🍏 ASUS PRIME Z370-A Hackintosh (OpenCore)

A fully working OpenCore build for the ASUS PRIME Z370-A paired with an Intel i7-9700, Gigabyte Vega 64, ALC1220S audio, and full Bluetooth support. 🚀

📦 Current EFI Versions (Auto-Updated)

• OpenCore: 1.0.7
• Lilu: 1.7.2
• WhateverGreen: 1.7.0
• AppleALC: 1.9.7

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💻 Hardware Configuration

Component	Model	Status/Notes
Motherboard	ASUS PRIME Z370-A	Working perfectly
CPU	Intel Core i7-9700 (Coffee Lake)	Native Power Management
GPU	Gigabyte RX Vega 64 8GB	Native support (OOB)
Audio	Realtek ALC1220S	layout-id=7
Storage	WD Black SN850X NVMe	Fully compatible
Bluetooth	Intel / Broadcom	Fully working (requires -ibtcompatbeta boot-arg on Tahoe)

🎭 SMBIOS Selection

• 🖥️ iMacPro1,1 (Recommended): Best for a dGPU-only build (Vega 64). Ensure the iGPU is disabled in the BIOS. Enables native DRM (Apple TV+, Netflix in Safari, Prime Video).
• 🖥️ iMac19,1: Use this if you need to keep the iGPU enabled for compute tasks.

⚠️ With iMacPro1,1, the CPU will appear as Intel Xeon in "About This Mac" — this is expected and does not affect performance.

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⚙️ BIOS Settings (Crucial for Coffee Lake)

Start by loading Optimized Defaults (F5) before applying the settings below.

Quick Reference Table

Action	Setting	BIOS Path
🔴 Disable	Fast Boot	Boot
🔴 Disable	Secure Boot	Boot → Secure Boot
🔴 Disable	CSM	Boot → CSM
🔴 Disable	CFG Lock (MSR 0xE2)	Advanced → CPU Power Management
🔴 Disable	VT-d	Advanced → System Agent (SA) Config
🔴 Disable	Intel SGX	Advanced → CPU Configuration
🔴 Disable	Intel Platform Trust (PTT/TPM)	Advanced → PCH-FW Configuration
🔴 Disable	Serial / COM Port	Advanced → Onboard Devices
🔴 Disable	iGPU (Intel UHD 630) ⚠️	Advanced → SA Config → Graphics Config
🟢 Enable	VT-x	Advanced → CPU Configuration
🟢 Enable	Hyper-Threading	Advanced → CPU Configuration
🟢 Enable	Execute Disable Bit	Advanced → CPU Configuration
🟢 Enable	Above 4G Decoding	Advanced → System Agent (SA) Config
🟢 Enable	XHCI / EHCI Hand-off	Advanced → USB Configuration
🔵 Set	SATA Mode → AHCI	Advanced → PCH Storage Configuration
🔵 Set	DVMT Pre-Allocated → 64 MB	Advanced → SA Config → Graphics Config
🔵 Set	OS Type → Windows 8.1/10 UEFI Mode	Boot → Secure Boot

❌ Disable — Details

• Fast Boot — Can prevent OpenCore bootloader from loading correctly.
• Secure Boot — Incompatible with OpenCore; must be off.
• CSM (Compatibility Support Module) — Must be OFF for pure UEFI mode; active CSM causes gIO errors at OpenCore boot.
• CFG Lock (MSR 0xE2) ⚠️ CRITICAL — macOS cannot boot with this locked. If not visible in BIOS, enable AppleCpuPmCfgLock + AppleXcpmCfgLock in config.plist → Kernel → Quirks.
• VT-d — Can disrupt macOS IOMMU. Alternative: set DisableIoMapper=YES in config.plist → Kernel → Quirks.
• Intel SGX — Unused, may cause instability.
• Intel Platform Trust (PTT/TPM) — Not needed under macOS.
• Serial / COM Port — Can conflict with ACPI SSDTs.
• iGPU (Intel UHD 630) ⚠️ REQUIRED with iMacPro1,1 — The iMacPro1,1 SMBIOS has no iGPU in the Apple model. Leaving it enabled will cause kernel panics. The Vega 64 handles all rendering.

✅ Enable — Details

• VT-x — Required for OpenCore Kernel Quirks and macOS virtualization.
• Hyper-Threading — Used natively by the macOS scheduler; improves multi-core performance.
• Execute Disable Bit — Required for macOS memory security.
• Above 4G Decoding — Mandatory for the RX Vega 64 (large GPU BAR).
• XHCI / EHCI Hand-off — Essential for native macOS USB controller management without kernel panics.

🔵 Set Values

• SATA Mode: AHCI — RAID mode is not recognized by macOS.
• DVMT Pre-Allocated: 64 MB — Minimum recommended (leave at 64 MB even with iGPU disabled).
• OS Type: Windows 8.1/10 UEFI Mode — Required for UEFI Secure Boot screen to remain compatible.

