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macOS CATALINA 10.15.6 INSTALLATION on the GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3

Follow these steps to perform a clean installation of macOS Catalina on your GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3 system.

Time Machine backup of your current installation will allow you to easily restore files with Migration Assistant after a clean installation.

An Ivy Bridge CPU with Intel HD Graphics 4000 or a discrete graphics card compatible with Metal will be necessary to install macOS Catalina.

PART 1 OF 4: ADJUST BIOS SETTINGS

  1. Update the BIOS to the latest UEFI version

    • ​See the guide here if you are updating from a legacy version of the BIOS (version F12 or earlier)

    • See the modified BIOS here​ if you want to use an NVMe SSD
       

  2. Press F12 at startup to enter BIOS setup and select the following:
    • Save & Exit Load Optimized Defaults
    • M.I.T. Advanced Frequency Settings Advanced CPU Core Features CPU EIST Function = Disabled
    • M.I.T. Advanced Memory Settings Extreme Memory Profile (X.M.P.) = Profile1* 
    *Set to Disabled if your RAM modules do not support Intel XMP

    • BIOS Features Intel Virtualization Technology = Enabled
    • BIOS Features OS Type = Other OS
    • BIOS Features Boot Mode Selection = UEFI Only
    • Peripherals
    SATA Mode Selection = AHCI
    • Peripherals
    Super IO Configuration Super IO Chip Serial Port A = Disabled


    PART 2 OF 4: CREATE USB INSTALLER

     

  3. Download the Install macOS Catalina app from the App Store.
     

  4. Insert a 16GB or larger USB drive
     

  5. Open Applications Utilities Disk Utility

    • Select the USB disk in the left pane (select the physical disk, not a volume on the disk)

    • Click the Erase button

    • Under Name: type USB

    • Under Format: select Mac OS Extended (Journaled)

    • Under Scheme: select GUID Partition Map (If the Scheme option is not visible, go to the View menu and select Show All Devices)

    • Click Erase
       

  6. Open Applications Utilities Terminal and enter the following command:

    sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Catalina.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/USB --nointeraction

     

  7. Enter your password when prompted
     

  8. After approximately 25-35 minutes the process will finish and the USB will be renamed Install macOS Catalina (wait for the “Install media now available” message in the Terminal before continuing)
     

  9. Download the GA-Z68X-UDH3-B3 macOS 10.15 Utility and Kext Pack and place a copy on your installation USB
     

  10. Launch Clover Configurator from the Utility and Kext Pack and click Mount EFI
     

  11. Click the Mount Partition button to the right of the EFI partition of your USB. It will appear as EFI on Install macOS Catalina
     

  12. Quit Clover Configurator and copy the entire EFI folder from the Utility and Kext Pack to the EFI partition of your USB, replacing the existing folder if present.

    If you have a discrete AMD graphics card, replace the config.plist in EFI/CLOVER with the one contained in the Discrete GPU config plist folder

    The EFI partition on your USB should now contain a single folder named EFI that contains two folders: BOOT and CLOVER. It should look like the image here (click to enlarge) →

     

  13. Eject your USB drive


    PART 3 OF 4: INSTALL macOS CATALINA

    Note that if you have a discrete AMD graphics card it may be necessary to connect the monitor to a DisplayPort output during the installation process. All graphics ports should be fully functional once the installation is complete, however DisplayPort should be used if possible.

     

  14. Disconnect all drives from your computer except the drive you will be installing macOS on
     

  15. Place the USB installer in a USB 2.0 port of your computer. Press F12 at startup to select the USB as your boot drive
     

  16. Use the arrow keys to select Boot macOS Install from Install macOS Catalina at the Clover bootloader menu and press Enter
     

  17. From the macOS Utilities screen, launch Disk Utility

    • In Disk Utility, click the View menu and select Show All Devices

    • Select your target disk (select the physical disk, not a volume on the disk) and click Erase

    • If the target disk is already in APFS format, or if multiple partitions exist, it may be necessary to click Partition and remove these partitions

    • You must end up with a single partition on the disk as described in the next step
       

  18. ​Name the target disk Macintosh HD, select Macintosh OS Extended (Journaled) format and GUID Partition Map scheme, then click Erase

    Do not select APFS format as this may prevent the installation from completing. The file system will automatically convert to APFS during the installation process if your target disk is a solid-state drive (SSD).
    It should look like the image here (click to enlarge) 

     

  19. After the erase process finishes, quit Disk Utility, select Install macOS and follow the prompts to do a standard macOS installation on Macintosh HD
     

  20. The first stage of the install process should take about 5 to 10 minutes (if the screen dims you can press a key to wake it)
     

  21. The computer will restart at least once during the next stage. When it does, press F12 to ensure that it boots from the USB. At the Clover menu, select Boot macOS Install from Macintosh HD and press Enter to continue.

    The installation process will then continue very slowly and the screen may become distorted. The computer will eventually restart again. Press F12 to ensure that it boots from the USB.

