Installing Windows Server 2008 x64 on iMac with Boot Camp

I heard nice things about Windows Server 2008 and I really wanna an x64 Windows on my iMac. After a little exploring, I managed to get it working.

First I delete my XP partition and re-partitioned the HDD so I have a clean partition for Server 2008. Then Boot Camp started the installer without a complain. The installation was very smooth.

Then there’s the real problem, drivers. I heard that Mac Pro and some MacBook Pro were shipped with x64 drivers. But when I put in my Leopard disk, I got this warning.

After messing around for a while I found the solution, just browse the disk and run <DVD Drive>:\Boot Camp\Drivers\Apple\BootCamp64.msi directly.

After reboot, the chipset, Ethernet adapter, audio and even graphic card were recognized and configurated.

However, the ATi driver that comes with Boot Camp doesn’t fully enable the gaming features and there’s no Catalyst Control Center.

AMD provided Boot Camp driver for XP but not x64. So I downloaded the desktop version of the x64 driver from http://game.amd.com/us-en/drivers_catalyst.aspx?p=vista64/common-vista64 . However the installation manager won’t install the driver. That’s because though iMac is a desktop, the HD 2600 chip comes with it is actually a Mobility version. So I used the famous Mobility Modder from http://www.driverheaven.net/modtool.php. Select the folder where you extracted the ATi installer and click “Modify”, then run setup.exe and ignore the “unsigned driver” warning.

To enable Aero, go to Server Manager / Features and add the Desktop Experience feature. If Aero is not available after reboot, go to Services and enable Themes service.

Now I got Server 2008 running smoothly on my iMac. Even my dual monitor configuration still works. Can’t get iSight and bluetooth right but I really couldn’t care less.