iMac GPU Upgrade, Metal SUPPORTED!!

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This is how I upgraded a 2009 27" iMac graphics card and obtain Metal hardware acceleration.
Forum Post: forums.macrumors.com/threads/...
Music: www.bensound.com

[@richardxstroker]

It's been a couple of years since I did some upgrades to my 2011 iMac, but this video is a total inspiration to upgrade to the M5100 now!

[@rebootretro]

Make sure to check the docs; back when I did this upgrade the M5100 GPU had some known issues involving sleep mode when used specifically with a 2011 iMac. They may have been fixed by now, just always good to check :) Good luck with your project!

[@jasm817]

Alright.. Looking good. 😏👍 The card you chose was a good value and match for a 27". I did the Linux method with a flash stick. I used a k2100 Nvidia graphics card with a 2011 21.5" and worked so well that I got a second one for a 2009 27". This graphics card packs a punch. It has decent performance, uses low power consumption of only 35watts and also rather good price. Oh not to mention this card fits easy without modding. I also like Nvidia because I have a dual boot system with windows which this card performance is actually amazing on windows. Oddly it feels faster than with macOS.

[@rebootretro]

Nice! How did the Linux method work? I foresaw a lot of potential issues (i.e. runs blind until Linux is loaded, etc), which is why I used the RasPi flash method. For Windows, Nvidia is defiantly my choice too. I do very little gaming, and much more render workloads that utilize CUDA. For Monterey though, I think you need hacked drivers to get Metal working - I think something related to that spat between Nvidia and Apple, which is a real shame. Any issues at all with drivers? Sleep works properly? Not having to mod the cooler is a BIG plus for sure! I was always skeptical that using a shim wouldn't deliver optimal cooling. I am really curious though, do you have boot screen working? Can you use the native Apple boot picker prior to OpenCore loading? You can't on the AMD card I used, which so far is the only downside - fortunately it's only an issue for repairs and service, and doesn't affect daily use.

[@thespencerowen]

I almost threw out a 27 inch 2011 iMac today. I’m so glad I discovered opencore. I may revive this mac

[@rebootretro]

They work great with an upgraded GPU! Just note the OpenCore docs, there are some known issues with the FirePro M5100 and specifically the 2011 iMac model, unless they’ve been fixed. But there are lots of GPU options out there. Either way, they are great machine still with a GPU upgrade!

[@1JDMkidJoel]

Is there anyone in so cal that can preform this update for me? Oh man! I should have watched this sooner. Thanks JT!

[@rebootretro]

Thanks! The upgrade is still working great on my system; the GPU was really the biggest gap between Monterey "working" and "working perfectly". Hopefully you can find a shop near you to help. It can definitely be a frustrating process during the upgrade. I think I spent 2-3 days messing with it until I got it working. Thanks for the comment and wish you best of luck on yours!!

[@gabrielecarbone8235]

you can undervolt and underclock the hd6750 using windows to extract, mod and flash back the vbios to extend the life; i have done that to reflown 2011 imac gpus on all the range and it works quite well

[@rebootretro]

Very interesting! My experience too is that reflowed GPUs are much more "fragile", and require much more cooling to prevent dying again. The undervolting sounds like it would work extremely well for that!

[@dog_knight]

Thanks for this. Had no idea it was even possible. With Metal support and the ability to upgrade to a more recent version of OSX I can get years more life out of my old 2011 iMac for my daughter. If I max the RAM and add another SSD instead of the HDD, the old i7 2600 should keep kicking.

[@rebootretro]

Yes, they don't always get the credit they deserve; even today that i7-2600 is a good performer! With Metal support, a 2011 is almost as good as a new Mac :)

[@dog_knight]

@@rebootretro. Now its just a matter of working out how much I want to spend on a new GPU. The WX7100 sure is tempting. Will definitely allow Minecraft to run smoother for her. That iMac was great during Covid lockdowns. She basically did two years of schooling on it. The biggest issue is just down to the fact its limited to an older OS and its harder to find apps that will run. This seems like a fun project either way.

[@ninline2000]

​@@dog_knight I'm running Monterey on mine with OCLP. It's dead easy.

[@dog_knight]

@@ninline2000 Have done the same now. Ended up picking up a WX7100 and have upgraded to Monterey using OCLP. Put a new SSD in it at the time too. I also now have a new WIFI / BT card to install when I find the time.

[@richeyrich2203]

@@rebootretrowhat is metal? Why is it such a big deal? Link to a good explanation?

[@ninline2000]

I'm surprised you didn't see better 3D results. According to User Benchmarks site, the m5100 is over twice as fast as the stock HD 6750. I wonder if it's a driver issue? Regardless, the HD 6750 is a dead man walking. I appreciate the care you put into this video.

[@rebootretro]

I was shocked too, I was also expecting better results. In fact, it should have been even better since this one had a 4xxx series card (4670 was it?) not the 6750. I wondered if maybe it was a driver issue, or something to do with OpenCore or the modded BIOS. I don't think the CPU is bottlenecking it, although I didn't look into it very much. Ultimately the goal was metal support. Thanks for your support!

[@ninline2000]

​@rebootretro I have to wonder if it would work better under Linux with the better driver support.

[@user-hy5fg4ht4w]

I also upgrade GPU card for metal support, i choose through ebay the Nvidia GTX 675MX (4GB+METAL). Notice here, that i use to this iMac-mid 2011 27" through open core, the Monterey. After installed, is not start up easy, i had to press many times the power button, and if it is starts, sometimes works flawlessly, sometimes had issues with bluethooth connection or usb mouse+keyboard. Also from the sleep fails to wake up, if are in the sleep mode sometime. Without the LCD screen plugin starts without delay and the trhee diagnostics led lights on. Before the GPU upgrade not have such issues. If you have any helpfull hint are welcome.

[@rebootretro]

I'm not familiar with 675MX specifically, but did you flash a Mac vBIOS ROM to the card? If the card is using the stock PC vBIOS ROM, it might work but have some issues. Also, double check that you have the correct vBIOS ROM. Some cards have different revisions and use different ROM versions. EDIT: This seems to be a Kepler card, which apparently has some issues with OpenCore. Checkout this forum post: forums.macrumors.com/threads/2011-imac-graphics-card-upgrade.1596614/ but specifically SPOILER 3 - Known issues or problems #5, #7 and #8 might describe some of the issues you're experiencing.

[@gregsawo]

Dude, I have the same problem. 27" 2011 imac, replaced stock Radeon with 675mx, and mine also does not always start from the first attempt and does not wake up under Catalina, but wakes up well under High Sierra. Another issue is a bit sharp edges at halftones. For example, at the picture when grey becomes white, I see line edges. Seems like recovering to High Sierra and other OS via Boot Camp is the easiest way to give this machine its second life.

[@diablopoeta]

Great video, I’m considering this option, I have a 27” 2011 imac. Is the one featured in the video still going strong?

[@rebootretro]

Thanks!! Yes, it’s running great still! That series of FirePro had some issues specifically with 2011 models. I think it was related to sleep. It may have been fixed by now, but double check the Dortania GitHub page. Aside from that one issue (it only affects 2011), I’d highly recommend this card. Fully native driver support is nice to have! No OS driver mods!

[@nagydenes5286]

What is the reason to use the terminal version of OpenCore? As I can see, the new versions only have GUI compiled. When you make sure that the system loads into OpenCore, then opencore is set up to the old graphics card right? Once you set it up for the new card, I guess it would not boot with the old card anymore? Thank you for the video!

