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Configuring Chameleon to Boot macOS Automatically

2026-10-16

After installing macOS, I still found the startup process inconvenient. In Chameleon, I had to select the macOS system partition manually before the system would boot. The solution was to edit Chameleon's configuration so that it could select the correct partition automatically.

Edit the Chameleon configuration

First, install and open TransMac. It is recommended for this task because files modified with UltraISO may no longer boot correctly.

Open your Chameleon installation, then enter the Extra folder and drag org.chameleon.Boot.plist out to a location where it can be edited.

Opening the Chameleon configuration

Dragging org.chameleon.Boot.plist out of the Extra folder

Modify the relevant entries as needed:

Instant Menu--see the explanation below
No Quiet Boot--see the explanation below
Yes Default Partition--the number of your macOS partition, which can be found by running the diskutil list command in macOS
hd(1,3) Hide Partition--the partition to hide
hd(0,1) Legacy Logo
Yes Timeout--must not be 0, otherwise the system may become stuck during boot
3 ShowInfo Yes –remove the comments

The boot behavior depends on the values of Quiet Boot and Instant Menu:

  • When Quiet Boot is set to Yes and Instant Menu is set to Yes, configuring Default Partition allows Chameleon to enter macOS directly.
  • When Quiet Boot is set to No and Instant Menu is set to Yes, you must select the macOS system partition manually and press Enter.
  • When Quiet Boot is set to Yes and Instant Menu is set to No, configure both Default Partition and Timeout. Chameleon will display a countdown. Pressing F8 during the countdown opens the disk-selection screen; pressing any other key continues into macOS.

Editing the Chameleon boot settings

Put the edited file back

Once the changes are complete, drag the modified org.chameleon.Boot.plist back into TransMac. When prompted, choose Yes.

Confirming the file replacement

Choose Yes again when the second confirmation appears.

Confirming the final modification

The configuration is now updated. TransMac modifies the file directly rather than requiring a separate save operation, so keep a backup of the original file before making any changes.

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