Hint</key>
<string>48465300-0000-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC</string>
<key>Leaf</key>
<true/>
</dict>
3. Just after the line with <array>, copy/paste this in:
PHP Code:
<dict>
<key>Content Hint</key>
<string>5265636F-7665-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC</string>
<key>Leaf</key>
<true/>
</dict>
<dict>
<key>Content Hint</key>
<string>Apple_Recovery</string>
<key>Leaf</key>
<true/>
</dict>

[icyderguru]

Hmmm, I wonder what the difference is between those who followed the directions and got it working vs those who followed the directions and are getting the prohibitory logo on boot...

i also got the logo, did it twice because i thought i forgot to delete kextcache or the AppleRTL8139Ethernet.kext (which isnt even there).

:(

[Magik]

:(
I did twice the Howto, with two different HD, and I still have the prohibition sign at the boot. If anyone have an idea, please publish it!

[pheno]

heeeeeeeeey!?!

I followed exactly the instruction bootet my box with usb drive connected and it worked perfectly.

but at the second try I got the prohibited sign during boot sequence!
why? anyone has an idea? did the atv modified my installation on the external disk????

this is really weird...
gtx,
pheno

[icyderguru]

that:

<key>media-match</key>
************<dict>
****************<key>IOPropertyMatch</key>
****************<array>
<dict>
************************<key>Content*Hint</key>
************************<string>5265636F-7665-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC</string>
************************<key>Leaf</key>
************************<true/>
********************</dict>
********************<dict>
************************<key>Content*Hint</key>
************************<string>Apple_Recovery</string>
************************<key>Leaf</key>
************************<true/>
********************</dict>*
********************<dict>
************************<key>Content*Hint</key>
************************<string>48465300-0000-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC</string>
************************<key>Leaf</key>
************************<true/>
********************</dict>


or shall it look like that:

<key>media-match</key>
************<dict>
****************<key>IOPropertyMatch</key>
****************<array>
<dict>
************************<key>Content*Hint</key>
************************<string>5265636F-7665-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC</string>
************************<key>Leaf</key>
************************<true/>
********************</dict>
********************<dict>
************************<key>Content*Hint</key>
************************<string>Apple_Recovery</string>
************************<key>Leaf</key>
************************<true/>
********************</dict>


thank you very much

[DxQ]

These are the differences between my first (failed with the no-entry logo) and second (worked) attempts:

- First time I'd done a full install of OSX, second time I did a customised install, with as little as possible.

- First time I missed a few things initially (deleting all the ktext stuff I was meant to), and did some bits after my first try at booting, and then tried again.

- First time I initially added IOPropertyMatch stuff after what was there, and then changed to having it before what was there. Second time, I had it before from the start.


It's possible I also missed something else the first time, but I'm pretty sure I didn't.

Every time I installed (and got the prohibited sign), I booted into my partition multiple times to make sure my updates installed. It sounds like yours failed when you did this.

I'm going to give it another try with one boot.

[S_Bruv]

Okay, I've done the how-to twice now, and I get the prohibited sign every time. :(

I'm wondering if maybe it's got something to do with what flavour of Mac is used to create the ATV OS X installation. I've been doing it on a Mac Pro, so now I'm wondering if I should maybe try it on my MacBook Pro instead. Is that a silly idea?

Thoughts?

Cheers,
S_B

[DxQ]

I'm using a Macbook Pro.

How new is the Mac you're using?

[ptaylor874]

Sorry that I hadn't responded to any posts in a while, but it appears that a lot can apparently happen here in 24 hours or so...

I can't say exactly what is causing the problem some of you are having, but from reading some of the posts here, it sounds like it may be the exact hardware you are using.

In my case, I'm using the 80 GB drive that came in my G4 mac mini mounted in a CompUSA 2.5" USB 2.0 enclosure (SKU 306130). It came with a USB cable for data and a separate one that can be used to provide power (if your port isn't providing enough?), but I'm only using the single data cable. It appears to be powered just fine with that. I'm wondering if people with external 3.5" drives are more prone to this issue?

I created my boot disk on an Intel Core Duo iMac. OS X 10.4.4 was the base install. I didn't try to do a minimal install or anything, just went with the default.

[ptaylor874]

Hi all,

I think I'm getting most of this right (total Terminal n0ob), but can I check one thing?

In the bit below, does it mean to paste the new stuff in over the top of everything below <array>, or in between <array> and everything that comes after it, ie, not actually losing anything from the original Info.plist, but adding the new text to it?

Cheers!


S_Bruv,

The answer is between <array> and the parts below it. You aren't replacing anything that is there, just adding to it.

Paul

[icyderguru]

S_Bruv,

The answer is between <array> and the parts below it. You aren't replacing anything that is there, just adding to it.

Paul

i modified it with textedit - can it even work with textedit or shall i use something else? Would be great if someone with a working osx atv installation could upload his Info.plist
got a 10gb hard drive out of an old xbox with external power supply

when i boot in verbose mode (apple + v) i get
Extension "com.apple.driver.iTunesPhoneDriver" has no kernel dependency

thanks in advance

[luke]

Hmm, another difference between my first (failed) and second (working) builds were my first build was done on an iMac (Intel Core 2 Duo) and my second on a MacBook Pro (also Intel 2 Core Duo). Both times I used the OSX disks that came with the MacBook Pro.

[ptaylor874]

I got an error when trying with my iPod Photo, so had to use my 5th(?) Gen instead.

There are instructions here of building a valid disk image:

http://0xfeedbeef.com/appletv/usbboot

(second half of tutorial)


You could maybe do that then restore to your iPod (I've not read the instructions, as I didn't need to, but they may help)

This is what part of the original tutorial was based on. With his use of color, it might be easier for some people to understand.

[ptaylor874]

i modified it with textedit - can it even work with textedit or shall i use something else? Would be great if someone with a working osx atv installation could upload his Info.plist
got a 10gb hard drive out of an old xbox with external power supply

thanks in advance

I used vi to make the changes. I don't know if textedit will try to put formating info in the file or not. If it does, then I wouldn't expect it to work. If you prefer a GUI tool, I am pretty sure that textwrangler (a free tool from the makers of BBedit) won't insert formating info.

[ptaylor874]

very interesting thread and thanks to ptaylor874!



I just wanted to say that the real thanks should go to semthex and Turbo.. I just took the relevant parts from both of them, and added that together with a touch of my own instructions.

[DxQ]

Another failure.