[@rebootretro]

Yes, they stopped compiling the TUI version. OpenCore will load whatever GPU is present. The issue with the the specific card in this video is that there is no Apple ROM for it. And OpenCore, for whatever reason, is not designed to detect it or can't detect it property. This is why we have to set the Legacy GCN flag before build/rebuilding OpenCore. The reason we need the TUI version is because the flag to set Legacy GCN doesn't exist in the GUI version, at least it didn't based on the docs when I made the video. It's possible they've added this option since. The TUI version is only necessary for cards in the AMD M5100 family; I believe Nvidia and newer AMD cards can be set via GUI version. I can't remember if there were issues, but I believe the system did boot with the original GPU with the Legacy GCN flag set. It may not have been detected correctly though, I don't remember. It is important though, if you're using the M5100 like me, you will need the vBIOS modded and OpenCore Legacy GCN flag set BEFORE booting, or you won't get video on your internal LCD screen. Hope this helps you, and good luck on your project!

[@giorgos7six]

@rebootretro very nice video. I want to ask if you (or anyone else here) have any experience on if the M5100 can work with AdobeCC apps.

[@rebootretro]

The M5100 is Metal-compatible, so it should work with CC apps. I know CC 2021 graphics apps worked even without upgrading the GPU (stock HD 4000 on Monterey with graphics patches), since 2021 still supported legacy graphics.

[@maclainjohnson7666]

I did this to my 2011 27 imac, using a 880m. It worked amazing for about 2 months and slowly started having the same graphics issues as the Factory Radeon card.. I'm assuming overheating is a major problem in the iMacs hot chassis.. is there a Graphics card that doesn't use as much power as the 880m but still has better performance than the radeon ?

[@rebootretro]

The card itself shouldn't matter, unless the card wattage is substantially higher than factory models. It is more likely an issue with mounting pressure or fan curve. Some of those cards look like the die height is the same, but it is not. If the die is shorter than factory card, the mounting pressure won't be enough and will have poor cooling. This is EXTREMELY difficult to see with just your eye, you'll need to use a measuring tool to know. Also, I use Macs Fan Speed to adjust the fan curve of the GPU fan very aggressively. I adjust it to where you can barely hear it when idle/web browsing, which is significantly higher than factory. My Radeon 5100 die hovers around 60 degrees if I remember (if it's not heavily loaded). Factory it sits around 80-90. Also, it's important to make sure you have enough (or possibly fresh?) white paste for the other components like RAM. It's also possible if you are buying cards from eBay that the card already died and someone did the "heat gun trick", which is just a temporary fix. Bottom line though, any card that is equivalent or less wattage should be 100% fine if the cooler is mounted properly and the fan curve is dialed in. You should not be getting dead cards that soon!

[@mikepxg6406]

Wow. Great effort. But why are you using a spinning HDD

[@rebootretro]

Thanks! There is also an SSD boot drive in the CD ROM bay (we didn't need a CD drive for this computer). The spinning HDD is because I have lots of capacity HDDs kicking around, but only small capacity SSDs. System on the SSD where speed matters, personal files on HDD where capacity matters :). If cost wasn't a factor, I'd just go for a single big SSD ;)

[@Oliver-us3bx]

Hi ! Very nice and still up to date ! Just done with a S7100x firepro : one question : is there a way to get the apple logo startup back ?

[@rebootretro]

It depends on your ROM. The official Mac ROMs will have the stock boot picker and startup logo. PC ROMs and modified PC ROMs usually loose the stock boot picker but can possibly keep the startup logo depending on the ROM and OpenCore settings. I'm using the M5100 GOP ROM (which I believe is a modified PC ROM) - I loose the stock boot picker, but so long as I'm using OpenCore I still have the Apple startup logo. My guess it's not supported in the ROM you're using, or double check your OpenCore settings. That S7100x looks like a nice card! Good luck! :)

[@Oliver-us3bx]

@@rebootretro yes it is a very nice card ! Belive me, GTA V runs pretty well, even with all the cursors up.

[@BigChieff93]

Thanks for the video!!! Do you know if you are able to run Windows dual boot via BootCamp, or is it too risky for booting up with the new GPU showing a black screen? If I wanted to use my iMac exclusively as a Windows machine, would I still need to flash the GPU like you did, or would Windows run Generic Monitor drivers until the correct GPU drivers were installed? Thanks again!

[@rebootretro]

Thanks! I don't use boot camp on that Mac, so I can't say from experience. Typically we flash a new BIOS to convert from a PC card to a Mac card. However, I believe that with the M5100 it does not do this - my understanding is that the new ROM (specifically with the M5100) only changes the default display output from external DP to internal LCD, and that the internal LCD does not display without it. I believe it is still a PC ROM, not a Mac ROM (although I could be mistaken). I am pretty confident that Windows will boot fine if you're using OpenCore to boot it (you'll also get the OpenCore boot picker if you need to boot from USB to reinstall Windows at some point). If you're ONLY using Windows and don't care if you loose the native Apple boot picker, I suspect you can do it without OpenCore - but I don't know this for sure. The one problem is you'll have issues if you need to reinstall Windows at some point, because you won't be able to easily pick an alternate boot device. As far as drivers go, Windows should initially boot using the generic VESA drivers, and once connected to the internet it should pull the AMD drivers from Windows Update. Bottom line, from what I read back when I did it, I think you need to flash it regardless to get the internal display to work. But you can always try without. Perhaps the Windows VESA driver is able to direct to the correct display where the Mac driver can't. If you do try, post back here if you can in case it helps anyone else with the same question :) Sorry, I know that's not as definitive of an answer as you were hoping. Feel free to ask if you have any other questions, and I'll answer if I can. Good luck with your project!

[@thehitmakercartel]

How much would you charge to upgrade my Mac?

[@AndreRicardoLopes]

What is the size and thickness of the cooper shim you used?

[@rebootretro]

I used a random piece of copper pulled from a scrap MacBook cooler, and cut to size. The backside had a black coating, which I cleaned off. The cooler does graze the die on it's own but does not have enough mounting pressure, and there are springs for tension so there is some leeway for thickness. The recommendation in the guide I read was 15mm x 15mm x 0.5 to 1mm thick, which would be close to what I used. Here is the article: forums.macrumors.com/threads/2011-imac-graphics-card-upgrade.1596614/page-320?post=28696585#post-28696585

[@mistarj2580]

Regarding the cooper shim, would you recommend 0.5mm or 1mm thickness for a 2011 imac 27

[@rebootretro]

I've linked the article below which explains the copper plate/shim mod. The thickness is somewhere in that range (.5 to 1mm). The cooler is held to the die using springs for tension, so precision is not so important. If it is somewhere near .5mm to 1mm then it should have sufficient mounting pressure. The problem is that the die on the new GPU is not as tall as the old GPU, so if you have no shim then the die is not under any mounting pressure at all. Here is the article about the shim mod that I used: forums.macrumors.com/threads/2011-imac-graphics-card-upgrade.1596614/page-320?post=28696585#post-28696585 Also, there are some issues with this GPU on 2011 iMacs. You should read up on this prior to using this GPU: forums.macrumors.com/threads/2011-imac-graphics-card-upgrade.1596614/post-17425857 (Look under 2. Working AMD Graphics Cards and then AMD GCN v1-3 GPU (2012-2015) - no iMac12,x support)

[@BurninVinyl]

Hi, this video is really interesting. I'm going to buy an Imac with vga problems. I want to know the copper thing you put on the graphic card, where is possible to buy it? thanks in advance!!!

