Thinkintosh: Lenovo Thinkpad T480s

Hackintosh in a Thinkpad T480s - OpenCore Configuration

Disclaimer

This guide is only for the Lenovo ThinkPad T480s. I am NOT responsible for any harm you cause to your device. This guide is provided "as-is" and all steps taken are done at your own risk.

Important This EFI is configuard for macOS Ventura. If you install other versions of macOS, make sure to replace AirportItlwm with the proper AirportItlwm version.

Introduction

System

These are the Hardware components that I use. But this OpenCore configuration should still work with your device, even if the components are not equal.

Note I use Intel WiFi and BT Cards.

Category	Component
CPU	Intel Core i5-8350U
GPU	Intel UHD Graphics 620
SSD	Intel SSDPEKKF256G8L M.2 NVMe SSD
Memory	16GB DDR4 2400Mhz
Camera	720p Camera
WiFi & BT	Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 8265

 

Installation

Requirements

You must have the following items:

• Lenovo ThinkPad T480 (Obviously :)).
• Access to a working Windows machine with Python installed.
• A pendrive with more than 4 GB (Remember that during the preparation we will format the flash drive to create the installation media).
• an Internet connection (recommended via Ethernet).
• 1-2 hours of your time.

Preperation

Create the install media

First of all, you will need the install media of macOS. I will use macrecovery to download and create the macOS Install media.

With macrecovery, the process is the following:

• Download OpenCorePkg as a ZIP.
• Extract the OpenCorePkg-master.zip file.
• Open cmd.exe with Administrator privileges and change the directory to OpenCorePkg-master\Utilities\macrecovery.
• Enter the following command to download macOS:

# Big Sur (11)
python macrecovery.py -b Mac-42FD25EABCABB274 -m 00000000000000000 download

# Monterey (12)
python macrecovery.py -b Mac-E43C1C25D4880AD6 -m 00000000000000000 download

# Ventura (13)
python macrecovery.py -b Mac-7BA5B2D9E42DDD94 download

• After the download succeeded, type diskpart and wait until you see DISKPART>

• Plug-in your pendrive and type list disk to see your disk id.

• Select your pendrive by typing select disk <diskid>

• Now we are gonna clean the pendrive and convert it to GPT. First, type clean and then convert gpt.

Note: If an error occurs, try to convert again by typing convert gpt.

• After the pendrive is clean and converted, we will create a new partition where we can put our files on. First, type create partition primary, then select the new partition with select partition 1 and format it format fs=fat32 quick.

• Finally, mount your pendrive by typing assign

• Now, close the Command Prompt and copy the folder com.apple.recovery.boot on the pendrive.

Now we are ready to make the USB drive bootable.

Configure and install OpenCore

Download the EFI folder from this repo, you will find the latest files under the release tab or just download the repo as it is. Move the folder to the root of your pendrive (e.g. J:) and rename the folder to EFI.

GenSMBIOS

We need a script, called GenSMBIOS, to create fake serial number, UUID, and MLB numbers. This step is essential to have working iMessage, so do not skip it!

The process is the following:

• Download GenSMBIOS as a ZIP, then extract it.
• Start GenSMBIOS.bat and use option 1 to download MacSerial.
• Choose option 2, to select the path of the config.plist file. It will be located in EFI -> OC folder.
• Choose option 3, and enter MacBookPro15,2 as the machine type.
• Press Q to quit. Your config now should contain the required serials.

Enter the proper ROM value

After adding serials to your config.plist, you have to add the computer's MAC address to the config.plist file. This step is also essential to have a working iMessage, so do not skip it. We need a Plist editor, to write the MAC address into the config.plist file. I used ProperTree, since it works on Windows too. You have to change the MAC address value in the config.plist at

PlatformInfo -> Generic -> ROM

Delete the generic 112233445566 value, and enter your MAC address into the field, without any colons. Save the Plist file, and it is now ready to be written out to the EFI partition of your install media.

Default keyboard layout and language

The default keyboard layout and language is German. To change the language, edit the value of NVRAM -> Add -> 7C436110-AB2A-4BBB-A880-FE41995C9F82 -> prev-lang:kbd to the value of your language. If your value contains an underscore "_", replace it with a hyphen "-". The value for English would be en-US:0. You can find a list of all language values here.

ACPI patches

Please enable/disable the following patches depending on what is installed on your device.