I've narrowed it down to three possible problems (I think):

1) I'm using TextEdit for my info.plist (I'll do it in vi next time)
2) I'm using an Intel Core 2 Duo MacBook Pro with a 10.4.8 install DVD (too new?)
3) The drive is 3.5"

I can fix the first problem, but if it doesn't work, I'm screwed. Unless somebody uploads a dmg of their install. But that would be a terrible idea ;-).

[S_Bruv]

Hey,

Okay, my Mac Pro is very new indeed (last week), but the install discs are still 10.4.8. I've also been editing Info.plist (with the text in the right place, it turns out) with TextEdit, but surely that's not the problem, is it?

My MacBook Pro is also new enough to come with 10.4.8 discs. What do y'all think, though? Worth a try?

Incidentally, has anyone got AirPort to work once the ATV is in OS X, or is it Ethernet only?

Cheers!

S_B

[iMags]

I still haven't got it to work...

My list:
- MacBook Intel Core 2 Duo Install Disk
- I used Smultron to edit my info.plist
- I am using the original Apple TV harddrive in a USB enclosure with a USB Y-cable (a USB-cable, two USB 2.0 connectors to USB-mini for the HDD)

[pheno]

hi again,

ptaylor874 you're right.

thanks to semthex and Turbo...they did a great job.

I can report some of my experiences now. after booting the first time from the usb drive it did not work again.

therefore I reset the index of the boot partition to its original value.

then I repeated the 2nd step of clean up:

2. Delete /Volumes/YourExternalDisk/System/Library/Extensions.mkext and Extensions.kextcache if they exist

next I removed the 2nd index again and I set the ATV's value.

now the boot procedure worked fine!
I don't know why....maybe ATV copies some files to the external drive!??

however.....right now I'm connected via ssh to activate the sshd on ATV!
thx,
pheno

[DxQ]

I think I fixed it.

First I reversed the partitioning step to end up with a partition that my MacBook would recognize. Next, I copied the Info.plist from my MacBook Pro's /System/Library/Extensions/AppleFileSystemDrive.kext and then patched it in vi. Following this, my MBP would still boot the drive (in the past, it got the same screen my aTV did). I'm going to change the partition type and give it a go on the aTV. This is looking good.

SO BASICALLY: Don't use TextEdit.

[S_Bruv]

Sounds promising! How did you reverse the partitioning step?

(And what's vi?)

[iMags]

Reversing the partitioning steps:
(first: disktool -u diskX)

1. We remove the partition with OSX: gpt remove -i 2 /dev/diskX

2. Mac OS will remount any remaining partitions. Unmount them:
disktool -u diskX

3. Now, we add a new entry to the table.
gpt add -b START -s SIZE -i 2 -t "48465300-0000-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC" /dev/diskX

[DxQ]

It worked! vi is a command line text editor. I wouldn't suggest it if you don't know what it is. Use TextWrangler or (from the command line) nano. I would offer a tutorial, but I'm about to leave. My family has been waiting on me for the last 20 minutes.

Good luck. I hope my info helped.

[ptaylor874]

Great news!

So, for people not familiar with command line editors, edit the file in TextWrangler (http://www.barebones.com/products/textwrangler/download.shtml). It's free.

The original post has been updated to reflect this.

Paul

[iMags]

YEAH!
Now we're talkin'!
It is now working for me too!
:D

I reversed the partitioning steps, repatched AppleFileSystemDriver with TextWrangler (tnx for the link ptaylor874!), did a blessing again, then it worked!

[iMags]

It is not working again!
I don't get it!

How about you other guys? Does it sill work for you?

[bubba]

Is it just me or is an iso/dmg of the final patched image due for a torrent tracker somewhere? I agree, it's great to follow all the steps and go through lots of trial and error, but my bones are too old (and my wife too nagging) to spend all day on this. Purty pleeease?

Bubba

[mbd]

Just to add my data into the mix, I've tried using

Install Disc: MacBook (Core Duo) v10.4.6
Install Type: Customized minimal install
Disks: Two different 2.5" disks (one of which came out of a Mac Mini)
Enclosures: Two different enclosures (one which can use external power)
Editor: VI

All without success so far. Gah!

I'll try DxQ partition reversal suggestion, just in case.

[mbd]

Got it working!

Here's what I did:

1. Plugged in the non-working usb hard disk (that gave prohibitory sign)

2. Typed the following commands from Terminal:
- disktool -u disk1
- gpt remove -i 2 /dev/diskX
- gpt add -b START -s SIZE -t "48465300-0000-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC" /dev/diskX
- cp /System/Library/Extensions/AppleFileSystemDriver.kext/Contents/Info.plist /Volumes/EXTERNALDRIVE/System/Library/Extensions/AppleFileSystemDriver.kext/Contents/Info.plist
- vi /Volumes/EXTERNALDRIVE/System/Library/Extensions/AppleFileSystemDriver.kext/Contents/Info.plist
- cd /
- sudo bless --folder=/Volumes/EXTERNALDRIVE/System/Library/CoreServices --file=/Volumes/EXTERNALDRIVE/System/Library/CoreServices/boot.efi --setBoot
- rm -fr /Volumes/EXTERNALDRIVE/System/Library/Extensions.mkext
NOTE: I didn't have an Extensions.kextcache folder in /Volumes/EXTERNALDRIVE/System/Library/ or I'd have deleted that too
- disktool -u diskX
- gpt remove -i 2 /dev/diskX
- disktool -u diskX
- gpt add -b START -s SIZE -t "5265636F-7665-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC" /dev/diskX
- disktool -u disk1

3. Plugged it into the AppleTV and it booted!


Thanks to all for the assistance! Hopefully the above may assist someone who's stuck. I can't be sure what fixed it, but my suspision is that I may not have noticed both folders mentioned in step two of the cleanup:

2. Delete /Volumes/YourExternalDisk/System/Library/Extensions.mkext
AND Extensions.kextcache if they exist

[DxQ]

Mine also stopped working after the intial boot. I think the extensions caches were recreated (that will also give you the prohibited sign). I'm going to remount it on my MBP and look for a way to stop that.

[DxQ]

I was correct. I'm thinking about writing a few scripts for changing the partition type back and forth and automatically cleaning those caches (depending on when they are generated, that's what I'm checking now).

[iMags]

Yes!
Please write that script! :)

[DxQ]

Meh. I actually got the prohibited sign after cleaning them out, so I'm going to check some more stuff now. When I find the problem, I'm going to try and script solutions to everything I can.

