macOS Big Sur running list of install / upgrade problems.
This article is a running list of all known macOS Big Sur install / upgrade issues.
macOS Big Sur launched on Thursday November 12th, 2020. As with any launch of a product or software there will be issues. In the case of Big Sur, the problems started almost immediately. Users started to report download issues when trying to get Big Sur.
As the the week went by, more serious issues started showing up. If you are seeing a one of these issues, feel free leave a comment below.
Mr. Macintosh video that goes over some of the known Big Sur Install issues.
macOS Big Sur Install Issues Table of Contents
UPDATED 2/14/21 – List of macOS Big Sur Installation Issues.
1. Big Sur Full Installer.app Download Problems – “Installation Failed Error Occurred while installing the selected updates.”
2. Big Sur progress gets stuck mid installation – Black Screen with Apple Logo stuck or stopped progress bar
3. Big Sur Install failing and bricking some older 13″ MBPro’s – Installation fails and the Mac has a black screen – Will not respond to any startup commands.
4. Big Sur stuck in endless boot loop. – Some users are reporting after a good install the Mac is stuck in an endless boot loop.
5. Slowness after upgrade to Big Sur – Other have reported that their Mac is very slow after upgrading to Big Sur.
6. Reinstalling macOS Big Sur on Apple Silicon –
7. Big Sur Upgrade Error – An error occurred preparing the software update.
8. If you can’t unlock settings in System Preferences Big Sur 11.1
If more trending issues come in, they will be posted here.
1. Big Sur Full Installer.app Download Problems – “Installation Failed Error Occurred while installing the selected updates.”
UPDATE 11/27/20 – I’m still getting a bunch of people reaching out saying that they are still getting the error even after Apple fixed the issue! I have a fix for you via Hyram Hakkenbecker. You can download the full macOS Big Sur installer directly from Apple’s servers via Safari.
2. Big Sur progress gets stuck mid installation – Black Screen with Apple Logo stuck or stopped progress bar
This issue happens halfway through the Big Sup upgrade or install process. The Mac has already rebooted to the installer and is now on the progress bar. The problem is, something has gone wrong on the install and the progress bar gets stuck at a certain percentage and will never move again.
The progress bar looks to gets stuck at around 40% and will never move again. Below is a screen shot from MacRumors forum user plandersen.
Big Sur install Black Screen progress bar stuck.
What should you do if this issue happens to you?
1. First WAIT! Sometimes the install process takes time. If after a few hours pass and the progress bar has not moved go to the next step.
2. At this point, you have no choice but to power down. I know this sounds drastic, but you literally have no other choice. The good news is, this is also the fix. Many users have reported that this fixes the issue for them. After force powering down the Mac will come back up and and will boot right to Big Sur.
Out of all the reports, this one is the most serious. I do not throw around the “Bricking” term much, as it means that the Mac is usually DEAD. In this situation, if this issue happens to your Mac it will be non responsive.
The reports say that the install starts but after the reboot they get a black screen with nothing on it. Even if the user restarts they will still get the black screen. If they attempt to hold down option, Command R, Reset the Pram, SMC… etc nothing works. In this mode the Mac will NOT respond to any startup keyboard commands
Mr. Macintosh video going over the 2013-2014 13″ MacBook Pro Bricking Issue
Mr. Macintosh UPDATE video going over the 2013-2014 13″ MacBook Pro Bricking Issue
Affected Macs known so far.
13″ MacBook Pro from 2013-2014.
What should you do if this issue happens to you?
In my option, this issue is 100% on Apple to fix for users. If an update or upgrade causes a Mac to become unusable they need to fix it at no cost to the user.
Wait until a possible new fix comes in.
Wait for a Service Program that will cover this issue.
Bring your Mac into service. Apple so far is saying that you will need to replace the logic board. If they say it will cost you to fix the issue, ask for escalation. This issue is not your fault. A macOS update or upgrade should not BRICK your Mac!
(WARNING this is a last ditch attempt. Try at your own risk!) Try disconnecting the I/O board.
Reddit user maknell wrote an great write up covering the issue.
Other users have reported that after installing Big Sur, their Mac will be in an endless boot loop.
What should you do if this issue happens to you?
1. Try to boot into safe mode. Does the the Mac boot correctly? If so something installed on your mac is causing this issue. Maybe it’s an 3rd party application that has installed a Kernel Extension or a LaunchDaemon that is causing the issue.
2. Reinstall macOS
5. Slowness after upgrade to Big Sur – Other have reported that their Mac is very slow after upgrading to Big Sur.
I am starting to see a decent amount people say that after updating to macOS Big Sur from macOS Mojave or Catalina has caused a bunch of weird issues including slowness. The slowness is all over the system, including opening apps, Apple Menu and system preferences just taking a long time to load.
What should you do if this issue happens to you?
Wait! It’s possible that spotlight search is currently indexing and can take some time.
If after a while the system is still slow, open up activity monitor and click on the CPU or Memory tabs. Are any apps or processes taking very large amounts of memory or CPU?
If so kill the process then check system performance.
Still having issues after checking everything? Backup your data and perform a fresh install. I have macOS Big Sur running on a bunch of Macs even all the way back to the 2014 model. They all run very well. Almost all of them had a fresh install. This might be the way to go.
6. Reinstall macOS Big Sur on Apple Silicon Mac = An error occurred preparing the update. failed to personalize the software update. Please try again.
If you try to reinstall macOS on your new M1 Apple Silicon Mac you will get an error. The issue requires a 2nd Mac to fix!
