GUIDE How to Flash Custom Firmware on Thunderbolt Card for macOS

[Cliff8410]

As in record a video of it enabled and then it disabled on my phone and upload?

 

[EliteMacx86]

As in record a video of it enabled and then it disabled on my phone and upload?

Yes, correct. If the file size exceeds, use Google Drive or WeTransfer.

 

[Cliff8410]

Yes, correct. If the file size exceeds, use Google Drive or WeTransfer.

Sorry just getting back now.

I flashed back the original Firmware and I get INSTANT boot. Thunderbolt is working perfect other than missing the info under system information.

It is an issue with the custom firmware that is causing the delay in boot.

Does anyone have any idea how to edit the custom firmware to try and fix this?

Cliff

 

[EliteMacx86]

Sorry just getting back now.

I flashed back the original Firmware and I get INSTANT boot. Thunderbolt is working perfect other than missing the info under system information.

It is an issue with the custom firmware that is causing the delay in boot.

Does anyone have any idea how to edit the custom firmware to try and fix this?

Cliff

No idea as the log is not provided. If the stock firmware is working for you, better to use that.

 

[Cliff8410]

No idea as the log is not provided. If the stock firmware is working for you, better to use that.

Yes correct, with the flashed firmware you get more cosmetic info and the ability to do thunderbolt bridge which I will never use.

The stock firmware lets the machine post instantly. Much better for me especially when tweaking with EFI settings from time to time and not have to wait extra time due to the slower boot with the custom firmware.

 

[EliteMacx86]

Yes correct, with the flashed firmware you get more cosmetic info and the ability to do thunderbolt bridge which I will never use.

The stock firmware lets the machine post instantly. Much better for me especially when tweaking with EFI settings from time to time and not have to wait extra time due to the slower boot with the custom firmware.

Yes, that's right. Custom firmware is only required if you're not able to HotPlug the TB Devices, Normally, with correct HotPlug implementation, you can have HotPlug with stock firmware.

 

[Cliff8410]

Yes, everything else including hot-plug is working.

Now I just need to figure out how many Hackintosh can make the coffee.

Mark this solved,

Thanks for all you guys do!

 

[EliteMacx86]

Yes, everything else including hot-plug is working.

Now I just need to figure out how many Hackintosh can make the coffee.

Mark this solved,

Thanks for all you guys do!

Perfect. Sure

 

[zipb]

How to Flash Custom Firmware on Thunderbolt Card for macOS


Overview

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Following is a Thunderbolt firmware flashing guide exclusively for macOS. The guide is applicable for Motherboards having Built-In Thunderbolt, Laptops, and Add-In Cards.

The method is tested by us on the following Add-In Card.

• GIGABYTE GC-Alpine Ridge, Thunderbolt 3
• GIGABYTE GC-Titan Ridge 2.0, Thunderbolt 3

Firmware Downloads

---

Following are the Thunderbolt firmware for various devices including Motherboards, Laptops, and Add-In Cards. Utopia-Team Github contains reliable firmware files for most .bin files mentioned in this guide.

Utopia Thunderbolt Repository - Github

Add-In Cards

Thunderbolt Hardware	Firmware File Name	Notes
GIGABYTE GC-Alpine Ridge, AIC	GC-ALPINE RIDGE-NVM20-V1-Elias64Fr.bin GC-ALPINE RIDGE-NVM20-V2-Elias64Fr.bin GC-ALPINE-RIDGE-NVM21-V3-NATA.bin
GIGABYTE GC-Titan Ridge v1.0, AIC	GC-TITAN-RIDGE-NVM23-Elias64Fr.bin
GIGABYTE GC-Titan Ridge v2.0, AIC	TitanRidgeMacOSFirmware.bin TitanRidgeNVM23-Elias64Fr-Mod.bin TitanRidgeNVM43-Elias64Fr-Mod.bin GC-TITAN-RIDGE-NVM50-Elias64Fr-14B.bin GC-Titan-Ridge-V2.0-Mod-NVM50-CaseySJ.bin
ASUS ThunderboltEX-3, AIC, Alpine Ridge	AlpineRidgeEX3-NVM18-NATA.bin AlpineRidgeEX3-NVM26-NATA.bin
ASUS ThunderboltEX-3, AIC, Titan Ridge	ASUS-ThunderboltEX-3-TR-NVM56-MOD1-CaseySJ.bin

Motherboards

Motherboards with Built-In Thunderbolt	Firmware File Name	Notes
ASRock Z390 and Z370 ITX/ac	ASROCK_Z390_ITX_NVM20_MOD-Elias64Fr.bin
GIGABYTE Z390 Designare	DESIGNARE-Z390-NVM33-Elias64Fr.bin
Gigabyte Z390 AORUS Xtreme Motherboard	Z390-AORUS-XTREME-NVM33-Elias64Fr.bin
GIGABYTE Z490 VISION D	Gigabyte-Vision-D-NVM-50-Elias64Fr-CaseySJ.bin
AsRock Z490 ITX/AC	ASRock-itx/tb3-NVM50-E64Fr-CSJ-dgsga.bin
GIGABYTE B550 VISION D	DESIGNARE-Z390-NVM33-Elias64Fr.bin

NUC

NUC with Built-In Thunderbolt	Firmware File Name	Notes
NUC8i7HNK and NUC8i3BEH	NUC8i7HNKpatched.bin

Laptops

Laptops with Built-In Thunderbolt	Firmware File Name	Notes
ASUS UX550GE ZenBook Pro	ASUS_UX550GE_TB3-CASEY-MOD-1.bin
ASUS UX580GE ZenBook Pro	ASUS_UX550GE_TB3-CASEY-MOD-1.bin
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon	Lenovo-X1-Carbon-NVM-43-MOD-1-CaseySJ.bin

Note:
Please select the appropriate firmware before continuing.