[DxQ]

Sorry for all the replies, but I figured this was the best way to keep people updated. I solved my problem by deleted the caches, then AppleFileSystem.kext and replacing it with a patched (with vi) version from my MBP (same thing I did before).

EDIT: Also, I think TextEdit might work just fine. I have a feeling it was the second part about the whole kext. You might want to continue using TextWrangler just to be safe.

[S_Bruv]

Alrighty! Thanks to allay'all, I've booted OS X off a USB drive on ATV! Thank you all for your help. :)

Now then - and you're gonna love this - what do I, er, do now? I'm looking at OS X on my TV with no immediately apparent way of actually doing anything. How do I get some kind of remote operation going on this bad boy?

I've done everything in the How-to, so I've enabled SSH (I think), but my knowledge beyond that is limited, to say the least...

Cheers!

S_B

[ptaylor874]

First, you need to know the IP Address of your Apple TV unit. Whatever is serving as your DHCP server is where you should look. There should be a DHCP leases screen somewhere (on Monowall and pfSense there is, I'm assuming most consumer grade equipment also has that)..

Once you know your AppleTV Ip, SSH in from Terminal (where username is the user name of your external OS X installation's user)

ssh username@yourappletvip

The first time, you'll get something back like this:

The authenticity of host '192.168.111.101 (192.168.111.101)' can't be established.
RSA key fingerprint is 8f:82:37:22:28:25:62:96:15:4c:88:ae:40:2c:af:7c.
Are you sure you want to continue connecting (yes/no)?

Answer yes, then you'll be prompted for a password. Enter it, and you'll be at another Terminal prompt, but this one is actually a prompt inside your AppleTV.

After that, you can enter in commands like these:

(Taken from Pheom's script: http://phoem.com/appletv-install.sh)


Disable the Watchdog:
mkdir /Volumes/Media/Scratch/private/etc/mach_init.disabled
mv /Volumes/Media/Scratch/private/etc/mach_init.d/ripstop.plist /Volumes/Media/Scratch/private/etc/mach_init.disabled
echo "/sbin/kextunload -b com.apple.driver.AppleTCOWatchdog" >> /Volumes/Media/Scratch/private/etc/rc.local

Install SSH:
cp /usr/sbin/sshd /Volumes/OSBoot/usr/sbin/
cp /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/ssh.plist /Volumes/OSBoot/System/Library/LaunchDaemons/ssh.plist


Phoem's script has a bunch of command line tools that he copies over, but you probably don't need those unless you'll be doing a lot from the command line via SSH.

As for what else you can do, you can install plug-ins for AppleTV. Right now, there aren't very many, but there are a few.

You can also install additional quicktime components, like Perian... That can let you watch DIVX, XVID, etc. movies on your AppleTV.

After you have SSH installed on your base AppleTV system, you can reboot, disconnect the USB drive, and then SSH in this way.

First, delete your known_hosts file so SSH doesn't think something strange is going on.. (It will get a different key when it connects since this is a different load of the OS)

From a new Terminal window:
cd .ssh/
rm known_hosts

(Alternatively, you can edit your known_hosts file and remove the entry for the IP address of your appleTV unit)

Then:

ssh frontrow@appletvip

Accept it, like before, then enter your password in. It's "frontrow"

Depending on where you want to copy files, you may need to remount a partition.. I think the OS partition is mounted as ReadOnly by default. There's lots of detail on various hacks here: http://wiki.awkwardtv.org/wiki/Main_Page

Paul

[ptaylor874]

Also, if you followed the tutorial closely (and if I documented it right), you've enabled Remote Desktop w/ VNC. If you download Chicken of the VNC (http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=64347), you can remote control your AppleTV unit (while booted from the external drive)..

[Magik]

I did the Howto of mbd, and I still have the prohibited sign... :(

[u72]

I did the Howto of mbd, and I still have the prohibited sign... :(

yeah me too :( - grey screen apple boot... looks at network for 5-10 secs carries on loading... thrashes HD for a 10 secs or so more then everything stops then prohibited sign :( i'm using a 120WD 1200VE Drive - theres mention of a pre-patched dmg floating about, can anyone give any pointers? - i've looked in the usual places...

thanks for all your hard work

u72

[smarm]

Thanks to me using a pre-modded version of the AppleFile.kext, thanks to DxQ, it's now working.

This i think is the key to people's problems.

[iMags]

where do you get that pre-modded version?
(it is also an image of it on OiNK, but where to download ONLY the cleaning script?)

[Magik]

If someone can send me an invitation to Oink... it will be very gentle! :)

[S_Bruv]

Hey Paul,

Man, thanks for all your help - it's truly appreciated. I'm doing okay, I think, but when I try to disable watchdog, I get a Permission Denied response in Terminal. I've managed to enable SSH, install Perian, Flip4Mac, etc, via Chicken, but I just can't seem to make any terminal commands stick, and I don't know how to disable Watchdog any other way. Any ideas?

Cheers!

S_B

[bubba]

Have you tried prefacing your commands with "sudo" so the commands get run with administrative permissions?

[vormkrijger]

ppfff same f***** prohibited sign :(:(

[DxQ]

I can gather my files/scripts together and send them out if anyone wants them.

PM me.

[ptaylor874]

Man, thanks for all your help - it's truly appreciated. I'm doing okay, I think, but when I try to disable watchdog, I get a Permission Denied response in Terminal. I've managed to enable SSH, install Perian, Flip4Mac, etc, via Chicken, but I just can't seem to make any terminal commands stick, and I don't know how to disable Watchdog any other way. Any ideas?


Yes, as bubba mentioned, you may need to put "sudo" in front of some of the commands. You'll be prompted for a password when you do.

Alternatively, you can type "sudo bash", and enter your password. For the rest of that terminal session (or until you type exit), everything you do will be at the administrator access level.

One thing about installing all those items via VNC... Did you install them to the external drive, or the appropriate location of the Internal drive? If you just install them as you would normally do on a Mac, they will be installed on your external drive.

[S_Bruv]

Hey,

Nice - I'll give the sudo thing a try shortly. And yes, I was installing everything to the internal drive of the ATV.

I'll let you know how I get on...

Cheers again!

S_B

[Magik]

I tried using the kext of DxQ, but I still have the prohibited sign.... Maybe the problem occurs in another file...?

[icyderguru]

I tried using the kext of DxQ, but I still have the prohibited sign.... Maybe the problem occurs in another file...?

did you read his readme file in which he states that you have to run the script everytime?