7. Big Sur Upgrade Error – An error occurred preparing the software update.
If you attempted to upgrade to macOS Big Sur and you did not have enough free space on your hard drive the upgrade will fail! This will also leave you in an upgrade install loop. Even worse, if you have Filevault encryption enabled you will be locked out of your data!
Mr. Macintosh Deep Dive full report of this issue + full walkthrough and fixes for multiple situations!
8. If you can’t unlock settings in System Preferences Big Sur 11.1
If you can’t unlock settings in System Preferences If System Preferences doesn’t accept a valid administrator password when you click the lock to make changes, try these solutions.
macOS Big Sur 11.0.1 – Installation failed An error occurred while installing the selected updates.
macOS Big Sur was launched at 12:00PM CST. A few hours later, users started to report download problems.
UPDATE 02/20/21 – I’m still getting a bunch of people reaching out saying that they are still getting the error even after Apple fixed the issue! You can download the full macOS Big Sur installer directly from Apple’s servers via Safari.
What this will do is download the entire InstallAssistant.pkg file. Install this package and it will put macOS Big Sur into your /Applications folder!
UPDATE 11/12 7:30PM CST – The download is working in the Software Update pane now. LET THE BIG SUR DOWNLOADING COMMENCE!!!
UPDATE 11/12 7:00PM CST – Some users are reporting that the download is starting to work. installinstallmacos.py is working for me but I’m still getting the error in the Software Update pane.
If you were able to download the full Big Sur installer before this issue happened, then you are one of the only people with a full installer right now! Maybe you can burn it to a Dual Layer DVD and sell it on ebay haha! (will have to be a blu-ray disc as a DL dvd is only 8.5GB and the Big Sur Installer is 12.2GB LOL)
This is the error you will get on Big Sur when trying to download macOS Big Sur.
My videos explaining the issue is below.
Mr. Macintosh video explaining the macOS Big Sur download issue Update #1
Mr. Macintosh video explaining the macOS Big Sur download issue.
Apple Server issues.
Apple did report a server side issue for macOS Software Updates.
That section was marked as resolved though at 3:30 CST. The problem is, the download is still not working.
The issue is with one file
After digging in, the issue is with one file installassistant.pkg
If you use installinstallmacos.py to attempt to download macOS Big Sur 11.0.1 (20B29)
curl: (22) The requested URL returned error: 403 Forbidden
Could not replicate http://swcdn.apple.com/content/downloads/50/49/001-79699-A_93OMDU5KFG/dkjnjkq9eax1n2wpf8rik5agns2z43ikqu/InstallAssistant.pkg: Command '[u'/usr/bin/curl', u'-fL', u'--create-dirs', u'-o', u'./content/downloads/50/49/001-79699-A_93OMDU5KFG/dkjnjkq9eax1n2wpf8rik5agns2z43ikqu/InstallAssistant.pkg', u'--compressed', 'http://swcdn.apple.com/content/downloads/50/49/001-79699-A_93OMDU5KFG/dkjnjkq9eax1n2wpf8rik5agns2z43ikqu/InstallAssistant.pkg']' returned non-zero exit status 22
We do not have access to download InstallAssistant.pkg and get a 403 Forbidden Error.
Once this issue is fixed, I will will let everyone know.
Once access to this file is restored, we should be able to download Big Sur again. I will keep you updated.
Release Candidate (20B28) and the 11.0.1 Final (20B29) Release Notes are the same.
I checked the release notes for 11.0.1 RC and 11.0.1 Final then compared them and did not find any differences.
Big Sur Install HD Space Requirements
To install Big Sur you will need at least 44.5GB of free space! This is up from Catalina’s 35GB requirement.
How to Block macOS Big Sur 11.0.1
You need to be aware of the changes Apple has made to the softwareupdate --ignore binary. I will explain the changes and how to block Big Sur in my article below.
This is the update is for updating from 11.0.1 Beta 2 RC > 11.0.1 Final
Size = 2.21GB
Big Sur Beta Combo Update
This is update should be for updating from Beta 1 – 11.0.1 RC1 > Final
Size = 3.22GB
T2 BridgeOS Update
The Version of BridgeOS for your T2 Security Chip was updated.
BridgeOS version = 18.16.12561.0.0 v6
Size = 444.2MB
Product ID = 001-79709
New features available with macOS Big Sur. – 108 New Changes & Updates.
Key Features and Enhancements
Experience
Updated menu bar
The menu bar is now taller and more translucent, allowing your desktop picture to extend from edge to edge. Words lighten or darken based on the color of your desktop picture. And pull-down menus are larger, with more space between the lines to make everything easier to read.
Floating Dock
The redesigned Dock is lifted from the bottom of your display and is more translucent, allowing your desktop wallpaper to shine through. And app icons are all-new and even easier to recognize.
New icons for apps
App icons have been redesigned to feel both familiar and fresh. Icons have a uniform shape but retain the stylistic touches and details that give Mac its character.
Lighter window appearance
Windows have a lighter, more spacious appearance that makes them cleaner and easier to work with. Additional translucency and rounded edges designed to match the radii of Mac create a cohesive look and feel throughout macOS.
Redesigned sheets
Sheets in apps have been completely redesigned, removing borders and bezels to put the focus on your content. They automatically dim the background and scale into the center of the app.
New and updated sounds
System sounds are all-new and even more pleasing to the ear. The new system alerts were created using snippets of the originals, so they sound familiar.
Full-height sidebars
A new look for app sidebars makes it easier to find what you want and gives you more space to get things done. Easily track your Mail inbox, access Finder folders, and organize Photos, Notes, Stocks, and more.
