Ventura Hack for FireWire Core Audio Support on Supported MacBook Pro and others...

Thank you, @matt9! Adding the extension worked on my MacBook Pro 13-inch, M2, 2022 running Ventura 13.4.1 (c) with an original Presonus Firepod and GarageBand.

The install claimed it failed, and the System crashed a few times at first, but eventually restarting with the interface plugged made it stable.

Has anyone tried this on Catalina? I have some audio devices that I'd really like to "recover".

Any hacks for Catalina? I'm in the same boat with my audio gear :(

Catalina is not really a problem, is it? I mean, I can use my old Alesis io26 on Catalina just fine. It's just the Alesis HDM app that won't work because it's 32-bit so the io26 channel routing can only be changed when booting from an earlier OS partition, in my case El Capitan.

I couldn't make the io26 run on Ventura though.

Hey all, Matt's fix has worked to get my Onyx 1640i working with my new M2 Air (Ventura); however, anytime I power on the mixer the laptop screen goes purple and it crashes and restarts within a minute. Usually after the restart it will proceed without error. It also would crash if I booted up the laptop with the mixer already connected and powered. Anybody experience this and have a fix?

Hi, @matt9 the AppleFWAudioVentura.pkg, for some reason (perhaps due to permissions), doesn't fully work on macOS Sonoma 14.2.

However, it successfully copied /Library/Extensions/AppleFWAudio.kext into the system.

To fully install the AppleFWAudio.kext extension you must:

1. Fix file permissions: sudo chown -R 0:0 /Library/Extensions/AppleFWAudio.kext/
2. Manually load AppleFWAudio.kext: sudo kmutil load -p /Library/Extensions/AppleFWAudio.kext
3. Reboot

Finally, Sonoma 14.2 fully supports my Edirol FA-66 on my DAW.

Thank you again for your support.

Re-enabling SIP after install breaks this? Do I have that right?

Not a very smart move from Apple to remove Firewire support. Even removing support for 32 bit audio was foolish. And now even TB2 as I´ve read somewhere... Since one must assume all these decisions are made thinking in what way to sell more Mac computers, the result is when - like me anyway - one has invested in hardware (Ive got 3 TC Konnekt48 units connected to a Mac Pro 5.1. I was planning on being a new M3 Mac, either Studio Mac or MacBook Pro. But with no support (even for thunderbolt 2) I hesitate and am actually thinking of going back to PC. I can get my Audio Units working on a PC. Partly because of TC but anyway.

The funny thing is I get the units working and even without the "hack" in this thread Open Core patcher gets it working in Sonoma, but ONLY the inputs. Audio out I have to use internal digital out connecting an optical cable from the Mac to one of the Konnekt48:s. This actually works just fine. Until I want more than stereo out off coarse, or if I want to use my outboard gear as inserts.

I was hoping this hack would give me the outputs back, but not yet anyway. They did. work in Catalina and that´s the reason I haven't given up yet. I have seen some other people having this audio out problems with other FW interfaces so I´m not alone there.

But to buy a M3 I seem to need a TB3 interface and that would mean at least two Apollo 8p´s. That's the price of two Macs more, and I´m note even sure yet they are TB3. Are they? And when will Apple abandon TB3? If I wait for M4 maybe that´s gone too.......??

I heard the PC people are looking to match the M chips so...

Just adding a + one from me.

Apple are pushing out their loyal pro (audio and video) users though continual dropping of backward support like this and numerous other significant core features. It's no longer the case that Apple are the only player in these domains. We can jump to alternate platforms easily and cheaply. As Apple drops pro features they risks loosing vital trickle down capabilities that enrich their mass market product sets. A good example is Logic to Garage Band etc. The same will happen with their pro compute products. If they don't have the compatibility or the following who's going to buy these expansive products? They risk becoming just another consumer company.

We've put up with the lack of I/O, upgradeability, expensive hardwired resources (that cost an order of magnitude above OEM alternatives), deprecated support for not very old hardware, deprecated core components (like firewire), lack of 32bit support (that is a nightmare when you need to open older client files that use old 32bit plugins) etc etc. I'm also resist a long rant on challenges with older media access (like floppy, SCSI, CDROM especially in alternate formats like sampler images etc). Even Logic not supporting older project file versions (WTF? That is totally unacceptable - and yes I am aware you can import some items but come on - this is just lazy). How many times are we expected to just wear this in the name of "progress". Personally I run multiple platforms/images with various OS and hardware combinations - just so I can load my historical sessions, projects and media. Windows is far more forgiving with backwards support and broad compatibility.