[Magik]

Absolutely... It was the first file I read...

[S_Bruv]

Okay, everything's been done to the Apple TV OS that should be done, as far as I can tell, but now I can't ssh into it. When I enter ssh frontrow@x.x.x.x, I get the response Connection closed by x.x.x.x. :-(

Anyone?

Cheers!

S_B

[iMags]

Try with "ssh -1 frontrow@x.x.x.x" (without the "s)

[S_Bruv]

Nice! I think it's worked. Is it supposed to say this..?

Last login: Sun Apr 8 20:16:47 2007 from x.x.x.x
-bash-2.05b$

[iMags]

yep...
You're in!
;)

[S_Bruv]

Ace! What do I do to enable Xvid streaming from my Mac Pro then? :-D

I'm looking into it all now (mounting remote drives - http://wiki.awkwardtv.org/wiki/Mount_a_Remote_Drive_via_AFP) but not getting very far. All advice gratefully received!

Cheers,

S_B

[S_Bruv]

More info on my flailing around with this £200 box that I'm totally expecting to brick at any minute...

I've got ATVFiles installed on the ATV, as well as the necessary codecs for Xvid, etc, and this bit of the description at http://wiki.awkwardtv.org/wiki/ATVFiles, sounds like the last piece in the puzzle as far as me being able to do what I want:

Enter the new "Files" menu on the main menu.
It lists files in /Users/frontrow/Movies, so mount or put your video files in that folder.

All I want to be able to do is easily copy Xvid files over whenever I like (or have them stream off my Mac Pro), and have them show up in the Files menu, but I just don't have a clue how to do it. You guys have been endlessly helpful so far, so I'm hoping you can just give me this last bit of advice and get me on the road to true Xvid Nirvana. :)

Cheers!

S_B

[appletv]

Here's a half-decent solution to the prohibition problem:

When the appletv start up, keep the SHIFT key pressed on the keyboard. It will now boot properly into Safe Mode!

This works for me *every time*, even though it won't boot without pressing shift (the same prohibition problem).

In safe mode, you can still alter the internal drive, as well as mess around with osx itself. I'm writing this on the appletv booted this way :D

[vormkrijger]

BIG thx DxQ
everything work !!!! :p :)

[DxQ]

Absolutely... It was the first file I read...

Mount the drive on your mac, delete the Extensions.mkext and Extentions.kextcache, replace the AppleFileSystemDriver.kext with the one I provide, change the partition type back into one your aTV can read, then boot. Should work. Then run the script.

[S_Bruv]

Well, whaddya know - I got Xvid working!!

Didn't realise it was as simple as Cmnd+K, then going to the ATV without the Terminal! Took me a minute to think of trying frontrow as the username as well as the password, but once that was done, the whole thing opened up!

Thanks again, everyone - no way I'd got to this point without this thread! :-)

Cheers,

S_B

[vormkrijger]

when osx is booted
i get a warning that 1 disk (partition is not mouted)
so i have OSBoot, Media and my usb disk

but disk0s2 is not mouted ! so i cant get to the user ans backrow app ....

am i missing something ?

[Magik]

Finally it works with the DxQ instructions. Thanks!!

[DxQ]

Glad I could help. :D

[guestlurker]

Thanks to a kind member of this forum for a file forward, I was able to get my aTV running OS X via external disk without cracking the case. I can only boot to safe mode, so something is still up with my build on my external HD, but it does work in safe mode.

Some other important details:

1) The output resolution is inherited from the previous aTV boot. If you set your
screen resolution in the normal aTV software to be 640x480, that is the only option
you get under Display settings once booted to OS X. Similarly, if you set things to
1920x1080, that is what you get as the only option in the Display settings.

2) I have my external HD hooked up through a Microsoft Xbox 360 HD DVD drive.
The drive has two USB ports on the back, and both are usable. When I insert
a normal DVD, the DVD mounts but does not play (DVD Player throws an error).
VLC is not working to play the disc, either. I can re-author the content to HD using
MediaFork (new HandBrake), and Quicktime will play it, but slowly (again, might
be a problem with Safe Mode on).

3) I'm using an external wireless keyboard with separate USB dongle. The
presentation mouse (gyroscopic control) works great.

4) My tv is an older RPTV analog set with component ins that support 1080i,
but the image is blurry at that resolution. Also, the tv has a bit of overscan,
so I lose tops and bottoms of windows.

So, at least for my setup, aTV is preferable to OS X currently due to better resolution.
I'm thinking I will use the OS X boot to load content onto the HD of the aTV and
watch it under the aTV interface. Will try to figure that out on some future
weekend.

[FROSTY]

Does any know if you need to use an powered external drive?
I guess it depends on how much power the external hdd need to pull through the usb port ?

Just looking at whether I need to get a usb HDD or use a 80gig 3.5 HDD I have lying around and then find a suitable powered enclosure.

Might be worth creating a list of theHDD'sthat people are using?

Thanks in advance.

[iMags]

I did not have to use the power cord on my harddrive, but I think it depends on the harddrive, yes.

[Huxley]

Does any know if you need to use an powered external drive?

I just use a Maxtor 2.5 Onetouch. Was on sale, not powered.
I use a powered hub and it boots.

My problems is a blue tint.
Seems atv is now stuck in this mode.
http://img182.imageshack.us/img182/9485/atvbluelu9.jpg

[FROSTY]

Is there a limit in the size of HDD you can use inside the ATV ?
I see that quiet a few people are using a 80gig.
I guess once the core partitions are created the media partition could be any size?

I am guessing that apple could do storage checks remotely to see what drive is installed, the question is would they?

[ptaylor874]

Check this link for the most official word on Apple's stand about AppleTV hacks:

http://www.engadget.com/2007/04/05/apple-not-fighting-back-against-apple-tv-hacks

To summarize: Apple's stance, it claims, is more along the lines of: it's your box, do with it what you please -- but be mindful of voiding that warranty.

[ciaoce]

May anyone help me, I have tried a lot of time, also changing hard disk, but the best result is apple osx logo for about 10/15 sec and then atv reboot. I have followed exactly all the step. Thanks.

[dynamohum]

Excellent write-up Peter. Picked up my atv this afternoon, and was booting into OSX by tea-time :). Looking forward to seeing some awesome development on this little device.