New symbols throughout macOS
New symbols in toolbars, sidebars, and controls bring clarity and consistency across apps, helping you immediately recognize where to click. When apps share common tasks — like viewing the inbox in Mail or Calendar — they share the same symbol. There are also localized versions of symbols with numbers, letters, and dates to match your system language.
Control Center
Control Center
Designed just for Mac, the new Control Center consolidates your favorite menu bar items into a single place to give you instant access to the controls you use most. Just click the Control Center icon in the menu bar and adjust Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, AirDrop, and other settings — without opening System Preferences.
Customize Control Center
Add controls for the apps and features you use most, like Accessibility or Battery.
Click for more options
Click to expand the menu. For example, click Display to see options for Dark Mode, Night Shift, True Tone, and AirPlay.
Pin to menu bar
Drag and pin your favorite menu items to the top of your menu bar for easy one-click access.
Notification Center
Updated Notification Center
A redesigned Notification Center puts all your notifications and widgets into a single, dedicated column. Notifications are automatically sorted by most recent, and redesigned Today widgets deliver information at a glance.
Interactive notifications
Do more with your notifications on Mac for Apple Podcasts, Mail, Calendar, and more. Simply click and hold the notification to take action or get more information. Reply to an email, listen to the latest podcast, and even expand a Calendar invitation to see where the event falls in your day.
Grouped notifications
Notifications are grouped by thread or app. Expand each group to see earlier notifications. You can also disable grouped notifications if you prefer to see them individually.
Redesigned widgets
Experience brand-new widgets and beautifully redesigned widgets for Calendar, Stocks, Weather, Reminders, Notes, and Podcasts. Widgets also come in different sizes, so you can pick the one that works best for you.
Customize widgets
Easily add new widgets to Notification Center by clicking Edit Widgets. Then customize the size to show the amount of information you want to see and drag it into your widget list.
Discover more third-party widgets
Discover new third-party widgets for Notification Center on the App Store.
Safari
Customizable start page
Customize the new start page to make it your own. You can set a background image and select new sections to display on the start page — including Favorites, Siri Suggestions, Reading List, iCloud Tabs, and even a Privacy Report.
Improved performance
Safari was already the fastest desktop browser — and now it’s even faster. Safari loads frequently visited sites 50 percent faster on average than Chrome.1
Improved power efficiency
Safari is optimized specifically for Mac, so it’s more efficient than other browsers on macOS. Stream video for up to one and a half hours longer and browse the web for up to one hour longer on a Mac notebook compared with Chrome or Firefox.2
Favicons in tabs
Default tab favicons help you easily identify open tabs at a glance.
See more tabs at once
The new tab bar design displays more tabs onscreen at once so you can quickly move between them.
Website previews
When you just want a peek at what’s on a tab, hold the pointer over it to get a quick preview of the page.Beta
Translation
Translate entire web pages in Safari.3 When you encounter a compatible page, just click the translation icon in the address field to translate into English, Spanish, Chinese, French, German, Russian, or Brazilian Portuguese.
Safari extensions on the App Store
An all-new extensions category on the App Store showcases Safari extensions with editorial spotlights and top charts, making it easier to discover great extensions from developers. All extensions are reviewed, signed, and hosted by Apple for your security.
WebExtensions API support
New support for the WebExtensions API and migration tools allows developers to bring Chrome extensions to Safari — letting you personalize your browsing experience with new Safari extensions from your favorite developers.
Grant extensions website access
Keep the websites you visit and tabs you use even more private. Safari asks you which websites a Safari extension can work with — and you can grant access for one day or all the time.
Privacy Report
Safari uses Intelligent Tracking Prevention to identify trackers and help prevent them from profiling or following you around the web. A new Privacy Report shows how Safari protects your browsing across every website you visit. Go to the Privacy Report from your Safari menu and you’ll get an in-depth overview of every cross-site tracker prevented over the last 30 days.
Privacy Report for each website
See the privacy practices for every website you visit. Just click the Privacy Report button in your Safari toolbar for a summary of all cross-site trackers prevented by Intelligent Tracking Prevention.
Start page Privacy Report
Add a Privacy Report to your start page — so every time you open a new window or tab, you can see how Safari protects your privacy.
Import passwords and settings from Chrome
Easily import history, bookmarks, and saved passwords from Chrome into Safari.
Password monitoring
Safari securely monitors your passwords, automatically keeping an eye out for any saved passwords that may have been involved in a data breach. If a breach is discovered, Safari helps you upgrade existing passwords and even generates secure passwords automatically. Safari keeps your data private and doesn’t reveal your password information to anyone — even Apple.
Messages
Pin conversations
Pin your favorite conversations to the top of your list. New messages, Tapbacks, and typing indicators animate in right above the pin. And when there are unread messages in a group conversation, you’ll see the most recent participants circle around the pinned conversation.
Multiple pinned conversations
You can have up to nine pinned conversations that sync across Messages in iOS, iPadOS, and macOS.
Search
It’s easier than ever to search all your past messages for links, photos, and phrases. A new search experience for Messages organizes your results into links and photos and highlights matching terms. It also works great with keyboard shortcuts — just press Command-F to open.
Share your name and photo
Automatically share your name and photo when you start a conversation or when the other person responds in a message. Share with everyone, just your contacts, or not at all. You can even choose to use a Memoji, image, or monogram for your photo.
Group photos
Set an image for your group conversations using a photo, Memoji, or emoji. Group photos are automatically shared with all members of the group.
