OpenCore Z490-E (Comet Lake)
_v1.0.0

OpenCore Hackintosh configuration example for the ASUS ROG STRIX Z490-E GAMING motherboard with an Intel® Core™ i9-10900K.

macOS Sonoma running on native hardware.

You can also use this template to make your own writeup for your setup!

Motherboard

ASUS ROG STRIX Z490-E GAMING
_{Product Page}

"The ROG Strix Z490-E Gaming motherboard is designed to cope with the demands of 10th Generation Intel® Core™ processors, with boosted power delivery and an optimised cooling design providing more surface area for heat dissipation."
_{Product description provided by ASUS.}

BIOS

UEFI BIOS Utility
_{Version 3001 (19/02/2024)}

These are the BIOS settings used with this Hackintosh setup.

Setting	Value
VT-d	`Enabled`
Above 4G Decoding¹	`Disabled`
ReSizeable BAR¹	`Disabled`
Memory Remap	`Enabled`
Primary Output	`CPU Graphics`
DVMT PreAlloc Size	`64MB`
iGPU Multi-Monitor	`Enabled`

¹ReSizable BAR and Above 4G Decoding are disabled to allow for the proper virtualisation of macOS under QEMU/KVM with PCI passthrough.

OpenCore

OpenCore
_1.0.2

This is the version of OpenCore used, including bundled files. The included config.plist targets this version.

macOS

macOS Sonoma

This is the version of macOS that this OpenCore configuration currently targets. Other versions of macOS that are compatible with it are listed below.

Supported

macOS Sequoia

macOS Ventura

macOS Monterey

macOS Big Sur

macOS Catalina

What works?

macOS

macOS Sequoia
macOS Sonoma
macOS Catalina

Hardware

Dedicated GPU (RX 5700 XT)
iGPU (UHD 630)
NVMe drives
SATA drives
USB 3.1 (XHCI)
Ethernet
Wi-Fi
Bluetooth
Camera
Sound

Software

AirDrop
iMessage
FaceTime
Sidecar
Unlock with Apple Watch
QE/CI graphics acceleration
Metal support (Metal 3)
Temperature sensors
Sleep / Wake
RTC (protection)
Hyperthreading
Virtualisation
Memory bank configuration

Problems

🎉 ALL MAJOR PROBLEMS HAVE BEEN FIXED!

~~HDMI on Intel UHD 630 (iGPU)~~ ‏‏‎ ‏‏‎ ‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ 🎉 FIXED!

Despite trying multiple different framebuffers and connection patches, I cannot get the HDMI output to work from the iGPU. DisplayPort works fine. HDMI also works fine on the dedicated GPU. As a result, the iGPU is being used for internal compute only - which works really well. I do still intend to find the fix though!

Tip

This was fixed by using new DeviceProperties connector patches (mentioned in the DeviceProperties section of this readme!).

Note

The DeviceProperties for the UHD 630 iGPU has been updated to support Metal 3!

~~Wi-Fi and Bluetooth~~ ‏‏‎ ‏‏‎ ‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ 🎉 FIXED!

Having worked on my virtualised instances of macOS Catalina and macOS Monterey, I'm still unable to get stable Wi-Fi or Bluetooth support on macOS Sonoma with AirportItlwm.kext. Wi-Fi networks will often connect but crash the entire system after a minute or two. Strangely, Wi-Fi worked flawlessly in macOS Recovery, and I even used it to install macOS as I had not patched the I225-V ethernet yet.

Tip

This was fixed by using the debug (alpha) version of AirportItlwm.kext.

~~AirDrop~~ ‏‏‎ ‏‏‎ ‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ 🎉 FIXED!

As this relies on Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, while shown as available throughout the system, it sadly does not work at this time. As a workaround, I have been using LocalSend, a cross-platform alternative.

Tip

This was fixed by two seperate patches;

Wi-Fi and Bluetooth fixed
Secure Boot model changed from Default to j185f

~~Unlock with Apple Watch~~‏‏‎ ‏‏‎ ‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ 🎉 FIXED!

~~Again, as a Wi-Fi and Bluetooth reliant feature, unlocking with Apple Watch doesn't work either right now.~~

Tip

This was fixed by two seperate patches;

Wi-Fi and Bluetooth fixed
Secure Boot model changed from Default to j185f

~~BIOS POSTs in "Safe Mode"~~‏‏‎ ‏‏‎ ‎‎‏‏‎ ‎ 🎉 FIXED!