[dynamohum]

Hmm - one quirk I've just found. The apple remote (previously paired) stopped working when booting into normal atv. My quick fix is to unpair it as described here: http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=304991

[A@ron]

Ok I am trying to boot to my external USB sata drive. I've followed the directions frankly word for word (or so I think). The ATV will go to access the HDD a few times in the begining for a few seconds but once it gets to the normal ATV boot screen all USB HDD activity stops. I've reversed the partition change to mess with the Info.plist file a few times and have even resorted to going from editing in nano and trying textwrangler (never touched the file with TextEdit).
1) I did copy the patched mach_kernel in.
2) I did install the boot.efi file off an ATV image file.

Here is what my info.plist looks like:
<dict>
<key>IOPropertyMatch</key>
<array>
<dict>
<key>Content Hint</key>
<string>5265636F-7665-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC</string>
<key>Leaf</key>
<true/>
</dict>
<dict>
<key>Content Hint</key>
<string>Apple_Recovery</string>
<key>Leaf</key>
<true/>
</dict>
<dict>
<key>Content Hint</key>
<string>48465300-0000-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC</string>
<key>Leaf</key>
<true/>
</dict>
<dict>
<key>Content Hint</key>
<string>426F6F74-0000-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC</string>
<key>Leaf</key>
<true/>
</dict>
<dict>
<key>Content Hint</key>
<string></string>
<key>RAID</key>
<true/>
</dict>
<dict>
<key>Content Hint</key>
<string>Apple_HFS</string>
<key>Leaf</key>
<true/>
</dict>
<dict>
<key>Content Hint</key>
<string>Apple_HFSX</string>
<key>Leaf</key>
<true/>
</dict>
<dict>
<key>Content Hint</key>
<string>Apple_UFS</string>
<key>Leaf</key>
<true/>
</dict>
<dict>
<key>Content Hint</key>
<string>Apple_Boot</string>
<key>Leaf</key>
<true/>
</dict>
</array>

Any ideas here? I'm not really a hacking nor terminal noob so I'm baffled.

[ciaoce]

I've tried again following all the steps, but nothing... Again the same, after 10/15 sec that the apple logo of osx comes out, atv reboot. Perhaps I have the wrong boot.efi, may someone send me a invitation in pm for demonoid or oink?

thanks

[A@ron]

I fixed my issue by using an install script I located on TPB. ATV now boots OS X.

[gyza]

A big thank you to everyone on this forum, I Just managed to open up my atv.

I installed everything all the extras I wanted... including installing ssh and activating the afp server.

Just one major thought though... now my atv is open to anyone with wireless around where live and knows what an Apple TV is. For instance there is an internet cafe opposite me... anyone scanning around to see what's available on wireless networks may find it and it's not hard to find out that the default login and password for any atv is frontrow. What I'm worried about is someone having free reign to hack into my atv and do anything they want!!!

Sooo ... in my paranoia does anyone know how to change the default password from frontrow to anything I want; and know what implications that has for the health of atv when it does any of admin stuff...???

Much appreciated if someone has any experience doing this...

[slumpolo]

Hi, (Sorry for my english)
Finally my ATV boot OSX but... after the white screen with Apple logo I got a black screen (external HD continue to work for a while). My ATV is connected via HDMI.
I tried to ssh to my ATV but seems that my wi-fi don't find it... (use a static IP?)
Any suggestion?
Slump

[satgate]

Hello,
Could someone help me?
after the command "gpt -r show /dev/diskX" I get a "Resource Busy".. any idea?
let me know
thanks
Ivano

[gza911]

I'm having the same black screen after the apple logo as the poster above. I've been through the setup at least 10 times using DxQ's files and moding my own files per this thread and turbo's website. No luck. Anyone have any ideas?

As for the poster above try sudo disktool -u /dev/diskX where X is the number of the disk.

[DxQ]

Try unplugging HDMI, waiting 15 seconds, and plugging it back in. If this doesnt work (it depends on the files you're using), your install most likely will not support HDMI.

[slumpolo]

I'm having the same black screen after the apple logo as the poster above. I've been through the setup at least 10 times using DxQ's files and moding my own files per this thread and turbo's website. No luck. Anyone have any ideas?

As for the poster above try sudo disktool -u /dev/diskX where X is the number of the disk.

I solve the "blackscreen problem". Simply delete the Nvidia kexts (all begining with NVD, there are 5) from /Volumes/YourExternalDisk/System/Library/Extensions
Now my problem is that after the boot, my osx don't get ip (I have a wifi with dhcp enabled, AppleTV Backrow normally get ip, so the wifi works). Any suggestion?

[gza911]

Thanks guys. HDMI was the problem. I must have read DxQ's release notes 100 times and missed that fact. I should also say thank you for putting the time in to make the install this easy.

I'm trying to use my ATV as an home automation controller. On that front I don't seem to be able to install any packaged software. The installer runs but when you try to select a target nothing is listed. Mounting the intial dmg file also fails. I haven't messed with this to much so I'll keep plugging away.

[anamorphic]

Regarding the step of making Tiger bootable off an external USB drive: can anyone recommend a way to make a minimal OS X installation, similar to what TinyXP does with Windows?

[iMags]

Hello,
Could someone help me?
after the command "gpt -r show /dev/diskX" I get a "Resource Busy".. any idea?
let me know
thanks
Ivano

It's because you didn't follow the guide. You have to unmount the disk again:
disktool -u diskX

[herrflick]

I got this to work off a 4GB thumb drive. I started with a minimum install of 10.4.5 - no fonts, printer drivers, languages, and only CPU Helper Files checked under Bundled Software. I then removed any apps that weren't needed such as Mail, Chess, iChat etc. I also deleted any desktop pictures and screensavers that I wasn't using. I found that without this step I got a 'Your startup disk is almost full" warning when doing the 10.4.8 combo update. The drive ended up with about 1.2 GB free space. Very slow to boot up however. But I can confirm that it can be done.

[gza911]

Has anyone noticed that OSX loose time at a pretty fast rate? I've worked around this by running a script to update it every few mins.

[philwgreen]

Got OSX to boot on the first try. However, I can't launch FrontRow. I wasn't sure if FrontRow wasn't supported on the AppleTV or if I was missing something from a previous post. The remote doesn't work either...it doesn't recognize the IR port. I'm sure this has been covered somewhere else...but any help anyone could give me would be greatly appreciated.

[The General]

Any success stories from people who install 10.4.8 from disc? I am getting the prohibited sign at boot.

[anamorphic]

thanks for the advice and confirmation on making a super-small os x installation, herrflick. i'm planning on doing this with a drive with just 5.4GB when formated, so it's good to know.

