What’s New in macOS Catalina 10.15.1 Beta 1 (19B68f)?
Today Apple released macOS Catalina 10.15.1 Beta 1 (19B68f) to Developers.
Four days have passed since macOS Catalina 10.15 was released to the public. 10.15.1 Beta 1 (19B68f) is now available, so let’s dig in and see what changes Apple put into this new build version.
This article is meant to save you time going through the notes to find what is new and what is still leftover from the last beta. When Apple releases the next Beta patch notes, the previous patch notes are overwritten and taken down.
Summary of 10.15.1 Beta 1 Patch Notes
3 New Features
Report your bugs NOW!
Now that macOS Catalina 10.15 is live you still will want to get any bugs that you find into Apple now. After the production release of the OS bugs can take longer to fix. The 10.14.4 “Update Keychain” bug is a perfect example.
Keep in mind, I can only publish public data. If you are an AppleSeed for IT member you can access additional 10.15 Catalina Beta Patch Notes in the AppleSeed Portal. AppleSeed information is protected by Apple’s NDA.
Some fixes are not going to be listed. Many issues are from #MacAdmins who have filed FeedBack Requests and Enterprise Support tickets. Most of these issues are resolved but are never publicly noted.
Overview
The macOS 10.15.1 SDK provides support for developing apps for Macs running macOS Catalina 10.15.1. The SDK comes bundled with Xcode 11.2 available from Beta Software Downloads. For information on the compatibility requirements for Xcode 11.2, see Xcode 11.2 Beta 2 Release Notes.
How to Manage Catalina’s New Application Notifications with a Profile
This article will show you how to Manage Catalina’s New Application Notification Preferences with a Config Profile.
Now that Catalina is live, MacAdmins have many questions. The top 3 questions I have seen so far are;
1. How do I block macOS Catalina from my users?
2. How do I Manage macOS Catalina Application Notifications?
3. What are the new Screen Recording and Input Monitoring or Keystroke Receiving TCC Settings? (more on that in a new article.)
Catalina Application Notifications Index
1. Should I manage Application Notifications?
2. How do I reset or clear out previous Notification Settings?
3. How can I test the Notifications Profile?
4. Find Previous Bundle ID or App Domains from past Prompts
5. Manage Notifications with a Profile.
6. Notifications Profile with Profile Creator.
7. Notifications Profile with Manage App Notifications.bash
8. Credits
1. Should I manage Application Notifications?
This is a question you should ask yourself. Keep in mind, once you mange a profile setting it can not be changed by the user. Managing certain application notifications from Jamf Self Service is one example. You WANT the user to be able to see the notifications that it sends out. The user may miss something important, if they previously clicked DENY. For other applications, you might want to leave Notification decisions to the user.
2. How do I reset or clear out previous Notification Settings?
How do you reset Catalina’s Application Notifications if you clicked Allow or Deny already?
The settings are stored in a plist in the users /Library/Preferences folder.
com.apple.ncprefs.plist
To reset all Notification Alerts, you can delete the plist and then restart. Once you get back to the desktop all your notifications will start popping up again.
3. How can I test the Notifications Profile?
After you create the profile and install it, any open notifications will immediately disappear! The best way to test your new profile is to delete ncprefs.plist, then restart. Then you can leave any open notifications up on your desktop. Install the profile , then all the notifications that you manage should disappear.
4. Find Previous Bundle ID or Application Domains from past Prompts
If you want to see previous prompts that you have already answered try this command.
sqlite3 "$(getconf DARWIN_USER_DIR)/com.apple.notificationcenter/db2/db" "select * from app;"
4. Manage Notifications with a Profile.
The easiest way to manage Notification is with a Configuration Profile.
NOTE: If you use Jamf Pro, Notifications is not an option yet in 10.15.1.
I will show you two ways to create a Notifications Profile.
Creating Profiles is easy with Profile Creator! The version that we will be using is v0.3.2 which has Catalina Options built right in. After installing you will see the welcome screen.
Profile Creator’s Welcome Screen.
You can start by filling out the General Settings. Set the Name of the profile, Description, Company Name and Payload Scope. For the Payload Scope select System if you want the settings to be for all users. You can add Prevent users from removing this profile (Supervised)
Profile Creator’s General Settings.
Once you have the General Settings set you can add a new profile payload. Scroll down on the left hand side until you see macOS. You will then see Notifications.
Profile Creator Notifications Payload.
To start you will need to add the Notifications Payload Key. Click the + button on the left hand side of Notification Settings.
Profile Creator’s Notifications Payload Settings.
Now that Notifications Settings is active you can add new keys. Click the + button to add a new Key.
Profile Creator’s Notifications Key
Now you can view the different settings you can set.
1. Enable Notifications
2. Bundle Identifier for the target app
3. Show app in Notifications Center
4. Show Notifications at the Lock Screen
5. Notification Sounds Allowed
6. Allow Badges
7. Alert Type – None, Banners, Alerts
8. Enable Critical – If the banner can pass through DND
The option that you will need to find is the Application Bundle Identifier. An example would be Microsoft Outlook. The Bundle ID for Outlook is com.microsoft.outlook. How do you find the Bundle ID ?
You can find many ways to find the Application Bundle ID. I will show you 3 different ways to do this. One of the best ways is to look directly at the application info.plist. Run the following all on one line. Let’s check to see what Safari’s Bundle ID is.
Now that you have the Bundle ID, plug it into the 2nd box in the key options.
Profile Creator’s Notifications Key Application Bundle ID
You can now add as many keys as you want!
Profile Creator’s Notifications 2nd Key Application Bundle ID
Once you have finished adding all the Bundle ID’s you are ready to Add this payload to the main Profile and save it. Click the Add Button in the upper right hand corner.