     

  22. When Boot macOS from Macintosh HD appears on the Clover menu, select this entry and complete the guided macOS setup


    PART 4 OF 4: POST INSTALL

     

  23. Copy the Utility and Kext Pack to your Desktop and eject the USB installer
     

  24. Open Applications Utilities Terminal and enter the following command to allow apps downloaded from unidentified developers:

    sudo spctl --master-disable

     

  25. Launch Clover Configurator from the Utility and Kext Pack and click Mount EFI
     

  26. Click the Mount Partition button to the right of the EFI partition of your hard drive. It will probably appear as EFI on APFS Container or EFI on Macintosh HD
     

  27. The EFI partition for Macintosh HD should now be mounted and show in the sidebar under Devices when you open a Finder window
     

  28. Quit Clover Configurator and copy the entire EFI folder from the Utility and Kext Pack to the EFI partition of Macintosh HD, replacing the existing folder if present (just as you did in step 12 for the installation USB).
     

  29. Install any system updates available through Software Update and the App Store
     

  30. Consider generating a unique serial number for your system using the guide here to avoid potential issues with Apple applications and services such as FaceTime and iCloud
     

  31. Optional: Install HWSensors to monitor temperatures, voltages and CPU speed. DO NOT install LPCSensors.kext - this can prevent system fans from operating properly. 

Notes​ and Suggestions​​

  • If using Migration Assistant to restore files, do not select the System & Network option when selecting information to transfer

  • USB 2.0 devices may not function properly when connected to a USB 3.0 port. For more consistent USB 3.0 performance, install a macOS-compatible PCIe USB.3.0 card

  • If you encrypt your boot drive with FileVault it will be necessary install additional drivers from the latest Clover release here. Download the .pkg version of the installer, select Customize and then Clover for UEFI booting only. The necessary drivers are found under UEFI Drivers FileVault 2 UEFI Drivers.

  • To prevent attached optical drives from polling every few minutes, go to System Preferences Energy Saver and uncheck the setting Put hard disks to sleep when possible

  • Additional Clover bootloader resolutions can be enabled by following the steps in the video here

  • A simple method for custom key remapping is available here

  • If sound does not work after installing macOS updates, run a utility such as Kext Utility or OnyX to repair file permissions and rebuild the boot cache.

  • If the Thunderbolt Firmware Update 1.2 appears in Software Update, you can remove it by opening the Terminal and entering the following command:
    softwareupdate --ignore ThunderboltFirmwareUpdate1.2

  • Clover bootloader updates are available here

 

RECOMMENDED macOS COMPONENTS

Graphics Card (AMD): SAPPHIRE AMD Radeon RX 580

  • No configuration necessary

  • Automatically recognized by macOS with full Metal compatibility for Catalina

  • Up to 12.5x better performance than integrated Intel HD Graphics 4000

  • Monitors should be connected to DisplayPort outputs on the card rather than DVI or HDMI, if possible.

Graphics Card (Nvidia): ZOTAC GeForce GT 730 Zone Edition

  • No configuration necessary

  • Automatically recognized by macOS with full Metal compatibility for Catalina

  • Up to 3x better performance than integrated Intel HD Graphics 4000

Wireless + Bluetooth Adapter: Fenvi T919 Broadcom BCM94360CD Adapter

  • No configuration necessary

  • Automatically recognized by macOS as built-in AirPort and Bluetooth

  • Supports 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, Airdrop, Handoff, and Bluetooth 4.0 in BIOS/UEFI and Bootloader

  • Install in PCIe x1 slot

USB 3.0 Adapter: Inateck KT4006 2-Port PCIe USB 3.0 Express Card

  • No configuration necessary

  • Automatically recognized by macOS as built-in USB 3.0 Hi-Speed Bus/SuperSpeed Bus

 

Keyboards: Apple Wireless Keyboard or Apple Wireless Keyboard with Numeric Keypad

Any standard USB keyboard will work with this system, but Apple keyboards provide the functionality of various macOS-specific key mappings

 

 

MODIFICATIONS and TROUBLESHOOTING

Modified BIOS for NVMe Drive Booting

source

BIOS Boot Loop

If the computer does not boot and continually restarts, the BIOS may have become corrupt. To restore the backup BIOS and resolve this issue:

  1. Unplug the computer

  2. Press and hold the computer's power button

  3. While holding the power button, plug the computer in again

  4. As the computer turns on (in one or two seconds) unplug the computer again

  5. Wait a few seconds, plug in the computer and then start the computer
     

A dialog box will open up and show the progress of the backup BIOS overwriting the primary BIOS. This should resolve the boot loop and allow the computer to start normally.

source

Copy Main BIOS to Backup BIOS

Press  Alt F10  at startup to copy the main BIOS to the backup BIOS. This will keep the same BIOS version on both BIOS chips rather than the version that shipped with the motherboard.

source

Ethernet Port Not Working

If the onboard Ethernet port is not being detected by the operating system the Realtek RTL8111E chip can be reset by following these steps:

  1. Shut down and unplug the computer

  2. Remove the CMOS battery shown here

  3. Press and hold the power button for 30 seconds

  4. Insert the CMOS battery and plug in the computer

  5. Power on the computer and adjust the BIOS settings as necessary (they will be reset to default values)

SUPPORT and DOCUMENTATION

 

macOS_Catalina.png
Gigabyte Z68X-UD3H-B3 motherboard

Kexts included in the Utility and Kext Pack

AppleALC.kext
Lilu plugin for audio

FakeSMC.kext
System Management Controller emulator

Lilu.kext
Unified kext, process and framework patcher

RealtekRTL8111.kext
Enables wired networking

WhateverGreen.kext

Lilu plugin providing various GPU fixes

Components
Modifications
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