[dscotts]

Got OS X to install and work on ATV - someone posted a script to do all the dirty work. I am not that knowledgable @ Unix/terminal.

The file to download is...

aTVOSX-070416

Search (torrent) for this and it will assist you in doing all the shit after you install a clean 10.4.8 on an external USB.

I still needed to figure out some stuff but for the most part, the hard shit was done...

Good luck

[ptaylor874]

Got OS X to install and work on ATV - someone posted a script to do all the dirty work. I am not that knowledgable @ Unix/terminal.

The file to download is...

aTVOSX-070416

Search (torrent) for this and it will assist you in doing all the shit after you install a clean 10.4.8 on an external USB.



Hey - That's like cheating! :)

Great that someone has scripted the hard parts... Should make it easy for more people to get hacking on their AppleTVs!

[Matneo]

After upgrading my atv to osx 10.4.9 on first start_up i got a balck screen with a small picture of an atv and a big flashing questionmark above it and the booting stopped with this screen. During this boot internet was connected. After checking the atv disk I removed again the Nvidia drivers, Exten...kext, .Spotlight-V100 Folder, replaced mach_kernel and boot.efi and blessed it as usual. Before rebooting i disconnected internet. Now atv booted and loaded 10.4.9 normally. After that i reconnected to the internet and did a restart: nomal boot an loading of 10.4.9.

I think that after an osx upgrade the system checks internet connectivity and does
a PhoneHome and HardwareCheck if available. One way to confirm this would be to downgarde to 10.4.7 again, upgrade via internet to 10.4.9 and and do a first boot_up without internet connection. Maybe someone has made the same experience.

Best greetz from DE

[Paulc]

...I can't get by first base!

I'm a newbie to Mac, but not a complete dummy.

I can't get my iMac (20" Intel, current OS) to partition my USB HDD.

500MB Seagate P-ATA
NexStar GX enclosure (the Mac Mini look-alike)


Try to Guid partition, get back...

Partition Failed

Partition failed with the error:

Input/output error


Erased with MacOS (journaled), and then partition again, but no joy, same error.

I've tried an Apple Partition Map (just to check connections)...that works OK.

Also tried master/slave/cable jumpers on the drive, no joy.

What really obvious mistake am I making...

Pity please...:confused:

[BenSw]

I got mine to work on the first try... Thanks a lot... One thing tho. When I boot up, there is no sound. When I check the sysprefs, there says there is no output. Is there a way to change this so I can get sound? (sorry if this has already been answered).

[stujpa]

I wrote a script to help manage the GUID updates to the partition. This way, it's easy to switch between the OS X and AppleTV-bootable GUIDs. The script is attached. Here's how to use it:

set AppleTV-bootable GUID: ./set-guid /dev/disk1 3
set OS X-accessible GUID: ./set-guid /dev/disk1 3 r
test the script and see the commands it'll run: ./set-guid /dev/disk1 3 --test
if you want to give it the start/end sectors directly: ./set-guid /dev/disk1 3 409640 20604520


When you set the GUID to AppleTV-bootable, you'll see something like this:
> ./set-guid /dev/disk1 3
Disk /dev/disk1 unmounted
gpt remove: /dev/disk1: 1 partition(s) removed
Disk /dev/disk1 unmounted

The script works for me. Be careful - the error checking in the script is not the greatest quality.

Let me know if you find any bugs. :D Enjoy.

[pppoe]

i still fail to boot from External HD, i have follow all procedure except update the 10.4.8 combo update ( i can't install those update with my mac book); is this the case that i fail to boot with external HD with 10.4.8 ?:confused:

[valeech]

I was able to get my ATV to boot to the external drive with OS X the first time, but then I rebooted and got the prohibited symbol.

I brought the drive back to my MBP and change the partition tryp so the MBP would mount it. I then removed the kext files, re-blessed the drive and verified the AppleFile was patched properly. Then I changed the partition type back to ATV.

I am still getting the prohibited message. Any ideas?

[mcpharmacy]

i'm getting the same thing as above post. it worked once when i used the ifo file from my macbook(core2duo) but then ceased to work. Any ideas please?

[cfispk]

Hi, (Sorry for my english)
Finally my ATV boot OSX but... after the white screen with Apple logo I got a black screen (external HD continue to work for a while). My ATV is connected via HDMI.
I tried to ssh to my ATV but seems that my wi-fi don't find it... (use a static IP?)
Any suggestion?
Slump

(Sorry for my poor English)
The same as me. Does anyone find a way to solve this issue?
Please help !!!!

[osufnl499]

Ok i have a few questions. I have an old tiger install DVD from when it first came out. Will this work or will i need a different version because of the intel chip? I currently have an imac g5 but i will be using my brother macbook to go through this. I am also confused on how to enable ssh on the ATV HDD once i boot from the external drive. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Ryan

[mingebretsen]

Maybe this has been answered ealier. But, what do I have to do If I wanna use my internal drive to boot from? I would take out my internal hardrive that is in my macbook with os x installed, take it out in to a (dont know whats the english word of this) box thingy so I can connect sata harddirves via USB.

What do I have to add to my system before I connect to atv?

[Marook]

@mingebretsen
Using your internal drive from you MacBook (pro)? If that is the only drive you have, how will you get it back in working order for the MBP? Once you change the partitiontype on the boot volume, it will NOT boot on the Mac!
It might work if you made another partition on the drive for the ATV, but you would also need to take it out of the MBP - not an easy task (unless you have the rigth tools and the service manual)

[Marook]

Just a small hint:
I had an exteral LaCie USB/FW drive, that did not get power from the AppleTV, and I could not find the powersupply... what to do?

Dig out an old iPod FW psu, supply power via the FW port and connect the USB port the the AppleTV.. :D

[iXô]

hello, I have tried to boot the drive after the installation of osx, but it don't want to boot.

I am using a big ide hard drive, with a usb converter, I have installed osx on that drive, I press option on reboot, select the usb drive, and press apple+v, the verbose mode tell me after something about bluetooth extension : Still waiting for root device, and boot failed.

Any idea ?

[jadajada]

I have now performed the steps, and I am quite sure I did it correctly. I used 'vi' and not textedit. My first boot attempt was a success. All other boots after that have ended with the prohibited sign. I see that this is a well known problem. I also see that many of you have solved it.

Is there a step by step guide on this now? Perhaps someone can point out some scripts if that is necessary.