Mentions
Direct a message to an individual in a group conversation by typing the person’s name or using the @ sign. And choose to receive notifications only when you’re mentioned.
Inline replies
Messages allows you to reply directly to a specific message in a group conversation. See all related messages in their own view to easily keep track of a thread.
Message effects
Celebrate special moments with balloons, confetti, lasers, and more. Or send a message loudly or gently, or even slam it. Send a personal message with invisible ink that remains blurred until you swipe over it with your cursor.
#images
Find trending images and GIFs and quickly add them to any message. Discover popular memes when you open #image, or search by keyword to find images relevant to your conversation.
Memoji editor
Easily create and edit a Memoji that reflects you. Choose from a wide range of hairstyles, headwear, facial structures, and other features to create one of over a trillion possible combinations.
Memoji stickers
Express yourself with Memoji stickers. The stickers are automatically generated for your personalized Memoji character, making it quick and easy to share with friends.
Enhanced photo picker
Use the updated photo picker to quickly access and share your recent photos and albums.
Maps
Guides
Discover the best places to eat, shop, and explore in cities around the world with Guides created by brands you trust.4 Save Guides so you can easily get back to them later. And Guides update automatically when new places are added so you always have the latest recommendations.
Create your own Guides
Create Guides for all your favorite places, like “best pizzerias in Chicago,” or soon‑to‑be‑favorites, like “sites to see in Paris.“ Then share them with friends and family.
Look Around
Explore select cities with an interactive 3D experience that lets you pan 360 degrees and move smoothly through streets.
Cycling routes
Plan your cycling route right on your Mac.5 See the elevation for your ride, how busy a street is, and whether there are steep inclines or stairs along the way. When you’re ready to ride, send your route directly to your iPhone.
Electric vehicle routing
When you’re planning a trip with an electric vehicle, Maps automatically adds charging stops along your route and accounts for charging time when calculating the ETA.6 Add your electric vehicle on iPhone, and Maps will keep track of the current charge and charger type to help you plan the best route.
Indoor maps
Browse detailed indoor maps of major airports and shopping centers around the world. Find out which restaurants are past security at the airport, where the nearest restroom is, or where your favorite store is at the mall.
Live updates for shared ETA
When friends send you a shared ETA, you can get live progress updates on the map so you’ll know when they’re expected to arrive.
New maps available in more countries
Detailed new maps are coming to more countries later this year, including Canada, Ireland, and the UK. See detailed roads, buildings, parks, marinas, beaches, airports, and more.
Congestion zones
Major cities like London and Paris have congestion zones to help reduce traffic in dense areas. Maps lets you see congestion zone tolls and even helps route you around them.7
License plate restrictions
For cities in China that limit driving through dense urban areas, you can see if you have access based on your vehicle’s eligibility.8 Enter your license plate number to find out whether you can go through the city or need to reroute. License plate information is stored securely in Maps and never leaves your device.
Privacy
Privacy information on the App Store
A new section on each app’s page on the App Store helps you understand the privacy practices of the app before you download it.9 It’s similar to the way nutrition labels help you understand what’s in food before you buy it.
Self-reported privacy practices
Developers self-report their app privacy practices on the App Store.9 See the types of data their app might collect — like usage data, contact information, or location — and whether that data is shared with third parties.
Displayed in a simple format
Just as nutrition labels are convenient and easy to read, an app’s privacy information on the App Store is displayed in a consistent, simple format.9 This lets you quickly and easily see the app’s privacy practices.
Software Updates
Faster updates
Once macOS Big Sur is installed, software updates begin in the background and complete faster than before — so it’s easier than ever to keep your Mac up to date and secure.
Signed system volume
macOS Big Sur introduces a cryptographically signed system volume that protects against malicious tampering. It also means that your Mac knows the exact layout of your system volume, allowing it to begin software updates in the background while you work.
Even More
AirPods
Automatic device switching
AirPods automatically switch between your iPhone, iPad, and Mac paired to the same iCloud account – making it even easier to use your AirPods with your Apple devices.10 When you turn to your Mac, a pop-up banner helps you seamlessly switch the audio over. Automatic device switching works for all Apple and Beats headphones featuring the Apple H1 headphone chip.
Apple Arcade
Friends playing recommendations
See Apple Arcade games that are popular with your Game Center friends right from the Apple Arcade tab and game pages.
Achievements
Visit Apple Arcade game pages to see your achievement progress and explore the goals and milestones you can unlock in games.
Continue playing
Launch the games you’ve recently played across your devices directly from the Apple Arcade tab.
See all games and filter
Browse the entire Apple Arcade catalog. Sort and filter by release date, updates, category, controller support, and more.
Game Center in-game dashboard
The in-game dashboard showcases your and your friends’ game progress at a glance. Quickly access your Game Center profile, achievements, leaderboards, and more from within your game.
Coming soon
Get a sneak peek at upcoming Apple Arcade games and download them as soon as they’re released.
Battery
Optimized Battery Charging
Optimized Battery Charging is designed to reduce the wear on your battery and improve its lifespan by ensuring that your Mac notebook is fully charged when unplugged. Charging learns your daily charging routine and activates only when your Mac predicts that it will be connected to a charger for an extended period of time.
Battery usage history
Battery usage history displays graphs of battery level and usage for the past 24 hours and the past 10 days.
FaceTime
Sign language prominence
FaceTime now detects when a participant is using sign language and makes the person prominent in a Group FaceTime call.
Home
Home status
A new visual status at the top of the Home app gives you a summary of accessories that require your attention, have important status changes to share, or can be quickly controlled.
