EFI32 MacBook users: forget 64-bit kernel

As many people, I have a white MacBook with a Core 2 Duo (64-bit) processor, but with EFI32. I installed Snow Leopard thinking that the whole system will be in 64-bit mode from the beginning (as Apple says on its web). But opening the Activity Monitor I realized that the kernel was still in 32-bit mode (kernel_task process, in All processes). I searched on the Internet and I found out that if your MacBook has EFI32 your kernel won’t boot on 64-bit mode. Doesn’t matter the processor you have, Apple does not allow it.

For EFI64 Macbooks, the kernel won’t boot in 64-bit from the begining too. But it is possible to boot the kernel in 64-bit mode doing some tricks. Be careful because I have read that this tricks can make some drivers not compatible with the system.

I tried to do those tricks with my EFI32 MacBook and nothing seemed to happen. I know the system booted in 64-bit mode, but the kernel_task process was still in 32-bit, so I decided to leave it and forget it. But some days later I realized that the general performance of Snow Leopard was worse. After some searches on the Internet without finding any answer, I remembered the changes I made. When I reverted those changes, starting the system in 32-bit mode, everything was fixed.

So I recommend EFI32 MacBook users to forget the 64-bit kernel, at least until Apple makes an update activating it.

Related posts: Find out which EFI your Mac has

Tricks for EFI64: ZDNet

Slow Snow Leopard

First time I ran Snow Leopard, I noted it was a little slower than Leopard, specially when using Exposé. Due to I spent my money supposing to get a faster and better operating system, I started looking on the internet for an answer to this. The solution was easier to find than I thought because it was on Apple Support discussions. The only thing I had to do is to delete the following file:

/System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.audio.coreaudiod.plist

It works for me. Now the system runs faster and smoother.

Found in: Apple Support