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How to build your own iMac Pro [Successful Build/Extended Guide]

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I don't understand how the DSDT of @apfelnico implements the PCI devices under "PCI" of Apple's system report without any additional SSDT ... what loads the individual PCI drivers if not a SSDT?

For the devices to appear into the PCI screen they just need a corresponding _DSM method, which is what the DSDT patch add.
You can add it in a SSDT or the main DSDT, it makes no difference.

The advantage of this method is that it's fairly easy to adapt a patch to any motherboard, more so that multiple SSDT.

All the built-peripherals provided by the gigabyte Designare are handled here, and as such, they all appear in the System Information -> PCI entry. The only ones not properly showing there are those plugged via the Thunderbolt port (I have a Pegasus R4, an Apple Thunderbolt Display, and a Lacie Rugged TB SSD).
So in the PCI screen, you see the screen's network card, the USB hub, the firewire 800 interface etc...

What about your TB implementation and TB hot plug functionality? Seems that also other PCI devices are still missing under "PCI" in your case.. Or does your "PCI" screenshot simply not show all implemented devices?

There's nothing related to the TB implementation in this patch.
I haven't done anything for hotplug, I didn't even know this was in the real of possibilities.

Also please be aware when advertising your current PCI implementation that the latter just reflects one particular example for the Designare EX, which is just valid for your particular slot population and particular hardware configuration.

No, the devices implemented are the on board ones. There's nothing specific to my board. That patch will work for all designare boards, and adapting it for other gigabyte board will be trivial too.

The graphic card doesn't have a particular entry (you can see in the PCI screen that it shows up as "AMD RX xxx". However, as @apfelnico explained, he removed the various SL0X so that the graphic cards is attached to the standard PEGP device. PEGP devices already come with proper power management already.
As such, the SSDT for SL0X are no longer required except if you want user friendly text.
It's a much nicer solution to SSDT patch which had to add a _PRW method for each SL05 (and SL02 if a 2nd card was used)
 
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Down below is a bios profile without any oc.
Extract it and put it on an fat32 formatted USB Flash Drive and load the settings from it.
Depending on your Hardware you will possibly need to first boot windows and add your device afterwards it will also work in MacOS.

Dude, you are the man! Thank you.
 
I still stay for now with all my ACPI replacements within the config.plist and SSDT-X299-iMacPro.aml, I feel comfortable with..
I also stay with my current SSDT-X299-iMacPro.aml PCI device implementation.

Of course, stick to what works.

Aside question, can you fully suspend your machine and resume by say pressing a key on the keybard?

When my machine boot, there's a warning in the console that this CPU doesn't support deep sleep.
I can put the machine to sleep, but can't wake it up by either pressing a key on the keyboard or pressing the power button.

In your guide you mentioned a problem with sleep when using LPCB (which @apfelnico doesn't handle in his patch), you states that "Thus, the LPCB functionality will be disabled within the SSDT-X299-iMacPro.aml"
but I find no such thing in SSDT-X299-iMacPro.aml

The patch also does nothing in regards to USBX which could have influences on sleep
 
When i use the patches @apfelnico for DSDT, i lost my USB Ports.

kgp SSDT working perfect here on my Asus X299 Deluxe + TB card!
 
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Of course, stick to what works.

Aside question, can you fully suspend your machine and resume by say pressing a key on the keybard?

When my machine boot, there's a warning in the console that this CPU doesn't support deep sleep.
I can put the machine to sleep, but can't wake it up by either pressing a key on the keyboard or pressing the power button.

In your guide you mentioned a problem with sleep when using LPCB (which @apfelnico doesn't handle in his patch), you states that "Thus, the LPCB functionality will be disabled within the SSDT-X299-iMacPro.aml"
but I find no such thing in SSDT-X299-iMacPro.aml

The patch also does nothing in regards to USBX which could have influences on sleep

Yes I can fully suspend my machine and resume by just pressing a key on the keyboard or with a click on the mouse.

Thanks to the appropriate ACPI replacements, one is able to find SBUS, LPCB and IMEI in the IOREG like on the real iMac Pro. However, I do not implement any SBUS, LPCB or IMEI PCI device implementation in my SSDT, thus no PCI driver is loaded or implemented for these devices, also in fully compliance with the real iMac Pro. The fact that SBUS, LPCB and IMEI do not have any child in the IOREG clearly confirms that respective PCI drivers are not active and all respective PCI devices are disabled like on the real iMac Pro. They also do not appear in Section "PCI" of Apple's system report.

I guess you are missing the PMC driver, which should be active though.

The USBX implementation fixes USB power assignation errors during boot and is therefore deemed necessary.
 
Yes I can fully suspend my machine and resume by just pressing a key on the keyboard or with a click on the mouse.

Okay, what I'll do then is port your big SSDT to the Designare instead. At least I have 100% confirmation that those changes work, unlike the DSDT patches.

Could you provide your IOREG output (as recorded by IOJones available at https://sourceforge.net/projects/iojones/) as well as you SSDT/DSDT

that would make my job easier.

TIA
 
Okay, what I'll do then is port your big SSDT to the Designare instead. At least I have 100% confirmation that those changes work, unlike the DSDT patches.

Could you provide your IOREG output (as recorded by IOJones available at https://sourceforge.net/projects/iojones/) as well as you SSDT/DSDT

that would make my job easier.

TIA

Yup.. as soon we finish the TB hot plug implementation...
 
Thanks very much for posting this info - now that I know my old card is not compatible with the latest gen X299 board, I have some hard decisions to make.

Do I run over to Fry's and pay $56US for the Gigabyte Alpine Ridge card for use with my X299-A board? Or do I bite the bullet, return the X299-A to MicroCenter (and lose an extra $30 discount that I got when I bought mobo/CPU together), and order either the X299-Deluxe or Designare EX?
:banghead: :crazy: :geek:

PS... the Gigabyte Alpine Ridge TB3 card requires the ssdt, yes? Or will it work OoB as-is, and ssdt only needed for optimization?

No PCIe card for the Designare EX. It's all built into the motherboard.
 
No PCIe card for the Designare EX. It's all built into the motherboard.
I gotta be honest, I'm sort of leaning that way now... basically because I don't want to limit myself to a single TB3 port option with the ThunderboltEX 3 card on the ASUS PRIME X299- side of things. For my music studio, I need one TB3 port for my OWC TB3 docking station. That's a lifesaver over a single cable from my machine room where the CustoMac sits, and my studio itself. And I have a few TB hard drives (several 4TB LaCie TB2 drives, and also a Pegasys2 TB2 12TB RAID). I'd like to keep the workload on these 2 things separate for maximum performance.

I took back the X299-A board & got a refund. I'll have a couple days now to ponder what to do, as I'm flying to NJ for work until Friday. Maybe by Wed I'll have decided & can order so that it's waiting for me when I get back Friday night. Look out, Saturday! :mrgreen:
 
No PCIe card for the Designare EX. It's all built into the motherboard.

Also the GPU? :lol:;):thumbup:...

I am also a fan of the Designare EX, but I think we have to keep serious. Onboard WIFI just with the WIFI module suggested by @izo1.. But there is also an onboard WIFI solution for the ASUS Prime X299 Deluxe like the DW1830 thanks to @DSM2. Thus the only advantage of the Designare EX is onboard TB with two TB ports instead of one ;)..
 
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