Catalina firmware update bricking real Macs

[trs96]

Official Apple firmware updates are "bricking" some people's real Macs. We obviously don't need the firmware updates for our hacks. Read this first if you plan on upgrading your Mac to Catalina. So it won't become "Catatonic."

Catatonic - of or in an immobile or unresponsive stupor.

EFI firmware problem bricking some Macs on update to Catalina - 9to5Mac

https://9to5mac.com/2019/10/24/efi-firmware/

TL;DR If you have an older Mac i.e. 2012 - 2018 that is Catalina eligible, it may be best to wait till Apple fixes their firmware update before you upgrade the OS. There's no way all these failures happening after the update are just a coincidence. Apple is not fixing these Macs yet. Most are out of warranty. It sounds like those that do fix it via a 3rd party repair shop, replace the EFI firmware chip with a new good one or repair the existing one.

Here's one report from the Apple.com support forums.

Catalina bricked my MacBook Pro (Mid-2014, 128G)

I used macOS Mojave on mid-2014 MacBook Pro before update. While installing it forced me to restart. After restart nightmare has been started. The Blinking question mark folder has appeared on my screen.

I tried,

• Reset SMC and NVRAM (With all combinations these are find on internet and apple support page.)
• Access local and network recovery (with all key combinations)
• Access to time machine restore (with all key combinations)
• Mojave installation USB stick (that USB works we tried another Macs)
• External disk that includes pre installed Mojave (that external OS works well we ran on other Macs)
• Unplug all battery power (black reset)

I've tried all keyboard combinations and nothing works, even with external keyboard! It seems that there is no start up chime, no USB detection, no key feedback. It‘s bricked.

From the 9 to 5 Mac forum:

My 27" 2013 iMac bricked in the process of installing the consumer release of Catalina. I was able to boot into recovery mode, but unable to reinstall the operating system. Wiped the disc clean, ran Disk Aid (healthy) and still unable to install. Apple Store was able to do a server install of Mojave, since the Genius assisting me confided that the ".0" release of Catalina was so buggy that he's telling everyone with ears to avoid it. Also said mine was the 7th issue he had that week.

 

[trs96]

Here's why iOS 13 and macOS Catalina are so buggy at their respective launches.

Six Reasons Why iOS 13 and Catalina Are So Buggy - TidBITS

By most accounts, the release of iOS 13 and macOS 10.15 Catalina have been troubled, with numerous significant bugs making it past Apple’s internal testing and the public beta phase. Former Apple engineer David Shayer explains the underlying reasons these releases have had so many problems.

tidbits.com

 

[UtterDisbelief]

Interesting perspectives. That real Macs can get bricked by a normal update almost (I said almost, because I do still own one) made me smile - nervously. We spend a lot of time trying to get around things like this on a Hack, after all.

Two things I note this year:

1) The Catalina GM went out, when? A week or two before the final release (IIRC). So if any problems had been found, how much time was available to address them?

Slightly off topic,

2) Are we getting a Mac keynote this Autumn? The iOS one was 10th September. Maybe I missed something.

 

[trs96]

Are we getting a Mac keynote this Autumn? The iOS one was 10th September. Maybe I missed something.

October event is out of the question. They will launch new products without all the fanfare. Just a press release. That's why they spent a lot of time on the Mac Pro at WWDC.

With AirPods Pro being announced today (goes on sale October 30), I wonder if we will see a new product release from Apple each day for the next 2 days...

• AirPods Pro --> Monday
• Mac Pro --> Tuesday??
• 16" MacBook Pro --> Wednesday??

• by: CaseySJ

 

[UtterDisbelief]

October event is out of the question. They will launch new products without all the fanfare. Just a press release. That's why they spent a lot of time on the Mac Pro at WWDC.

• by: CaseySJ

Thanks. Just noticed the AirPods are now front-page on the Apple site.

Let's see what the week brings then

 

[trs96]

Thanks. Just noticed the AirPods are now front-page on the Apple site.

Let's see what the week brings then

I'm interested to see how much it costs to get a decently specced Mac Pro. Along with a few million other people.
I'm predicting the 28 core maxed out version will cost more than a new Tesla Model 3. That car is just a computer on wheels. Maybe a tablet is a closer approximation. Runs on a battery you charge, has a large touchscreen and takes you anywhere you want with Apple or Google maps.

Once you add up the sales tax and 3 years of Apple Care along with upgrade prices Apple charges... The most expensive Mac ever produced. Steve Jobs would have been mighty proud. "Look Steve, no buttons or ports on the front." "It also costs more than most new cars people drive." Steve's reply. "That's how you build and sell a real Pro computer."

Some wealthy Youtubers will be buying them on day one. Well get to see them that way. Maybe by January 2020.

 

[dr.macinstein]

I wish I had read this thread before I, too, bricked my 2018 MacBook Pro 15 installing Catalina.

Here’s what happened to me this week:

1. Installed Catalina a couple of weeks ago.
2. Had some issues and decided to go back to High Sierra, which is what my machine shipped with.
3. Pressed shift-cmd-opt-R to get the original OS reinstall.
4. MacBook connected to Internet and downloaded the installer.
5. Failed with triangle and exclamation.
6. Opened chat with Apple support, who tried to convince me that this was a problem with my Internet connection.
7. Insisted on Genius Bar appointment, which I got.
8. Genius at Apple advised me that they had seen a number of cases like mine, and that they had been having “fairly good success” at recovering them.
9. With these confidence-inspiring words, he then asked me to sign a release to have my computer serviced. It’s there at the Apple store tonight as I write this (on my stable Hackintosh).
10. I’m now doing the homework I should have done before upgrading. Turns out that the web is full of stories about bricked Macs after installing Catalina.
11. But who would have thought that you could brick your computer by installing an OS update from Apple. No Hackintosh hardware or beta OS releases here. Just stock Apple hardware and distribution software.
12. My computer is 1 day from being out of warranty. Thank God I don’t have to worry about paying for this. But what about the people who do? They can’t be held responsible for damage caused by Apple’s own software, can they?
13. There are reports all over the place, notably This Thread in Apple Discussions, where people with computers that are out of warranty are being charged for new logic boards for a problem caused by a supported OS installation. Apple actually encourages you to upgrade. But when you do what they tell you to do and then brick your computer that's your responsibility?
14. It appears that you do anything with your computer at your own risk. Hackintosh builders have always assumed this responsibility. But it shouldn't be the case that users running stock hardware and installing a supported release-version OS upgrade should be stuck with a bricked computer and an $800 repair bill. Apple should compensate people who have had these issues.

 

[ii.nferno]

Here's why iOS 13 and macOS Catalina are so buggy at their respective launches.

Six Reasons Why iOS 13 and Catalina Are So Buggy - TidBITS

By most accounts, the release of iOS 13 and macOS 10.15 Catalina have been troubled, with numerous significant bugs making it past Apple’s internal testing and the public beta phase. Former Apple engineer David Shayer explains the underlying reasons these releases have had so many problems.

tidbits.com

"Apple doesn’t do a lot of automated testing"