Profile Creator’s Notifications Add NotificationsSettings to the main Profile.
You should now see this in the upper left hand corner.
Profile ready to save!
Now click on the upload button on the right hand side of the + button to save your new profile.
Profile Creator’s Save Menu
This is the save menu. Check over the settings to verify everything is correct.
NOTE: Just as the note says at the bottom. If you use Jamf Pro you need to Sign the profile with your Apple Developer ID. If you use any other MDM you do not have to do this.
You will now have a file called 10.15 Notifications.mobileconfig
You can now upload it to your MDM Server.
After installing the profile you can go into system preferences > Profiles and view the new profile. It will look something like this.
Notifications Profile Settings.
You can then scroll down to verify all the macOS Catalina Application Notifications settings.
6. Notifications Profile with Manage App Notifications.bash
William Smith aka (talkingmoose) just wrote an amazing bash script that will generate a Notifications.mobileconfig
The only limiting part of this script is that you can only set one application per profile. William has mentioned that he might look into adding the ability to add multiple application notification settings into one profile. If you would like this, please send him this feedback!
7. Credits
A big Thank You goes out to the following MacAdmins.
@stevemasser – For finding the Notifications Preference plist Location.
@roberthammen & @emily for Confirming that current notifications will disappear immediately when the profile is installed.
@eholtam for finding the neat sqlite3 trick for showing previously answered notifications.
If you have any questions or comments on macOS Catalina Application Notifications, please don’t hesitate to Contact Me!
Stream and download more than 50 million songs ad-free. Every time you open the app, you’ll get the best of Apple Music personalized to your tastes with For You.
Music Store
For users who still like to own their music, the iTunes Store is just a click away.
Now Playing
The new Music app includes an updated player. Easily see lyrics while you’re listening and control the music that will play next with just a click. Or switch to MiniPlayer to listen while multitasking.
Library
All your music organized in one place. See artists, albums, songs, playlists, and recent additions with a familiar menu in the new sidebar. And now, type what you’re looking for in the updated library pages to quickly find the exact song in your music collection.
TV
Library
Easily find all your purchased movies and shows in the updated Library tab. Browse by recently added, downloaded, genres, and more.
Movies and TV
Buy or rent new-release movies or explore the catalog of more than 100,000 movies and shows — including the largest catalog of 4K HDR titles.2
Try new Apple TV channels, including HBO, Showtime, Starz, and more. Subscribe and share with up to six family members. Channels play in the Apple TV app ad-free, online or off — no additional apps, accounts, or passwords needed. Try them free and cancel anytime.
Home for Apple TV+
Apple’s new premium streaming service brings you a wide range of exclusive original shows and films from the world’s greatest talent. Apple TV+ will be available in the Apple TV app this fall.
Watch Now
Watch Now is your home in the Apple TV app. Find expertly curated collections and personalized recommendations picked just for you.
Up Next
Watch Now includes Up Next, which helps you quickly find and watch your favorites. It also lets you resume what you’re watching from the moment you left off, across all your devices.
Kids
A new dedicated Kids section helps you discover great, editorially handpicked shows and movies for kids of all ages.
Apple TV app everywhere
You can pick up where you left off on Apple TV, iPad, iPhone, select smart TVs, and now Mac.
Dolby Atmos
Enjoy a thrilling surround sound experience with Dolby Atmos, Dolby Digital, or Dolby Digital Plus soundtracks in the Apple TV app using the built-in speakers on certain Mac models.4
Podcasts
Listen Now
Continue listening to your favorite podcast episodes or see when a new one is available. Or find other shows you might like based on the ones you’re already listening to.
Library
The Apple Podcasts library is the one place for all the shows you’ve subscribed to or added — organized by show title or episode title. Download your favorite episodes to listen offline.
Browse
With over 700,000 shows in the catalog, our editors pick the best shows for you to browse each week. Try a show from New & Noteworthy or check out which shows are trending in Top Charts.
Search
Search provides better results when you’re searching for a topic or people — even find episodes featuring a specific guest or host.
Syncing
Media syncing
All three services — Apple TV, Apple Music, and Apple Podcasts — sync your content through the cloud across your devices. Or sync it from each of the apps if you prefer using a cable.
Back up, update, and restore through the Finder
Each time you connect a device, you can find it in the Finder sidebar. From there you can back up, update, and restore your device.
Photos
All-new Photos tab
A beautiful new browsing experience showcases your photos and memories.
Day, month, and year organization
Photos is organized by day, month, and year views so it’s easy to find photos or relive your memories. Animations and transitions keep your spot in the timeline so you can switch between views without losing your place.
Large photo previews
Photo previews are larger to help you distinguish between shots. Photos uses intelligence to find the best part of your photo in previews, so you see the full, unedited version when you open the photo.
Auto-playing Live Photos and videos
Live Photos and videos begin playing as you scroll, bringing your library to life.
Personalization
Using machine learning on your Mac, Photos can understand who’s in your photos and what’s happening to highlight important moments like birthdays, anniversaries, and trips.
Your best shots
Photos intelligently showcases the best shots in your library, removing duplicates and clutter.
All Photos
The All Photos view displays all your photos and videos in a grid. Choose to zoom in for large previews, or zoom out to get an overview of your entire collection. You can also choose to view your photos and videos in square or original format.
Memory movies
Now you can view Memory movies on your Mac and edit the duration, mood, and title. Edits sync to your other devices when you use iCloud Photos.
Notes
Gallery view
The all-new gallery view displays your notes as visual thumbnails, making it easier than ever to quickly find the note you’re looking for.
Shared folders
Collaborate on entire folders, including all the notes and subfolders inside. Invite others to a folder, and everyone can add notes, attachments, or subfolders.
