Apple (feature list, release notes, security, enterprise, developer, full installer, IPSW):
macOS Sequoia brings exciting new features, including iPhone Mirroring, which expands Continuity by enabling access to and control of iPhone directly from macOS; big updates to Safari; a new Passwords app; and more. Starting next month, macOS Sequoia will introduce Apple Intelligence, the personal intelligence system that combines the power of generative models with personal context to deliver intelligence that is incredibly useful and relevant while protecting users’ privacy and security.
See also:
So far (knock on wood), it seems like Sequoia breaks less stuff than other recent major releases. However, I can’t upgrade yet because Xcode 15.4 doesn’t work on Sequoia, and Xcode 16 can’t compile for Big Sur.
Rich Trouton:
As part of the release of macOS Sequoia, Apple has added new user functionality for managing system extensions, as well as management profile options for Mac admins.
Felix Schwarz:
TIL that in macOS Sequoia SecPKCS12Import() fails with error errSecAuthFailed (“Authorization/Authentication failed”) when trying to import PKCS12 data that’s “protected” with an empty password (“”).
Written out as a file, the same data will also fail to import into the Keychain Access app with the same error.
Howard Oakley:
Apple has already announced that this first ‘minor’ update will bring its AI features, including most significantly Writing Tools. Although those have been in beta-testing for almost as long as 15.0, in terms of changes, the step from 15.0 will in many ways be greater than that from 14.6 to 15.0. However, that only applies to Apple silicon Macs that support AI.
Previously:
Update (2024-09-17): See also: Hacker News.
Adam Chandler:
Wait so another year of improvements coming to photos for my cellular phone and none of these improvements are on the computer I edit, proof and organize the photos?
Rich Trouton:
As of macOS Sequoia, Keychain Access.app is in the following location:
/System/Library/CoreServices/Applications/Keychain Access.app
Howard Oakley:
One of the unannounced features in macOS Sequoia is, for many who use iCloud Drive, one of its most important, as this upgrade introduces the ability to pin files and folders to ensure they remain downloaded and don’t get evicted.
Jen Simmons:
With iPhone Mirroring on macOS Sequoia, you can use your iPhone from your Mac. Combine it with remote inspection from Safari, and now it’s easier than ever to test and debug websites on iOS using Web Inspector.
[…]
macOS Sequoia adds support for opening links directly in web apps. Now, when a user clicks a link, if it matches the scope of a web app, that link will open in the web app instead of their default web browser.
[…]
Now users can personalize web apps on Mac with Safari Web Extensions and Content Blockers.
Jeff Johnson:
For some reason, Apple chose not to support app extensions in Safari 18 web apps.
Tim Hardwick:
With macOS Sequoia now released, there are again new features that aren’t available to Intel Mac owners.
Matthias Gansrigler:
Does macOS Sequoia no longer accept global keyboard shortcuts with an option shift modifier, like (⌥ ⇧ 2) ?
I can’t seem to get it to work anymore using RegisterEventHotkey…
Benjamin Mayo:
The iPhone Mirroring window defaults to “Actual Size”, but it really isn’t (at least for me). I’d estimate it is about 80% of my actual iPhone’s screen size, and is simply too small. The “Larger” view option is usable.
Update (2024-09-19): Shottr (Reddit):
Starting with macOS Sequoia, Apple does not allow global hotkeys where Option or Shift+Option are the only modifiers.
If you have an Opt+Letter hotkey, it'll stop working after you update macOS. Changing hotkey to Ctrl+Letter will help.
Apple Frameworks Engineer:
This was an intentional change in macOS Sequoia to limit the ability of key-logging malware to observe keys in other applications. The issue of concern was that shift+option can be used to generate alternate characters in passwords, such as Ø (shift-option-O).
This doesn’t make sense to me since most of the password characters would not use those modifiers, anyway.
Tyler Hall has screenshots of Sequoia’s notifications of extensions being added. Oddly, the spacing and use of smart quotes are inconsistent. [Update (2024-09-21): It’s a parody that gets increasingly ridiculous.]
Norbert Doerner:
Our experiences with macOS 15 so far are not very good.
Networking is flaky, many apps crash a lot, Apples developer tools (Xcode 16) are still highly unstable.
