20 September 2009

Cat in the Bag: Install Snow Leopard on the HP Mini

This installation method uses NetbookBootMaker. With Chameleon 2.0-RC2 already available, you might be asking why NetbookBootMaker? True, NetbookBootMaker is primarily made for the Dell Mini hackintosh but it works fine in my setup and offers noob-friendly tools as well such as ExtraUpdate - more on that later.

Update: Please see Snow Leopard Guide

This installation method uses NetbookBootMaker. With Chameleon 2.0-RC2 already available, you might be asking why NetbookBootMaker? True, NetbookBootMaker is primarily made for the Dell Mini hackintosh but it works fine in my setup and offers noob-friendly tools as well such as ExtraUpdate - more on that later.

So, let's get this rollin'! :D


Create a bootable Snow Leopard USB/External HDD installer

What you need : a hackintosh/real Mac, Snow Leopard Retail DVD.dmg image, USB/External HDD (at least 8 gb)

Download: > NetbookBootMaker <

  1. With your drive (USB/External HDD) plugged in, launch Disk Utility (Applications > Utilities) and format it. Let's assume we'd named the USB/HDD partition as "DVD Snow Leo". Note: I normally use GUID & Mac OS Extended (Journaled).
  2. Still in Disk Utility, click on the Restore tab. Drag the Snow Leo image ("Mac OS X Install DVD") into the Source field. Then drag "DVD Snow Leo" into the Destination: field. Click on the Restore button and wait until the process completes. Quit Disk Utility. Note: If the Snow Leo Retail DVD image is not listed at the left pane, simply drag the image there from a Finder window, or Click on the Image... button beside the Source field to navigate to the image's location in your hard drive.
  3. Launch NetbookBootMaker. Select "DVD Snow Leo" as target drive from the dropdown menu. Click on Prepare Boot Drive and wait till the patching finishes. Quit NetbookBootMaker.
  4. In a Finder window, Shift+Cmd+G to access /Volumes/DVD Snow Leo/System/Installation/Packages. You should see (3) three "OSInstall" files in there: OSInstall.mpkg, OSInstall.pkg, OSInstall.pkg.orig.
  5. Delete OSInstall.pkg. Rename OSInstall.pkg.orig, taking out the ".orig" extension so it becomes "OSInstall.pkg". VoilĂ , you've made your own USB Installer. Note: NetbookBootMaker altered the default OSInstall.pkg file so, basically, what we're doing here is just restoring the default OSInstall.pkg.

Install Mac OS X Snow Leopard onto the HP Mini

What you need: Snow Leo USB Installer (that you've just created in part one of this guide), HP Mini (this is tested on the 1000)

  1. With the USB installer plugged in, switch on the Mini and press F9 as it starts. You'll see the boot menu screen. Use the up/down arrow keys to choose your USB Installer from the list and hit the Enter key. Wait until Darwin finish its countdown and boot into the Mac OS X Installer Program.
  2. Choose your preferred language etc. On the Menubar, go to Utilities > Disk Utility. Format the Mini's internal HDD as GUID & Mac OS Extended (Journaled). Let's assume it's named as "Macintosh HD". Quit Disk Utility.
  3. Choose Mac HD as the destination partition for installation. You can click on the Customize button at the lower left corner to specify which components you want to install. Note: Normally, I opt to exclude printer drivers, all other languages, X11 to save more hard disk real estate and include Rosetta (for MS Office:Mac, it isn't Universal binary yet) and QuickTime Player 7, but it's all up to you.
  4. Click on OK, then click on the Install button the start installing Mac OS X on the HP Mini. Walk around, grab some Starbucks, read a book, anything - just don't try to blow dry your hair anywhere near the HP Mini while it's installing OS X hahaha ;). The HP Mini will restart after it's finished installing. Note: Installation won't stall anymore because of what we did a while ago with the OSInstall files.

Post-install Tweaks/Configs

Download: >
NetbookBootMaker <, > GeneralExtensions kext bundle <, > About This Mac.pkg <