If I boot witn cmd+v it stops with "Still waiting for root device". If I boot it with 'shift' pressed it boots, but into safe mode.

Can anyone help me out?

[iXô]

I have succeded at hacking my appletv, for the "Still waiting root device", it seems that my ide to usb converter isn't very good.

So when osx display this message, I switch off the on the converter, and voila, it continues to boot.

The same thing on the apple tv, when the harddrive don't show any activity after a few seconds, switch off / on, and everything is ok.

[appletv]

Another way to circumvent the root device error is by booting with left shift pressed. This will boot the appletv into safe mode, which is enough to alter the contents of the internal drive.

[WaterCooled]

(Sorry for my poor English)
The same as me. Does anyone find a way to solve this issue?
Please help !!!!

As a poster said, you just have to delete some kernel extensions. For me, the deletion of only two of the five kexts (/System/Library/Extensions/NVDANV40Hal.kext and NVDAResman.kext) worked. But at this point I have no hardware acceleration...Did someone solve this problem, or got the NVidia kexts working?

[chiper]

Isn't it possible to dump a working USB-disk install to an imagefile?
But it maby gets realy big?

[Fordyman]

I have the AppleTV working with OSX. However after shutting it down, I have to keep remounting it to the mac. Then remove those extension kexts and then put it back in the Apple TV. Do I need to do this, or should it be ok to reboot?

[choashacker5151]

could anyone provide me a link for the boot.efi file???

[Tom1234]

Hi, I followed the instructions and nothing happens when I try booting up. The LED on the front of the appletv blinks amber and white. I dont get the grey boot screen that everyone is talking about. Im pretty sure I have the partitioning scheme right. I made the required changes to the partition with index number 2. However, when I plug the drive into my macbook, the main partition on the drive still mounts. Is this supposed to happen?? Were changes made to the wrong partition?? I can post the output to gpt here if it will help. Also, when Im trying to boot off this new drive, I don't have the original appletv hard drive in the unit. I took it out to get the boot.efi file off of it. I don't think the original would be required but I thought I would mention it just in case.

Any help is appreciated.

[Tom1234]

below are the outputs from the gpt -r show commands.

before changes:

start size index contents
0 1 PMBR
1 1 Pri GPT header
2 32 Pri GPT table
34 6
40 409600 1 GPT part - C12A7328-F81F-11D2-BA4B-00A0C93EC93B
409640 64200 2 GPT part - 48465300-0000-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC
473840 116474216 3 GPT part - 48465300-0000-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC
116948056 262151
117210207 32 Sec GPT table
117210239 1 Sec GPT header

after changes:

start size index contents
0 1 PMBR
1 1 Pri GPT header
2 32 Pri GPT table
34 6
40 409600 1 GPT part - C12A7328-F81F-11D2-BA4B-00A0C93EC93B
409640 64200 2 GPT part - 5265636F-7665-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC
473840 116474216 3 GPT part - 48465300-0000-11AA-AA11-00306543ECAC
116948056 262151
117210207 32 Sec GPT table
117210239 1 Sec GPT header

[Tom1234]

alright, never mind. I think the hdd wasnt plugged in properly or something. I tried booting off the original appletv hdd and it worked. I then tried the osx one again and it actually booted properly. i accidentally unplugged the power cord though and now I cant get it to boot again. I get the grey screen with the apple, and then after a while the apple turns to the crossed out circle.

[blackmarketg4]

I uploaded my boot.efi at OiNK for the people that doesn't want's to open their Apple TV.
I got it up on Demonoid too.
(can I say that or will I get banned or something???)

Seed.......

[bugula]

Got it running on the first try - using a WD 120gb Passport external drive.

I'm kind of at a loss as to what to do next...I don't have a USB hub to use a keyboard mouse and wish I had turned on Bluetooth so I could have used my phone as a remote. :)

I'm also thinking that the hub won't have enough power for me to use the HDD but if there's no remote software that will allow me to control the mac I guess I'm SOL.

Now that I'm thinking about it, I could install Synergy through SSH and then use my PowerBook to control it...

Thanks for the excellent walkthrough - it was incredibly straightforward!

[Tom1234]

Hey Bugula, you didn't have the "prohibited logo" problem?? Where it boots fine the first time but then every time after that you only get a prohibited sign. Only way to boot it then is into safe mode.

[bugula]

yeah, i did. :(

when i hooked the drive back up to try and get Synergy installed i received the dreaded icon. so now i have to do the install again on another drive that can run off a hub.

fingers are crossed that someone finds a simple way to get xvid going...

[onederful]

I tried it with the boot.efi from img (http://mesu.apple.com/data/OS/061-2988.20070620.bHy75/2Z694-5248-45.dmg) and it worked fine from the first moment!

I can use VNC and connect to it!

today I will try to modify the ATV itself

regs :)

[Tom1234]

if anyone knows the solution to the prohibited sign, PLEASE let me know.
If it requires running some sort of script or something, please provide a link to where I can get it too.

thanks :)

[DxQ]

Google "aTVOSX"

The solution to all your OS X problems.

[aptroost]

I installed osx on my atv without any problems, but only the resolution on my appletv is only 720x480. I can't change it and I really don't know what kind of drivers I will need for this.
Any suggestions?

Thanks

[meagain]

Aptroost - Check page 11. Perhaps your answer is there? I see some discussion of this issue. I didn't go through it though.

[silas]

This all seems great... all the great work and tutorials out there have convinced me to buy an appleTV. I haven't opened it up yet (way too late to start this stuff, but two questions off the top of my head:

1) If you come up with a working, minimal OS X install on the USB drive, could you copy it to a disk image; and when you're booted from the aTV, back up the aTV drive to its own image, and then restore the OS X image to the aTV drive? That would get you into OS X on the aTV drive itself, without opening it up. And you could easily restore it to its original state - you could go back and forth at your leisure using the two images on the USB disk.

2) If I read this (entire... whew) thread correctly, it seems the hardware keeps (re)creating /Volumes/YourExternalDisk/System/Library/Extensions.mkext and /Volumes/YourExternalDisk/System/Library/Extensions.kextcache upon every boot, and this is what causes the ghostbusters sign and 'unbootability.' If this is so then the above idea wouldn't be great, because you could brick the aTV by rebooting it (or maybe just force yourself to void the warranty to pull and restore the drive (or maybe just force you to boot into safe mode to remove the files again... but then it might just recreate them upon the next boot)).