Adaptive Lighting for smart light bulbs
Light bulbs that change color can be automatically adjusted throughout the day to maximize comfort and productivity.11 Ease into morning with warmer colors, stay focused midday with cooler colors, and wind down at night by removing blue light.
Face Recognition for video cameras and doorbells
In addition to person, animal, and vehicle detection, security cameras can identify people you’ve tagged in the Photos app for richer activity notifications.11 Easily tag people, and choose to be notified based on the person.
Activity Zones for video cameras and doorbells
With HomeKit Secure Video, you can define Activity Zones within a camera’s view to capture video or receive notifications only when motion is detected in those areas.11
Music
Listen Now
The new Listen Now tab is designed for playing and discovering your favorite music, artists, interviews, and mixes all in one place. Listen Now starts with a summary of your Top Picks across your music interests. As you play, Apple Music12 learns what you love and provides new suggestions.
Improved search
Search has been redesigned to give you quick access to the genres, moods, and activities you love. Suggestions now let you do more, such as view an album or listen to a song. New filters let you refine your results to help you find exactly what you’re looking for.
Notes
Top Hits in search
Top Hits appear at the top of your search results in Notes and surface the most relevant results — making it easier to find what you need.
Quick styles
Access additional text styles and formatting options with a click of the Aa button.
Enhanced scanning
Continuity Camera has never been better. Use your iPhone or iPad to capture sharper scans that are more precisely autocropped, and have them automatically transferred to your Mac.
Photos
Expanded video editing capabilities
Adjustments, filters, and cropping are now supported for video editing so you can rotate, increase exposure, or even apply filters to your videos.
Expanded photo editing capabilities
Now you can apply the Vibrance effect to photos and adjust the intensity of filters and Portrait Lighting effects.
Improved Retouch tool
The Retouch tool now uses advanced machine learning to remove blemishes, dust specks, and other objects from a photo.13
Easy, fluid navigation
Zoom in and out to quickly get to the photos and videos you’re looking for in views across Photos — including Albums, Media Types, Import, Places, and more.
Add context to photos and videos with captions
View and edit captions, previously called descriptions, to add context to your photos and videos in the Info pane. With iCloud Photos enabled, captions sync seamlessly across all your devices, including captions you add on your iOS or iPadOS device.
Memories enhancements
Enjoy a more relevant selection of photos and videos in Memories, a larger selection of music tracks that automatically adapt to the length of your Memory movie, and enhanced video stabilization when playing Memory movies.
Podcasts
Listen Now
Listen Now makes it even easier to find what to play next. Easily resume the next episode in your queue from a more focused Up Next. Enjoy a new section devoted to helping you discover the latest episodes in shows you follow. And browse hand-picked episode recommendations.14
Reminders
Assign reminders
Assign reminders to people you share lists with and they’ll get a notification. It’s great for splitting up tasks and knowing who’s responsible for what so nobody forgets.
Smart suggestions for dates and locations
Reminders automatically suggests dates, times, and locations for a reminder based on similar reminders you’ve created in the past.
Personalized lists with emoji
Personalize the appearance of your lists with emoji and newly added symbols.
Reminder suggestions from Mail
When you’re corresponding with someone in Mail, Siri recognizes possible reminders and makes suggestions for you to create them.
Organize smart lists
Customize your smart lists in the Reminders app. You can easily rearrange smart lists or hide them.
New keyboard shortcuts
Easily navigate your lists and smart lists, and quickly move dates of reminders to today, tomorrow, or next weekend.
Improved search
Find the right reminders by searching for people, locations, and even detailed notes you’ve added.
Spotlight
Improved performance
Spotlight is more optimized for speed. Results appear faster than ever, as soon as you start typing.
Streamlined list of results
Spotlight presents all your results in a streamlined list, making results easier to digest so you can get to the app, website, or document you need even faster.
Support for Quick Look
With support for Quick Look in Spotlight, you can access a full-size, scrollable preview of almost any document.
Integrated in Find menus
Spotlight technology now powers the Find menu in apps like Safari, Pages, Keynote, and more.
Siri
Web answers
Siri can now help you find answers to a broader set of questions using information from across the web. Ask questions like “How do hybrid cars work?” or “What causes seasons?” and Siri helps you find the answer you’re looking for.15
Voice Memos
Folders
Folders let you organize your Voice Memos recordings.
Smart Folders
Smart Folders automatically group Apple Watch recordings, recently deleted recordings, and Favorites — making it even easier to stay organized.
Favorites
Easily mark recordings as Favorites so you can quickly access them later.
Enhance Recording
Automatically reduce background noise and room reverb with a single click.
Weather
Next-hour precipitation
In the medium-size and large Weather widgets, view a minute-by-minute chart that shows the intensity of rain or snow over the coming hour.16
Significant shifts
The Weather widget indicates when the weather will be much warmer, colder, or wetter in the next day.
Severe weather
The Weather widget displays government alerts about certain severe weather events including tornados, winter storms, flash floods, and more.17
International Features
New bilingual dictionaries
New bilingual dictionaries include French–German, Indonesian–English, Japanese–Simplified Chinese, and Polish–English.
Enhanced predictive input for Chinese and Japanese
Enhanced predictive input for Chinese and Japanese results in more accurate and contextual predictions.
New fonts for India
New fonts for India include 20 new document fonts. In addition, 18 existing fonts have been upgraded with more weights and italics to give you greater choice.
