News update, March 24
Hackers boot a Dell with Mac OS X (Intel). March 24, 2006 -- Unidentified programmers have hacked the Intel version of Mac OS X to enable it to boot a Dell PC. A file called the "JaS4.2b patch" can be used to create a customized installer DVD for installing on a Dell PC.
A website called MacaDell describes the patch. The MacDell site has also has a page that describes how to use the JaS4.2b patch to create a customized installer disc for Mac OS X.
Using the hack is illegal because it breaks Apple’s Mac OS X license agreement, which specifies that the operating system be run on an “Apple-labeled computer.”
According to MacaDell, work on the hack began when a Russian hacker known as Maxxuss cracked the encrypted security layer in Mac OS X that usually requires the software to be installed on a certain Mac model. Other hackers added to the work, and a programmer known as JaS put the work together in the JaS4.2b patch.
The hack emulates the EFI boot firmware found in Intel-based Macs. It also emulates an instruction set called SSE3 in order to support processors older than the Dual Core used in the Intel Macs. MacaDell reports that the hack doesn’t work on every computer, and doesn’t support some functions, such as wireless networking and certain audio and video cards.
At this point, the Intel version of Mac OS X is only available with the purchase of an Intel-based Mac.
No comments:
Post a Comment