Operating system for Apple computers
"OSX" and "OS X" redirect here. For other uses, see OSX (disambiguation)
macOS ( ;[7]), originally Mac🗝 OS X, previously shortened as OS X, is an operating system developed and marketed by Apple Inc. since 2001. It🗝 is the primary operating system for Apple's Mac computers. Within the market of desktop and laptop computers, it is the🗝 second most widely used desktop OS, after Microsoft Windows and ahead of all Linux distributions, including ChromeOS.
Mac OS X succeeded🗝 classic Mac OS, a Macintosh operating system from 1984 to 2001. Its underlying architecture came from NeXT's NeXTSTEP, as a🗝 result of Apple's acquisition of NeXT, which also brought Steve Jobs back to Apple.
The first desktop version, Mac OS X🗝 10.0, was released on March 24, 2001. All releases from Mac OS X Leopard onward (except for OS X Lion)🗝 are UNIX 03 certified.[8][9] The derivatives of macOS are Apple's other operating systems: iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, tvOS, and audioOS.
A prominent🗝 part of macOS's original brand identity was the use of Roman numeral X, pronounced "ten", as well as code naming🗝 each release after species of big cats, or places within California.[10] Apple shortened the name to "OS X" in 2011🗝 and then changed it to "macOS" in 2024 to align with the branding of Apple's other operating systems, iOS, watchOS,🗝 and tvOS.[11] After sixteen distinct versions of macOS 10, macOS Big Sur was presented as version 11 in 2024, and🗝 every subsequent version has also incremented the major version number, similarly to classic Mac OS and iOS.
macOS has supported three🗝 major processor architectures, beginning with PowerPC-based Macs in 1999. In 2006, Apple transitioned to the Intel architecture with a line🗝 of Macs using Intel Core processors. In 2024, Apple began the Apple silicon transition, using self-designed, 64-bit ARM-based Apple M🗝 series processors on the latest Macintosh computers.[12] As of 2024 , the most recent release of macOS is macOS 14🗝 Sonoma.
History
Development
The heritage of what would become macOS had originated at NeXT, a company founded by Steve Jobs following his departure🗝 from Apple in 1985. There, the Unix-like NeXTSTEP operating system was developed, before being launched in 1989. The kernel of🗝 NeXTSTEP is based upon the Mach kernel, which was originally developed at Carnegie Mellon University, with additional kernel layers and🗝 low-level user space code derived from parts of BSD.[13] Its graphical user interface was built on top of an object-oriented🗝 GUI toolkit using the Objective-C programming language.
Throughout the 1990s, Apple had tried to create a "next-generation" OS to succeed its🗝 classic Mac OS through the Taligent, Copland and Gershwin projects, but all were eventually abandoned.[14] This led Apple to acquire🗝 NeXT in 1997, allowing NeXTSTEP, later called OPENSTEP, to serve as the basis for Apple's next generation operating system.[15] This🗝 purchase also led to Steve Jobs returning to Apple as an interim, and then the permanent CEO, shepherding the transformation🗝 of the programmer-friendly OPENSTEP into a system that would be adopted by Apple's primary market of home users and creative🗝 professionals. The project was first code named "Rhapsody" and then officially named Mac OS X.[16][17]
Mac OS X
The letter "X" in🗝 Mac OS X's name refers to the number 10, a Roman numeral, and Apple has stated that it should be🗝 pronounced "ten" in this context. However, it is also commonly pronounced like the letter "X".[18][19] The iPhone X, iPhone XR🗝 and iPhone XS all later followed this convention.
Previous Macintosh operating systems (versions of the classic Mac OS) were named using🗝 Arabic numerals, as with Mac OS 8 and Mac OS 9.[20][18] Until macOS 11 Big Sur, all versions of the🗝 operating system were given version numbers of the form 10.x, with this going from 10.0 up until 10.15; starting with🗝 macOS 11 Big Sur, Apple switched to numbering major releases with numbers that increase by 1 with every major release.
The🗝 first version of Mac OS X, Mac OS X Server 1.0, was a transitional product, featuring an interface resembling the🗝 classic Mac OS, though it was not compatible with software designed for the older system. Consumer releases of Mac OS🗝 X included more backward compatibility. Mac OS applications could be rewritten to run natively via the Carbon API; many could🗝 also be run directly through the Classic Environment with a reduction in performance.
The consumer version of Mac OS X was🗝 launched in 2001 with Mac OS X 10.0. Reviews were variable, with extensive praise for its sophisticated, glossy Aqua interface,🗝 but criticizing it for sluggish performance.[21] With Apple's popularity at a low, the maker of FrameMaker, Adobe Inc., declined to🗝 develop new versions of it for Mac OS X.[22] Ars Technica columnist John Siracusa, who reviewed every major OS X🗝 release up to 10.10, described the early releases in retrospect as "dog-slow, feature poor" and Aqua as "unbearably slow and🗝 a huge resource hog".[21][23][24]
Apple rapidly developed several new releases of Mac OS X.[25] Siracusa's review of version 10.3, Panther, noted🗝 "It's strange to have gone from years of uncertainty and vaporware to a steady annual supply of major new operating🗝 system releases."[26] Version 10.4, Tiger, reportedly shocked executives at Microsoft by offering a number of features, such as fast file🗝 searching and improved graphics processing, that Microsoft had spent several years struggling to add to Windows Vista with acceptable performance.[27]
As🗝 the operating system evolved, it moved away from the classic Mac OS, with applications being added and removed.[28] Considering music🗝 to be a key market, Apple developed the iPod music player and music software for the Mac, including iTunes and🗝 GarageBand.[29] Targeting the consumer and media markets, Apple emphasized its new "digital lifestyle" applications such as the iLife suite, integrated🗝 home entertainment through the Front Row media center and the Safari web browser. With increasing popularity of the internet, Apple🗝 offered additional online services, including the .Mac, MobileMe and most recently iCloud products. It later began selling third-party applications through🗝 the Mac App Store.
