How to install Windows 7 over existing Hackintosh build

I didn't intend to install Windows on my machine until the need to diagnose my Graphics Card arises. I was suspecting my Gigabyte GT640 card to be either having non updated bios or faulty after my Hackintosh build hung with the card but it worked breezing smooth after the card was replaced.

Furthermore, most of the diagnose, bios and what tools and utilities only available in Windows platform. Since I will need to test the graphics card in Windows, I will need to have Windows being installed on any of my machine of which I may slot in the graphics card.

Most of dual boot guide written on the net was made on freshly install Windows and Mac but not those completely install mac with all the apps inside.

I started with making space for the new Windows install on my GPT partition, resizing existing partition and created a new msdos partition and attempted to install Windows. It always says cannot install windows on GPT partition but I'm sure I've been reading about installing Windows on Mac so installing Windows on GPT shouldn't be a problem at all.

I was even cheated by a youtube video over the net which claimed windows 7 can be installed on GPT partition after performing 'clean' command in diskpart. Of course it can install but the partitioning had been converted to MBR. Luckily, I've been playing safe by making an image out of my Hackintosh install, of which later made me to write this article on how to install Windows on GPT partition over an existing Hackintosh build.

Thus why I decided to experiment till finally figured out how to do it, without jeopardizing your current install, or having to reinstall everything from scratch.

The only things you need:

1. Mac OS X USB stick with Unibeast, Kakewalk or anything. I used Kakewalk for my build
2. HFS+ formatted external hard disk

How to do it:

1. Get into Mac installation boot - Creating a New Image over the partition of which Mac was installed not possible, that is why you would need to boot your PC using the Mac OS X USB stick and get into the installation boot option. Please also make sure your HFS+ formatted external hard disk is also plugged in to your UBS 3.0 port, so it's much faster, or else USB 2.0 if you don't have one.
2. Backing up your Mac Build - Once you reached the install OS X page, open up Disk Utility. Click on your hard disk with Mac Install and click again on the partition of which you install your Mac OS X. Click new image and save it to your HFS+ formatted external hard disk as we're going to wipe your hard disk clean! Verify the size of the image and make sure if more or less like the size of the usage of the partition you install your Mac into
3. Repartitioning - With disk utility, select what ever partitioning scheme you like but please make sure the first partition should be allocated to Windows with MSDOS format. You may allocate your mac install on any partition. I created 3 partitions of which the first one was for Windows, 2nd for Mac install and 3rd for data.
4. Installing windows - Once the install windows page appeards, you will still encounter the unable to install Windows on GPT partition. You just need to click on advace, format the partition and that's it. Install Windows till complete.
5. Restoring Mac - Boot using the Mac OS X USB stick and again using disk utility, restore the image from your external hard disk until complete.
6. Restoring chameleon - Boot from USB stick and select your mac install. Once you're able to get into your Mac OS X install, re-install chameleon, and walla, your windows will automatically be listed in the boot option menu. You might wanna change the boot disk default in the chameleon plist file in folder Extra.

Then you're done! You may start dual booting your Hackintosh easily now!!

A tribute to Uncle Jam

Just heard from a colleague in the office, the Uncle Jam, who owned the only known to us jamming studio in Kuala Pilah...

Without him, I don't think I will be the so called musician cabuk I am now.

Without him, I don't think my brother will ever learn to play drum. He didn't teach but being able to play at his Jamming studio let us explore the possibilities.

Without him, I don't think we will ever have a band now.

During the national election of 2005, he asked me to join him in his shop to watch the result. He belanja me all sort of food and drinks.I can't forget that.

He used to opened up his Jamming studio, because we called him at 1 AM in the morning to jam. He says, 'You wall punya pasal saya ada bukak. Kalau lain worang, saya tara bukak!'

As we moved out of Kuala Pilah in 2000, we no longer played there for quite sometimes until the wedding of my sister of which the hotel they used to transit before the wedding place was just in front of his studio. We visited, he offered us to play as nobody was around, and when I was about to pay, he said, 'No needlah we all old old friends, like this lah'

That was my last encounter with him, till last night, a colleague informed me of his demise.

I was just planning to give him a visit this Raya. Regret that I should have visited him whenever I drive to Kuala Pilah.

May god bless him. He was a good friend despite so many people disliked him for being so 'garang', but he'll be nice to those nice to him. 

Mac Build on Gigabyte Z77 DS3H

As I had been using Kakewalk installation for my first build, I again decided to use Kakewalk for my new build thus why I bought the Gigabyte Z77 DS3H from the UK. It was brought back last year, 2013 but I was only able to have the time to buy other components like CPU, hard disk, graphics card, memory and power supply this year.

Initially I thought I was having issues with the Gainward GT640 graphics card as it keeps on causing my motherboard to be unable to boot, thus the decision I bought Gigabyte GT640, just to get to understand that PEG Gen3 might be problematic thus I need to set PEG to Gen2 in BIOS. I advertised my Gainward GT640 but no one was really serious in buying it.

I was unable to create Kakewalk USB stick from my older Snow Leopard build as it requires 64 bit system. I borrowed my sister's in law MacBook and managed to create Kakewalk USB stick, but failed to boot with boot0 error. No clue was found on the Internet. Most people reported the same issue.

I was then able to create Unibeast Mountain Lion USB stick and later managed to install Mountain Lion but there was an issue with the sound while playing videos on the browser, the sounds breaks and disappeared. As upgrading to Maverick was free, I created Unibeast Maverick USB stick and managed to get it installed and running.

After using the maverick build for sometimes, the machine keeps on hanging. All these while I thought it was due to maverick hanging issue thus I decided to either install Lion or Mountain Lion to avoid such issue. Until the last day before Hari Raya, my Maverick build keeps on hanging while I was trying to enable Radeon HD4350 on my older SnowLeopard build, it gets corrupted and I was unable to do any changes, until I found a Lion Bootable USB stick image that can be written to the USB stick using rawrite in Windows. My previous Mountain Lion USB stick had been erased to make way for Maverick USB stick.

Then I installed a Lion on the new build to develop the Snow Leopard on the older build, and luckily installation was breezing smooth. No issues and I was able to do my photography jobs.

Back to Malaysia after hari raya, i got hold of my sister in law's MacBook to try creating Unibeast USB stick but failed, and it actually asked me to get a new copy. Finally I decided to buy Mountain Lion for RM59. Just to spent the waiting time to get the code from Apple, before returning the MacBook, I tried to create Kakewalk USB stick for one more time.

Just before returning the MacBook, I was able to boot the Kakewalk USB stick on my new build. Walla. Installed completely but after update, the machine keep on hanging. Went back to Seremban for few days and I decided to test if it was the graphics card. I did the 3D test and the machine hung!

I did another clean install and clean update before installing essential drivers and performed the 3D test.

It hung!

I opened up the Gainward GT 640 box and replaced Gigabyte GT640 card and performed 3D test. It managed to complete!

Probably I will need update the Gigabyte GT640 bios and try again. Will update here. Will figure out how to install Windows 7 to play with Gigabyte GT640 graphics cards BIOS then.

Or probably I should consider higher graphics cards like GTX series.

As of now, I will stick to Mountain Lion 10.8.5 with SMBios settings to MacPro3,1to enableVGA output. Currently on Login to Lion Chameleon theme. Works perfectly!