After booting macOS, the next reboot always caused the BIOS to POST in a "safe mode" with the message The system has POSTed in safe mode. displayed. This is because macOS tries to write to disallowed areas of the RTC.

Tip

This was fixed by using using this guide.

System

The specs of my main system that the OpenCore configuration targets.

Motherboard	ASUS ROG STRIX Z490-E GAMING
CPU	Intel® Core™ i9-10900K
Chipset	Z490
Generation	Comet Lake
Memory	64 GB DDR4 3200MHz
Storage	500 GB WD Blue NVMe M.2
GPU	Intel UHD Graphics 630 AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT ~~NVIDIA RTX 3090~~ *
NIC	Intel I225-V 2.5Gb Ethernet

Note

The system contains an NVIDIA RTX 3090 graphics card, but it has been intentionally disabled through a custom SSDT (SSDT-GPU-DISABLE.aml).

Geekbench Scores

Intel Core i9-10900K	Windows	Linux	macOS
Single Core	1,694	1,936	1,751
Muti Core	9,279	10,229	9,883

GPU	Windows Vulkan	Linux Vulkan	macOS Metal
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090	182,120	194,027	-
AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT	68,514	76,096	101,291
Intel UHD 630 Graphics	6,275	5,702	6,312

ACPI

SSDTs used:

SSDT-AWAC
SSDT-EC-USBX-DESKTOP
SSDT-GPU-DISABLE
SSDT-PLUG-DRTNIA
SSDT-RHUB
SSDT-RX5700XT ⎋

Important

SSDT-GPU-DISABLE is a custom SSDT used to disable an NVIDIA RTX 3090 graphics card. It should be removed if config is being used on a different system.

SSDT-RX5700XT is an EXPERIMENTAL custom SSDT used to enhance the performance of an AMD RX 5700 XT graphics card. It should be removed if config is being used on a different system.

DeviceProperties

The following tables display the added PCI devices and their child keys.

PciRoot(0x0)/Pci(0x2,0x0)

Intel UHD Graphics 630

Key	Type	Value
AAPL,ig-platform-id	Data	`07009B3E`
device-id	Data	`9B3E0000`
enable-metal	Data	`01000000`
disable-agdc	Data	`01000000`
enable-hdmi-dividers-fix	Data	`01000000`
enable-hdmi20	Data	`01000000`
framebuffer-con0-busid	Data	`02000000`
framebuffer-con0-enable	Data	`01000000`
framebuffer-con0-flags	Data	`C7030000`
framebuffer-con0-index	Data	`02000000`
framebuffer-con0-pipe	Data	`0A000000`
framebuffer-con0-type	Data	`00080000`
framebuffer-con1-busid	Data	`04000000`
framebuffer-con1-enable	Data	`01000000`
framebuffer-con1-flags	Data	`C7030000`
framebuffer-con1-index	Data	`03000000`
framebuffer-con1-pipe	Data	`08000000`
framebuffer-con1-type	Data	`00080000`
framebuffer-con2-busid	Data	`01000000`
framebuffer-con2-enable	Data	`01000000`
framebuffer-con2-flags	Data	`C7030000`
framebuffer-con2-index	Data	`01000000`
framebuffer-con2-pipe	Data	`09000000`
framebuffer-con2-type	Data	`00080000`
framebuffer-patch-enable	Data	`01000000`
framebuffer-stolenmem	Data	`00003001`
rps-control	Data	`01000000`
hda-gfx	String	`onboard-1`
model	String	`Intel UHD Graphics 630`
igfxfw	Data	`02000000`

📄 Show as property list data

^{Expand this if you want to copy and paste the entries above as .plist data!}

You can paste this data straight into plist editors like ProperTree.