Newer versions of Mac OS X also included modifications to the general interface, moving away from the🗝 striped gloss and transparency of the initial versions. Some applications began to use a brushed metal appearance, or non-pinstriped title🗝 bar appearance in version 10.4.[30] In Leopard, Apple announced a unification of the interface, with a standardized gray-gradient window style.[31][32]
In🗝 2006, the first Intel Macs were released with a specialized version of Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger.[33]
A key development for🗝 the system was the announcement and release of the iPhone from 2007 onwards. While Apple's previous iPod media players used🗝 a minimal operating system, the iPhone used an operating system based on Mac OS X, which would later be called🗝 "iPhone OS" and then iOS. The simultaneous release of two operating systems based on the same frameworks placed tension on🗝 Apple, which cited the iPhone as forcing it to delay Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard.[34] However, after Apple opened the🗝 iPhone to third-party developers its commercial success drew attention to Mac OS X, with many iPhone software developers showing interest🗝 in Mac development.[35]
In 2007, Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard was the sole release with universal binary components, allowing installation on🗝 both Intel Macs and select PowerPC Macs.[36] It is also the final release with PowerPC Mac support. Mac OS X🗝 10.6 Snow Leopard was the first version of Mac OS X to be built exclusively for Intel Macs, and the🗝 final release with 32-bit Intel Mac support.[37] The name was intended to signal its status as an iteration of Leopard,🗝 focusing on technical and performance improvements rather than user-facing features; indeed it was explicitly branded to developers as being a🗝 'no new features' release.[38] Since its release, several OS X or macOS releases (namely OS X Mountain Lion, OS X🗝 El Capitan, macOS High Sierra, and macOS Monterey) follow this pattern, with a name derived from its predecessor, similar to🗝 the 'tick–tock model' used by Intel.
In two succeeding versions, Lion and Mountain Lion, Apple moved some applications to a highly🗝 skeuomorphic style of design inspired by contemporary versions of iOS while simplifying some elements by making controls such as scroll🗝 bars fade out when not in use.[23] This direction was, like brushed metal interfaces, unpopular with some users, although it🗝 continued a trend of greater animation and variety in the interface previously seen in design aspects such as the Time🗝 Machine backup utility, which presented past file versions against a swirling nebula, and the glossy translucent dock of Leopard and🗝 Snow Leopard.[39] In addition, with Mac OS X 10.7 Lion, Apple ceased to release separate server versions of Mac OS🗝 X, selling server tools as a separate downloadable application through the Mac App Store. A review described the trend in🗝 the server products as becoming "cheaper and simpler... shifting its focus from large businesses to small ones."[40]
OS X
OS X logo🗝 used until 2013
In 2012, with the release of OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion, the name of the system was officially🗝 shortened from Mac OS X to OS X, after the previous version shortened the system name in a similar fashion🗝 a year prior. That year, Apple removed the head of OS X development, Scott Forstall, and design was changed towards🗝 a more minimal direction.[41] Apple's new user interface design, using deep color saturation, text-only buttons and a minimal, 'flat' interface,🗝 was debuted with iOS 7 in 2013. With OS X engineers reportedly working on iOS 7, the version released in🗝 2013, OS X 10.9 Mavericks, was something of a transitional release, with some of the skeuomorphic design removed, while most🗝 of the general interface of Mavericks remained unchanged.[42] The next version, OS X 10.10 Yosemite, adopted a design similar to🗝 iOS 7 but with greater complexity suitable for an interface controlled with a mouse.[43]
From 2012 onwards, the system has shifted🗝 to an annual release schedule similar to that of iOS and Mac OS X releases prior to 10.4 Tiger[citation needed].🗝 It also steadily cut the cost of updates from Snow Leopard onwards, before removing upgrade fees altogether in OS X🗝 Mavericks.[44] Some journalists and third-party software developers have suggested that this decision, while allowing more rapid feature release, meant less🗝 opportunity to focus on stability, with no version of OS X recommendable for users requiring stability and performance above new🗝 features.[45] Apple's 2024 update, OS X 10.11 El Capitan, was announced to focus specifically on stability and performance improvements.[46]
macOS
Current logo
In🗝 2024, with the release of macOS 10.12 Sierra, the name was changed from OS X to macOS, in order to🗝 align it with the branding of Apple's other primary operating systems, iOS, watchOS, and tvOS.[47][48] macOS Sierra added Siri, iCloud🗝 Drive, picture-in-picture support, a Night Shift mode that switches the display to warmer colors at night, and two Continuity features:🗝 Universal Clipboard, which syncs a user's clipboard across their Apple devices, and Auto Unlock, which can unlock a user's Mac🗝 with their Apple Watch. macOS Sierra also adds support for the Apple File System (APFS), Apple's successor to the dated🗝 HFS+ file system.[49][50][51] macOS 10.13 High Sierra, released in 2024, included performance improvements, Metal 2 and HEVC support, and made🗝 APFS the default file system for SSD boot drives.[52]
Its successor, macOS 10.14 Mojave, was released in 2024, adding a dark🗝 mode option and a dynamic wallpaper setting.[53] It was succeeded by macOS 10.15 Catalina in 2024, which replaces iTunes with🗝 separate apps for different types of media, and introduces the Catalyst system for porting iOS apps.[54]
In 2024, Apple previewed macOS🗝 11 Big Sur at the WWDC 2024. This was the first increment in the primary version number of macOS since🗝 the release of Mac OS X Public Beta in 2000; updates to macOS 11 were given 11.x numbers, matching the🗝 version numbering scheme used by Apple's other operating systems. Big Sur brought major changes to the UI and was the🗝 first version to run on the ARM instruction set.[55] The new numbering system was continued in 2024 with macOS 12🗝 Monterey, 2024 with macOS 13 Ventura, and 2024 with macOS 14 Sonoma.