Localized message effects in Messages for India
When you send a greeting in one of 23 Indian local languages, Messages will add a corresponding message effect to help you celebrate the moment. For example, send “Happy Holi” in Hindi, and Messages automatically adds confetti to accompany the greeting.
What’s New in the macOS Catalina 10.15.7 Update (19H2)?
macOS Catalina 10.15.7 Update is now Available!
For the first time since Mac OS X Snow Leopard, Apple has progressed past a .6 point release! I’m very happy with this change, as it’s easier to understand dot releases compared to supplemental updates. This is the 21st update overall for macOS Catalina.
UPDATE! 9/29/20 – I just posted an article talking about the Catalina 10.15.7 Update accountsd process using 400%+ CPU.
UPDATE! 9/27/20 –A few reports are coming in that the 10.15.7 update is causing some problems with the accountsd process. After the installing the 10.15.7 update, accountsd runs up to 400% in Activity Monitor. The issue might happen for some users that are using iCloud for Drive, Mail or Cal. Other reports say the issue can happen if you are using internet accounts with Gmail. This issue causes system slowness until resolved. Most fixes say to log out of iCloud or Gmail then restart.
Let’s take a look at the macos Catalina 10.15.7 update changes.
What’s New in the 10.15.7 Update Mr. Macintosh video.
10.15.7 Update = accountsd process using 400%+ CPU if using iCloud Mr. Macintosh Video.
The macOS Catalina 10.15.7 Update includes the following fixes.
macOS Catalina 10.15.7 provides important security updates and bug fixes for your Mac.
Resolves an issue where macOS would not automatically connect to Wi-Fi networks
Fixes an issue that could prevent files syncing through iCloud Drive
Addresses a graphic issue that may occur on iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020) with Radeon Pro 5700 XT
Apple’s Public Patch Notes / Release Notes Documentation
NOTE: Apple Documentation takes a little while to show up online after release. I will update when the new articles are made available.
The final macOS Catalina point release update is live!
macOS Catalina 10.15.6 19G73 is now Available.
The final macOS Catalina 10.15.6 update is live! The update is now available for download as a full installer.app, delta and combo update. This update might include a fix for the fix for the MacBook Pro 16″ wake from sleep Kernel Panic Issue!NOTE: as in 10.15.5, the patch notes do not mention this issue. Did 10.15.6 fix the wake from sleep KP issue for you ? Let me know in the comments.
Let’s take a closer look at the final Catalina point release update. When I say final update, I mean that for the past 4 (10.11-10.14) macOS releases Apple has gone to .6. We could see a supplemental update or 2 (Mojave) if a serious defect is found in 10.15.6. Don’t count on this though, as all development is now being put into macOS Big Sur.
10.15.6 Patch Notes Summary
2 New Features
2 Resolved Issues
4 Enterprise Fixes
14 Security Fixes
Apple’s Public Patch Notes / Release Notes Documentation
NOTE: Apple Documentation takes a little while to show up online after release. I will update when the new articles are made available.
Apple Reverts softwareupdate –ignore changes from 10.15.5
You might remember my article talking about the changes Apple made in 10.15.5 and the 2020-003 security updates. mrmacintosh.com/10-15-5-2020-003-updates-changes-to-softwareupdate-ignore/. With the Catalina 10.15.6 & 2020-004 security updates, those changes were reverted back. After installing 10.15.6 or the 2020-004 updates, you can once again use softwareupdate --ignore to block minor and major updates. As long as the Mac is enrolled in Apple School Manager, Apple Business Manager or a User Approved MDM.
Previous 10.15 Releases + Previous Patch Notes
17. 10.15.6 = (19G73) July 15th, 2020 – Current Release
Use your iPhone or Apple Watch as a car key – Some car makers offer the option to control your vehicle with a digital car key. If your car is compatible, you can add this key to the Wallet app on your iPhone.
How to turn notifications and emails on or off in Apple News – Learn how to turn notifications on or off for the channels that you follow, new issues of magazines in Apple News+, and Apple News Today audio briefings in the ..
macOS Catalina 10.15.6 introduces local news in your Today feed in Apple News and improves the security and reliability of your Mac.
New Features
Apple News
Local news in your Today feed provides extensive coverage of San Francisco, the Bay Area, Los Angeles, Houston, and New York City
More stories available from local news providers with a subscription to Apple News+
Your daily newsletter from Apple News can now be personalized with stories that reflect your interests
This update also includes bug fixes and other improvements.
Adds a new option to optimize video streaming on HDR-compatible Mac notebooks for improved battery life
Fixes an issue where the computer name may change after installing a software update
Resolves an issue where certain USB mouse and trackpads may lose connection
Enterprise Fixes
When using a Mac with a built in keyboard that has a non-US layout, the FileVault login window would not recognize passwords containing certain characters on devices without an Apple T2 Security Chip. These passwords are now recognized.
Command Line utilities that don’t not use CFnetwork such as curl to continue connecting to TLS servers that use certificates issued by the recently expired AddTrust External Ca Root.
After installing software that uses a sudo plugin, attempting to use sudo command would fail with an error about being unable to load the plugin.
Major releases of macOS can be hidden when using the softwareupdate command with the --ignore flag, if the Mac is enrolled in Apple School Manager, Apple Business Manager or a User Approved MDM. This change also affects macOS Mojave and macOS High Sierra after installing security update 2020-004
Some features may not be available for all regions, or on all Apple devices.
Big changes coming to softwareupage –ignore command after installing the 2020-003 update.
The Catalina 10.15.5 Update & 2020-003 Security Updates remove the software update –ignore ability for Major Updates. The –ignore flag for Minor Updates is now deprecated.