Alex Kleber:
MacOS 15 total fail in networking. VPNs not working anymore or something they disconnect without any reason, VMs are not working anymore using Shared Networking (@UTMapp). Sometimes DHCP is simply refusing to provide IP
Matthias Gansrigler:
My M1 MacBook Pro - logged out and sleeping - drained its battery completely over night, not connected to any other devices. Sequoia bug?
Tim Hardwick:
In this article, we’ve selected 50 new features and lesser-known changes that are worth checking out if you’re upgrading.
See also: John Voorhees’s review and the comments at Mac Power Users Talk.
Previously:
Update (2024-09-20): Matt Ronge:
I’m so sick of Apple treating us like children. Look at this nonsense that pops when you launch one of our apps on MacOS Sequoia.
Macs are power tools, let us use them as such!
Der Teilweise:
Would you mind to tell me what updated? Including a file path?
I did not update anything, who did it? What did you update … “Apple Inc.”?!? Even if this is legitimate, it’s not like that’s a single product company.
William Gallagher:
Now if users turn on the option in the Mac App Store, larger apps will automatically download to a nominated location instead of straight into the regular Applications folder. Specifically, if an app is larger than 1GB, it will download to that external drive.
Update (2024-09-23): Gabriel Zachmann:
I have received reports that my screensaver is not working under macOS 15.
In particular, it seems like it can't access its settings, using
ScreenSaverDefaults[…]
Steve Mills:
You should definitely submit a bug to Apple. You can reference FB13444225,
which is my report of the bug that causes ScreenSaverViews to not be removed
after the screensaver stops, and they keep running after the screensaver starts
up again, so they keep multiplying.
Tsinoy Newbie:
After updating to Sequoia my file downloading process in safari is broken.
it will initiate the process but it will not download any further. When you click on open finder message will say cannot move file
Matthias Gansrigler also doesn’t understand how the keyboard shortcut restrictions really protect users:
That’s sadly something that’s becoming more and more routine at Apple: punish developers that adhere to the sandbox and Mac App Store rules, for no good reason.
[…]
Apple’s own software is exempt from this restriction, as you can see in this screenshot of System Settings > Keyboard > Keyboard Shortcuts, where I could set it up just fine.
Why this matters? Consistency. Users expect that if it works in Apple’s software, it should also work in other apps they use.
Update (2024-09-25): Panic:
Nova users, if you’re getting “This file cannot be opened” errors after updating to macOS Sequoia, please reboot your Mac. There is an issue with the update process to macOS Sequoia which prevents Nova from generating file bookmarks until after a reboot.
Steve Troughton-Smith:
Really don’t like the change in Messages on Sequoia/iOS 18 to turn links in the text field into previews and masking their URLs, leaving all the tracking identifiers and YouTube timecodes. On macOS you get a menu item to turn it back into text, but then the receiver doesn’t get a link preview either.
Marcin Krzyzanowski:
macOS 15 upgrade managed to delete my local Photos library. Since I don't have iCloud Photos enabled on that mac, all local photos are gone now. well.
John Gordon:
Photos now allows one to go from a specific photo to that photo as seen in an album, which also shows what albums it’s in.
This is something I’ve wanted for years.
Update (2024-10-07): Norbert Doerner:
And another very serious bug in macOS 15 “sequoia”.
The Apple NTFS driver is unable to traverse a volume using opendir();
The very first call to readdir() will often return NULL, and thus failing to read the contents of that folder, even if the folder is NOT empty.
Also, the child->d_type value is often 0 for files, which is so wrong.
Update (2024-10-10): Alliumcepa:
Following the upgrade from Sonoma to Sequoia, my external mouse is drifting. This only happens with the cursor over the external monitors, which are connected through a docking station. […] I have tried with a trackpad and 3 other mice. The issue appears to be consistent across the bluetooth connection for pointers.
Update (2024-10-15): Darren Allan (via Ric Ford):
If you’ve run into issues with macOS Sequoia, you’ve come to the right place: in this article, we’ve outlined the most common problems Mac users are coming up against, as well as potential cures for these ailments.
Update (2024-10-22): Howard Oakley:
This article guides you around the volumes and directories that compose the boot volume group in macOS 15 Sequoia.
Apple Intelligence Apple Password Manager Datacide Extensions File System iCloud Drive iPhone Mirroring Keyboard Shortcuts Keychain Mac Mac App Store macOS 15 Sequoia macOS Release Messages.app Photos.app Screensaver
Apple (release notes, full installer):
This document describes the security content of macOS Sonoma 14.7.