[@rebootretro]

I think you can buy various sized copper shims on eBay, if you look around. Honestly though, you should be able to salvage a piece of copper from an old laptop. I used a random piece of copper pulled from a scrap MacBook cooler, and cut to size. The backside had a black coating, which I cleaned off. Make sure it is SMOOTH on both sides, with good thermal paste, for optimal heat transfer. The cooler does graze the die on it's own but does not have enough mounting pressure, and there are springs for tension so there is some leeway for thickness. The recommendation in the guide I read was 15mm x 15mm x 0.5 to 1mm thick, which would be close to what I used. Here is the article: forums.macrumors.com/threads/2011-imac-graphics-card-upgrade.1596614/page-320?post=28696585#post-28696585

[@BurninVinyl]

@@rebootretro thank you very much for the answer.

[@tekashi837]

Great video! I have an old 2011 imac 21 that i want to mod for fun one day but my main issue is that many of the GPUs dont support screen brightness control and that for me is a deal breaker. Does the FirePro support native brightness settings in MacOS? Thanks in advance!

[@rebootretro]

Thanks!! Yes, it works just like factory - and stepping is perfectly smooth. With this specific FirePro, there are some issues when installed in a 2011 iMac specifically. I think it had to do with wake from sleep, but I can't remember for certain. If you plan to use the same card, make sure to read up on the Dortania GitHub page to see if the issues are going to affect you, or if they have been fixed. It's an excellent upgrade for sure! I really like the FirePro because of native driver support; it has worked absolutely perfectly!

[@tekashi837]

Thank you very much for the detailed reply and great information!@@rebootretro

[@BurninVinyl]

Hi, I want to ask you another question: is it possible to flash the videocard in another way? I want to buy the card for a 27" imac mid 2011 and I do not want to use dremel stuff.

[@rebootretro]

I've read somewhere that an NVidia card exists which does not require flashing - although you won't have boot screen/boot picker support. You'd have to do some Googling, but I recall it was a specific version out of an Alienware laptop. Sorry I don't have more details. To flash a card, there are generally 3 ways. First, using a flasher and clip like I did. There are also USB programmers which let you flash using Windows if that's easier, instead of using a Raspberry Pi. Second, install it in the iMac, boot to Linux and flash from the command line. I can't offer any help on this because I've never done it, but someone else commented previously and said they've done this successfully. There are many guides online if you want to try this. Third, you can flash it beforehand using a donor PC, or MXM to PCIe adapter - this is likely far more difficult for most people since they won't have a donor PC or adapter handy. Honestly, if you don't have any programming equipment, I would probably suggest a USB programmer with chip clip. They're around $25 USD and likely easier to use than trying to boot Linux blind.

[@luisheitmeier644]

Thanks for the video, very helpful! I tried a few vbios versions (GOP, EG2, adj) but none of them ran without issues. What exact vbios rom did you use? Are you using a second screen and does it work without issues? Thanks for the help in advance !

[@rebootretro]

I think there are 3 versions of the card: red (Dell), green and blue. Mine is the red card, BUT there are also 3 more sub-versions of the red card depending on which memory modules the card has. The red card uses the GOP ROM. There are 3 GOP ROMs depending on if you have Elpida, Hynix BFR, or Hynix AFR memory modules. I think mine was Hynix BFR so I used the M5100-HynixAFS-GOP.rom file, but yours could be any of those 3 if it is the red card. The green and blue cards use totally different ROMs, which I don't know much about. If I recall, the reason you need to flash the BIOS is to get the internal screen to work. I THINK (if I remember) that the Mac should work on an external display without flashing, and after flashing/OpenCore mod it should work on the internal display. I think external still worked after the mod, but I don't recall for sure - it's been a while since I did this. The first part about ROMs I'm pretty confident is correct. I'm a little hazy about the external screen details, but I remember before I fully got it working I could only get display via external monitor. Hope this helps! If you have any other questions, I will try my best to help (so long as memory serves what I did, lol). Good luck!

[@luisheitmeier644]

@@rebootretro thanks for your help! I have the red dell card with Elpida storage. I currently have a perfectly working monterey system but my external display via mini dp/hdmi adapter is not working. As soon as i plug it in the iMac screen gets distorted and the second monitor stays black. I don‘t get why everything works but the second screen. Maybe I damaged the input during the GPU upgrade…

[@rebootretro]

@@luisheitmeier644 I just got my mini DisplayPort cable and tested. On my finished iMac (OpenCore + custom VBIOS) external displays are working perfectly, exactly like a real fully supported Mac. I would double check that your OpenCore settings are exactly right, and maybe try reflashing the ROM in case it went in corrupt. It could also be possible there is an issue specifically with the Elpida ROM. Hopefully you can get it going!

[@Ficotronic]

I have a 2013 I Mac. Any advice how to upgrade graphics card to handle 4K video editing ? Thanks 🙏

[@rebootretro]

Unfortunately I believe all 2013 models have soldered GPUs, so they aren't internally upgradable. And you need at least Thunderbolt 3 for an eGPU, but the 2013 only has Thunderbolt 2. I don't think there is a practical way to upgrade your GPU. To be honest your CPU might case a larger struggle on a 2013 model for 4K video. If you NEED to edit in 4K instead of 1080p, it might be time to upgrade the entire system. If budget doesn't allow to upgrade and if you MUST edit in 4K, you may be able to edit using reference footage (at least I heard it was a thing in Premiere). It allows you to pre-render lower quality versions JUST for editing which will allow you to operate smoothly. I believe some KZbinrs do this to allow editors to work on footage using cloud (Google Drive, Dropbox, iCloud, etc) with very small, low quality files. But the final render uses the original 4K instead of reference footage. Final renders will still be very slow, but you can always let it run your finals overnight. Hopefully this gives some ideas for you or anyone else who might need to keep an older system running :)

[@In-Ear-Studio]

What gpu do you guys recommend for an iMac 27 mid 2010 and another iMac 27 mid 2011? I’ve both.

[@rebootretro]

As far as I'm aware, there isn't an "ideal" card to use. Each one has some difficulties or caveats. I really like the M5100 FirePro because it's incredibly cheap to buy, full Metal support, and it works completely native with native drivers after patching the OpenCore loader and vBIOS. It works pretty near flawlessly in Mac OS. The one issue is that the M5100 only gets loaded AFTER OpenCore, meaning you loose the boot picker (i.e. can't hold option key during boot to select an alternate boot drive). It will work on a 2011 too, but there are some additional (and potentially more serious) problems you should read up on if you use this card or one from it's family in a 2011 iMac. I think there are some NVIDIA cards that maintain the boot picker, but since NVIDIA's dispute with Apple there aren't any modern drivers and they all require hacking. The NVIDIA cards work great with older versions of Mac OS, but newer ones it is better to stick with supported AMD ones for driver support. I don't believe any card is completely issue-free; it's a matter of picking the one that has least offensive issues for your use case. I highly recommend this forum post: forums.macrumors.com/threads/2011-imac-graphics-card-upgrade.1596614/ If you click through the "Spoiler:" sections, you'll find a very organized table of cards which people have tested along with custom vBIOSes and any special notes to make it work. My biggest advice though: Only use exact cards tested. Just because a card is very similar, doesn't mean it will also work. Do lots of reading prior to purchasing a card; make sure you understand the necessary mods, and if you need your card to have specific revision number or specific RAM chip types, etc. It is a fun project! Good luck in your upgrade!