Timeline of releases
Architecture
At macOS's core is a POSIX-compliant operating🗝 system built on top of the XNU kernel,[78] with standard Unix facilities available from the command line interface. Apple has🗝 released this family of software as a free and open source operating system named Darwin. On top of Darwin, Apple🗝 layered a number of components, including the Aqua interface and the Finder, to complete the GUI-based operating system which is🗝 macOS.[79]
With its original introduction as Mac OS X, the system brought a number of new capabilities to provide a more🗝 stable and reliable platform than its predecessor, the classic Mac OS. For example, pre-emptive multitasking and memory protection improved the🗝 system's ability to run multiple applications simultaneously without them interrupting or corrupting each other. Many aspects of macOS's architecture are🗝 derived from OPENSTEP, which was designed to be portable, to ease the transition from one platform to another. For example,🗝 NeXTSTEP was ported from the original 68k-based NeXT workstations to x86 and other architectures before NeXT was purchased by Apple,[80]🗝 and OPENSTEP was later ported to the PowerPC architecture as part of the Rhapsody project.
Prior to macOS High Sierra, and🗝 on drives other than solid state drives (SSDs), the default file system is HFS+, which it inherited from the classic🗝 Mac OS. Operating system designer Linus Torvalds had criticized HFS+, saying it is "probably the worst file system ever", whose🗝 design is "actively corrupting user data". He criticized the case insensitivity of file names, a design made worse when Apple🗝 extended the file system to support Unicode.[81][82]
The Darwin subsystem in macOS manages the file system, which includes the Unix permissions🗝 layer. In 2003 and 2005, two Macworld editors expressed criticism of the permission scheme; Ted Landau called misconfigured permissions "the🗝 most common frustration" in macOS, while Rob Griffiths suggested that some users may even have to reset permissions every day,🗝 a process which can take up to 15 minutes.[83] More recently, another Macworld editor, Dan Frakes, called the procedure of🗝 repairing permissions vastly overused.[84] He argues that macOS typically handles permissions properly without user interference, and resetting permissions should only🗝 be tried when problems emerge.[85]
The architecture of macOS incorporates a layered design:[86] the layered frameworks aid rapid development of applications🗝 by providing existing code for common tasks.[87] Apple provides its own software development tools, most prominently an integrated development environment🗝 called Xcode. Xcode provides interfaces to compilers that support several programming languages including C, C++, Objective-C, and Swift. For the🗝 Mac transition to Intel processors, it was modified so that developers could build their applications as a universal binary, which🗝 provides compatibility with both the Intel-based and PowerPC-based Macintosh lines.[88] First and third-party applications can be controlled programmatically using the🗝 AppleScript framework,[89] retained from the classic Mac OS,[90] or using the newer Automator application that offers pre-written tasks that do🗝 not require programming knowledge.[91]
Software compatibility
^ iTunes 2.0.4 can only run if Classic is installed. Otherwise, Mac OS X 10.0 can🗝 only run iTunes 1.1.1 natively. ^ Keynote 1.0 is the only iLife program that is compatible with Mac OS X🗝 10.2 "Jaguar". Two minor updates, 1.1 and 1.1.1, can be applied to this version. ^ Messages 8.0b Archived April 17,🗝 2024, at the Wayback Machine was a beta release that only functioned from February 16 to December 12, 2012. Afterwards,🗝 users could either revert to iChat or upgrade to a newer version of OS X (10.8 "Mountain Lion" for US$19.99,🗝 or 10.9 "Mavericks" or newer for free) to continue using Messages.