View-only collaboration
You can now share notes or entire folders as view-only so that you’re the only one who can make changes.
More powerful search
Search can now recognize objects or scenes within the images you’ve added to your notes and can help you find specific text in the items you’ve scanned using the built-in document scanner. Search is also helpful before you type, with suggested searches that you can simply click to view.
New checklist options
Quickly reorder checklist items using drag and drop or keyboard shortcuts, and move checked items to the bottom and out of the way. If you’ve completed the checklist and want to use it again, you can click to uncheck all the items and start over.
Reminders
All-new design
The Reminders app has been completely rebuilt with an all-new user interface and more powerful features, making it easier than ever to create, organize, and keep track of reminders.
New edit buttons
Quickly add dates, times, locations, or flags to reminders using the new edit buttons, all without having to go to another view.
Enhanced Siri intelligence
You can type longer, more descriptive sentences and Reminders understands and provides relevant suggestions. Siri intelligence on your device can also help anticipate your needs by suggesting that you create a reminder while you make plans in Messages.
Attachments
Add attachments to your reminders to make them more informative and useful. You can add photos, scanned documents, or even web links that take you directly to a website related to the reminder.
Tasks and grouped lists
There are more options for organizing your reminders. You can capture tasks associated with a top-level reminder. You can also group multiple lists.
Smart lists
All-new smart lists automatically organize your upcoming reminders into easy-to-find categories like Today, Flagged, Scheduled, or All to see them in a single list.
Customize list appearance
Customize the appearance of your personal or shared iCloud lists, choosing from 12 beautiful colors and 60 expressive symbols.
Messages integration
Tag someone in a reminder and the next time you’re chatting with the person in Messages, you’ll be reminded that now might be a good time to talk.
Safari
Updated start page
An updated start page design includes favorites, frequently visited, and Siri suggestions that surface relevant websites in your browsing history, recently visited sites, bookmarks, reading list, iCloud Tabs, and links you receive in Messages.
Weak password warnings
When you sign in to an account in Safari with a weak, easy-to-guess password, Safari warns you and helps you replace it with a stronger one.
PiP from the tab audio button
Quickly enable Picture in Picture from the tab audio button.
Switch to open tab from the Smart Search field
If you start typing the address of a website that’s already open, Safari directs you to the open tab.
Mail
Block sender
Mail can block all email from specified senders and move their messages directly to the trash. Just as in Messages, you can access this feature by clicking the sender’s name in any email header.
Unsubscribe
An unsubscribe link for email messages from commercial lists now appears above the email header. Clicking Unsubscribe requests removal of your email address from the list.
Mute Thread
Mute Thread prevents notifications from an overly active email thread.
Updated classic layout
Arranges the Mail viewer in a column layout, with an option to preview the current message below or to the right of your message list.
Use your iPad as a second display for additional screen space. Refer to one app while you work in another, or see how a presentation looks in presentation mode on your iPad while editing it on your Mac.
Mirror the screen on your Mac to have two screens displaying the same content, making it perfect for sharing with others.
Wired or wireless
Connect your iPad to your Mac using a cable to keep it charged, or use it wirelessly — within 10 meters — for greater mobility.
Apple Pencil
Use the precision and intuitiveness of Apple Pencil with your favorite creative Mac apps that support drawing tablets. Draw and write naturally, edit a photo or graphic, and use it to point and click as you do with a mouse.
Gestures
Use the same Multi-Touch gestures you’re familiar with on iPad, along with all-new text editing gestures that let you cut, copy, paste, and undo without lifting your hands from the onscreen keyboard.
Sidebar
Get easy access to your most commonly used controls from the sidebar. Use modifier keys to enable shortcuts in pro apps, and access buttons that allow you to undo as well as display or hide the menu bar, Dock, and keyboard.
Touch Bar
For apps with Touch Bar support, the controls appear at the bottom of your iPad screen — even if your Mac doesn’t have a Touch Bar.
Developer support
Developers don’t need to do anything for Sidecar support — it just works. Apps with advanced stylus support can use Tablet Events in AppKit to enable pressure and tilt for Apple Pencil. Additionally, developers can specify custom behavior for double-tap on the side of Apple Pencil through a changeMode event.
Continuity Markup and Sketch
Continuity Markup
Write and sketch on PDFs or mark up your documents with Apple Pencil. See the updates live on your Mac as you mark them up on your iPad.
Continuity Sketch
Create a sketch on your iPad using Apple Pencil and easily insert it into any document on your Mac.
Screen Time
Usage reports
Screen Time creates usage reports that show you how much time is being spent on your Mac, which apps are used most, and how many notifications are received. With iCloud, Screen Time combines all your usage information and syncs Downtime settings and App Limits across iPhone, iPad, and Mac.
Downtime
With Screen Time, you can schedule downtime so you (or your child) can only use specific apps you’ve approved.
App Limits
With App Limits, you can set the amount of time you want to use your apps and websites. Set App Limits for total time, categories, or specific apps.
Combined Limits
Create combined limits with a combination of app categories, specific apps, or websites.
One More Minute
When a limit is met, you can tap “One more minute” to give you time to quickly save your work or wrap up a conversation.
Communication Limits let you control who your children can communicate with and who can communicate with them throughout the day and during downtime.
Managed contact list for children
Parents can use Screen Time to manage the contacts that appear on their children’s devices.
Family Sharing
Parents can configure Screen Time from any device — iPhone, iPad, or Mac — and have everything set up for their kids on all their devices.
Security
Enhanced Gatekeeper
Gatekeeper will ensure that all new apps you install — from the App Store or the internet — have been checked for known security issues by Apple before you run them the first time and periodically thereafter. This extends the protection from the app’s source to include automated checks for what’s in the app.