APPLE Please listen to your community. We are begging you to consider the impact of dropping backward support and please consult with us. You can start with reinstating Firewire support. PLEASE

@matt9 or for any other members. Does anyone know if this AppleFWAudio.kext is enough for Firewire scanners? I've successfully installed @matt9 's AppleFWAudio.kext and I can see in my SystemReport Firewire there, except my Minolta dImage Scanner has come up as Uknown.

Looking at some really older MacOS installations (from Panther onwards) I noticed there's also the IOFireWireFamily.kext. Is this needed? Is there any way to get the Monterey version of IOFireWireFamily.kext if it's needed?

It's a shame. Anyone with Apogee Rosetta on M2 Mac Mini? Is it working?

Looking to get my Mackie Onyx 1620i working in the latest Sonoma, wondering if there are any updates to @matt9's method (especially in regards to crashing upon waking/sleep)? Found this, and doubt it's related, but would be nice if there was a backdoor terminal command to re-enable CoreAudio firewire support:

https://support.apple.com/en-jo/108387

What's the procedure for CoreAudio firewire hack on Sonoma? What are the caveats?

@matt9 - Thank you for taking the time to share your hack. I am deeply grateful for your generosity. Confirmed to be working on a M2 Mac Studio, Ventura 13.6.4 with a Roland Edirol FA-101 interface. It took about 5 reboots and various attempts in the terminal to fix the file permissions and manual load using kmutil AND allowing the FW .kext kernel permissions in System Settings > Privacy & Security. I experienced a few kernel panics during the 5 reboots which were a worry, but once every was signed and loaded properly, my system is stable with no more random crashes. AND my firewire interface is running very happily with Logic Pro, which is a godsend for my work. Thank you thank you!!

Hi, I don't use my interface often, so I was already running Sonoma when I realized the issue. Tried everything matt9 explained, but the .pkg installation ended with a failure. I guess it's because I'm not running Ventura anymore. Anybody else looking to perform this hack on Sonoma ??

I also encountered a problem today.

sudo kextload /Library/Extensions/AppleFWAudio.kext Executing: /usr/bin/kmutil load -p /Library/Extensions/AppleFWAudio.kext Error Domain=KMErrorDomain Code=29 "Authenticating extension failed: Kext jjos.com.apple.driver.AppleFWAudio v270.19.2 in executable kext bundle jjos.com.apple.driver.AppleFWAudio at /private/var/db/KernelExtensionManagement/Staging/jjos.com.apple.driver.AppleFWAudio.3nHPxy/AppleFWAudio.kext:

Authenticating extension failed: Bad code signature" UserInfo={NSLocalizedDescription=Authenticating extension failed: Kext jjos.com.apple.driver.AppleFWAudio v270.19.2 in executable kext bundle jjos.com.apple.driver.AppleFWAudio at /private/var/db/KernelExtensionManagement/Staging/jjos.com.apple.driver.AppleFWAudio.3nHPxy/AppleFWAudio.kext:

Hi Fran81. I did as you suggested , but 2.manually load does not work for me, because I get this reply: Missing value for '-p <bundle-path>' Maybe you can help me out and correct it.... Thanks , Michael

I have to say this really blows Apple!!!! As a loyal user who just recycled my old iMac because it was so old it wouldn't update. It did however run my Onyx 1220i. You royally screwed as faithful user/musician Microsoft - here I come, Apple - tah, tah, toddle oooh!!!

I would be grateful is anyone can confirm whether Midas Venice F series mixer interfaces are working? So far I'm stuck (it's ok) on Monterey with my Intel MBP, but would love to jump ship and upgrade. I love my interface and don't want to lose it

Hi friends,

For the past 14 years, I have been using a Focusrite Saffire Liquid 56 sound card paired with a mid-2011 Mac mini running Mavericks 10.9.5 (FireWire cable -> FireWire-Thunderbolt adapter).

A few days ago, I bought a Mac mini M1 running Ventura 13.1, convinced that I could still use this old sound card via the Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C)-Thunderbolt 2 adapter (which I do not yet possess).

However, I discovered, after contacting Focusrite support, that the sound card is not compatible with the new ARM processors (or at least they have not tested it) and that the latest supported operating systems are Catalina and Windows 10 (Build 1809).

Additionally, I learned that with Ventura, compatibility with core audio FireWire has been lost, but there is still compatibility with Monterey but not with all versions.

At the same time, I stumbled upon some videos on the web that attest to partial functionality of some FireWire protocol audio interfaces with the connection FireWire cable -> FireWire-Thunderbolt adapter -> Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C)-Thunderbolt 2 adapter.

I thought, alternatively, that I could emulate a compatible x86_x64 operating system on a virtual machine using UTM in the hope that the USB signal would "pass through" and operate, albeit at much slower speeds, on the same machine.