Apple offered two main APIs to develop software natively for🗝 macOS: Cocoa and Carbon. Cocoa was a descendant of APIs inherited from OPENSTEP with no ancestry from the classic Mac🗝 OS, while Carbon was an adaptation of classic Mac OS APIs, allowing Mac software to be minimally rewritten to run🗝 natively on Mac OS X.[17]
The Cocoa API was created as the result of a 1993 collaboration between NeXT Computer and🗝 Sun Microsystems. This heritage is highly visible for Cocoa developers, since the "NS" prefix is ubiquitous in the framework, standing🗝 variously for NeXTSTEP or NeXT/Sun. The official OPENSTEP API, published in September 1994, was the first to split the API🗝 between Foundation and ApplicationKit and the first to use the "NS" prefix.[80] Traditionally, Cocoa programs have been mostly written in🗝 Objective-C, with Java as an alternative. However, on July 11, 2005, Apple announced that "features added to Cocoa in Mac🗝 OS X versions later than 10.4 will not be added to the Cocoa-Java programming interface."[101] macOS also used to support🗝 the Java Platform as a "preferred software package"—in practice this means that applications written in Java fit as neatly into🗝 the operating system as possible while still being cross-platform compatible, and that graphical user interfaces written in Swing look almost🗝 exactly like native Cocoa interfaces. Since 2014, Apple has promoted its new programming language Swift as the preferred language for🗝 software development on Apple platforms.
Apple's original plan with macOS was to require all developers to rewrite their software into the🗝 Cocoa APIs. This caused much outcry among existing Mac developers, who threatened to abandon the platform rather than invest in🗝 a costly rewrite, and the idea was shelved.[17][102] To permit a smooth transition from Mac OS 9 to Mac OS🗝 X, the Carbon Application Programming Interface (API) was created.[17] Applications written with Carbon were initially able to run natively on🗝 both classic Mac OS and Mac OS X, although this ability was later dropped as Mac OS X developed. Carbon🗝 was not included in the first product sold as Mac OS X: the little-used original release of Mac OS X🗝 Server 1.0, which also did not include the Aqua interface.[103] Apple limited further development of Carbon from the release of🗝 Leopard onwards and announced that Carbon applications would not run at 64-bit.[102][17] A number of macOS applications continued to use🗝 Carbon for some time afterwards, especially ones with heritage dating back to the classic Mac OS and for which updates🗝 would be difficult, uneconomic or not necessary. This included Microsoft Office up to Office 2024, and Photoshop up to CS5.[104][102]🗝 Early versions of macOS could also run some classic Mac OS applications through the Classic Environment with performance limitations; this🗝 feature was removed from 10.5 onwards and all Macs using Intel processors.
Because macOS is POSIX compliant, many software packages written🗝 for the other Unix-like systems including Linux can be recompiled to run on it, including much scientific and technical software.[105]🗝 Third-party projects such as Homebrew, Fink, MacPorts and pkgsrc provide pre-compiled or pre-formatted packages. Apple and others have provided versions🗝 of the X Window System graphical interface which can allow these applications to run with an approximation of the macOS🗝 look-and-feel.[106][107][108] The current Apple-endorsed method is the open-source XQuartz project; earlier versions could use the X11 application provided by Apple,🗝 or before that the XDarwin project.[109]
Applications can be distributed to Macs and installed by the user from any source and🗝 by any method such as downloading (with or without code signing, available via an Apple developer account) or through the🗝 Mac App Store, a marketplace of software maintained by Apple through a process requiring the company's approval. Apps installed through🗝 the Mac App Store run within a sandbox, restricting their ability to exchange information with other applications or modify the🗝 core operating system and its features. This has been cited as an advantage, by allowing users to install apps with🗝 confidence that they should not be able to damage their system, but also as a disadvantage due to blocking the🗝 Mac App Store's use for professional applications that require elevated privileges.[110][111] Applications without any code signature cannot be run by🗝 default except from a computer's administrator account.[112][113]
Apple produces macOS applications. Some are included with macOS and some sold separately. This🗝 includes iWork, Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, iLife, and the database application FileMaker. Numerous other developers also offer software for🗝 macOS.
In 2024, Apple introduced an application layer, codenamed Marzipan, to port iOS apps to macOS.[114][115] macOS Mojave included ports of🗝 four first-party iOS apps including Home and News, and it was announced that the API would be available for third-party🗝 developers to use from 2024.[116][117][118] In 2024, in macOS Catalina, the application layer was made available to third-party developers as🗝 Mac Catalyst.[119]
Hardware compatibility
List of macOS versions, the supported systems on which they run, and their RAM requirements
Tools such as XPostFacto🗝 and patches applied to the installation media have been developed by third parties to enable installation of newer versions of🗝 macOS on systems not officially supported by Apple. This includes a number of pre-G3 Power Macintosh systems that can be🗝 made to run up to and including Mac OS X 10.2 Jaguar, all G3-based Macs which can run up to🗝 and including Tiger, and sub-867 MHz G4 Macs can run Leopard by removing the restriction from the installation DVD or🗝 entering a command in the Mac's Open Firmware interface to tell the Leopard Installer that it has a clock rate🗝 of 867 MHz or greater. Except for features requiring specific hardware such as graphics acceleration or DVD writing, the operating🗝 system offers the same functionality on all supported hardware.
As most Mac hardware components, or components similar to those, since the🗝 Intel transition are available for purchase,[124] some technology-capable groups have developed software to install macOS on non-Apple computers. These are🗝 referred to as Hackintoshes, a portmanteau of the words "hack" and "Macintosh". This violates Apple's EULA (and is therefore unsupported🗝 by Apple technical support, warranties etc.), but communities that cater to personal users, who do not install for resale and🗝 profit, have generally been ignored by Apple.[125][126][127] These self-made computers allow more flexibility and customization of hardware, but at a🗝 cost of leaving the user more responsible for their own machine, such as on matter of data integrity or security.[128]🗝 Psystar, a business that attempted to profit from selling macOS on non-Apple certified hardware, was sued by Apple in 2008.[129]
PowerPC–Intel🗝 transition
Steve Jobs talks about the transition to Intel processors.