SSDT	Affected device	Description
SSDT-ARPT.aml	Broadcom cards	Disable Broadcom card during sleep
SSDT-OFFTB.aml	Thunderbolt	Disable Thunderbolt
SSDT-OFFGDGPU.aml	NVIDIA GeForce MX 150	Disable NVIDIA GPU (necessary if installed)

Install OpenCore

After you've finished with the necessary tweaks, you have to copy the EFI folder to the EFI partition of your pendrive.

Installation

Prepare BIOS

The bios must be properly configured prior to installing macOS. In the Security menu, set the following settings:

• Security > Security Chip: must be Disabled
• Memory Protection > Execution Prevention: must be Enabled
• Virtualization > Intel Virtualization Technology: must be Enabled
• Virtualization > Intel VT-d Feature: must be Enabled
• Anti-Theft > Computrace -> Current Setting: must be Disabled
• Secure Boot > Secure Boot: must be Disabled
• Intel SGX -> Intel SGX Control: must be Disabled
• Device Guard: must be Disabled

In the Startup menu, set the following options:

• UEFI/Legacy Boot: UEFI Only
• CSM Support: No

In the Thunderbolt menu, set the following options:

• Thunderbolt BIOS Assist Mode: UEFI Only
• Wake by Thunderbolt(TM) 3: No
• Security Level: No
• Support in Pre Boot Environment > Thunderbolt(TM) device: No

Now you can go through the installation.

Install macOS

1. Boot from USB, press SPACE and select the USB drive inside of OpenCore "NO NAME (DMG)" or similar.

Note: The first boot may take up to 20 minutes.

2. Wait for the macOS Utilities screen.
3. Select Disk Utility, select your disk, and click erase. Give a name and choose APFS with GUID Partition Map.
4. After erasing, go back and select Reinstall macOS and follow the steps on your screen. The installation may take up to 2 hours.

Note: Your PC will restart multiple times. Just boot from USB and select your disk inside of OpenCore. (named macOS Installer or the disk name).

5. Once you see the Region selection screen, you are good to proceed.
6. Create your user account and everything else.

Upgrade macOS / Switch EFI

If you plan to upgrade your macOS (or update the EFI / switch to HeliPort), you'll need a different OpenCore configuration (EFI). Please follow these steps:

Note: Download the desired macOS version in the Settings before following these steps, if you are connected via WiFi.

1. Download the newest release & ProperTree and extract it.
2. Start ProperTree and load the Config.plist on your EFI partition. (File -> Open)

Note: You can mount your EFI partition by pressing ALT + SPACE, typing Terminal and enter the following command: sudo diskutil mountDisk disk0s1.

3. Now also load the new configuration file from the repo for the desired macOS installation (or HeliPort config).
4. You should now have 2 ProperTree windows open on your screen.
5. Go in both windows to Root -> PlatformInfo -> Generic. Transfer MLB, ROM, SystemProductName, SystemSerialNumber and SystemUUID to the new config.
6. Save the new config (File -> Save) and close both windows.
7. Now delete your existing EFI folder from the EFI partition and copy the new one to it. (Make sure that the Directories Boot and OC are in EFI).

If you want to upgrade macOS, download the desired macOS version in the Settings app and perform the upgrade like on a real Mac.

 

Post-install (optional)

Install OpenCore to Hard drive

1. Press ALT + SPACE and open the terminal. Type sudo diskutil mountDisk disk0s1 (where disk0s1 corresponds to the EFI partition of the main disk)
2. Open Finder and copy the EFI folder of your USB device to the main disk's EFI partition.
3. Unplug the USB device and reboot your laptop. Now you can boot macOS without your USB device.

Create a offline install media (Optional)

In the case of reinstalling macOS, an offline install media can save some time. You also don't need an Ethernet connection for the installation. To create an offline install media, you need the following stuff:

• macOS Installer from the App Store.
• A 16 GB pendrive (Keep in mind, during the preparation we will format the disk to create the install media).

Press ALT + SPACE and open the Disk utility. Select your USB device and click erase. Name it MyUSB and choose Mac OS Extended with GUID Partition Map. After erasing the USB device, close the Disk utility.

Now press ALT + SPACE and open the terminal. Type the following command:

Big Sur: sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Big\ Sur.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyUSB --downloadassets

Monterey: sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Monterey.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyUSB --downloadassets

Ventura: sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Ventura.app/Contents/Resources/createinstallmedia --volume /Volumes/MyUSB --downloadassets

After creating the install media, copy your EFI folder to the EFI partition of your USB device.

 

Thanks to

• valnoxy's t480-oc
• t480s opencore

License

This repo is licensed under the MIT License.

OpenCore is licensed under the BSD 3-Clause License.