Data protections
macOS Catalina checks with you before allowing an app to access your data in your Documents, Desktop, and Downloads folders; iCloud Drive; the folders of third-party cloud storage providers; removable media; and external volumes. In addition, you’re asked before an app can perform key logging or capture a still or video recording of your screen.
Activation Lock
All Mac models with the Apple T2 Security Chip now support Activation Lock — just like your iPhone or iPad. So if your Mac is ever misplaced or lost, the only person who can erase and reactivate it is you.
Dedicated system volume
macOS Catalina runs in a dedicated, read-only system volume — which means it is completely separate from all other data and helps improve the reliability of macOS.
DriverKit and user space system extensions
Previously many hardware peripherals and sophisticated features needed to run their code directly within macOS using kernel extensions, or kexts. Now these programs run separately from the operating system, just like any other app, so they can’t affect macOS if something goes wrong.
Find My
Two great apps in one
Find My iPhone and Find My Friends are now combined in a single, easy-to-use app to help you locate the people and devices that are important to you.
Find offline devices
Locate a missing device even if it’s not connected to Wi-Fi using crowd-sourced location. When you mark your device as missing and another Apple user’s device is nearby, it can detect your device’s Bluetooth signal and report its location to you. It’s completely anonymous and encrypted end-to-end, so everyone’s privacy is protected.
Enhanced location notifications
Location notifications include the ability to schedule notifications for different days of the week, more useful place names, and enhanced privacy controls.
Approve with Apple Watch
View passwords
Anywhere you need to type your Mac password, such as viewing passwords in Safari preferences, you can now double-click the side button on your Apple Watch to authenticate on your Mac.
Approving app installations
Unlock a locked note, approve app installations, unlock settings in System Preferences, and modify root files, all with your Apple Watch.
Accessibility
Voice Control
Voice Control is a new way to fully control your Mac, iOS, and iPadOS devices entirely with your voice.
Voice Control improves on the existing Enhanced Dictation feature using the Siri speech recognition engine, so you get the latest advances in machine learning for audio-to-text transcription.
Add custom words
Whether you’re writing a biology report, filling out a legal document, or emailing about a favorite topic, you can add custom words to ensure that Voice Control recognizes the words you commonly use.
On-device processing
All audio processing for Voice Control happens on your device, ensuring that your personal data is kept private.
Rich text editing
Thanks to rich text editing commands, you don’t have to rehearse before you speak. Making corrections is quick and easy. You can replace phrases by name. Try saying “Replace I’m almost there with I just arrived.” Fine-grained selection also makes it simple to select text. Try saying “Move up two lines. Select previous word. Capitalize that.”
Word and emoji suggestions
If you need to correct a word, there’s a new interface just for that. Simply ask to correct a word, and you’ll be presented with a list of suggested replacements.
Seamless transitions from dictation to commands
Voice Control understands contextual cues, so you can seamlessly transition between text dictation and commands. For example, say “Happy Birthday. Tap send.” in Messages, and Voice Control sends “Happy Birthday” — just as you intended. You can also say “delete that”, and Voice Control knows to delete what you just typed.
Comprehensive app navigation
You can rely entirely on your voice to navigate an app. Comprehensive navigation is provided by navigation commands, names of accessibility labels, numbers, and grids.
Navigation commands
Navigation commands give you quick ways to interact with macOS and apps. You can open apps, search the web, open Spotlight, and more.
Names
You can easily navigate by telling Voice Control to select the name of an accessibility label for buttons, links, and more.
Numbers
Say “show numbers” to see numbers appear next to all clickable items onscreen. Use this to quickly navigate complex or unfamiliar apps. Numbers automatically appear in menus and whenever you need to disambiguate between items with the same name. Just say a number to click it.
Grids
If you ever need to touch a part of the screen that doesn’t have a control, use Grid overlays. Saying “show grid” superimposes a grid on your screen and allows you to precisely do things, like select, zoom, drag, and more.
Hover Text
Hover Text displays high-resolution zoom of text, text fields, menu items, buttons, and more in a dedicated window. Just press the Control key when hovering over text with your cursor, and a window with zoomed text appears alongside the standard interface — helping you stay contextually aware. Text is crisply displayed in a font and color of your choice. And you can interact with buttons and type right in the zoomed window.
Zoom Display
While using a second display, you can see the same screen up close and at a distance simultaneously. You can keep one monitor zoomed in and another at a standard resolution. Or keep a personal Mac zoomed in while giving a presentation.
Simplified tab navigation
VoiceOver users will enjoy simplified keyboard navigation that requires less drilling into unique focus groups. The Tab key more simply advances through selection of elements — such as window stoplights, toolbar buttons, and scroll bars.
Punctuation in iCloud
VoiceOver users often customize the way punctuation marks are spoken. These customizations are now stored in iCloud, giving you a consistent experience across macOS, iOS, and iPadOS.
Additional international braille tables
macOS Catalina adds more international braille tables and lets you quickly switch between them.
Improved VoiceOver support in Xcode
VoiceOver now reads aloud warnings, line numbers, and breakpoints in the Xcode text editor.
Display color filters
Users with color vision deficiencies can adjust display colors using new color filter options. Your Mac shifts the colors onscreen, helping you easily differentiate areas of confusion. And you can turn this preference on and off through the Accessibility Options pane using Command-Option-F5.
Tint your entire display
A new display option lets you tint your entire screen using a color of your choice. Some users may find that certain color tints help make text easier to read.
Apple ID Account Information
One place for your Apple ID account details
Now you can access all your important Apple ID account information right from System Preferences on your Mac.
Overview and helpful notifications
A new overview pane allows you to quickly review important tips and notifications to help ensure that your account is properly signed in and secure, and that all the features you expect are set up and working correctly.