  1. When the HP Mini restarts and with the USB Installer still plugged in, press F9 to boot with the USB installer once more. But before Darwin loads the Snow Leopard Installer Program again, press any key to interrupt the bootloader. Arrow up/down to choose Macintosh HD and hit Enter. Note: We just used the USB Installer's bootloader (which is Chameleon 2.0-RC2) to boot up the internal HDD.
  2. After the Welcome video (yes, you'll get to see it) and configure your user account and other settings in the Setup Assistant. You'll then be brought into the Snow Leopard Desktop. Note: There's noticeable "lag" when you click on Continue at the Do not transfer my information now part in Setup Assistant but it's just normal as Mac OS X is trying to setup your network (because it's already recognized the Mini 1000's Broadcom WiFi module as AirPort). Just go on following this: > Different Network Setup > My computer does connect to the internet > Continue
  3. Once you're inside Snow Leopard, launch NetbookBootMaker. Select Macintosh HD from the dropdown menu and click on Prepare Boot Drive. Quit NetbookBootMaker when patching is finished. Note: Your Macintosh HD/internal HDD will already be bootable by now and resolution will already be correct at 1024 x 600, Keyboard & Trackpad, Bluetooth and WiFi working. there are still some tweaking to do; kexts to install to provide support for the Mini's other hardware - get sound, correct some power/battery related issues.
  4. In a Finder window, Shift+Cmd+G to open the /System/Library/Extensions/. Delete AppleHDA.kext. Note: This is done so that the VoodooHDA kext which will be installed later will work.
  5. After that, Shift+Cmd+G to open the /Extra/ folder. Delete the Themes folder entirely. Note: Deleting this folder corrects the Apple logo's image ratio during the Apple bootsplash.
  6. Unzip the GeneralExtensions folder and copy the whole folder to /Extra/, replacing the existing GeneralExtensions folder in there.
  7. Launch the ExtraUpdate app inside the /Extra/ - the one with the rubber shoe icon. Click on Update Extensions. Restart. Note: During the update, the app will mount the ramdisk, so you'll its icon popping up in your Desktop. You'll know that the update is completed when this ramdisk is unmounted and the Update Extensions button is no longer recessed.
  8. Unzip and run the AboutThisMac.pkg to correct the CPU and RAM information on the "About This Mac" window. Note: The CPU clock is already properly recognized as well as the amount of ram, so this is purely cosmetic.

Congratulations! You're now runnning Snow Leopard on your MacBook Mini. :D

Optional: Use VoodooPS2Controller instead of ApplePS2Controller

Download: >
VoodooPS2Controller-0.98 installer.pkg <

In order to maximize your use of the Mini's Synaptics trackpad, i.e. side-scrolling and tap-clicking, you need to install VoodooPS2Controller instead of the ApplePS2Controller (which is already, working fine so it's up to you if want to leave it that way).

  1. Unzip and run the VoodooPS2Controller installer package. Tick the checkbox for the Trackpad. Click on Install.
  2. In a Finder window, Shift+Cmd+G to get to /System/Library/Extensions/ and copy the VoodooPS2Controller.kext. After copying it, delete the kext from the Extensions folder, authenticating as you go.
  3. Shift+Cmd+G to /Extra/GeneralExtensions/ and paste the VoodooPS2Controller.kext in there. Delete AppleACPIPS2Nub.kext and ApplePS2Controller.kext. Again, authenticate as prompted. Note: VoodooPS2Controller doesn't need AppleACPIPS2Nub.kext. As a matter of fact, you'll most probably get a kernel panic if you keep the Nub kext. ApplePS2Controller's function will be taken over by VoodooPS2Controller anyway so we can delete it as well.
  4. Shift+Cmd+G again to /Extra/ and launch the UpdateExtra app again. Click on the Update Extensions. Wait for it to finish. Restart to begin using the new kexts.

Final words. . .

So you're on Snow Leopard. You'll find that pretty much everything works - except for Sleep/Resume and the internal mic.

The VoodooHDA kext used in this guide is not the newer version which supposedly makes the internal mic work. I've tried it on my Mini 1001TU but doesn't work for me, but it might for you. You can download it
from here and install the PrefPane and replace the kext in your /Extra/GeneralExtensions/ folder. Don't forget to update the extensions using the ExtraUpdate app.

This ExtraUpdate app is one of the reasons why I chose to go with NetbookBootMaker, that and the fact that with it the installation/customization process is almost an entirely GUI approach - it's very noob friendly.

As for the Sleep/Resume issue, you may notice that we've included the SleepEnabler kext in this method even though it doesn't work - the Mini "goes to sleep" but it immediately wakes up so technically, it doesn't get to sleep ever. But at least, that's better than having to force shutdown/restart the Mini because it's gone comatose when you accidently close the lid, or forget to configure settings in
System Preferences > Energy Saver to make the Mini insomniac. ;)

23 comments:

Anonymous said...

how about 10.6.1 update? any issue?

Pedro Cardoso said...

Running 10.6.1 on my Compaq Mini 700 with almost no issues. Update from .6.0 to .6.1 went smothly. Thx for the guide!

Just 2 things not working: internal mic (the updated VoodooHDA works with my iPhone headphones mic), and sleep. Sleep crashes the my MacbookMini.

I hope these two issues will be solved quickly. Other than that, it was the smoothest install I did on a hackintosh.

Unknown said...

1 issue I'm having on my Mini 1000 is that the voodoo trackpad settings don't save - pretty much like it was back in leopard. However, the fix (putting a new .plist file into library/launchagent) doesn't work. Is there a new way to fix this issue?

Brian Z. said...