<key>PciRoot(0x0)/Pci(0x2,0x0)</key>
<dict>
	<key>AAPL,ig-platform-id</key>
	<data>BwCbPg==</data>
	<key>device-id</key>
	<data>mz4AAA==</data>
	<key>disable-agdc</key>
	<data>AQAAAA==</data>
	<key>enable-hdmi-dividers-fix</key>
	<data>AQAAAA==</data>
	<key>enable-hdmi20</key>
	<data>AQAAAA==</data>
	<key>enable-metal</key>
	<data>AQAAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con0-busid</key>
	<data>AgAAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con0-enable</key>
	<data>AQAAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con0-flags</key>
	<data>xwMAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con0-index</key>
	<data>AgAAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con0-pipe</key>
	<data>CgAAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con0-type</key>
	<data>AAgAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con1-busid</key>
	<data>BAAAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con1-enable</key>
	<data>AQAAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con1-flags</key>
	<data>xwMAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con1-index</key>
	<data>AwAAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con1-pipe</key>
	<data>CAAAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con1-type</key>
	<data>AAgAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con2-busid</key>
	<data>AQAAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con2-enable</key>
	<data>AQAAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con2-flags</key>
	<data>xwMAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con2-index</key>
	<data>AQAAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con2-pipe</key>
	<data>CQAAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-con2-type</key>
	<data>AAgAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-patch-enable</key>
	<data>AQAAAA==</data>
	<key>framebuffer-stolenmem</key>
	<data>AAAwAQ==</data>
	<key>hda-gfx</key>
	<string>onboard-1</string>
	<key>igfxfw</key>
	<data>AgAAAA==</data>
	<key>model</key>
	<string>Intel UHD Graphics 630</string>
	<key>rps-control</key>
	<data>AQAAAA==</data>
</dict>

Important

The connector patches in the table above are new as of the 25th August 2024 and were implemented to fix HDMI output. Please add these new entries to enable HDMI!

Note

The NEW configuration of the UHD Graphics 630 can run in both display and headless modes!

Tip

The enable-metal key is now included to enable Metal 3 graphics support with the UHD Graphics 630!

This means various macOS apps can now utilise the iGPU - even while headless - for more trivial tasks, such as rendering Finder. This frees up the dGPU's resources for other more intensive tasks.

You can even see this in action by enabling the hidden GPU tab in Activity Monitor.

PciRoot(0x0)/Pci(0x1C,0x1)/Pci(0x0,0x0)

Intel I225-V 2.5Gb Ethernet

Key	Type	Value
device-id	Data	`F2150000`

📄 Show as property list data

^{Expand this if you want to copy and paste the entries above as .plist data!}

You can paste this data straight into plist editors like ProperTree.

<key>PciRoot(0x0)/Pci(0x1C,0x4)/Pci(0x0,0x0)</key>
<dict>
	<key>device-id</key>
	<data>8hUAAA==</data>
</dict>

Note

The Intel I225-V requires a special patch mentioned in Kernel.

This only applies to macOS Big Sur and older.

Tip

For improved compatibility with macOS Big Sur and older, the I225-V model has now been masked as the near-identical I225-LM model. After extensive testing, it appears functionality is the same.

PciRoot(0x0)/Pci(0x1b,0x0)

Apple ALC

Key	Type	Value
AAPL,ig-platform-id	Data	`0300220D`
layout-id	Data	`01000000`

📄 Show as property list data

^{Expand this if you want to copy and paste the entries above as .plist data!}

You can paste this data straight into plist editors like ProperTree.

<key>PciRoot(0x0)/Pci(0x1b,0x0)</key>
<dict>
	<key>AAPL,ig-platform-id</key>
	<data>AwAiDQ==</data>
	<key>layout-id</key>
	<data>AQAAAA==</data>
</dict>

Kernel

The following shows the kernel configuration.

Kexts

Kexts used:

Lilu
WhateverGreen
AirportItlwm
IntelBluetoothFirmware
NVMeFix
VirtualSMC
AppleALC
BlueToolFixup
IntelBTPatcher
SMCProcessor
SMCSuperIO
SMCRadeonSensors
RestrictEvents
FeatureUnlock
RTCMemoryFixup
Z490E_USBMap

Note

Z490E_USBMap.kext is a custom kext containing the USB mappings of my ASUS ROG STRIX Z490-E GAMING motherboard ports - your mileage may vary!

Note

RestrictEvents.kext has been added to utilise its OTA software update patches. It does NOT apply any other patches.

Tip

There are multiple versions of AirportItlwm.kext installed to support various versions of macOS.

You don't have to remove any - they have all been individually configured to only be injected based on the macOS version booted.