[@In-Ear-Studio]

@@rebootretro wow! A very nice and helpful answer! Thanks a lot. I’m not technical and i use imac only to work. I really prefer the most basic, buy gpu, open the imac, not needing to take motherboard out and just change the gpu. That would be the simple scenario for me. I’m not looking for the best gpu at all, just one to be simple and better that the 512MB of vram that this imac 27 2011 have.

[@evh5150combo]

Hi, thank you for this Tutorial. I just would like to ask you: I have a mid 2010 27'' imac (11,3). Is it necessary to flash the vrom or will be the card working even without doing that operation?

[@rebootretro]

There are certain cards that "work" but missing some functionality without flashing. The M5100 (in my video) I think will only output to external monitor unless you flash it, and I think it doesn't get proper acceleration unless OpenCore is configured correctly. I don't recall which, but there's one Nvidia card out there which will work "out of the box" with some custom drivers (no flashing). It's documented on one of the forums.

[@giorgos7six]

Did you manage to fix your iMac?

[@DavidOlivarez08]

wish this was possible on my 17 inch MacBook Pro

[@jm036]

There are mods that remove the built in GPU and replace it with an external one but that's about it.

[@seandanetheII]

It is.

[@homersimpson9257]

It’s called a Demux, ask around board Repair technician around you if they can do it. I live in France and ask 49€ for this modification

[@DavidOlivarez08]

Had the board replaced with a m1 Mac mini board works amazing

[@richeyrich2203]

@@DavidOlivarez08what year 17in MacBook Pro did you have? How involved was the swap? We’re there other parts that needed to be changed out to turn your intel MacBook into a m1 macbook?

[@Oliver-us3bx]

Hi there ! I'm on the way to do the same with an iMac mid 2010. However, I do have installed a dual-boot Mac/Windows. My question is : Does it affect the dual boot? Thaks (and great job !)

[@rebootretro]

Thanks! I haven't tested dual boot, but so long as you're booting Windows from OpenCore I think it should be fine. To my knowledge, the custom vBIOS for the M5100 just changes the default display output to make the internal LCD work; my understanding is that it's still a PC ROM which is why you loose the stock Mac boot picker (at least with the ROM I used). One side note, OpenCore only supports GPT/UEFI Windows installs. Any issues you have should be related to OpenCore booting Windows - and it's well documented online on how to properly set up dual boot with OpenCore. Although I haven't tested and cannot say from experience, I don't believe the GPU upgrade itself would cause any issues for dual boot. Sorry I can't give personal experience. Sounds like a great project though, have fun!

[@Oliver-us3bx]

@@rebootretro I confirm that even a "trial" boot does work well : mac os, windows and batocera 38 (unfortunately, the 39th will not boot and willshow an efi error)...

[@Enice43]

I have a mid 2010 iMac I use for music production and I desperately need to get it rebuilt I heard of it get up to the operating system of Big Sur would at least 64 gigs of ram with I seven I have no idea how to do this. I need help.

[@rebootretro]

The 2010 iMacs can accept up to 32GB RAM, although the rest of the Mac specs realistically probably won’t benefit from that much in real world workloads, since the CPU will probably bottleneck before running out of RAM. Big Sur is not officially supported, but can be installed with OpenCore Legacy Patcher. Some newer apps also require a Metal-compatible GPU, which the 2010 does not have - but can be upgraded like in this video if needed. I did another video showing an overall iMac upgrade (kzbin.info/www/bejne/jaTNqoN8pNGgntk). If you’re trying to do this on a budget, I’d do the SSD upgrade, I’d look into whether 16GB RAM upgrade would suffice, I’d do the OpenCore Legacy Patcher OS upgrade, and I’d check whether the audio software could work without a Metal-compatible GPU (the GPU upgrade is fairly difficult and advanced) and only upgrade the GPU if absolutely necessary.

[@L33T_B0T]

Wow Is that possible to run windows now? To make gaming smoothly?

[@rebootretro]

The M5100 isn't great for gaming, but if you intended to use Windows only you could move to a GTX 880M 4GB, which is one of the top end cards that will fit in these iMacs. Not ideal if you intend to use Mac OS, since NVIDIA has some sort of a dispute with Apple and there are only old hacked drivers for modern Mac OS. But it should work great on Windows, since you can use the latest Windows drivers. Also important to note the GTX 880M consumes significantly more power than the stock card, which may put strain on the power supply. You're still limited by the old CPU and older GPU, but it should game significantly better than with the stock card :)

[@benfsinger]

So fair to say on a 2012 iMac, this is a no go?

[@rebootretro]

Correct, I believe the 2012 models all have soldered non-removable GPUs and cannot be upgraded. I believe it is possible to use an eGPU on those models (see: egpu.io/forums/mac-setup/kryptonite-tb1-2-mac-egpu-support-with-filevault-sip-and-art-enabled/#post-95948). I've never done it and can't vouch for the project, but it seems many people claim it works. The only issue here will be that eGPU enclosures can be quite expensive.

[@pfoxhound]

What is the size of the shim? Do you have a written article?

[@rebootretro]

The shim needs to be 0.5mm to 1mm thick. The cooler is mounted under spring tension, so there is some leeway as to the exact thickness. Here is the article about the shim mod that I used during assembly: forums.macrumors.com/threads/2011-imac-graphics-card-upgrade.1596614/page-320?post=28696585#post-28696585

[@pfoxhound]

@@rebootretro I read that instructions, and watched your video and read comments and got that you used some trash material and don't know exactly what was the thickness. But thank you for your answer.

[@rebootretro]

@@pfoxhound Oh, I'm sorry! I thought you were asking what size you CAN use, I didn't realize you were asking what size "I" personally used. My goof. But I think mine was closer to the 1mm side of things. Honestly if you're somewhere in that neighborhood you should be ok.

[@pfoxhound]

@@rebootretro the more messages under the video, the more people will see your video! Thank you!

[@sarwoedi1852]

HI thanks for the video, I have same 2011 iMac 27", I found M5100 already flashed for 2011 iMac at aliexpress with many iMac install success reviews. I want to know, if I buy the flashed m5100, so I just plug n play the card to my iMac, or I should do OCLP. I just want to update up to Catalina. currently I have dosdude Catalina installed with original HD6970 with no graphic acceleration. Should I go to Big Sur or Monterey to get the card working?

[@rebootretro]

On a 2009, you absolutely need OCLP and the flash for the card to work properly in Mac OS. The 2011 had some exceptions though. I believe the 2011 still requires OCLP, or else you don't have any boot screen video. The biggest reason to stay back at Catelina was graphics. With the new GPU, the entire Mac OS works pretty flawlessly on Monterey. Monterey seems to be the limit for now; another commenter said that WiFi is broken on Ventura. Since you have to apply all the same hacks anyway, I would say it's best to be on the latest version of Mac OS that you can be - which seems to be Monterey without compromises. Not sure about other people who have done this, but Monterey on the 2009 27" works about as perfect as an officially supported Mac. I would highly recommend it.

