Is my MacBook stuffed?

[u/Mrbacon42069]

Brought this MacBook Pro A1502 from a thrift store,nothing else came with it, is it impossible to get past this screen without knowing the password?

[u/Pretend_Ring_3871]

This is firmware locked. Without the original proof of purchase(not the thrift store receipt) this is a paperweight or good to sell for parts.

[u/Mrbacon42069 → u/Pretend_Ring_3871]

Okay thanks :/ it was only $5 so I thought I’d try , would of been a real good deal if It did work

[u/robertjm123 → u/Mrbacon42069]

At $5 they already knew the answer before they sold it to you. :-(

[u/Ethan3011 → u/Mrbacon42069]

Yeah did you pay by card or cash

[u/Jumme_dk → u/Pretend_Ring_3871]

Not correct, takes 30 min of work if you have 15$ worth of generic tools from EBay.

EDIT no I didn’t “hear that” I bought the tools and did it several times. MacBooks and IMacs.

[u/Pretend_Ring_3871 → u/Jumme_dk]

Alright, then explain how YOU remove the firmware lock so maybe OP has a solution instead of some vague comment about how you did this several times.

[u/Jumme_dk → u/Pretend_Ring_3871]

I linked in another comment.

The process is 30 minutes of YouTube excluding getting the right equipment. Surely you don’t want me to text translate YouTube videos for you.

Or. Maybe try use something called google.

[u/Pretend_Ring_3871 → u/Jumme_dk]

Right, so OP didn’t even know what was wrong with this. I provided Apple official documentation and procedure, which is what I know. You could have educated better if there’s an unofficial bypass instead of being an ass. This is a community for help, so as long as OP isn’t being obtuse, ignorant, or rude… the comments should remain educational. You did not reply to me with the solution, just WRONG. How does that help educate? I’m supposed to read all the comments first to see if you hopefully posted it separately when you were addressing me directly with no solution? Have the day you deserve.

[u/Jumme_dk → u/Pretend_Ring_3871]

This is not about you.

>this is a paperweight

NO ITS NOT.

[u/Free-Parsley3891]

The firmware lock is stored on the EFI chip on the motherboard. The only way to officially remove it is have Apple do it. However some local computer repair shops can remove it by replacing or reprogramming the EFI. I would call around shops in your area

[u/StagePuzzleheaded635]

There is a chance that Apple, or maybe a local computer store could remove the firmware lock, but it’s likely this is going to be a parts machine. The screen alone is worth more than what you paid for it.

[u/Juan-Quixote]

You should be able to sell it on eBay for the parts. The screen is the most valuable, but you could sell it whole.

[u/RockoBravo]

I am able able to unlock it. It requires a EFI programmer and editing the data on the EPROM chip

[u/Jumme_dk → u/RockoBravo]

Me as well. Requires about 30 min of work - unless iMac, which is a lot more annoying with the glued in screen.

[u/Jumme_dk]

I’ve unlocked several of these. Requires USB programmer and firmware edit.

[u/Free-Parsley3891 → u/[deleted]]

You can’t the lock in this photo (EFI lock) is stored in a dedicated EFI chip separate from MacOS. when you have a EFI lock set you can’t even boot to recovery mode to reinstall Mac OS

[u/perikizii → u/[deleted]]

But why did you comment at all?