Basic account and security details
Easily review account details such as your name, contact info, password, security details, payment and shipping info, and email newsletter preferences.
iCloud settings
Review and update your iCloud settings and manage or upgrade your storage plan anytime.
Media and purchases
Get easy access to your current subscriptions, past purchases, and account settings related to the App Store, iTunes Store, Apple Music, Apple Books, Apple News, Apple TV, and more.
Family Sharing
View which subscriptions you’re sharing, which services are enabled, who has Ask to Buy turned on, and more.
View all your devices
View a list of all the devices you’re signed in to with your account. Review device details such as last backup completed, Find My status, and more.
QuickTime Player
Picture in Picture (PiP)
With a single click in the navigation controller, you can play video in a resizable window that isn’t blocked by other windows, allowing you to watch while working on other things.
Enhanced Movie Inspector
The Movie Inspector pane shows you even more in-depth technical information about the currently open media file. See key details such as video color space, HDR format, bit depth, scale, and aspect ratio.
Open Image Sequence
Create an H.264, HEVC, or ProRes-encoded movie file by navigating to a folder of sequentially numbered images, then choosing your desired resolution, frame rate, and encoding quality.
Timecode support
When QuickTime Player opens a media file with embedded timecode, it shows the time information in the onscreen navigation controller.
Transparent video support
Transparency in ProRes 4444 files can optionally be preserved when exporting to the HEVC format.
Home
HomeKit Secure Video
With a home hub such as an Apple TV or HomePod, securely record video to iCloud when activity by a person, animal, or vehicle is detected by your HomeKit-enabled cameras. Choose to receive notifications when clips are recorded and view them in the Home app on your Mac. In the Home app, a timeline of recordings is available to play from iCloud. You can also share a recording, delete it, or save it to your Photos library.
Audio in scenes and automations
HomePod and AirPlay 2–enabled speakers can now play songs, playlists, and radio stations from Apple Music in scenes and automations with your other HomeKit accessories.
International Features
New multilingual setup for macOS
Choose your languages, including those for keyboard and dictation, in Setup Assistant, and customize your language preferences from the start.
New relationship labels in Contacts
Contacts now includes hundreds of new, more specific relationship labels to help you manage your contact list. Examples include “younger cousin” and “elder cousin.”
Cantonese keyboard predictions
The new Cantonese predictions for Traditional Chinese Cangjie, Sucheng, Stroke, and Handwriting keyboards bring more relevant character and emoji predictions to Cantonese users.
Improved Japanese predictions
A new neural language model takes words typed earlier in the sentence into account, so predictions are more grammatically consistent and relevant to the subject matter.
New fonts for Indian languages
Get 34 new fonts, including four system fonts and 30 document fonts, for languages like Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Odia, Punjabi, and many more.
New Indian English Siri voices
All-new Indian English male and female Siri voices allow Siri to be more natural and expressive.
New dictionaries
New dictionaries include Thai-English and Vietnamese-English.
You can now share folders with a private link. Anyone who has access can see the folder in iCloud Drive, add new files, and get the latest versions of files.
Restore from snapshot
If your third-party software is incompatible with an update you just installed, use macOS Recovery to restore from a snapshot of your computer taken right before the installation. macOS and all your apps will work just as they did before you installed the update.
Today Apple released macOS Catalina 10.15 GM Seed #1 Beta 11 (19A582a)
Catalina 10.15 GM Seed #1 is here! GM stands for Gold Master, this term is from way back when CD and DVD media was still a thing. The GM build was the final production version of the OS burned to CD or DVD. Now that Catalina GM Build is live, we should be very close to the public release of 10.15.
This article is meant to save you time going through the notes to find what is new and what is still leftover from the last beta. I went through both Beta 10 and the new Catalina 10.15 GM Seed #1 (19A582a) release notes to find all the changes. When Apple releases the next Beta patch notes, the previous patch notes are overwritten and taken down.
10.15 GM Seed #1 or Beta 11 ?
NOTE: I am calling this GM Seed #1 because it’s my bet that we will see a GM Seed #2. The evidence is that Apple is still calling this release.
Install macOS Catalina Beta.app
I don’t know for sure though. Apple could just release the current build and change the name!!!
I for one really hope this is the case, as we still have some things that need to be addressed before launch.
Summary of GM Seed #1 Patch Notes
1 New Features
1 New Resolved issues
0 New Known Issues
0 New Deprecations
Report your bugs NOW!
This may be the final beta left to test. The public Release of Catalina is only a week or two away! You will want to get any bugs that you find into Apple now. If you get them in now, they could be fixed in the current beta cycle instead of waiting until after Octobers’s release date. If you wait it could be months before the fix is put into a dot release combo update.
Keep in mind, I can only publish public data. If you are an AppleSeed for IT member you can access additional 10.15 Catalina Beta Patch Notes in the AppleSeed Portal. AppleSeed information is protected by Apple’s NDA.
Some fixes are not going to be listed. Many issues are from #MacAdmins who have filed FeedBack Requests and Enterprise Support tickets. Most of these issues are resolved but are never publicly noted.
1. New Features in GM Seed #1
REMOVED!!! – Installing third party kernel extensions now requires that you restart your Mac before they’re permitted to load. (50340461)
New Resolved Issues in GM Seed #1
Privacy – Fixed an issue where turning on Curtain Mode prevented you from being able to control a remote Mac. (52900397)
Overview -Xcode 11.2 beta includes SDKs for iOS 13.2, macOS Catalina 10.15, watchOS 6.1, and tvOS 13.2. Xcode 11.2 beta supports on-device debugging for iOS 8 and later, tvOS 9 and later, and watchOS 2 and later. Xcode 11.2 beta requires a Mac running macOS Mojave 10.14.4 or later.