Apple (release notes, full installer):
This document describes the security content of macOS Ventura 13.7.
Previously:
Update (2024-09-23): David C. Shamino:
I installed the macOS 14.7 update this morning and now I’m quite nervous.
When I logged back in after the upgrade, I got a dialog that says the system was not shut down properly, then asking me if I want to restore the apps that were running prior to shutdown or not. And a few minutes later, it kernel panicked.
David C. Shamino:
Well, it appears that my kernel panics aren’t done. Even though I seemed to have successfully rolled back my system to 14.6.1, and I am no longer getting a kernel panic within a few minutes after a reboot, I just suffered another panic today (5-6 days later).
[…]
BridgeOS is the firmware running in the T2 chip. I think rolling back to 14.6.1 did not roll-back the BridgeOS firmware.
Apple T2 BridgeOS Bug Kernel Panic Mac macOS 13 Ventura macOS 14 Sonoma macOS Release
Apple (feature list, release notes, security, enterprise, developer):
iPadOS 18 makes the iPad experience more versatile and intelligent than ever, and is available today as a free software update. iPadOS 18 brings incredible new features designed for the unique capabilities of iPad, making it even easier for users to get tasks done. With iPadOS 18, Calculator comes to iPad with Math Notes, along with new Smart Script handwriting tools in Notes — all designed for Apple Pencil. Additionally, iPad users now have more ways to customize the Home Screen and Control Center, and users receive the biggest redesign of the Photos app ever, new ways to express themselves in Messages, and so much more.
See also:
Previously:
Update (2024-09-19): My update failed with the iPad stuck at the progress bar on the black screen. I had to force-restart the iPad. Then the update completed, but Universal Clipboard no longer works.
Update (2024-10-07): Ryan Christoffel:
I use the iPad Pro as my primary computer, and have been enjoying three key upgrades in iPadOS 18. Here are the best new features to boost your iPad productivity.
iPadOS iPadOS 18 iPadOS Release
Apple (feature list, release notes, security, enterprise, developer):
iOS 18 is now available, bringing iPhone users around the world new ways to personalize their iPhone with deeper customization to the Home Screen and Control Center; the biggest-ever redesign to Photos, making it even easier to find and relive special moments; and major enhancements to Messages and Mail. Starting next month, iOS 18 will introduce Apple Intelligence, the personal intelligence system that combines the power of generative models with personal context to deliver intelligence that is incredibly useful and relevant while protecting users’ privacy and security.
I’m waiting to upgrade until I figure out what to do with Overcast.
See also:
Previously:
Update (2024-09-17): Bruno Rocha:
Apple silently broke the Screen Time APIs again in iOS 18… This time they not only silently removed the ability to override activities, they didn’t even bother updating the documentation, which still says you can do it.
Kevin Purdy:
iOS 18 makes these RCS upgrades possible, but certainly not guaranteed, at least as of today. Lots of people have already been enjoying cross-platform RCS messaging when texting with iOS 18 beta users. And iPhones on the big carriers' plans can now trade RCS with Android users. But some iPhone users, particularly on mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs)—typically pre-paid services that do not own network hardware but resell major carrier access—do not have an RCS option available to them yet.
[…]
Reading between the lines, you might conclude that Google is waiting on Apple to enable RCS on a network-by-network basis, both for Fi and for Android users at large. And a Google spokesperson would suggest that is correct.
Louie Mantia, Jr.:
Just to be clear, Google adopted RCS inside Google Messages in 2019. But perhaps more importantly, it was only made on-by-default in 2023. That’s right, just last year.
Eric Schwarz:
Nonetheless, I’m glad RCS is on iOS because it fixes a lot of messaging issues without resorting to a third-party app (at least in the United States) and the layperson doesn’t have to even care about which tech giant was actually the problem before.
Update (2024-09-20): FB13825638 (via Hacker News):
Mail no longer accepts a self-signed certificate from my mail server (AGAIN)
Update (2024-09-23): Samuel Axon:
Let’s start with Control Center, then dive into iCloud, Files, external drives, and hidden and locked apps.
William Gallagher:
In what appears to be an iOS 18 bug, users of iPhones including the iPhone 16 Pro are reporting touches and taps not being recognized.
tgptgp:
Running old overcast on the iOS 18.1 beta. Works just fine. Worked just fine in iOS 18 too.
