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MODIFICATIONS and TROUBLESHOOTING

Modified BIOS for NVMe Drive Booting

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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.

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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.

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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

 

RECOMMENDED macOS COMPONENTS

Graphics Card (AMD): SAPPHIRE AMD Radeon RX 580

  • No configuration necessary

  • Automatically recognized by macOS with full Metal compatibility up to macOS Monterey

  • 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 up to macOS Big Sur

  • 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

Gigabyte Z68X-UD3H-B3 motherboard
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