Debugging
Known Issues
Watch apps might fail to launch on Apple Watch from Xcode with the error: ”Failed to use existing instance 0 for app with bundle identifier: com.apple.Carousel.” This can occur when the iPhone and Apple Watch are too far from the wifi network base station and have a weak signal, the wifi network is congested, or the network doesn’t support peer-to-peer connections. (51431622)Workaround: Disable wifi on the Apple Watch in Settings to force use of bluetooth, or set up a separate 2.4GHz wifi base station and disable auto-connecting to the ‘bad’ wifi network.
Fixed an issue with UITabBarController where decoding an instance from a storyboard would create extra views at the left end of the screen. If you worked around this issue on Xcode 11.0 or 11.1 by creating a subclass of UITabBarController and hiding extra views in the initializer you can remove the workaround. (55310448)
Fixed a crash that occurred in iOS/tvOS projects when reselecting the currently selected color in a user-defined runtime attribute. (55464140)
The host system’s appearance no longer affects which fallback color is archived for an adaptive asset catalog color. (55570108)
Localization
Resolved Issues
Fixed a crash when importing a localization with xcodebuild into a project referencing a Swift package. (55636751)
Simulator
New Features
simctl video recording now produces smaller video files, supports HEIC compression, and takes advantage of hardware encoding support where available. In addition, the ability to record video on iOS 13, tvOS 13, and watchOS 6 devices has been restored. (50625716, 54409532, 55207068).NoteThe flags and arguments supported by simctl video recording have changed. See xcrun simctl help io for more information.
Simulator now has a menu item and keyboard shortcut to bring up the app switcher in iOS simulators. (54793361)
Resolved Issues
Fixed a crash loop that could occur on macOS 10.15 Catalina when using iCloud Drive in simulated devices running older versions of iOS. (51392951, 54282967, 54818084)
Fixed an issue causing simulated devices running iOS 13 to display a black window instead of enabling an external display or a CarPlay display. (53966664)
Swift Compiler
New Features
Swift function builders use a new type checking algorithm that improves compile times and eliminates many instances of ”unable to type-check this expression in reasonable time” errors for SwiftUI-heavy code. (50150793)
Resolved Issues
The enum NEHotspotConfigurationError in the NetworkExtension framework changed back to NS_ENUM (from NS_ERROR_ENUM), as it was before Xcode 11.0. (54134493)
Fixed a runtime crash that would occur when running watch apps statically linked with Swift libraries. (55082864)
Swift Packages
Resolved Issues
The scheme autogenerated for a Swift package will be automatically updated when the package adds or removes targets. (50586754, 54777895)
SwiftUI
Known Issues
Certain downloadable project files from the SwiftUI tutorials inside Xcode’s documentation viewer might fail during the download process. (55575465)Workaround: Open the web link using the sharing button and download the sample files directly from the online version of the tutorial.
watchOS
Known Issues
watchOS applications built with the watchOS 6 SDK and a deployment target of watchOS 5.3 will crash on launch. (55360395)Workaround: Set the __WKEXTENSIONMAIN_LEGACY_TARGET_5_3 build setting to “legacy,” or use another deployment target instead of 5.3.
Today Apple released macOS Catalina 10.15 Beta 10 (19A578c) to Developers.
This article is meant to save you time going through the notes to find what is new and what is still leftover from the last beta. I went through both Beta 9 and the new Catalina 10.15 Beta 10 (19A578c) release notes to find all the changes. Like usual, I also have included the entire patch notes list as an archive. When Apple releases the next Beta patch notes, the previous patch notes are overwritten and taken down.
Summary of Beta 10 Patch Notes
Nothing! Apple has not documented any changes in the Public Developer Release Notes between Beta 9 and Beta 10.
Report your bugs NOW!
This may be the final beta left to test. The public Release of Catalina is only a few weeks away! You will want to get any bugs that you find into Apple now. If you get them in now, they could be fixed in the current beta cycle instead of waiting until after September’s release date. If you wait it could be months before the fix is put into a dot release combo update.
Keep in mind, I can only publish public data. If you are an AppleSeed for IT member you can access additional 10.15 Catalina Beta Patch Notes in the AppleSeed Portal. AppleSeed information is protected by Apple’s NDA.
Some fixes are not going to be listed. Many issues are from #MacAdmins who have filed FeedBack Requests and Enterprise Support tickets. Most of these issues are resolved but are never publicly noted.
Today Apple released macOS Mojave 10.14.6 Supplemental Update #3 and Security Updates 2019-005 for High Sierra 10.13 and Sierra 10.12. If Apple’s previous update release history is any guide, 2019-005 will be the final Security Update for Sierra. Once macOS 10.15 Catalina is released in October, Mojave will be security patched for two more years. High Sierra will be supported for one year and Sierra will be dropped.
10.14.6 Supplemental Update #3 ??? Wait.. What? Apple is calling it the 2nd Supplemental Update.
Not sure where Apple got out of order here, but this is the 10.14.6 Build Version release schedule.
Which version of the 10.14.6 update does my Mac need?
Software Update will always point you to the right update.
Any Build Version of 10.14.6 = Supplemental Update #3
10.14.0-10.14.4 = Combo Update
10.14.5 = Delta Update
10.8 – 10.14.6 Upgrade = Updated 10.14.6 (18G103) Full Installer.app
How do you keep track of all the macOS Build Versions?
I document all of all macOS versions along with most Apple Applications, XProtect, Gatekeeper and MRT updates in one database. You can check out the link below.
On Tuesday Apple released Xcode 11.1 GM Seed to Developers.
The Production version of Xcode 11 was released to the Mac App Store just 6 days ago. We now have the first beta version of Xcode 11.1 available for developers to test with. What’s new?