UPDATE 7/16/20 – Apple just released Catalina 10.15.6 and Security Updates 2020-004. Apple listened to us and reverted the changes made in 10.15.5 and 2020-003 (with a caveat). After installing 10.15.6 or the 2020-004 updates, you can once again use softwareupdate --ignore to block minor and major updates. As long as the Mac is enrolled in Apple School Manager, Apple Business Manager or a User Approved MDM.
Managing macOS in Enterprise or Education is a tough job no matter how you look at it. One of the toughest things that we have to deal with is 3rd party software. On top of that macOS updates & upgrades can cause additional problems. If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know what I’m talking about. 3rd party software is mission critical, and needs to run without issues. We need the ability to test new macOS Software Updates and Upgrades. Any of which could break that critical software, and cause major problems. A few points >
If we find a problem with 3rd party after installing an update, we would need to reach out the vendor. The fix might take longer than 90 days.
A macOS Update causes a big problem, so bad that we immediately need to block it. Sometimes it takes 2-5 months for Apple implement the fix to the next point release update.
Your Mac needs to be Supervised / Enrolled in an MDM, or you won’t be able to hide the Major Update (10.15.4+) update.
7. How can we ignore Updates and Upgrades in the future? (10.15.4+)
8. System Preferences Icon Red Dot Notification (How To get rid of it)
9. Don’t like this change? What can you do?
1. UPDATES!
UPDATE 6/9/20 – 10.15.6 Beta 2 (19G46c) was released today. The softwareupdate --ignore flag was changed to include some changes that we asked for! Be sure to check the AppleSeed Beta notes for all the details. I am still checking to see if the change will make it to Mojave 10.14.
UPDATE5/28/20 – I ran a quick test on a 10.14.6 (2020-002) Mojave Mac. First I used the command softwareupdate --ignore "macOS Catalina" to ignore the macOS Catalina Upgrade. The Upgrade disappeared from System Preferences > Software Update. I then installed a configuration profile that used the restrictions payload that deferred updates for 90 days. I installed the 2020-003 security update. Catalina showed up in System Preferences > Software Update. This can only mean one of two things…
1. A Mojave Mac with 2020-003 installed can now understand the new MDM Profile “Major Update” deferral. The Upgrade shows up because we are more than 90 days away from when Catalina was released.
2. We are taking this sentence literally “Starting with macOS 10.15.4, major releases of macOS can be deferred for up to 90 days using MDM.” Meaning the change was not backported to 10.14 and we will be unable to ignore 10.16 on Mojave.
I have reached out to Apple for clarification on this.
2. 10.15.5 & 2020-003 Update Changes.
Lets jump right in and look at the new changes.
Before I do, I need to do a quick shout out to @bp Balmes Pavlov
Balmes first called this out on April 16th, and really took a deep dive into this upcoming change.
The changes are here now, so let’s take a look at the 10.15.5 patch notes.
10.15.5 Softwareupdate –ignore changes
“Major Releases of macOS are no longer hidden when using the softwareupdate command with the –ignore flag”.
Updates are considered 10.15.4 > 10.15.5.
Major Releases or Upgrades are considered 10.14 > 10.15.
Notice how at the bottom of the note it says, “This change also affects macOS Mojave and macOS High Sierra after installing Security Update 2020-003”.
3. Right now, this only affects macOS Mojave
The direct impact of this update is to macOS Mojave. If you are running 10.14.6 and have the 2020-002 Security update installed, you can block macOS Catalina with softwareupdate --ignore "macOS Catalina"
After running the above command, macOS Catalina will not show up in System Preferences > Software Update.
This is what the Software Update Pane will look like in 10.14.6 before installing 2020-003.
Looks great! This is after running softwareupdate –ignore “macOS Catalina” on 2020-002
After installing 2020-003, this is what the Software Update pane will look like.
10.15.5 2020-003 softwareupdate –ignore. this is what Software Update looks like after 2020-003.
This leaves macOS 10.14.6 with very few options if you want to block users from upgrading to macOS Catalina.
Turn Off Automatic Updates (manually deploy updates)
Hide/Block the Software Update Preference Pane
Software Restrictions on “Install macOS Catalina.app”
4. What about High Sierra 10.13?
The 10.15.5 patch notes specifically mention High Sierra. For Software Updates, 10.13 still uses the App Store Preference Pane. When you click on it, you go right to the App store updates tab. macOS Catalina is NOT listed anywhere in the “updates” Section.
High Sierra and Sierra used notification banners.
10.13 and 10.14 macOSInstallerNotification_GM notification dialog.
If you wanted to block the banners on High Sierra and Sierra, you would run the following command.
You will now run into another problem after installing the 2020-003 Update.
Ignoring software updates is deprecated.
The ability to ignore individual updates will be removed in a future release of macOS
Reading that deprecation note, it looks like we will not only lose the ability to use the --ignore for Major updates (Right Now on 10.15.5 & 10.14) but also point updates in the future (10.16).
5. Blocking the 2020-003 Security Update
If you would like to block the 2020-003 Security update, run the following command below.
Please let Apple know NOW, not later (10.16 is coming in one month!).
Apple Enterprise Ticket
Apple FeedBack Assistant
If you have an Apple SE assigned to your company, talk to them.
AppleSeed for IT: macOS Deployment & Management Survey (this survey is available for AppleSeed for IT participants and can only be taken in the FeedBack Assistant.app)
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 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.