[@sarwoedi1852]

@@rebootretro thanks, Actually I have no problem working in Catalina, also I can adjust the brightness using third party app but the only problem is the LCD backlight stay 100% bright creates so much heat. That makes me want to upgrade the gpu so I can get native brightness and lcd backlight control

[@tomvidal6078]

Hey do you buy it ? I want to do the same thing and aliexpress look like a good option. Is it work with out flashing bios ?

[@sarwoedi1852]

@@tomvidal6078 Hi, I am not buying it yet since I failed to downgrade to HighSierra. refer to many advices in the forum, I need to update the iMac to the lates firmware available before updating the graphic card. I can't do it in Catalina, I need to back install High Sierra but always failed

[@gisletotland8139]

@@sarwoedi1852 i hada similr issue on my macbook, it resolved to be the disk format. Late versions of high sierra changes the disk to afps. and it wont boot after install. You have to install in target mode or something to work around it.

[@AG357AG]

Will a radeon wx4170 work in a late 2009 model ecm 2309

[@rebootretro]

I'm not familiar with that card specifically. It does appear possible, but it looks like it needs some vBIOS flashing. People have successfully used it on 2011 iMacs, but I've not seen any reports about a 2009. I would recommend reading on the forums, and only use a card which is 100% confirmed working on your exact model. Otherwise, there may be some unknown issues.

[@hanspecans]

Do you have airdrop working on Monterey with this machine?

[@rebootretro]

It's funny you ask, because it's supposed to work (from what the docs all say)... but when I tried it a few weeks ago, I couldn't get it to work. I figured it was an issue with my specific setup. Did you also do the upgrade and have issues with AirDrop?

[@stivixhemo7801]

How thick does the copper shim have to be and do I need it if I am using the same gpu in a 21.5 inch imac please help me.

[@rebootretro]

It depends on which stock GPU you have. The reason you need shim on 27” 2009 is the the Radeon HD 4000 MXM 3.0B factory card has lower die height than the FirePro 5100. The shim should be somewhere from 0.5 to 1mm thick. Some newer 21.5” iMacs use MXM 3.0A cards and have the same die height as the FirePro 5100 already, where you do not need the shim at all. The exact shim size does not matter, you just need to make sure you have proper mounting pressure between the cooler and the chip die. Too much pressure could crack the die, too little will not transfer heat and will overheat. But there are springs to hold pressure, and there is a relatively wide range which is acceptable. I hope this makes sense?

[@stivixhemo7801]

Thanks a lot for your response.

[@rebootretro]

@@stivixhemo7801 No problem! I see you also commented and asked about the M4000, but I can't find the comment anymore - not sure if you deleted? Anyway, I'm not sure about the M4000. You need to be careful since some cards have slightly different layouts, and certain components can interfere with the factory heatsink in addition to die height. Your best bet is to Google that card and see who has used it in your specific model, and if there are any issues. Some cards do require a BIOS flash to work, some will work without. I used the 5100 because 1. it had full Metal support, 2. it was well documented on how to make it work and 3. I had one on-hand to use. I may have chosen a different card if I didn't already have that one. There are many good options to use, but just make sure to read up on it since it is difficult to tell from a photo if it is compatible.

[@stivixhemo7801]

Well I did comment about the m4000 because it was cheaper. There isn’t much documentation on google but I’m pretty sure it will work perfectly with my 2010 iMac because it seems the same form factor as the m5100 I don’t need the metal support as I just need to replace the failed card and I am mostly happy with 10.13 so thanks for the help. I was worried if I needed a shim with a 21.5 inch iMac but it turns out I don’t so thanks.

[@ashton4329]

This is awesome to see, it took me forever to find this video, so I was beginning to thing an old Metal compatible Mac wasn't possible. I'm planning on doing this to my 2010 27" however, I'm not that good with the actual tech side of things. I'll be able to do the physical install fine, but I really don't understand which card to buy and how to do all the programming stuff. Unfortunately there isn't a computer shop anywhere near me (plus I don't wanna have to pay anyone), so I'm on my own with this. Anyone here who understands that programing side of things who'd be willing to help out? Thanks

[@rebootretro]

The issue is that there really isn't a perfect card to use, to my knowledge anyway. There is no officially supported Metal card for any of these iMacs, which means there's a bit of hacking involved no matter what you choose. Some cards are easier, some have better compatibility, some are cheaper, and some are easier to acquire. Sometimes the best card is the one you can get your hands on. In my case, the card I used was the FirePro M5100. This card has excellent Mac OS support, but poor iMac support requiring a bunch of hacking like I show. Some Nvidia cards have great iMac support, but poor Mac OS support requiring lots of OS driver patches. A few things to note though. This isn't a simple upgrade, it is very difficult and very involved and requires lots of reading and patience. If you get stuck, you probably won't find any computer shop willing to help you regardless of cost. This is a very unsupported upgrade, and most shops won't want to be involved in it because of the hassle. Lastly, don't do this on your ONLY computer. Make sure you have another working computer, preferably Mac, since you may need to run Mac software in order to recover your iMac if you make a mistake. But don't be discouraged! If you are willing to read, learn and be patient, you're on the right track to success! If you have trouble, feel free to post back here and I'm sure myself or someone will post any pointers to help where we can.

[@giorgos7six]

Did u manage to make the upgrade?

[@ashton4329]

@@giorgos7six No, I never tried. I don't have the time to tackle something of that scale and really have no idea what I'm even doing so I don't wanna fry it

[@giorgos7six]

@ashton4329 ​me too, i guess it seems pretty hard and with unknown results

[@aitorlozano7589]

can you do a tutorial to flash vbios? i buy the same gpu and i dont know how i do. Thank you

[@rebootretro]

What method are you using to flash? Are you using a chip clip and a programmer or Raspberry Pi? The cheapest method is to do it via Linux on the Mac itself, but this is very risky if you make a mistake and also requires you to be comfortable in Linux. A cheaper method is to use a Raspberry Pi as a flasher like I did. You need to properly wire up the GPIO pins to a chip clip and use the Linux terminal to install the flashrom tool and flash the chip. If you don't have much experience with this sort modding, you probably should consider using a USB programmer with chip clip instead. A USB programmer will work from any Windows PC. If you post back what equipment you're using to flash and exactly what card you are trying to flash, I will try to give you any tips I can.

[@aitorlozano7589]

@@rebootretro i read this, but with linux tool and amdflash i can boot in the same imac or i should use other mac? Because i read what if i turn on the imac with this gpu i can broke the macos, or linux detect this gpu without problem? Thank you

[@rebootretro]

@@aitorlozano7589 I think you can use the same Mac. I don't think it can "break" anything by booting with it. The one problem is you will not see anything on screen (including boot picker) until Linux is booted, so this makes it very difficult to work while blind if there are problems. This is just my thoughts, I have not used that method and don't fully know how to do that method. The USB programmers are relatively cheap, I would probably recommend that method if possible - since it is much easier.

[@aitorlozano7589]

@@rebootretro the usb programmer run under windows? And i never use usb programmer, i’m going to search tutorials to use usb and i post a comment here. Thank you very mucha again

[@rebootretro]

@@aitorlozano7589 Yes, there is Windows software for the USB programmers. There is probably software for Mac and Linux for USB programmers too. They have a much easier GUI interface, instead of command line I used on Raspberry Pi. Here is an example below of the type of programmer I'm referring to which comes with a chip clip. DON'T JUST BUY THIS ONE, I'm not saying this specific one will work. It is just an example! Make sure the programmer you buy is compatible with your chip, and make sure there is a Windows programming software. The one in the example below will likely work, but please research to be sure before you buy one. www.amazon.com/KeeYees-SOIC8-EEPROM-CH341A-Programmer/dp/B07SHSL9X9/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=bios+programmer&qid=1670292884&sr=8-3 Hope this helps!!

