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Without the window

Everything the app does can be done without it. One of these is the answer if the app will not run on your system, if you are working over SSH, or if you would rather see the commands.

They all produce the same EFI folder - the window runs the second one of them and draws its output.

The same builder in a terminal

HackintoshEFIBuilder-console-win-x64.zip in Releases is EFIBuilderEngine.exe on its own, for Windows. It carries everything inside it, same as the app, and asks the same questions in the same order:

EFIBuilderEngine.exe                        the builder
EFIBuilderEngine.exe --check                just the hardware reading, then exit
EFIBuilderEngine.exe --report machine.json  write this machine's report
EFIBuilderEngine.exe --machine machine.json build for the machine in that file

Smart App Control blocks this one for exactly the same reason it blocks the app; see When your system blocks it.

From a clone

Needs Python 3.11 and nothing else - no packages to install, no network. Works on Windows, Linux and macOS.

python3 tools/setup.py                        the builder
python3 tools/setup.py --check                just the hardware reading
python3 tools/setup.py --machine machine.json build for another machine
python3 tools/detect.py --report machine.json write this machine's report

The USB stick and the recovery download are their own tools, and the panes in the app are these:

python3 tools/recovery.py --list
python3 tools/recovery.py --macos 12.7.6 --out /Volumes/USB

python3 tools/stick.py --list
python3 tools/stick.py --prepare disk4        erases it, and says so twice
python3 tools/stick.py --place /Volumes/USB --efi build/EFI --recovery .

--prepare only ever lists removable, external disks, never the one the computer booted from, and asks for the disk by its own name before it starts.

Formatting the stick yourself

A stick for the recovery route is a plain one: GUID Partition Map with a single MS-DOS (FAT) partition. On macOS that is Disk Utility with View → Show All Devices, selecting the drive itself rather than the volume under it, or:

diskutil list                                        # find the disk number
diskutil eraseDisk MS-DOS USB GPT /dev/diskN         # N is that number

Then put EFI/ and com.apple.recovery.boot/ at the root of it, side by side, as in Make the USB stick.

No script at all

EFI-base.zip and configs.zip in the same release are the manual route.

  • Extract EFI-base.zip. You get an EFI folder - the same one for every machine, because OpenCore loads only what the config names. That is also why it is about 7 MB rather than a gigabyte.
  • Open configs.zip and find the entry matching your hardware. Example:
  • my CPU is i5-7200U. It is a Kaby Lake Mobile (Laptop) cpu, and the laptop is an HP.
  • so I take Laptop/HP/009 - Laptop - Kaby Lake.plist.
  • if there is no entry for your brand, take the plain one - Laptop/009 - Laptop - Kaby Lake.plist.
  • Copy that file into EFI/OC/ and rename it to config.plist.
  • Copy the EFI folder to the EFI partition of the stick.

Nothing detects anything on this route, so nothing is added for your network card - see Adding a kext by hand below.

Generating a config yourself

To pick a different OpenCore version, or because your combination is not in the list, the repository generates these folders from a small set of profiles:

python3 tools/build.py --catalogue                 # list every published config
python3 tools/build.py --name "Laptop/HP/009 - Laptop - Kaby Lake"
python3 tools/build.py --platform laptop --cpu kaby-lake --oem hp

It needs nothing but Python 3.11 and a clone. See tools/README.md.

Adding a kext by hand

The builder does this for you, and it knows 531 device ids and which kext drives each. This is the route if you are working from the release zips, or if you have hardware it does not cover.

Shut down, boot back into Windows, and get the kext your card needs:

Card Kext
Intel Wi-Fi itlwm
Intel Ethernet IntelMausi
Realtek RTL8111 Ethernet RTL8111_driver_for_OS_X
Realtek RTL810x Ethernet RealtekRTL8100
Realtek RTL8125 Ethernet LucyRTL8125Ethernet
Broadcom Wi-Fi AirportBrcmFixup
Atheros Wi-Fi Dortania's list
  1. Put the .kext in EFI/OC/Kexts.

  2. Open config.plist in Notepad or Notepad++ and find Kernel with Ctrl+F.

    The Kernel section of a config

  3. Go to the bottom of the Add section and add an entry for the kext, matching the shape of the entries already there.

Finding your hardware yourself

The builder reads all of this for you, so this is only needed if you want to check a machine before starting - or before buying one.

Download and install AIDA64 Extreme, open it and double-click Summary. That gives the CPU, motherboard, GPU and audio adapter.

AIDA64 summary on a desktop

AIDA64 summary on a laptop

The disk model, the network cards and the touchpad are the rest of what matters.

  • Storage → Physical Drives

    AIDA64 storage

  • Network → Windows Network

    AIDA64 network

  • Devices → PCI Devices for the touchpad. It is usually PS/2 or I²C.

    AIDA64 PCI devices

Those screenshots come from the machine this guide was written on, which reads:
Model Lenovo ThinkPad E570
CPU Intel Core i5-7200U
iGPU Intel HD Graphics 620
Audio Conexant CX20753/4
Disk KBG40ZNV256G KIOXIA NVMe 256GB, Samsung SSD 860 EVO 250GB
Network Dell Wireless 1820A Wi-Fi + Bluetooth, Realtek RTL8111/8168/8411 Ethernet
Touchpad SynPS/2 Synaptics TouchPad