I have added links to my previous Xcode 11 Change Notes below. Also included is Xcode Requirements and “What’s New”
Summary of New Xcode 11. GM Seed Patch Notes
1 New Features
3 New Resolved issues
6 New Known Issues
0 New Deprecations
A Full List of changes is listed below, along with the full patch notes list.
Xcode 11.1 includes SDKs for iOS 13.1, macOS Catalina 10.15, watchOS 6, and tvOS 13. 2. Xcode 11.1 supports on-device debugging for iOS 8 and later, tvOS 9 and later, and watchOS 2 and later. 3. Xcode 11.1 requires a Mac running macOS Mojave 10.14.4 or later.
Asset Catalogs
Known Issues
Images in the asset catalog won’t be found at runtime when running on watchOS 4. (55395258)
Interface Builder
New Features
You can now preview your interface for the 7th generation iPad. (53957165)
Known Issues
There is an issue with UITabBarController where decoding an instance from a storyboard will create some extra views at the left end of the screen. Developers may remove these by applying a workaround. (55310448)Workaround: To remove the extraneous views from Storyboard, create a subclass of a UITabBarController and add the following snippet in the class’s init(coder:)method:class WorkaroundTabBarController: UITabBarController {
required init?(coder: NSCoder) {
super.init(coder: coder)
// This must be run immediately after the call to super.
if (tabBar.subviews.count > 1) {
tabBar.subviews[0].isHidden = true
}
}
}
Resolved Issues
Fixed a crash that sometimes occurred when compiling XIB files in iOS projects that backwards deploy to iOS versions earlier than 13.0. (55271752)
Localization
Known Issues
UITableViewCell labels in storyboards and XIB files do not use localized string values from the strings file at runtime. (52839404)
Simulator
Known Issues
On macOS Catalina, iCloud Drive will crash in a loop on simulated devices running older versions of iOS. (51392951, 54282967, 54818084)Workaround: Log out of iCloud in impacted simulators to halt the crash cycle.
Resolved Issues
CarPlay works on iOS 13.1 simulators. (54492162)
Swift
Known Issues
The NEHotspotConfigurationError enum from the NetworkExtension framework changed from NS_ENUM to NS_ERROR_ENUM, which can cause compiler errors in existing Swift code that uses the enum. For example, in code like this:let code = NEHotspotConfigurationError(rawValue: errorCode)
You will see the error message: “error: incorrect argument label in call (have ‘rawValue:’, expected ‘_nsError:’).” (54134493)Workaround: Replace references of NEHotspotConfigurationError with NEHotspotConfigurationError.Code. For the above example, change the code to:let code = NEHotspotConfigurationError.Code(rawValue: errorCode)
SwiftUI
Resolved Issues
Fixed an issue with Xcode Previews where debugging a preview would no longer pin the preview, and navigating would lose the debug session. (54758098)
Swift Packages
Known Issues
If an iOS, tvOS, or watchOS app uses a Swift Package that builds a dynamic library, it cannot be submitted to the App Store. (55564324)Workaround: Modify the Package manifest to build a static library.
Google Chrome Keystone Updater is removing the /var symlink causing account and boot issues.
UPDATE: 10/03/19
Google has posted an update that they found the issue in the Keystone Update and fixed it. They are are pushing the updated version now. The push started last night and the new version should be 1.2.13.79 or 1.2.13.80.
See Index #7 for theUpdated Fix from Google Support
#Varsectomy FAQ- Index
1.What is going on here?– #Varsectomy
2. Which macOS Versions are affected ?
3.Specific Mac Hardware ?
4.SIP – System Integrity Protection
5.AVID orGoogle Chrome Keystone Update causing this issue ?
6. How can I check my /var symlink?
7.How can I fix the issue = 2 ways to fix.
8. What about Hackintosh users? A fix for you!
9. Should I disable Chrome Auto Updates
10.Jamf Pro Extension Atribute
11. Links
12.Credit– Investigation by #MacAdmins& Apple
1. What is going on here ? – #Varsectomy
The purpose of this article is to gather all known information and data around the current issues some AVID and NON SIP protected Macs are experiencing. The issue first started on Monday 9/23/19.
Late Yesterday some #MacAdmins started to report that a few of their systems would not boot properly. They would have the following issues.
1. After rebooting the affected system it would Kernel Panic. The system will reboot only to KP again
2. User Logs out and the system shows the Setup Assistant.
3. The System Kernel Panics into a boot Loop.
AVID users were some of the first to report the issue. AVID.com says
Sometimes AVID Media Creators use 3rd Party Graphics cards connected to their Mac Pro. When the issue hit yesterday, it was thought that AVID was the main cause of the problems since all the users experiencing the issue had AVID software.
Only later after a MacAdmins deep dive investigation was it found that AVID was NOT the cause of the problem. It was Google Chrome Keystone Updater!
Join the #Varsectomy channel in MacAdmins Chat for the latest info!
2. Which macOS Versions are affected ?
MacOS 10.9 – 10.14 Mojave
NOTE: macOS 10.9 & 10.10 so not have SIP. System Integrity Protection was introduced in macOS 10.11 El Capitan.
3.Specific Mac Hardware ?
At first it was first reported that the 2013 Mac Pro was affected, this is not true.
Now it seems the issue affects all Macs that have SIP (System Integrity Protection) Disabled or turned OFF
Check if SIP is enabled by running csrutil status
System Integrity Protection status: enabled.
System Integrity Protection status: disabled
4. SIP – System Integrity Protection
All Reports so far look to be from Macs that have SIP Disabled!
Please do not disable SIP, it was created to protect macOS from this very issue.
5.AVID or Google Chrome Keystone Update causing this issue ?