[@blackzebra3883]

Dose Ventura support the gpu?

[@rebootretro]

I am pretty sure it does support Ventura, but I have not tried it yet. People have reported WiFi driver issues with Ventura on this iMac. I will try at some point, and will likely make a video. Until then, this Mac runs excellent on Monterey.

[@basil9797]

I have an imac 2015, can I upgrade the graphics card, but I want an external one without disassembling the device, does it suffice?

[@rebootretro]

Any Mac with Thunderbolt 3 running High Sierra or later is supported for eGPU. You’ll have to check, but I believe the 2015 iMac only has Thunderbolt 2 ports. It’s also important to note that apps like games will only be able to use eGPU with an external monitor connected directly to it, unless the app explicitly supports multi-GPU like Pro apps.

[@basil9797]

@@rebootretro

[@blythekyei2004]

Great vid! I have a mid 2011, 21.5inch iMac and I really want to upgrade to newer software so that I can run certain plugins on my music production software and possibly stream live on TikTok from the iMac. I have NO IDEA which card to use though! I don’t care how long it takes me to find a card and I want one relatively cheap (>£100) and I don’t care how much work it takes I just want the highest performance boost possible and metal support. If anyone is able to help me out on this one I’ll be eternally grateful!

[@rebootretro]

Be careful in the 2011 models, there is a known issue with AMD GCN v1-3 cards (like the one in this video) where the PRAM needs to be reset on EVERY boot and sleep/wake is broken. Also, because of NVIDIA's dispute with Apple, most NVIDIA cards have some issues with Monterey but some severe issues with Ventura onward due to lack of drivers. Normally I'd recommend something from the GCN v1-3 section because they have excellent driver support, but based on your model you may want something else. I would highly recommend reading through this thread: forums.macrumors.com/threads/2011-imac-graphics-card-upgrade.1596614/ The first post lists nearly all tested cards, and notes the issues they have. Unfortunately, there really isn't a "perfect" card because they all have some issue or another; it's best to pick whichever will have the least issues in your scenario. Start by finding an architecture that has the least issues in your scenario (i.e. GCN 3 vs Maxwell, etc). Then find the highest model in that series for your budget. Lastly, make sure to Google that card and your system to make sure there aren't some weird compatibility issues, or that there aren't multiple revisions of that GPU which may not be compatible with the BIOS you want to flash. Sorry, I know you were hoping for a more definitive model recommendation. But I've not specifically done this on a 2011 21.5 inch so I can't speak from experience. Hopefully someone else who has will chime in with more info. If not, I hope this info is at least somewhat helpful. Good luck with your upgrade!

[@MacBoyApple]

Hi, i'm considering to buy this card for my 27'' 2009 a1312. Is target display mode still working for you?

[@rebootretro]

Yes, the video here (kzbin.info/www/bejne/ioLadH2PnrGkidE) about Target Display was made after the upgrade. It felt glitchy sometimes - sometimes it didn't want to enable Target Display, and occasionally I had a crash when exiting Target Display. Not sure if that's because of the GPU upgrade, because of the Monterey upgrade, or possibly completely unrelated. But yes, after successfully getting into Target Display it did work properly while using it.

[@MacBoyApple]

@@rebootretro Thanks. Sounds like the kind of behavior i experience now as well in High Sierra. The Firepro is on it's way tho!

[@aitorlozano7589]

Can you put the link to download the vbios file to firepro m5100 red with chips hynix AFR because the three links in the forum i dont know if is to red, green or blue gpu. Thank you

[@rebootretro]

That forum post is EXTREMELY confusing... I had to re-read it multiple times when I originally did the mod. The conclusion I came to was that all 3 files under the download section were for the red Dell card, depending on your memory type. My card was red Dell with BFR memory; I used the 2nd / middle link which worked for me. If you have Hynix AFR, I can't promise you whether I'm right, but I suspect the 3rd / last link will work for you (github.com/Ausdauersportler/IMAC-EFI-BOOT-SCREEN/blob/main/GOP/M5100-HynixAFS-GOP.rom). But make sure you double check, and make a backup/dump before flashing! If you flash the wrong one, you will brick it and the only way to recover it is with a flash clip like I used. Hopefully you get it working!

[@aitorlozano7589]

@@rebootretro no problem i have a ch341a the only headache its disamble all again but no problem. Thank you!!

[@sebastianschreiber33]

Hello Friend, I have followed all your steps in high sierra and with a quadro 610m graphics card but something strange has happened to me, now it only lets me install high sierra, when I install I format the ssd and install catalina or bigsur with opencon, the ssd does not appear, It only tells me that it cannot be installed... I have changed the SSD and nothing, the problem started when I applied the set metal gpu status and placed Nvidia Kepler and applied it to the SSD and from there the problem... I would like to know what the solution would be. The bios of the GPU is corrupted and do you have to put the bios back in? It is very strange.. or it is the motherboard bios.. all this is a 27 inch imac a1312. greetings.

[@rebootretro]

If it says "cannot install" it sounds like your USB stick does not have OpenCore installed on it. It sounds like you're booting the vanilla Apple installer, which will reject older Macs with that error. Double check that OpenCore bootloader is properly installed to your USB installer stick. You're using a completely different card, so the mod process is very different on yours compared to mine. Some cards will work with the stock vBIOS if you don't mind loosing the Mac OS boot screen. My card required a vBIOS mod to work properly at all. Each card is different. Check this forum here for specifics on your card: forums.macrumors.com/threads/2011-imac-graphics-card-upgrade.1596614/ It appears your card needs a custom ROM (the available ROM is specific to certain card revisions, so double check before flashing). It also appears that your card requires the heatsink to be modded as well for that card (copper shim), according to the docs.

[@sebastianschreiber33]

@@rebootretro Hello. Can the changes be reverted with open core 0.4.6? In the end I tried everything, reinstalling the original bios by Nick, in the end nothing, I will leave it with high sierra or I will buy another graphics card again.

[@AcDrift]

friend, I have an Imac A1311 12.1 I'm running MacOS Sonoma with OpenCore however I noticed some slowness in the animations it has an AMD HD6750M 512MB, I bought the same model of video card that you used, I can install it following the same steps What did you show? I already bought the board with the modified vbios but the seller does not recommend this board model for my imac.

[@rebootretro]

You are correct, the HD6750M only has partial graphics acceleration (after patched with OC) which causes slowness in animations. Moving to a Metal-supported card brings back full acceleration. I am not sure what the seller meant. There are some known issues with 2011 models which breaks iMac sleep (you have to disable sleep, unless they fixed the issue in OpenCore) but I believe it should work otherwise. Also, all the research I've done on the M5100 card was with 27" models. I don't see a reason it won't work on a 21.5" model though. You could ask the seller for details, specifically WHY they don't recommend in your model. I have not tried your combo, but I don't see any reason why it won't work. The installation should be similar. A couple things: 1. You need to double check, but I think on the 21.5" model you do NOT need the copper shim - the 27" uses MXM 3b cards but I think the 21.5" uses MXM 3a cards and I THINK the stock die hight is taller on these and not needing the shim. You NEED to double check this! Not enough pressure on the die and it will overheat. Too much pressure on the die and it will crack. Mounting pressure does not need to be exact, but must be inside reasonable limits. 2. Even if you already have OpenCore and modded vBIOS, you may need to set OpenCore flags like in the video so it will properly initialize the card to get boot screen. I was using a much older OpenCore version; it is possible that newer versions of OpenCore now detect the card and automatically set the flags. 3. (For troubleshooting). If you do not get video on screen, try connecting an external monitor. If the seller did not flash the correct vBIOS, the video may come out external port instead of internal LCD. Otherwise the installation should be very similar to the video. Good luck with your upgrade!!