In April 2002, eWeek announced a rumor that Apple had a version🗝 of Mac OS X code-named Marklar, which ran on Intel x86 processors. The idea behind Marklar was to keep Mac🗝 OS X running on an alternative platform should Apple become dissatisfied with the progress of the PowerPC platform.[130] These rumors🗝 subsided until late in May 2005, when various media outlets, such as The Wall Street Journal[131] and CNET,[132] announced that🗝 Apple would unveil Marklar in the coming months.[133][134][135]
On June 6, 2005, Steve Jobs announced in his keynote address at WWDC🗝 that Apple would be making the transition from PowerPC to Intel processors over the following two years, and that Mac🗝 OS X would support both platforms during the transition. Jobs also confirmed rumors that Apple had versions of Mac OS🗝 X running on Intel processors for most of its developmental life. Intel-based Macs would run a new recompiled version of🗝 OS X along with Rosetta, a binary translation layer which enables software compiled for PowerPC Mac OS X to run🗝 on Intel Mac OS X machines.[136] The system was included with Mac OS X versions up to version 10.6.8.[137] Apple🗝 dropped support for Classic mode on the new Intel Macs. Third party emulation software such as Mini vMac, Basilisk II🗝 and SheepShaver provided support for some early versions of Mac OS. A new version of Xcode and the underlying command-line🗝 compilers supported building universal binaries that would run on either architecture.[138]
PowerPC-only software is supported with Apple's official binary translation software,🗝 Rosetta, though applications eventually had to be rewritten to run properly on the newer versions released for Intel processors. Apple🗝 initially encouraged developers to produce universal binaries with support for both PowerPC and Intel.[139] PowerPC binaries suffer a performance penalty🗝 when run on Intel Macs through Rosetta. Moreover, some PowerPC software, such as kernel extensions and System Preferences plugins, are🗝 not supported on Intel Macs at all. Plugins for Safari need to be compiled for the same platform as Safari,🗝 so when Safari is running on Intel, it requires plug-ins that have been compiled as Intel-only or universal binaries, so🗝 PowerPC-only plug-ins will not work.[140] While Intel Macs can run PowerPC, Intel, and universal binaries, PowerPC Macs support only universal🗝 and PowerPC builds.
Support for the PowerPC platform was dropped following the transition. In 2009, Apple announced at WWDC that Mac🗝 OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard would drop support for PowerPC processors and be Intel-only.[141] Rosetta continued to be offered as🗝 an optional download or installation choice in Snow Leopard before it was discontinued with Mac OS X 10.7 Lion.[142] In🗝 addition, new versions of Mac OS X first- and third-party software increasingly required Intel processors, including new versions of iLife,🗝 iWork, Aperture and Logic Pro.
Intel–Apple silicon transition
An illustration of Apple's M1 processor
Rumors of Apple shifting Macs to the ARM processors🗝 used by iOS devices began circulating as early as 2011,[143] and ebbed and flowed throughout the 2010s.[144] Rumors intensified in🗝 2024, when numerous reports announced that the company would announce its shift to its custom processors at WWDC.[145]
Apple officially announced🗝 its shift to processors designed in-house on June 22, 2024, at WWDC 2024, with the transition planned to last for🗝 two years.[146] The first release of macOS to support ARM is macOS Big Sur. Big Sur and later versions support🗝 Universal 2 binaries, which are applications consisting of both Intel (x86-64) and Apple silicon (AArch64) binaries; when launched, only the🗝 appropriate binary is run. Additionally, Intel binaries can be run on Apple silicon-based Macs using the Rosetta 2 binary translation🗝 software.
The change in processor architecture allows Macs with ARM processors to be able to run iOS and iPadOS apps natively.[147]
Features
Aqua🗝 user interface
The original Aqua user interface as seen in the Mac OS X Public Beta from 2000
One of the major🗝 differences between the classic Mac OS and the current macOS was the addition of Aqua, a graphical user interface with🗝 water-like elements, in the first major release of Mac OS X. Every window element, text, graphic, or widget is drawn🗝 on-screen using spatial anti-aliasing technology.[148] ColorSync, a technology introduced many years before, was improved and built into the core drawing🗝 engine, to provide color matching for printing and multimedia professionals.[149] Also, drop shadows were added around windows and isolated text🗝 elements to provide a sense of depth. New interface elements were integrated, including sheets (dialog boxes attached to specific windows)🗝 and drawers, which would slide out and provide options.