At first the issue seemed to be caused by Avid Media Composer. After further investigation it was found that AVID was not the problem! Some AVID users may need to DISABLE SIP for 3rd party Video Card support.
After investigation from some of the top minds in the MacAmins Slack Chat #varsectomy channel it was found that the Google Keystone Updater was at the heart of the issue.
The Google Chrome Keystone updater lives here (if set to only update for the user who installed Chrome) – ~/Library/Google/GoogleSoftwareUpdate/GoogleSoftwareUpdate.bundle/Contents/Resources/
If set to install for ALL users. (This also prompts for admin access for install) Thanks Jeff Johnson/Library/Google/GoogleSoftwareUpdate/GoogleSoftwareUpdate.bundle/Contents/Resources/
Thank you eholtam for the VM investigation and Screenshots!
Google Chrome Keystone Update Policy Running.
After kicking off the update you can see the problem below.
“Found and deleted symlink at path /var”
Found and deleted symlink at path /var
6. How do I check my /var symlink?
Check to see if your /var symlink was modified by running the following command.
ls -ldO /var
You should get one of the following outputs. The first one below means that your /var volder is SIP protected (notice the restricted flag) and the proper sym link /var -> private/var
The next one means that your symlink is broken and the folder is NOT SIP Protected.
drwxr-xr-x 5 503 wheel - 170 Sep 24 14:37 /var
If you find /var in this condition you are affected! If you LOGOUT, SHUTDOWN OR RESTART your Mac will NOT Boot! You will need to boot into recovery, repair the /var symlink and reset the restricted flags. Fix below.
First you have to fix the /var symlink so it shows /var -> private/var
Then you can remove the affected LaunchAgents
Boot to macOS Recovery by holding down Command R
Steps for 10.11 -10.14 SIP Supported Systems
1. Boot into Recovery 2. Launch Terminal (only if you're on 10.11+ with SIP) # chroot /Volumes/[affected install] # mv var vv # ln -s private/var var # chflags -h restricted /var # chflags -h hidden /var # xattr -sw com.apple.rootless "" /var
Steps for 10.9-10.10 NON SIP Systems
10.10 or older: only do symblink and the hidden chflag and remove launch agents from /Users/[affected user]/Library/LaunchAgents/ OR /Library/LaunchAgents/ - com.google.keystone.agent.plist - com.google.keystone.xpcservice.plist # exit (recommended) # csrutil enable (10.11+) 8. Reboot
NOTE: The information below is from Google. Link Below.
chroot /Volumes/Macintosh\ HD #(Macintosh HD is the default)
rm -rf /Library/Google/GoogleSoftwareUpdate/GoogleSoftwareUpdate.bundle
mv var var_back #(Var may not exist, but this is fine)
ln -sh private/var /var
chflags -h restricted /var
chflags -h hidden /var
xattr -sw com.apple.rootless "" /var
NOTE: Commenter stockmind has noted that the GoogleSoftwareUpdate.Bundle could reside in the USERS folder. In that case you need to run this string instead. Change USERNAME to your Username. Thanks for the tip!
Youshouldn’t need to disable Chrome Auto updates at this time. From the Chromium bug report – bugs.chromium.org/p/chromium/issues/detail?id=1007358 Google has disabled Keystone updates for now until the issue is found and resolved.
Today Apple released macOS Catalina 10.15 (19A573a) Beta 9 to Developers.
This article is meant to save you time going through the notes to find what is new and what is still leftover from the last beta. I went through both Beta 8 and the new Catalina 10.15 Beta 9 (19A573a) release notes to find all the changes. Like usual, I also have included the entire patch notes list as an archive. When Apple releases the next Beta patch notes, the previous patch notes are overwritten and taken down.
Summary of Beta 9 Patch Notes
1 New Features
2 New Resolved issues
2 New Known Issues
0 New Deprecations
Report your bugs NOW!
This may be the final beta left to test. The public Release of Catalina is only a few weeks away! You will want to get any bugs that you find into Apple now. If you get them in now, they could be fixed in the current beta cycle instead of waiting until after September’s release date. If you wait it could be months before the fix is put into a dot release combo update.
Keep in mind, I can only publish public data. If you are an AppleSeed for IT member you can access additional 10.15 Catalina Beta Patch Notes in the AppleSeed Portal. AppleSeed information is protected by Apple’s NDA.
Some fixes are not going to be listed. Many issues are from #MacAdmins who have filed FeedBack Requests and Enterprise Support tickets. Most of these issues are resolved but are never publicly noted.
1. New Features in Beta 9
iCloud – Launch daemons and launch agents introduce new user privacy protections. Specifying privacy-sensitive files and folders in a launchd property list might not work as expected and prevent the service from running. Having Program or ProgramArguments pointing to an executable in a privacy sensitive location is currently allowed, but may be restricted in a future release. (49702405)To comply with the new privacy protections, resources for a launchd service must be stored in locations that aren’t privacy sensitive. If necessary, the app can set up resources during its execution rather than using launchd property list keys, making it possible to grant the app access using System Preferences > Security & Privacy > Privacy. The following launchd property list keys are affected: KeepAlive, PathState, QueueDirectories, Sockets, SockPathName, StandardErrorPath, StandardInPath, StandardOutPath, and WatchPaths.
2. New Resolved issues
Localization – Fixed an issue where certain languages might exhibit clipped or misaligned layout. (51068688, 50983852)
Localization – Fixed an issue where certain languages might display unlocalized text. (47765173, 51196633)
3. New Known Issues
Mac Catalyst – DOM keyboard events aren’t dispatched as expected in WKWebView when pressing or releasing keys. Web apps needing to track typed characters can instead listen for DOM input events. (54580414)
Remote Desktop – Turning on Curtain Mode prevents you from being able to control a remote Mac. (52900397)