Patches

Intel I225-V 2.5Gb Ethernet

Key	Type	Value
Arch	String	Any
Base	String	__Z18e1000_set_mac_typeP8e1000_hw
Comment	String	I225-V patch
Count	Number	1
Enabled	Boolean	True
Find	Data	`F2150000`
Identifier	String	com.apple.driver.AppleIntelI210Ethernet
Limit	Number	0
Mask	Data
MaxKernel	String	20.4.0
MinKernel	String	19.0.0
Replace	Data	`F3150000`
ReplaceMask	Data
Skip	Number	0

📄 Show as property list data

^{Expand this if you want to copy and paste the entries above as .plist data!}

You can paste this data straight into plist editors like ProperTree.

<dict>
	<key>Arch</key>
	<string>Any</string>
	<key>Base</key>
	<string>__Z18e1000_set_mac_typeP8e1000_hw</string>
	<key>Comment</key>
	<string>I225-V patch</string>
	<key>Count</key>
	<integer>1</integer>
	<key>Enabled</key>
	<true/>
	<key>Find</key>
	<data>8hUAAA==</data>
	<key>Identifier</key>
	<string>com.apple.driver.AppleIntelI210Ethernet</string>
	<key>Limit</key>
	<integer>0</integer>
	<key>Mask</key>
	<data></data>
	<key>MaxKernel</key>
	<string>20.4.0</string>
	<key>MinKernel</key>
	<string>19.0.0</string>
	<key>Replace</key>
	<data>8xUAAA==</data>
	<key>ReplaceMask</key>
	<data></data>
	<key>Skip</key>
	<integer>0</integer>
</dict>

Security

SecureBootModel 》 j185f

Vault 》 Optional

Note

The secure boot model j185f corresponds to an iMac20,2 from August 2020.

NVRAM

Contents stored in NVRAM.

4D1EDE05-38C7-4A6A-9CC6-4BCCA8B38C14

Key	Type	Value
DefaultBackgroundColor	Data	`00000000`

4D1FDA02-38C7-4A6A-9CC6-4BCCA8B30102

Key	Type	Value
rtc-blacklist	Data

7C436110-AB2A-4BBB-A880-FE41995C9F82

Key	Type	Value
ForceDisplayRotationInEFI	Number	0
SystemAudioVolume	Data	`46`
boot-args	String	keepsyms=1 debug=0x100 alcid=1 agdpmod=pikera igfxgl=1 forceRenderStandby=0 itlwm_cc=GB revpatch=sbvmm
csr-active-config	Data	`00000000`
prev-lang-diags:kbd	Data	`656E2D47 42`
prev-lang:kbd	Data	`656E2D47 423A32`
StartupMute	Data	`00`

📄 Show as property list data

^{Expand this if you want to copy and paste the entries above as .plist data!}

You can paste this data straight into plist editors like ProperTree.

	<key>4D1EDE05-38C7-4A6A-9CC6-4BCCA8B38C14</key>
	<dict>
		<key>DefaultBackgroundColor</key>
		<data>AAAAAA==</data>
	</dict>
	<key>4D1FDA02-38C7-4A6A-9CC6-4BCCA8B30102</key>
	<dict>
		<key>rtc-blacklist</key>
		<data></data>
	</dict>
	<key>7C436110-AB2A-4BBB-A880-FE41995C9F82</key>
	<dict>
		<key>ForceDisplayRotationInEFI</key>
		<integer>0</integer>
		<key>boot-args</key>
		<string>keepsyms=1 debug=0x100 alcid=1 agdpmod=pikera igfxgl=1 forceRenderStandby=0 itlwm_cc=GB revpatch=sbvmm</string>
		<key>prev-lang-diags:kbd</key>
		<data>ZW4tR0I=</data>
		<key>prev-lang:kbd</key>
		<data>ZW4tR0I6Mg==</data>
		<key>csr-active-config</key>
		<data>AAAAAA==</data>
		<key>StartupMute</key>
		<data>AA==</data>
		<key>SystemAudioVolume</key>
		<data>Rg==</data>
	</dict>

SMBIOS

iMac20,2

Due to the system having a 10-core i9-10900K, the CPU model is similar to the one found in an iMac 5K 27-inch (i9, 2020), with a model identifier of iMac20,2.