Or I could perform a downgrade to a specific version of Monterey that maybe someone here can confirm works with FireWire.

Due to my limited knowledge and skills in the field, I doubt I am capable of using the hack proposed by matt9, to whom we surely owe much.

I was wondering, in case I can't get it to work with one of these methods, what might be the solution (or advice) to not permanently abandon the sound card.

Could I use ADAT with any compatible card? Do you have any other ideas?

Thanks to anyone who responds/helps me.

I just worked through all this over the weekend. Initially I thought the installation had failed for me, but there were a couple of vital little steps i'd overlooked from earlier comments.

I'm on Sonoma 14.6 and have an Onyx 1640i working perfectly again with a Macbook Pro M1.

Here's a summary of the steps I followed which are all collated from numerous posts throughout this thread, hopefully this might help someone.

Thanks to everyone who has contributed to this thread to get this fix working!

Installation

1. Restart computer in Recovery mode.
2. Launch Terminal from the Utilities menu.
3. Disable SIP by running the command: 

csrutil disable

1. Utilities > Statup Security Utility > Security Policy
2. Permissive Security > Allow user management of kernel extensions from identified developers > OK
3. Reboot computer
4. Install AppleFWAudioVentura.pkg to install the kext file
5. Fix file permissions:

sudo chown -R 0:0 /Library/Extensions/AppleFWAudio.kext/

1. Manually load AppleFWAudio.kext:

sudo kmutil load -p /Library/Extensions/AppleFWAudio.kext

1. You should now be prompted to allow the kernel extension in System Settings
2. System Settings > Privacy & Security > Allow
3. Restart (will reboot twice)
4. FireWire device should now be working



Optional (re-enable SIP without kext)


1. Restart computer in Recovery mode.
2. Launch Terminal from the Utilities menu.
3. Enable SIP by running the command: 

csrutil enable —without kext

1. Warning message will display ~”csrutil: requesting an unsupported configuration. This is likely to break in the future and leave your machine in an unknown state.”. Just ignore it :)
2. Reboot and check that FireWire device still works. If it doesn’t re-run steps 8 -12.

Hello Tyronet and thank you for compiling a definitive, clear guide, foolproof even for a noob like me.

I had arrived at a similar process after consulting every single thread online about the topic, collecting all the links, all the texts, and feeding everything to ChatGPT.

Despite this, ChatGPT, which is unfortunately lazy and stupid, responded with the following when I asked it to compare the two guides:

Comparison and Conclusions

Accuracy and Details:

The guide by "tyronet" is more detailed regarding the configuration of "Startup Security Utility" and the management of kernel extensions, which is a critical step for allowing unsigned extensions.

My guide lacks specific details about the configuration of "Permissive Security."

Flexibility and Methodology:

The "tyronet" guide focuses exclusively on a specific workflow (installation via package and then fixing permissions), while my guide offers alternatives such as using extraction tools like "Suspicious Package."

Reboot and Authorization Details:

The "tyronet" guide mentions a double reboot and the need to confirm the use of kernel extensions in security settings, something not covered in detail in my guide.

Security Recommendations:

Both guides emphasize the importance of re-enabling SIP, but the "tyronet" guide is more explicit about potential warning messages and necessary actions if the device does not function after re-enabling SIP.

Conclusion: The "tyronet" guide is more specific and detailed in some crucial steps, especially regarding advanced security settings and the reboot process. It is advisable to integrate the missing details, such as "Startup Security Utility" settings, into the initial guide to ensure a more complete and robust solution.

Given this, I attempted to integrate a section into the guide regarding "alternative solutions" or to cover the possibility that AppleFWAudioVentura.pkg might not work correctly:

Appendix: Alternative Solutions and Troubleshooting

This section provides an in-depth look at alternative methods and solutions to issues that may arise during the installation and configuration of kexts on macOS, particularly for AppleFWAudio.kext. These solutions are intended to address specific code signing errors, permission issues, and other technical obstacles.

Manual Extraction of the Kext

If the installation of the AppleFWAudioVentura.pkg package does not work, you can manually extract the kext using tools like Suspicious Package or Pacifist.

Using "Suspicious Package" and "Pacifist"

• Suspicious Package: A macOS application that allows you to examine the contents of installation packages (.pkg) without installing them. It is useful for verifying the presence of specific files and extracting them if necessary.

  • Download and Usage: Download the application from the official website. After installation, drag the .pkg package into the application to explore its contents.

• Pacifist: Similar to "Suspicious Package," it allows you to explore and extract the contents of installation packages, particularly useful if Suspicious Package is not sufficient.

  • Download and Usage: Available on the CharlesSoft official website. After downloading and installing the application, you can search within packages and extract specific files.