Thanks for tutorial. This is very helpful. I have a hp mini 110-1030NR and this worked great. My only problem has been getting the resolution to 1024x600 (it's stuck at 1024x576). Also my wifi and ethernet are both not working. Everything else seems to work out. What .kext files deal with the WIFI, ethernet, and video?

Alleulys said...

Great!! it's work, running 10.6 on my HP Mini 5101, only wifi and ethernet cannot working(cannot find the driver.../.\)
Many Thanks ^^

DC said...

Thanks for this! The install went without a hitch, and it's running fine. Only major issue (other than system insomnia) is no ethernet or 802.11X. I'd had the wifi go out when I was running 10.5, so it may be a hardware problem, though the machine (HP Mini 110) is new. I'm wondering if you know of any patches for this?--I checked my kexts, and they seem correct. Also, any idea if this installation procedure would work with Leopard? I may end up downgrading if I can't get the network working, but this way is SO much easier than iDeneb! Anyway, thanks again.

Kevin said...

Great guide btw!

Grid said...

@Brian Z.
Isn't 1024x576 the default resolution for your Mini's model?

Nihiriju said...

@ Brian Z.

I think 1024x578 is a fine resolution. I also have no wifi though. If anyone knows anything about wifi pleaseeeeee post!

Sleep, ethernet and battery estimation don't work either....but no big deal.

Nihiriju said...

SO......I am having increased problems now. I have a HP mini 110 1030CA, got it all up and running things looked good minus sleep(no work), wifi(no work), ethernet(no work), sound(always at max) and some minor battery issues(time estimation off). However using the system more it seems to be freezing completely when itunes is open. I won't be trying to do anything, i'll just go to move the mouse after letting it sit for a bit and everything is unresponsive (including keyboard commands).

i am considering going back to wind'hoes because I need to use wifi and stuff. I have a mac at home but i need this little fella for school. Gerrrr and windows was frustrating too.......angry.

Any help is ubbber appreciated!

Grid said...

@Nihiriju
Actually the 110 WiFi card is still non-functional in Snow Leo but I think there's some light on this. People at insanelymac have been working on the HP mini 311 whose WiFi card is similar to the 110's and they are, I think, close to making it work. You can follow their progress here:
http://www.insanelymac.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=189621

Meanwhile, it's up to you if you wanna go with OS X or Windows or even both, via dual-boot.

Nae said...

For everyone who is having issues with WiFi, I have found that in multiple netbooks, I can't get OSX to work with any Atheros wireless card but have had great luck with Broadcom. I bought a mini half size Broadcom wireless card off eBay for around $15 and just put it in - worked instantly. This is the one I bought - http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=360205238031

I also installed an HD video accelerator but haven't really figured out what difference it's making/could make if I get it working. I have the High Res screen and am currently installing Adobe CS4. I'm pretty stoked on this right now :)

LeMaurien19 said...

^That's wonderful info!
You've a Mini 110 right?

Ender J said...

wow this really works !!!! thanks for this guide !!! god bless you

Dan Romney said...

So, Just wanted to post a quick little note here. I followed this guide, plus decided to be brave and follow another guide by some fellow hackintoshers and got my sleep to work by editing the DSDT.aml file. that was a little interesting but worth it. SO now the sleep works via just keeping it on too long, the clamshell, and even the power button, if you slide it it now shows the menu like on a regular APple laptop when you press the power button.

I only have one request, if anyone out there has been able to find a way to get the internal mic to work, this would be great. and would welcome a tutorial on that, even if it means editing some more files like the DSDT

Dan Romney said...

By the way, I have an HP MIni 1116nr

Grid said...

Cool! So it's a Mini 110 series?
You could try VoodooHDA (check for latest at the voodooproject site).

How much ram do you have? Could you share your dsdt? It could save a lot of people on 110's a lot of trouble.

Dan Romney said...

Pretty sure it's a 1000, thats what the sticker on the bottom says. I would be happy to share my DSDT. I am sure it would take a tutorial to tell people how to implement the DSDT, but as we already know you are good at that.
I'll post a link the the DSDT file I made in a bit.

Dan Romney said...

and I have 1gb ram. Another thing too, are there any updated Power management kexts, my fan run almost constantly when my mini is on and not sleeping.

LeMaurien19 said...

There's superhai's site for power management kexts.

Also look at the post here regarding 1gb ram and sleep. Involves correcting ram information on dsdt.

Dan Romney said...

Here is the link for my dsdt.aml file that has sleep enabled via clamshel, sitting too long, and also the power switch on the from.
I am running an HP Mini 1000, specifically the 1116nr.

http://www.iba-designs.com/hackintosh/dsdt.aml.zip

Anonymous said...

Just wondering how long does the Darwin countdown take when booting from the USB? Being stuck on a black screen doesnt look to promising..

Anonymous said...

Hi,

Thanks for posting a how-to on this. I followed everything to the letter and I get the bootloader running at boot but as soon as I hit enter it starts booting and then instantly reboots.