Could you simply delete those two files, then create empty files with the same names, and change the permissions of those empty files to make them unwriteable and unreadable, so that the OS cannot overwrite them? Or does merely having any such-named files in such places cause the boot problem?

[sazimx]

aTVOSX = i did a search, but i understand its a "New patch for running OS X on an AppleTV. Also comes with new updater for updating a 070414 install." but i am bit lost and a newbie :(

[Karon]

I have a problem installing the 10.4.8 combo update on my disc. I have a WD 500Gb disc. When i try installing it i get told the disk doesnt support the installation...

[pancere]

all,

I think I figured out why the prohibit sign came up. It is the info.plist file. In my case, the added lines are already in the array, but at the bottom! so when I add them at the top, it messes up the boot.

CC: check your info.plist file, if the added lines are already in the array somewhere, do nothing!!! Just skip to changing the partition and boot the ATV!

[HiSoC8Y]

can this method be used on a windows machine, through VMWare?

has anyone tested this?

[skiwhitman@mac.com]

Hi I'm a newbie and am admitingly technically challenged, but I have an AppleTV and love it. My question is, what benefit would I get by accessing my USB port?

[ezathashim@videotron.ca]

I had this as well. I figured it had something to do with some bad journal files, so I ran:

sudo mount -uw /
sudo fsck_hfs -f /dev/diskXs2
sudo shutdown -r now

and it booted fine the next time I plugged it in.

[ezathashim@videotron.ca]

I attempted this with an install from my brand new (two weeks old, 10.4.8) MacBook Pro restore DVD, and when I tried to boot up, I was presented with the grey apple, then with the "invalid" sign (circle with a line through it), and the drive failed to boot. I tried the install again with the same results.

Am I doing something wrong, is my DVD too new?


I had this and I figured it had to do with some bad journal files, so I ran:

sudo mount -uw /
sudo fsck_hfs -f /dev/disk0s3
sudo shutdown -r now

and it booted up fine the next time I plugged her in.

[plughplover]

There is a 6 month old 970MB torrent on the bay related to this thread's topic that needs a seed - half a dozen people have been stuck at 85% for a while now...

Thanks

[joe12south]

Trying to understand the state of affairs:
- Any time the ATV is rebooted, the external OSX drive will become corrupted, necessitating that several files are deleted/manipulated.
- Sound output does not work at all.
- Video is not accelerated.

Is this accurate?

[WaterCooled]

Anyone have succeded in having any hardware acceleration? I tried every drivers I found but everytime i've got a black screen...

[gillilandboy]

Hello all I don't know if this thread is still active or not but I am getting the error where I boot up OS X and get the circle with the line through it. So I was looking around and I saw "aTVOSX" and that it would solve all my problems but the problem is that no one is seeding the torrent so I was wondering if someone could please upload it to a http based uploader like R A P I D S H A R E or something like that. It would be greatly appreciated.


Thanks.

[mythos09]

It is not working again!
I don't get it!

How about you other guys? Does it sill work for you?
Hey Guys,

I'm trying to boot my 1.1 ATV using OSX on a USB Hard Drive. I installed Mac OS X 10.4.8, tried it on a MacBook and it booted without problems. I followed the steps on hackintosh and all the changes needed.

When I boot the ATV with the disk attached, it gets to the Apple Logo, then starts booting up and then I get a kernel panic. I don't know what the problem is but I'm using semthex's latest kernel for the ATV with SSE3.

If anyone has any ideas, it would help me a lot. BTW, before I got the crash, all I could get was the dreaded prohibition sign. After I found an error in the AppleFileSystemDriver.kext's Info.plist.

[tinet]

1. Replace /System/Library/CoreServices/boot.efi with the boot.efi file from the AppleTV boot drive (it is in the same path)

I suppose it has to be the 1.0 version and not the 2.0 ?

[davilla]

boot.efi is identical on the r1, r1.1 and r2 versions. So it does not matter which one is used.

[Revlet]

Downloading the Apple TV ipsf firmware file and changing .ipsf to .zip allows you to extract the firmware. From there you can get the boot.efi without voiding your warranty and opening the Apple TV?

[davilla]

So sorry, guess again, the AppleTV is not an iPhone/iPod Touch, there's no such thing as an AppleTV ipsf firmware file. There is a .sihex file in the r2 update that contains a firmware update but efi firmware != boot.efi.

The easy way to extract a valid boot.efi is to download the AppleTV r1.1 update. It's a dmg that you can mount under OSX.

For Linux, follow these instructions (contains the link to r1.1 update)

http://code.google.com/p/atv-bootloader/wiki/BootEFIExtraction

For Windows, Boot a Linux LiveCD and follow the Linux instructions.

Google is your friend and a few minutes of searching usually produces quite good answers.

[mndnm]

I think I've tried now all the guidelines that were posted here step by step a number of times.

Good news is that I can get my iMac to boot from my USB drive (before I do the partitioning part), but the ATV is still showing the "prohibited sign".

My last hope is the script that DxQ created, but I'm stuck at 60% on the torrent. Anyone willing to seed, or send it to me?

[FromACanteen]

I know this thread is pretty stagnant, but I think I found a way to make the Apple TV boot every time, without going in to delete Extensions.mkext and extensions.kextcache.

You edit /etc/rc with TEXTWRANGLER or Vi, and where it loads kextd you edit it to say kextd -c. Make sure not to edit the safeboot call to kextd, which looks like kextd -x, as you need that too! What kextd -c does is it forces the ATv to ignore the Extensions.mkext and extensions.kextcache files and scan the extensions folder every boot. This makes booting take three of four minutes longer, but it works every time.

[clint999]

Works beautifully....

http://www.flickr.com/gp/51035591025@N01/X40Bt4

[clint999]

Thanks, ptaylor874. I followed the instructions exactly except for one step: I did not replace boot.efi from the appleTV, because to do so would require me to open the case and void the warranty.

Of course, the appleTV did not boot from external HD without this step. So, this boot.efi is really the missing piece in all of this -- everything else is freely available and understandable.

I know that you said not to ask where to get boot.efi. I just want to clarify that this boot.efi file looks to be critical for success with these instructions.

[ash]

Hey guys, just install ssh on your appletv and copy the boot.efi from the internal harddisk ... or download an appletv 2.0.2 image from apple ... or get some help from the green demon ... or search for a pirate ship in a bay ...

It is possible for round about one year to install hacks/osx without opening the case. Look at wiki.awktwardtv.org or appletvhacks.net


ash