[@AcDrift]

@@rebootretro Thanks! As soon as I install it, I'll come back here to let you know if it went well, just for knowledge. Thanks for the video and instructions!

[@AcDrift]

@@rebootretro Friend, I installed the card today and it worked but it only recognizes 7 MB of VRAM, is there anything I can do? Brightness level doesn't work either, I saw that there is an advanced option for developers in Opencore but I couldn't find it

[@rebootretro]

​@@AcDrift I think there are 2 possibilities: 1. OpenCore doesn't have the correct settings set. Some GUI versions don't have the advanced options, and you need to use the TUI (terminal version) of OpenCore to set them. If you are getting the OpenCore boot picker and Apple boot logo screen then I don't think this is the issue (but you should check anyway). 2. If you previously had the non-Metal OC patch for the original stock GPU, it's very possible (and likely) this is causing an issue. To confirm this, install a fresh copy of Mac OS on an external drive without any graphics patches. I think this is much more likely the problem. Congrats! It looks like you almost got it fully working!! You're past the hardest part already!

[@agfo91]

@@AcDrift =hello, did you finally need the shim ? thanks

[@renzonovara2728]

Thanks for the video! after watching this I just purchased the M5100 FirePro for my 2011 27" iMac, which I'm actually waiting to receive a Xenon E3-1275 v2 , to do a CPU upgrade. Would you recommend doing the CPU upgrade first? or after M5100 GPU upgrade?

[@rebootretro]

I don't see any benefit to do either one first, just that I would do them one at a time for troubleshooting reasons. Since the GPU is probably going to be the more fiddly upgrade, if it was me I'd probably do the CPU first and test it to get it out of the way since that upgrade is more straight forward. The GPU upgrade was a massive hassle of troubleshooting, but works flawlessly in my 2009 after finally getting everything set correctly. The CPU is a drop-in replacement, where the GPU requires BIOS modding, copper shim, OpenCore customization, etc. But ultimately I don't think there is any technical advantage to do one first. Good luck with your project!!

[@renzonovara2728]

@@rebootretro Thanks for the detailed response. Did you find most of your troubleshooting guide and support on the forum? I was playing around with Ventura, but it was super laggy, which got me into looking for upgrade options for both GPU and CPU. To get a good baseline, it’s probably better to delete the OS partition and install Monterey for all this before looking into testing out Ventura after both upgrades?

[@rebootretro]

​@@renzonovara2728 It should not be laggy with your existing CPU. The OS itself won't see leaps and strides of change based on your CPU. It makes me think your issue might be elsewhere. Obviously a better CPU will perform better, but you shouldn't have usability issues with the factory one. It's possible that the issue is related to the factory GPU not having proper graphics support, in which case an upgrade should fix it. I noticed you're using a 2011; I think there are some other important notes when doing a GPU upgrade on 2011 but that should be all in that forum. For troubleshooting, most of the info was in that forum thread, but I did some light Googling outside of that. My video doesn't go into detail but does outline the basic process. My video is also for a 2009, and the process could be slightly different for a 2011 so I'd recommend reading up before starting. I'd also recommend going the chip clip method for programming (like I did). A USB programmer is fine (and easier) instead of a Pi. Flashing from Linux is dangerous, because if you accidentally flash the wrong file you won't be able to boot to reflash the right file (and will need a chip clip anyway). Also very important to dump/backup your stock ROM from the GPU (at least TWICE!); that way you can flash back if you have issues.

[@renzonovara2728]

@@rebootretro Thanks for the tips. Helps a lot to gather as notes plus the forum reading I’ll do. One thing I didn’t mentioned and maybe that is why the 2011 iMac las lagging and slow is that after doing a full Time Machine file restore, after laggy Ventura was already installed, the PSU starting to make a loud static noise and did not powered back on after shut down. I’m waiting on delivery of a replacement PSU, before I can do anything. I appreciate all your tips and time!! 👏🏼

[@rebootretro]

@@renzonovara2728 No problem! Yes, those PSUs do die on occasion. Good luck with yours! Sounds like you're pretty close to a full rebuild at this point, it will be like new afterwards!

[@abnermoraesp]

Functional on iMac 2009 27 inch, core i5?

[@rebootretro]

Yes, the Mac shown in the video is a 2009 27 inch. Upgrade is still working great! :)

[@abnermoraesp]

@@rebootretro oh great!!! Thanks for your information, like man!

[@DrMacabre]

Just swapped my gpu for a 5100 preflashed bought from AliExpress, €28 i had oclp already installed so i had nothing but switch to AMD GNC but to my surprise, the GPU says it has only 14Mo instead of 2gb of ram. Any idea why ? Should i reflash the card with one of the vbios available?

[@rebootretro]

When you bought it, did they tell you specifically which vBIOS was installed? There are several versions. I think the one I used was the GOP version specifically for the red Dell card. If you previously had legacy graphics patches installed, it's possible that is causing some issue as well. Ultimately I think theres 2 things to try (whichever is easiest first): 1. Temporarily use a completely clean hard drive, install fresh Mac OS WITHOUT legacy graphics patches, and install OpenCore. 2. Dump the current vBIOS (save original somewhere safe) and try flashing one of the other vBIOS. If you have the red card, you might try the GOP version I used. You do loose the factory boot picker with this card and this BIOS, FYI. If you still have trouble and have more questions, feel free to post back and I'll try to help if I can.

[@DrMacabre]

@@rebootretrothanks, it ended up working after installing a fresh os. Card immediately recognize with 2G and metal.

[@rebootretro]

@@DrMacabre Nice! My guess was the existing legacy patches (which patch out Metal I think) were causing some issues. Congrats on your upgrade!

[@DrMacabre]

@@rebootretro thank you, i expected something rather complicated after reading and watching a lot of tutorials but it was actually very easy to swap the card. The most difficult part was to plug the temp sensor cable back on the main board.

[@rebootretro]

@@DrMacabre For most people, I think the most complicated part is flashing the card. But a pre-flashed card solves that :). You're right, the rest isn't too bad for anyone with some technical experience.

[@D4rkFeNiX1]

Is it possible to do this upgrade on a 2010 imac?

[@rebootretro]

Yes, it's possible. Just read the thread in the description before buying a card, because sometimes there are some compatibility issues between certain cards and Mac models. I believe the one shown in the video works in a 21.5" 2010 iMac, but double check before buying :)

[@D4rkFeNiX1]

ok, thanks!!@@rebootretro

[@giorgos7six]

@@D4rkFeNiX1 i have a mid 2010 27" iMac... did u manage with yours?

[@D4rkFeNiX1]

@@giorgos7six I'm waiting for my gpu to arrive from china, I bought it this week on aliexpress and my imac is a 21.5, I couldn't close a deal on the 27, but regarding the gpu, the Chinese already send it with vbios for mac

[@giorgos7six]

@@D4rkFeNiX1 what GPU did u order?