The use of soft edges, translucent colors, and pinstripes, similar to the🗝 hardware design of the first iMacs, brought more texture and color to the user interface when compared to what Mac🗝 OS 9 and Mac OS X Server 1.0's "Platinum" appearance had offered. According to Siracusa, the introduction of Aqua and🗝 its departure from the then conventional look "hit like a ton of bricks."[150] Bruce Tognazzini (who founded the original Apple🗝 Human Interface Group) said that the Aqua interface in Mac OS X 10.0 represented a step backwards in usability compared🗝 with the original Mac OS interface.[151][152] Third-party developers started producing skins for customizable applications and other operating systems which mimicked🗝 the Aqua appearance. To some extent, Apple has used the successful transition to this new design as leverage, at various🗝 times threatening legal action against people who make or distribute software with an interface the company says is derived from🗝 its copyrighted design.[153]
Apple has continued to change aspects of the macOS appearance and design, particularly with tweaks to the appearance🗝 of windows and the menu bar. Since 2012, Apple has sold many of its Mac models with high-resolution Retina displays,🗝 and macOS and its APIs have extensive support for resolution-independent development on supporting high-resolution displays. Reviewers have described Apple's support🗝 for the technology as superior to that on Windows.[154][155][156]
The human interface guidelines published by Apple for macOS are followed by🗝 many applications, giving them consistent user interface and keyboard shortcuts.[157] In addition, new services for applications are included, which include🗝 spelling and grammar checkers, special characters palette, color picker, font chooser and dictionary; these global features are present in every🗝 Cocoa application, adding consistency. The graphics system OpenGL composites windows onto the screen to allow hardware-accelerated drawing. This technology, introduced🗝 in version 10.2, is called Quartz Extreme, a component of Quartz. Quartz's internal imaging model correlates well with the Portable🗝 Document Format (PDF) imaging model, making it easy to output PDF to multiple devices.[149] As a side result, PDF viewing🗝 and creating PDF documents from any application are built-in features.[158] Reflecting its popularity with design users, macOS also has system🗝 support for a variety of professional video and image formats and includes an extensive pre-installed font library, featuring many prominent🗝 brand-name designs.[159]
Components
The Finder is a file browser allowing quick access to all areas of the computer, which has been modified🗝 throughout subsequent releases of macOS.[160][161] Quick Look has been part of the Finder since version 10.5. It allows for dynamic🗝 previews of files, including videos and multi-page documents without opening any other applications. Spotlight, a file searching technology which has🗝 been integrated into the Finder since version 10.4, allows rapid real-time searches of data files; mail messages; photos; and other🗝 information based on item properties (metadata) or content.[162][163] macOS makes use of a Dock, which holds file and folder shortcuts🗝 as well as minimized windows.
Apple added Exposé in version 10.3 (called Mission Control since version 10.7), a feature which includes🗝 three functions to help accessibility between windows and desktop. Its functions are to instantly display all open windows as thumbnails🗝 for easy navigation to different tasks, display all open windows as thumbnails from the current application, and hide all windows🗝 to access the desktop.[164] FileVault is optional encryption of the user's files with the 128-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES-128).[165]
Features introduced🗝 in version 10.4 include Automator, an application designed to create an automatic workflow for different tasks;[166] Dashboard, a full-screen group🗝 of small applications called desktop widgets that can be called up and dismissed in one keystroke;[167] and Front Row, a🗝 media viewer interface accessed by the Apple Remote.[168] Sync Services allows applications to access a centralized extensible database for various🗝 elements of user data, including calendar and contact items. The operating system then managed conflicting edits and data consistency.[169]
All system🗝 icons are scalable up to 512×512 pixels as of version 10.5 to accommodate various places where they appear in larger🗝 size, including for example the Cover Flow view, a three-dimensional graphical user interface included with iTunes, the Finder, and other🗝 Apple products for visually skimming through files and digital media libraries via cover artwork. That version also introduced Spaces, a🗝 virtual desktop implementation which enables the user to have more than one desktop and display them in an Exposé-like interface;[170]🗝 an automatic backup technology called Time Machine, which allows users to view and restore previous versions of files and application🗝 data;[171] and Screen Sharing was built in for the first time.[172]
In more recent releases, Apple has developed support for emoji🗝 characters by including the proprietary Apple Color Emoji font.[173][174] Apple has also connected macOS with social networks such as Twitter🗝 and Facebook through the addition of share buttons for content such as pictures and text.[175] Apple has brought several applications🗝 and features that originally debuted in iOS, its mobile operating system, to macOS in recent releases, notably the intelligent personal🗝 assistant Siri, which was introduced in version 10.12 of macOS.[176][177]
Multilingual support
There are 39 system languages available in macOS for the🗝 user at the moment of installation; the system language is used throughout the entire operating system environment.[178] Input methods for🗝 typing in dozens of scripts can be chosen independently of the system language.[179] Recent updates have added increased support for🗝 Chinese characters and interconnections with popular social networks in China.[180][181][182][183]
Updating methods
macOS can be updated using the Software Update settings pane🗝 in System Settings or the softwareupdate command line utility. Until OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion, a separate Software Update application🗝 performed this functionality. In Mountain Lion and later, this was merged into the Mac App Store application, although the underlying🗝 update mechanism remains unchanged and is fundamentally different from the download mechanism used when purchasing an App Store application. In🗝 macOS 10.14 Mojave, the updating function was moved again to the Software Update settings pane.