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🧩 OpenCore Kernel Quirks (config.plist)

Quirk	Value	Notes
AppleCpuPmCfgLock	YES	Set to NO if CFG Lock is disabled in BIOS
AppleXcpmCfgLock	YES	Set to NO if CFG Lock is disabled in BIOS
DisableIoMapper	YES	Required if VT-d is not disabled in BIOS
XhciPortLimit	YES	Only for macOS ≤ 11 (Big Sur); disable on Monterey+
ResizeAppleGpuBars	0	Required with Above 4G Decoding enabled
ProvideCurrentCpuInfo	YES	Coffee Lake CPU power management

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🗂️ Required SSDTs (Coffee Lake Desktop)

SSDT	Role
SSDT-PLUG	CPU Power Management (P-States & C-States)
SSDT-EC-USBX	Embedded Controller + USB power
SSDT-AWAC	RTC clock fix for Z370 (replaces AWAC with RTC)
SSDT-PMC	Power Management Controller — required for Z370 chipset

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⚡ ASPM — PCIe Power Management (Advanced → Platform Misc Configuration)

These settings cover the Platform Misc Configuration and PCH / SA PCI Express sections of the ASUS Z370-A BIOS. ASPM (Active State Power Management) reduces power consumption on idle PCIe links.

Recommended Settings for Hackintosh Desktop (iMacPro1,1 + Vega 64)

Setting	Value	Priority	Reason
PCI Express Native Power Management	Disabled	🔴 Important	Let BIOS manage ASPM — macOS has no full native control on Z370. Enabling can cause kernel panics or wake failures.
Native ASPM	Disabled	🔴 Important	Only useful under Windows Vista+. Under macOS, BIOS-managed ASPM is more stable.
DMI Link ASPM Control (PCH PCIe)	Disabled	🔴 Important	The DMI link (CPU to PCH) is critical — any interruption can cause freezes or black screens.
ASPM (PCH PCI Express)	Disabled	🟠 Recommended	Disable globally for stability. Can be re-enabled per-device via DeviceProperties if needed.
L1 Substates (PCH PCI Express)	Disabled	🟠 Recommended	L1 sub-states (L1.1 / L1.2) can cause latency spikes or spurious wake events on Hackintosh.
ASPM Control (SA PCIe)	Disabled	🟠 Recommended	System Agent ASPM is irrelevant with iGPU disabled (iMacPro1,1) and a potential source of conflicts.
PEG ASPM (SA PCIe)	Disabled	🔴 Important	PEG slot = PCIe x16 for the Vega 64. Enabling ASPM on this link can cause GPU stutters or black screen on wake.

ASPM Power States Reference

State	Description
L0	Active — all PCIe transactions running, no power savings
L0s	Light standby — fast entry/exit, minimal savings
L1	Deep standby — significant savings, higher wake latency
L1.1 / L1.2	L1 sub-states — maximum savings, incompatible with some Hackintosh hardware

Optional: Per-Device ASPM via DeviceProperties (NVMe Temperature)

If your NVMe SSD (WD SN850X) runs hot at idle, you can enable ASPM only for that device via config.plist DeviceProperties — without touching global BIOS settings:

<!-- Replace PciRoot path with your NVMe path (check with Hackintool -> PCIe tab) -->
<key>PciRoot(0x0)/Pci(0x1D,0x0)/Pci(0x0,0x0)</key>
<dict>
    <key>pci-aspm-default</key>
    <data>02010000</data>
</dict>

Use Hackintool -> PCIe tab to get the exact PciRoot path of your NVMe and verify its current ASPM state with: ioreg -l -p IODeviceTree | grep pci-aspm-default

🛠️ OpenCore Installation & Update Guide

1. Updating OpenCore and Kexts

To update your EFI without breaking your system, follow the Dortania Update Guide.

1. Download the latest OpenCorePkg release.
2. Replace BOOTx64.efi, OpenCore.efi, and OpenRuntime.efi.
3. Update your Kexts in the EFI/OC/Kexts folder.
4. Run a Clean Snapshot (Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + R) in ProperTree.

2. Creating the Bootable USB

1. Format a USB drive as Mac OS Extended (Journaled) with a GUID Partition Map.
2. Run the createinstallmedia command for your desired macOS version.
3. Mount the USB's EFI partition and copy this repository's EFI folder into it.

3. First Boot & Install

1. Boot from the USB and select Install macOS in the OpenCore picker.
2. Format your NVMe as APFS (GUID Partition Map).
3. Install macOS. The system will reboot multiple times; always boot from the macOS Installer partition until complete.

4. Post-Install Checklist

• Load Optimized Defaults (F5), then apply all BIOS settings above
• Verify UEFI mode is active (no Legacy/CSM)
• iGPU confirmed disabled in Graphics Configuration
• CFG Lock disabled (or quirks enabled in config.plist)
• Above 4G Decoding enabled
• SATA in AHCI mode
• XHCI/EHCI Hand-off enabled
• Secure Boot + CSM disabled
• SMBIOS iMacPro1,1 generated with GenSMBIOS (unique values per machine)
• Audio Layout-id = 7 (ALC1220S)

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📚 Credits

• Dortania OpenCore Install Guide
• Acidanthera for OpenCore and Kexts.