Apple Today Released macOS Mojave 10.14.6 Supplemental Update #2 (18G95)
Apple has now released two Supplemental updates for macOS Mojave 10.14.6. The first macOS Mojave 10.14.6 Supplemental Update #1 (18G87) was released on August 1st. You can take a look at what was included inside the first Supplemental Update in the link below. The second one, which was released today is called macOS Mojave 10.14.6 Supplemental Update #2 (18G95). Apple does not call the updates #1 or #2 but I am so you can understand that two different Build Versions are out there.
The macOS Mojave 10.14.6 update improves the stability and reliability of your Mac, and is recommended for all users. This update:
Resolves an issue that may cause certain Mac notebooks to shut down during sleep
Fixes an issue that may degrade performance when working with very large files
Addresses an issue that may prevent Pages, Keynote, Numbers, iMovie, and GarageBand from updating
Which 10.14.6 Update Does Your Mac Need?
Software Update will always point you to the right update.
Supplemental Update #2 = 10.14.6 (18G87)
Combo Update = 10.14.0-10.14.6 (18G87)
Delta Update = 10.14.5
Updated 10.14.6 Full Installer.app 10.8 – 10.14.6 (18G87)
New and Previous Build Versions of 10.14.6
July 22nd version of 10.14.6 = (18G84)
August 1st version of 10.14.6 = (18G87)
August 26th Version of 10.14.6 = (18G95) = Current
T2 Security Chip= BridgeOS update
BridgeOS was also updated and brings the current version to
16.16.6571.0.0
If I deployed/cached the old 10.14.6 Installer.app for OS Upgrades, do I need to redeploy?
Do I have to replace my deployable 10.14.6 Installer.app? – YES!!!
If you deployed the old version of the 10.14.6 (18G87) Installer, you should update it to the new (18G95). If you don’t your users may be stuck with a sleep-wake issue and have to install the 2nd Supplemental Update to fix it again!
The macOS Mojave 10.14.6 Supplemental Update fixes an issue that may prevent certain Macs from waking from sleep properly.
UPDATE: 08/28/19
Apple has released a 2nd 10.14.6 Supplemental update to address additional wake from sleep kernel panic issues. Click on the link below for more information.
MacOS Mojave 10.14.6 Supplemental Update was released today.
On the heels of the 2019-004 Security update rereleases, today Apple released one new update (Supplemental Update) and rereleased 10.14.6 updates.
1. 10.14.6 Supplemental Update – New
2. 10.14.6 Full Installer.app – Rereleased & Fixed
3. 10.14.6 Combo Update – Rereleased & Fixed
4. 10.14.6 Delta Update – Rereleased & Fixed
I say Rereleased & Fixed because the OS version is still 10.14.6, but the Build Version changed and now has the Supplemental update fixes built-in.
“Fixes an issue that may prevent certain Macs from waking from sleep properly.”
When the 2019-004 Security Update wake from sleep Kernel Panics started to happen, most of the reports were from 10.13 High Sierra. I did see a few from 10.12 Sierra and a few from 10.14 Mojave. The issue was coming mostly from users reports on Apple’s Discussion Forum, Reddit, MacRumors & Emails / Comments to me.
Is this issue the same as the 2019-004 Sleep/Wake issue?
I’m not sure if Mojave had the same issue, but it sure looks like it. I tried many times to reproduce this issue but couldn’t on multiple Mac models. Most likely, this means that a very particular software setup caused the problem.
New and Previous Build Versions of 10.14.6
July 22nd version of 10.14.6 = (18G84)
August 1st version of 10.14.6 = (18G87)
Download Links for the new 10.14.6 Updates
10.14.6 Delta Update – Still old July 22nd version do not downloadfrom apple.com/downloads until the page is updated!!!
10.14.6 Combo Update – Still old July 22nd version do not downloadfrom apple.com/downloads until the page is updated!!!
Do I need to reinstall the new 10.14.6 update? & Which update do I need if I’m on a previous version of 10.14?
1. Do I need to reinstall the new 10.14.6 update? – The answer is it depends!
10.14.6 = New Supplemental Update
10.14.5 = New Delta Update
10.14.0 – 10.14.4 =New Combo Update
2. Which update do I need if I’m on a previous version? – The above chart now answers this one ^
If I deployed/cached the old 10.14.6 Installer.app for upgrades, do I need to redeploy?
Do I have to replace my deployable 10.14.6 Installer.app? – YES!!!
If you deployed the old version of the 10.14.6 (18G84) Installer, you should update it to the new (18G87). If you don’t your users may be stuck with a sleep-wake issue and have to install the Supplemental Update to fix it!
What if I cached the old 10.14.6 Update to all my systems?
What will happen if I already cached the old version of 10.14.6 to my users?
My guess was once the Mac reached out to software update it would find the new version of 10.14.6 and download it. Pcrandom ran this test and found that this is, in fact, true with one catch. The old version was still in /Library/Updates.
“I am seeing some Macs that have both copies when running du -hd1 /Library/Updates:“
2.8G /Library/Updates/041-88928
2.8G /Library/Updates/041-94407
202M /Library/Updates/041-86543
5.9G /Library/Updates
I wanted to test installing the new update to see if the old one was removed, but we did not get a chance to test.
Keep in mind that in 10.14 /Library/Updates is SIP protected, so you will not be able to delete the old update if it remains!
Softwareupdate knows all.
If you are using softwareupdate to deploy updates to your Macs, you will be fine. It will let you know which update you need to install. If you want to check just run a quick softwareupdate -l and you will see what’s available for your particular situation.