[@ConorFenlon]

Forgive my ignorance, but what exactly IS 'metal'?

[@ghardware_3034]

Graphics API like OpenGL

[@ConorFenlon]

@@ghardware_3034 Thank you! Would this upgrade be worth it for a Late 2009 iMac? My GPU has only 512MB, and isn't always the most stable (when using Blender in particular)

[@rebootretro]

@@ConorFenlon Performance likely won't have a huge benefit as the M5100 isn't terribly high-end. If your getting freezing and lockups like I was, I would expect the upgrade to fix it. The original GPUs will start causing lockups when they are in early stages of failure; from my experience the lockups become more frequent until the card fails entirely. My iMac is incredibly stable now with this upgrade, I am very happy with it :)

[@howardc1964]

iMac 11,x on OCLP 1.3.0 and macOS 14.2.1, still need to use 0.4.6 TUI? or does OCLP 1.3.0 build OC properly by just selecting Advanced->Graphics Override to AMD GCN (maybe it will set x64.efi also?) Also know if Advanced->AMD GOP Injection need to be checked on OCLP 1.3.0?

[@rebootretro]

It's been a while since I did this, and I don't remember exactly. But from what I recall, at time of recording there was at least one very necessary setting that you could not set unless you used TUI version (the option either didn't exist in the GUI version, or didn't work). It's possible that in later GUI versions they made the option available or fixed it. I suspect you would need the Advanced-> AMD GOP selected if you flashed the GOP ROM, but I've not played with GUI version or any newer version than what is shown in the video. If following the exact method in the video then it should work, but unfortunately I haven't tested OCLP 1.3.0 GUI to say if it works the same. Sorry I wish I could be better help. I can't even remember the exact reason why only the TUI version worked at the time.

[@howardc1964]

@@rebootretro Thanks successfully installed the M5100. Used pre built linux boot stick method (someone added amd besides nvidia) to flash vBIOS, totally easy and no HW required. Also no need to preinstall proper OC EFI before swapping new card. Great option for dead GPU efforts. Leave system SSD disconnected (or probably just formatted blank wo EFI) and it will boot the linux boot stick to flash vBIOS. Wrote a long post (#21491) in the macrumors thread. OCLP seems to be advancing fast! haha.

[@rebootretro]

Sorry! YT blocked your comment, so I didn't see it until now. That's amazing you got it working!! That's excellent that the Linux method worked so smoothly! I didn't even try TBH; I find that every time I touch Linux it never works the way the guides say and I have to battle it every step of the way, LOL. And as I recall, there were just overview explanations at the time and no step by step guides. At the time, I was pretty familiar with my Raspberry Pi flasher so I found that method pretty easy, but I image the Linux route is probably a better choice for many. I think the OC preinstall was necessary for it to initialize the internal display instead of the external TB video out ports; it's very possible that the OC team has modified code since my version to detect these cards and apply necessary changes on the fly. Or maybe you got a different/better ROM that doesn't require it. I think I had the GOP ROM from the post. Does your native boot picker work? Or just the OC one? That's excellent that you posted back to that forum, I'm sure it will really help someone! Good guides are always a great asset when attempting these type of upgrades!

[@DrMacabre]

Hello, i'm going the 5100 way but there is now 3 vbios available for this card and i have no idea which one i should use, HynixAFR, HynixBFR or plain LVDS, any idea what these rom are for?​@@rebootretro

[@agfo91]

hello, i finally installed this GPU on my mac A1311 12.1. I use MacOS ventura With OpenCore. As ACDrift said, I already bought the board with the modified vbios . The installation is long but easy. 2hours. I restarted the imac and i had the same problem as AcDrift. It only recognizes 7 MB of VRAM I canceled the open core post installation pacht in the Open core interface, reboot, same problem. I reinstall the Open core post installation pacth, reboot, and… red screen. I reboot and the system stop the launch a few time , at the middle of the launch line under the apple. Black screen. How could I Know if the GPU bios is OK ? For the moment, I try to reinstall whith time machine. Thanks for you help

[@agfo91]

I finally decided to restard the mac with safe mode.I saw in propertises that the AMD card was detected. Size of memory was OK (2gb) but not the name (AMD RADEON 7XXX) I think that the legacy patch is not OK. It decided to desinstalled the leagacy patch. Reeboot: No pb, no crash but the card is not detected correctly. So the pb is legacy patch and i saw in the documentation this: Following GPUs are applicable: GPU Architecture Model Families Supported AMD Polaris RX 4xx/5xx (10/20 series) Supported with patching AMD Vega Vega 56/64/VII (10/20 series) AMD Navi RX 5xxx/6xxx (10/20 series) Unsupported Is AMD M5100 compatible with open leagacy / Ventura ?

[@rebootretro]

Yes, it should support Ventura. The M5100 is a GCN 1.0 card, which is officially supported on Ventura via the OCLP v0.5.0, so make sure your OCLP version is new enough. I've also experienced issues if the system was previously patched for legacy graphics (stock Radeon HD card) and then upgraded the card. The best way is to swap in a new hard drive (or fully wipe), install fresh, and apply the OCLP post-install patches with the M5100 installed. The patcher should see that the stock card isn't there and skip those patches, and install the GCN 1.0 patches instead. I believe restoring from Time Machine will restore the previous GPU patched system. If you can't do a fresh system install and need to retain the existing system, you can try restoring Time Machine and then doing an in-place reinstall of Mac OS to restore the OS to stock but retain personal data. Bottom line, if the system is patched in ANY way for the stock Radeon HD, it can cause problems for the GCN 1.0 cards. Fully wiped/fresh OS + OCLP 0.5.0 or later should resolve it. If you get video out using the iMac's internal LCD, I suspect your vBIOS is fine. I don't have experience specifically with Ventura, but I will try to help if you post back with questions. Good luck!

[@agfo91]

Thanks for your response. I really appreciate your attention to questions. I will let you know as soon as I have realized all this. It takes time, it’s not so easy to learn all these concepts but it’s exiting to bring these incredible IMac to life. Sincerly yours.

[@agfo91]

Small question, you told that the best way is to erase my main hdd ? The risk is that i will no longer able to boot from a usb let to reinstall after (since i have the new gpu, i cant choose the boot with option key) thanks

[@rebootretro]

@@agfo91 Yes, that is a risk for sure. If you have the original GPU, you could install it temporarily if you run into trouble. Or, a better option for testing, install a different blank hard drive. If the hard drive is fully blank, EFI "should" choose the USB stick as boot device even if the hard drive is normally default. Both options would work for me because I have lots of spare parts, but I don't know what spare parts you have on-hand.

[@fidilaa1]

Hi. I already upgraded my 2011 imac 21.5 inch gpu to Nvidia K610m. All smooth sailing. The OS is High Sierra right now. Is it possible to upgrade the OS to Monterey or Big Sur?

[@rebootretro]

That is a Kepler card. Since NVIDIA had a falling out with Apple, no new drivers (or official hardware) has been produced so all NVIDIA drivers are old patched versions. OpenCore Legacy Patcher seems to support Big Sur, and probably Monterey with the correct patches installed. EDIT: There are some issues with Kepler cards. Check out this forum post: forums.macrumors.com/threads/2011-imac-graphics-card-upgrade.1596614/ specifically SPOILER 3 - Known issues and problems #5 (re: sleep issues) and #7 (re: black screen issue after PRAM reset).