willzhang05

Removing a Mac's Firmware Password By Reflashing EFI ROM

According to Apple, the only way to remove an unknown firmware password from a MacBook (2011 and later) is to take it to the Apple Store with the original proof-of-purchase. However, I've found that there is another way, which I've been successful with for the unibody MacBook Pro--it's essentially just modifying a couple bytes in the EFI ROM, which should be simple. What's not simple, however, is figuring out how to read and write to the EFI chip. In this post, I'll talk about the process that I figured out and what worked for me.

The Official Method

Apple's method of resetting the firmware password is not reproducible, as Apple generates an SCBO file that unlocks the EFI using their private key. You can read more about this process here. The problem with this system is that, if you are in the unfortunate situation of neither having the firmware unlock pass

skaulana

Did you sign up with Surfline Ghana as part of their Surfprise promotion, enticed by the offer of a free Mi-Fi hotspot that you could use even if you decided to change providers in the future?

Unfortunately, it turns out, Surfline cripples the power of the Huawei E5372 they so freely gave you - not just by locking the device to their carrier, but by removing its ability to connect to radio bands not used by its network. Not so useful that "the device is yours forever" with such anti-customer behavior in place!

Since they won't help us, let's help ourselves:

The trick is called debranding

If you buy a "stock" Huawei E5372 you'll see it play nicely on pretty much any network because the excellent hardware inside supports many 3G and 4G bands. Surfline's firmware intentionally removes these capabilities, so we'll use the magic of software to bring your Mi-Fi back to its stock configuration.