Update (2024-09-25): Tim Hardwick:
Some users of iPhones running iOS 18 are reporting intermittent touchscreen responsiveness issues, with some devices seemingly ignoring taps and swipes.
Zac Hall:
There’s an unfortunate bug in Apple’s latest software update that you should know about. The bug occurs in the Messages app on iOS 18. For now, the fix could require data loss. However, you can avoid potential data loss before a fix is in place if you know how to avoid it.
Eric deRuiter:
There seems to be an iOS 18 bug or limitation when adding a mail account with a large number of messages to Apple Mail app. I have experienced this with 2 @fastmail accounts on an iPhone 13 with iOS 18.0.
Update (2024-09-30): Josh Avant:
In iOS 18 I’ve noticed:
- Watch.app UI indicating that it’s attempting to connect to the Watch
- Photos.app UI indicating the current status of iCloud syncing
Maybe the era of not knowing what’s going on in the background is (finally) over?
Update (2024-10-01): Kyle:
iOS 18 seems to have brought back the whole “u sure u wanna paste this bro?!?” the 100th time i paste into an app in 10 minutes. iOS and macOS have turned into Windows Vista.
Eric deRuiter:
it seems they reset the permission to ‘ask’ when updating to 18. Go into settings per app to set back to ‘allow.’
only some apps have the option.
Previously:
Update (2024-10-14): Rony Fadel:
Apple breaking SFSpeechRecognizer in iOS 18 is too funny, like no QA, no testing, just rawdogging software releases
Apple Intelligence Apple Mail Apple Password Manager Bug Emergency SOS via Satellite IMAP iOS iOS 18 iOS Release Messages.app Overcast Pasteboard Rich Communication Services (RCS)
Apple (release notes, security, developer):
Apple today released watchOS 11, bringing powerful health and fitness insights, along with even more personalization, intelligence, and ways to stay connected, to the world’s most popular watch.
Apple Watch now offers a feature to help identify signs of sleep apnea, and the new Vitals app allows users to quickly check in on key health metrics at a glance and gain better context on their health. The ability to measure training load helps users make more informed decisions when working out for improved fitness and performance, and Activity rings are even more customizable. Apple Watch and the Health app on iPhone and iPad also provide additional support for users who are pregnant.
The Smart Stack and Photos face use intelligence to offer a more individualized experience, and Check In, the Translate app, and new capabilities for the double tap gesture come to Apple Watch for more convenience and ways to stay connected.
See also: Juli Clover.
Previously:
Update (2024-09-18): See also: Jonathan Reed.
Update (2024-09-25): See also: Tim Hardwick and Victoria Song.
watchOS watchOS 11 watchOS Release
Apple (no release notes, security, developer):
Today, tvOS 18 introduces intelligent features like InSight, which displays timely information about actors, characters, and music from every live-action Apple TV+ movie and show onscreen in real time. Enhance Dialogue also gets smarter with tvOS 18, leveraging machine learning and computational audio to deliver greater vocal clarity. Subtitles now automatically appear at just the right moments, including when users mute, when they skip back while watching, or when the language in a show or movie does not match the device language. Additionally, tvOS 18 brings stunning new screen savers, like Portraits, to Apple TV 4K.
See also: Juli Clover.
Previously:
tvOS tvOS 18 tvOS Release
Juli Clover (release notes):
The HomePod Software 18 adds the option to choose a Home Hub rather than having HomeKit select one automatically, a useful feature for people with multiple HomePods and Apple TV models.
There is a new SharePlay feature, allowing multiple people to share control of what’s playing on a HomePod through Apple Music. To use the feature, bring an iPhone close to another iPhone to add songs to a playlist and control playback.
AirPlay now supports Spatial Audio, providing an immersive audio experience with Dolby Atmos when using AirPlay to stream audio from an iPhone or iPad to the HomePod.
Siri control seems to be completely broken. As before, it claims to be unable to find a large number of my albums previously purchased from iTunes. After updating to audioOS 18, it said that the first five in a row that I tried were not available. Then I tried two more recent purchases, which had worked with audioOS 17, and it confirmed that it was going to play the album I had requested but actually played a completely different album.
Previously:
audioOS audioOS 18 audioOS Release HomeKit iTunes Store SharePlay Siri