UEFI

Drivers in use:

HFSPlus
OpenCanopy
OpenRuntime
ResetNvramEntry

Post-Install Tweaks

This is just a collection of my post-install tweaks I apply after installing macOS. They're not really related to OpenCore or the overall functionality of the configuration.

Dark Menu Bar and Dock

Okay, so I'm a bit of a macOS boomer. Having used macOS since long before Mojave's dark mode, I'm accustomed to the regular light appearance of the windows - but I always enabled the "Dark menu bar and dock" option as I loved the look. While I still like dark mode (and use it on iOS), the hybrid light/dark mode on macOS is still my favourite!

The following commands restore that functionality:

Window Server

defaults write -g NSRequiresAquaSystemAppearance -bool Yes

Notification Centre

defaults write com.apple.notificationcenterui NSRequiresAquaSystemAppearance -bool No

Control Centre

defaults write com.apple.controlcenterui NSRequiresAquaSystemAppearance -bool No

About This Mac + System Profiler

defaults write com.apple.SystemProfiler.AboutExtension NSRequiresAquaSystemAppearance -bool No
defaults write com.apple.SystemProfiler.AboutExtension NSRequiresAquaSystemAppearance -bool No

Show Hidden Files

Does what it says on the tin. Shows all files, including hidden ones, in the Finder.

defaults write com.apple.Finder AppleShowAllFiles YES
killall Finder

Show GPU Tab in Activity Monitor

Unhides the hidden sECrET GPU tab in macOS' Activity Monitor, helpful for seeing which apps are running on what GPU!

defaults write com.apple.ActivityMonitor ShowGPUTab -bool true

AirDrop over Ethernet

Makes AirDrop scan Ethernet too!

defaults write com.apple.NetworkBrowser BrowseAllInterfaces 1
killall Finder

Frosted Glass Terminal Theme

Some macOS eye candy.

curl -OL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Coopydood/OpenCore-Z490E-CometLake/main/EXTRAS/HyperTerm.terminal

Import through Terminal's preferences.

Gallery

Disclaimer

This repo is simply a dump of my current and up-to-date OpenCore stuff that I use on my machine.

Feel free to use it as an example and modify it however you'd like, but please don't expect it to "just work" - because it won't.

Contribute!

If you've found a way to make the configuration better, or have solved issues outlined in the Problems section, please share your changes on GitHub for us all to use! Thank you!

Files

README.md

Latest commit

History

README.md

File metadata and controls

OpenCore Z490-E (Comet Lake)v1.0.0

Motherboard

ASUS ROG STRIX Z490-E GAMINGProduct Page

BIOS

UEFI BIOS UtilityVersion 3001 (19/02/2024)

OpenCore

OpenCore1.0.2

macOS

macOS Sonoma

Supported

macOS Sequoia

macOS Ventura

macOS Monterey

macOS Big Sur

macOS Catalina

What works?

macOS

Hardware

Software

Problems

🎉 ALL MAJOR PROBLEMS HAVE BEEN FIXED!

System

Geekbench Scores

ACPI

DeviceProperties

PciRoot(0x0)/Pci(0x2,0x0)

📄 Show as property list data

PciRoot(0x0)/Pci(0x1C,0x1)/Pci(0x0,0x0)

📄 Show as property list data

PciRoot(0x0)/Pci(0x1b,0x0)

📄 Show as property list data

Kernel

Kexts

Patches

📄 Show as property list data

Security

NVRAM

4D1EDE05-38C7-4A6A-9CC6-4BCCA8B38C14

4D1FDA02-38C7-4A6A-9CC6-4BCCA8B30102

7C436110-AB2A-4BBB-A880-FE41995C9F82

📄 Show as property list data

SMBIOS

iMac20,2

UEFI

Post-Install Tweaks

Dark Menu Bar and Dock

Show Hidden Files

Show GPU Tab in Activity Monitor

AirDrop over Ethernet

Frosted Glass Terminal Theme

Gallery

Disclaimer

Contribute!

OpenCore Z490-E (Comet Lake)
_v1.0.0

ASUS ROG STRIX Z490-E GAMING
_{Product Page}

UEFI BIOS Utility
_{Version 3001 (19/02/2024)}

OpenCore
_1.0.2