Flashing Firmware​

---

WARNING:

The following method described below is risky and it may brick your Thunderbolt hardware during this process. The chip may be damaged and you may require a programmer and original firmware to flash the Thunderbolt chip in order to bring your Thunderbolt back to life again. The steps provided here may or may not be accurate or applicable to your particular Thunderbolt hardware. By using this guide, you understand all the risks involved and EliteMacx86 shall not be liable for any of the damages that might occur and takes no responsibility for any of your action. Please proceed with caution!

Now, as you've enough information about flashing firmware and why you need to, you can proceed with it.

Requirements

---

Following are the requirements for using this guide.

• SPI Flasher
• A computer running macOS
• Homebrew installed

STEP 1: Installing Flashrom
The very first step is to install flashrom using Homebrew which will allow to flash the firmware.

Open Terminal and type:
brew install flashrom

STEP 2: Preparing SPI Flasher
The second step is to prepare the SPI Flasher for firmware flashing.

1. Open your SPI flasher. Place the cable in the 8 slots farthest away from the lever. The red cable should be pointing towards the lever.
View attachment 3247
2. With the cable highly pressed, in, press down the lever to secure.
View attachment 3248
3. Place the card on a non-conductive surface, such as wood or plastic.
View attachment 3249
4. Unscrew the screws on the back, and remove the cover.
View attachment 3246

5. Spread the clip as far apart as you can, and press down over the top of the green dot chip. The single red wire for the SPI flasher will be facing you, but on the right side of the clip.
View attachment 3250

6. It may take one or two tries to get it aligned. You may need to press down fairly hard and make sure that the clip is perpendicular to the card before releasing pressure. The "teeth" of the card should be nearly aligned with the bottom of the chip, and the side of the clip with sit flush with the side of the chip.
View attachment 3253

View attachment 3254

STEP 3: Extracting Original Firmware
The next step is to extract the original firmware. This process is necessary incase the custom firmware fails to work or doesn't works as expected and the chip needs to be returned to a factory state.

Backup Green Chip

flashrom -p ch341a_spi -r OriginalFirmware-GreenChip.bin

If you are successful, you will get the below message. It will save the firmware to your user folder.
View attachment 3255

Backup Blue Chip
8. Repeat the clipping process for the Blue Chip. Once clamped, backup using the command:
flashrom -p ch341a_spi -r OriginalFirmware-BlueChip.bin

Refer to the previous step if you encounter any errors. You will see the below if you are successful:
View attachment 3256
STEP 4: Flashing Custom Firmware
The next step is to flash the custom firmware.

9. Now, with your clip still firmly attached to your blue chip, it's time to flash the Thunderbolt card.

flashrom -p ch341a_spi -w ~/Downloads/DESIGNARE-Z390-NVM33-Elias64Fr.bin

flashrom -p ch341a_spi -w ~/Downloads/TitanRidgeMacOSFirmware.bin


10. Flashrom make take one minute to process, here is what it looks like incomplete:
View attachment 3259

1. And here is what it looks like successful:View attachment 3260

NOTES: If you get the error "Programmer initialization failed." Reconnect your programmer to your USB port. If you get the error No EEPROM/flash device found. Double check to make sure your clip is oriented correctly If nothing is working, inspect the pins on your clip to make sure they are aligned. You may need to use tweezers to align the contacts on the clip or make sure the wires at the top of the clip are not broken under the rubber.

Shorting Thunderbolt Card Header:

We've found that for the most complete hotplug functionality, shorting the card is usually required. This information especially applies if the user desires the ability for the card to initialize on boot without any Thunderbolt device connected. We dive into Thunderbolt hotplug configuration In Our Guide. Shorting the cable is also necessary if you have a motherboard that does not support Thunderbolt cards, although you may have more limited functionality as the card may automatically initialize with security type SL1, possibly interfering with the ability to mount devices.

If no hotplug capability is desired, shorting is optional although may produce better results on some motherboards. Attempt to connect via the header, and if your card is not detected by macOS consider a short. If you choose not to short the Thunderbolt Header Cable on the card side, you will need to plug your Thunderbolt cable from your card into the supported header on your motherboard. Directions for shorting are below:

1. place the connector facing toward you
2. cut and strip pin/wire 1 and 3 (shown in picture)
3. connect together
4. verify no other pins/wires are making connections or shorted
5. mask with electrical tape
6. reconnect to Thunderbolt Add-In Card

View attachment 4156



Congrats! Your Thunderbolt Add-In Card is now ready to use in your System. Disconnect the clip and re-screw on the exterior panel.

Credits:
DSM2
Elias64Fr
CaseySJ

Clear instructions. Worked first time.

 

[EliteMacx86]

Clear instructions. Worked first time.

Glad it worked for you