Extraction Procedure

1. Open the Package:

   • Open AppleFWAudioVentura.pkg with "Suspicious Package" or "Pacifist."

2. Locate and Extract _AppleFWAudio.kext:_

   • Find the AppleFWAudio.kext file within the package and extract it to a temporary location, such as the desktop.

3. Copy to /Library/Extensions/:

   • Copy the extracted kext to the /Library/Extensions/ directory using the command:

     
     sudo cp -R /path/to/extracted/AppleFWAudio.kext /Library/Extensions/
     
     

4. Permission Fix:

   • Ensure the permissions are correct:

     
     sudo chown -R 0:0 /Library/Extensions/AppleFWAudio.kext
     
     

5. Loading the Kext:

   • Load the kext with:

     
     sudo kmutil load -p /Library/Extensions/AppleFWAudio.kext
     
     

Details on Kext Loading and Authorization Issues

Code Signing Errors

When a code signing error occurs, it is necessary to check if the kext has been properly signed or if it has been altered.

1. Check Code Signing:

   • Use the command:

     
     codesign -vv /Library/Extensions/AppleFWAudio.kext
     
     

   • This command verifies the status of the code signing. If the kext is not properly signed, macOS will prevent its loading.

2. Disabling Security Protections:

   • Disable SIP: If SIP (System Integrity Protection) is enabled, it might block the loading of unsigned kexts. Ensure SIP is disabled:

     
     csrutil disable
     
     

   • Kernel Extension Management: Enable kernel extension management in "Startup Security Utility" to allow the loading of unsigned kexts.

3. Modifying Security Preferences:

   • Go to "System Settings" > "Privacy & Security" and allow the use of the kext. You may need to confirm the decision and restart the system.

Manual Permission Fixes

Correct permissions are essential for loading the kext.

1. Fix Permissions:

   • Set the owner and group of the kext to root:

     
     sudo chown -R 0:0 /Library/Extensions/AppleFWAudio.kext
     
     

   • Ensure read and execute permissions are correct:

     
     sudo chmod -R 755 /Library/Extensions/AppleFWAudio.kext
     
     

2. Reload the Kext:

   • After applying the changes, reload the kext:

     
     sudo kmutil load -p /Library/Extensions/AppleFWAudio.kext
     
     

3. Monitor System Stability:

   • Monitor the system for any stability issues, such as crashes or kernel panics. If issues arise, consider removing the problematic kext or re-enabling SIP.

I have no idea if this will be helpful as it was compiled by ChatGPT, but I hope it can be useful in some way.

Here are all the links collected online on the topic, hoping they can be helpful as well:

FWIW, I did the Sequoia 15.0 (24A335) update today on my 2023 Mac Mini M2 Pro. Reinstalled the patch and authorised the kext from the pop-up in Privacy & Security System Settings. Shut down, plugged in the FW adaptors and my Onyx into a port on the Mac Mini, and got stuck in a restart-crash loop. Took it out, restarted, then plugged it into a spare TB3 socket in my Belkin TB3 Express Dock while the system was running, and there it is! My Onyx lives to survive another round of Apple's updates. So far it's been up for about 4 hours and working great.

Did the Sonoma 14.7 update and I also had to reinstall the patch. SIP had been re-enabled --without kext, so all I had to do was re-install the AppleFWAudioVentura.pkg, and allow it in System Settings > Privacy & Security (the installer prompts for this, then says it failed; but kext was installed). I also ran the chown command, but not sure how necessary that was. Restarted and was back up recognized and running fine

Thanks for the info @daneover.

Unfortunately, my experience with it has not been so good. The system went back into a startup-crash-restart loop again after a sleep that involved powering down my Onyx mixer overnight. The thing is quite power hungry, so I like to turn it off when it's not being used. I've disconnected it for the time being. I'm thinking of applying a razed earth approach and rebuilding my system and account from scratch to wipe nearly 15 years of migrated junk from it and seeing if that helps, but I'm dreading that.

It is promising, however, that the fix worked as well as it did when it did. Gives us all hope.

Updated to Sequoia 15.0.1. Reinstalled the fix, and I have the same situation again whereas if the TB4 to TB3 to FW400 adaptors are plugged directly into the second TB4 socket on the Mac Mini M2 Pro, a get a crash-restart loop. Remove it from there, and then plug it into the TB3 port of one of my Belkin TB docks, it boots and the Onyx mixer is visible and useable. I'm pretty certain that if I was to try and restart with that connected, there's a good chance it will crash again. It's like I need to remember to unplug it before attempting a restart. Well, a little inconvenient at worst, but at best, I'm still using my lovely Onyx. :-)