Most Macs receive six or seven🗝 years of macOS updates. After a new major release of macOS, the previous two releases still receive occasional updates, but🗝 many security vulnerabilities are only patched in the latest macOS release.[184]
Release history
Mac OS X versions were named after big cats,🗝 with the exception of Mac OS X Server 1.0 and the original public beta, from Mac OS X 10.0 until🗝 OS X 10.9 Mavericks, when Apple switched to using California locations. Prior to its release, version 10.0 was code named🗝 internally at Apple as "Cheetah" , and Mac OS X 10.1 was code named internally as "Puma". After the immense🗝 buzz surrounding Mac OS X 10.2, codenamed "Jaguar", Apple's product marketing began openly using the code names to promote the🗝 operating system. Mac OS X 10.3 was marketed as "Panther", Mac OS X 10.4 as "Tiger", Mac OS X 10.5🗝 as "Leopard", Mac OS X 10.6 as "Snow Leopard", Mac OS X 10.7 as "Lion", OS X 10.8 as "Mountain🗝 Lion", and OS X 10.9 as "Mavericks".
"Panther", "Tiger" and "Leopard" are registered as trademarks of Apple,[185][186][187] but "Cheetah", "Puma" and🗝 "Jaguar" have never been registered. Apple has also registered "Lynx" and "Cougar" as trademarks, though these were allowed to lapse.[188][189]🗝 Computer retailer Tiger Direct sued Apple for its use of the name "Tiger". On May 16, 2005, a US federal🗝 court in the Southern District of Florida ruled that Apple's use did not infringe on Tiger Direct's trademark.[190]
Mac OS X🗝 Public Beta
On September 13, 2000, Apple released aR$29.95[191] "preview" version of Mac OS X, internally codenamed Kodiak, to gain feedback🗝 from users.
The "PB", as it was known, marked the first public availability of the Aqua interface and Apple made many🗝 changes to the UI based on customer feedback. Mac OS X Public Beta expired and ceased to function in Spring🗝 2001.[192]
Mac OS X 10.0
Screenshot of OS X 10.0
On March 24, 2001, Apple released Mac OS X 10.0 (internally codenamed Cheetah).[193]🗝 The initial version was slow,[194] incomplete,[195] and had very few applications available at launch, mostly from independent developers.[196] While many🗝 critics suggested that the operating system was not ready for mainstream adoption, they recognized the importance of its initial launch🗝 as a base on which to improve.[195] Simply releasing Mac OS X was received by the Macintosh community as a🗝 great accomplishment,[195] for attempts to overhaul the Mac OS had been underway since 1996, and delayed by countless setbacks.
Mac OS🗝 X 10.1
Later that year on September 25, 2001, Mac OS X 10.1 (internally codenamed Puma) was released. It featured increased🗝 performance and provided missing features, such as DVD playback. Apple released 10.1 as a free upgrade CD for 10.0 users,🗝 in addition to the US$129 boxed version for people running Mac OS 9. It was discovered that the upgrade CDs🗝 were full install CDs that could be used with Mac OS 9 systems by removing a specific file; Apple later🗝 re-released the CDs in an actual stripped-down format that did not facilitate installation on such systems.[197] On January 7, 2002,🗝 Apple announced that Mac OS X was to be the default operating system for all Macintosh products by the end🗝 of that month.[198]
Mac OS X 10.2 Jaguar
On August 23, 2002,[199] Apple followed up with Mac OS X 10.2 Jaguar, the🗝 first release to use its code name as part of the branding.[200] It brought great raw performance improvements, a sleeker🗝 look, and many powerful user-interface enhancements (over 150, according to Apple[201]), including Quartz Extreme for compositing graphics directly on an🗝 ATI Radeon or Nvidia GeForce2 MX AGP-based video card with at least 16 MB of VRAM, a system-wide repository for🗝 contact information in the new Address Book, and an instant messaging client named iChat.[202] The Happy Mac which had appeared🗝 during the Mac OS startup sequence for almost 18 years was replaced with a large grey Apple logo with the🗝 introduction of Mac OS X v10.2.[203]
Mac OS X 10.3 Panther
Mac OS X v10.3 Panther was released on October 24, 2003.🗝 It significantly improved performance and incorporated the most extensive update yet to the user interface. Panther included as many or🗝 more new features as Jaguar had the year before, including an updated Finder, incorporating a brushed-metal interface, Fast user switching,🗝 Exposé (Window manager), FileVault, Safari, iChat AV (which added video conferencing features to iChat), improved Portable Document Format (PDF) rendering🗝 and much greater Microsoft Windows interoperability.[204] Support for some early G3 computers such as "beige" Power Macs and "WallStreet" PowerBooks🗝 was discontinued.[205]
Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger
Screenshot of Tiger
Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger was released on April 29, 2005. Apple stated🗝 that Tiger contained more than 200 new features.[206] As with Panther, certain older machines were no longer supported; Tiger requires🗝 a Mac with 256 MB and a built-in FireWire port.[121] Among the new features, Tiger introduced Spotlight, Dashboard, Smart Folders,🗝 updated Mail program with Smart Mailboxes, QuickTime 7, Safari 2, Automator, VoiceOver, Core Image and Core Video. The initial release🗝 of the Apple TV used a modified version of Tiger with a different graphical interface and fewer applications and services.[207]🗝 On January 10, 2006, Apple released the first Intel-based Macs along with the 10.4.4 update to Tiger. This operating system🗝 functioned identically on the PowerPC-based Macs and the new Intel-based machines, with the exception of the Intel release lacking support🗝 for the Classic environment.[208]
Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard
Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard was released on October 26, 2007. It was🗝 called by Apple "the largest update of Mac OS X". It brought more than 300 new features.[209] Leopard supports both🗝 PowerPC- and Intel x86-based Macintosh computers; support for the G3 processor was dropped and the G4 processor required a minimum🗝 clock rate of 867 MHz, and at least 512 MB of RAM to be installed. The single DVD works for🗝 all supported Macs (including 64-bit machines). New features include a new look, an updated Finder, Time Machine, Spaces, Boot Camp🗝 pre-installed,[210] full support for 64-bit applications (including graphical applications), new features in Mail and iChat, and a number of new🗝 security features. Leopard is an Open Brand UNIX 03 registered product on the Intel platform. It was also the first🗝 BSD-based OS to receive UNIX 03 certification.[211][212] Leopard dropped support for the Classic Environment and all Classic applications.[213] It was🗝 the final version of Mac OS X to support the PowerPC architecture.[214]
Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard
Mac OS X 10.6🗝 Snow Leopard was released on August 28, 2009. Rather than delivering big changes to the appearance and end user functionality🗝 like the previous releases of Mac OS X, Snow Leopard focused on "under the hood" changes, increasing the performance, efficiency,🗝 and stability of the operating system. For most users, the most noticeable changes were: the disk space that the operating🗝 system frees up after a clean install compared to Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard, a more responsive Finder rewritten in🗝 Cocoa, faster Time Machine backups, more reliable and user-friendly disk ejects, a more powerful version of the Preview application, as🗝 well as a faster Safari web browser. Snow Leopard only supported machines with Intel CPUs, required at least 1 GB🗝 of RAM, and dropped default support for applications built for the PowerPC architecture (Rosetta could be installed as an additional🗝 component to retain support for PowerPC-only applications).[215]
Snow Leopard also featured new 64-bit technology capable of supporting greater amounts of RAM,🗝 improved support for multi-core processors through Grand Central Dispatch, and advanced GPU performance with OpenCL.[216]
The 10.6.6 update introduced support for🗝 the Mac App Store, Apple's digital distribution platform for macOS applications.[217]
OS X Lion was announced at WWDC 2011 at Moscone🗝 West.
OS X 10.7 Lion
OS X 10.7 Lion was released on July 20, 2011. It brought developments made in Apple's iOS,🗝 such as an easily navigable display of installed applications called Launchpad and a greater use of multi-touch gestures, to the🗝 Mac. This release removed Rosetta, making it incompatible with PowerPC applications.[142]
Changes made to the GUI include auto-hiding scrollbars that only🗝 appear when they are used, and Mission Control which unifies Exposé, Spaces, Dashboard, and full-screen applications within a single interface.[218]🗝 Apple also made changes to applications: they resume in the same state as they were before they were closed, similar🗝 to iOS. Documents auto-save by default.[219]
OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion
OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion was released on July 25, 2012.[71]🗝 Following the release of Lion the previous year, it was the first of the annual rather than two-yearly updates to🗝 OS X (and later macOS), which also closely aligned with the annual iOS operating system updates. It incorporates some features🗝 seen in iOS 5, which include Game Center, support for iMessage in the new Messages messaging application, and Reminders as🗝 a to-do list app separate from iCal (which is renamed as Calendar, like the iOS app). It also includes support🗝 for storing iWork documents in iCloud.[220] Notification Center, which makes its debut in Mountain Lion, is a desktop version similar🗝 to the one in iOS 5.0 and higher. Application pop-ups are now concentrated on the corner of the screen, and🗝 the Center itself is pulled from the right side of the screen. Mountain Lion also includes more Chinese features including🗝 support for Baidu as an option for Safari search engine, QQ, 163 and 126 services for Mail, Contacts and Calendar,🗝 Youku, Tudou and Sina Weibo are integrated into share sheets.[183]
Starting with Mountain Lion, Apple software updates (including the OS) are🗝 distributed via the App Store.[221] This updating mechanism replaced the Apple Software Update utility.[222]
A screenshot of OS X Mavericks
OS X🗝 10.9 Mavericks
OS X 10.9 Mavericks was released on October 22, 2013. It was a free upgrade to all users running🗝 Snow Leopard or later with a 64-bit Intel processor.[223] Its changes include the addition of the previously iOS-only Maps and🗝 iBooks applications, improvements to the Notification Center, enhancements to several applications, and many under-the-hood improvements.[224]
OS X 10.10 Yosemite
OS X 10.10🗝 Yosemite was released on October 16, 2014. It features a redesigned user interface similar to that of iOS 7, intended🗝 to feature a more minimal, text-based 'flat' design, with use of translucency effects and intensely saturated colors.[225] Apple's showcase new🗝 feature in Yosemite is Handoff, which enables users with iPhones running iOS 8.1 or later to answer phone calls, receive🗝 and send SMS messages, and complete unfinished iPhone emails on their Mac. As of OS X 10.10.3, Photos replaced iPhoto🗝 and Aperture.[226]
OS X 10.11 El Capitan
Screenshot of El Capitan
OS X 10.11 El Capitan was released on September 30, 2024. Similar🗝 to Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard, Apple described this release as emphasizing "refinements to the Mac experience" and "improvements🗝 to system performance".[227] Refinements include public transport built into the Maps application, GUI improvements to the Notes application, adopting San🗝 Francisco as the system font for clearer legibility, and the introduction of System Integrity Protection.
The Metal API, first introduced in🗝 iOS 8, was also included in this operating system for "all Macs since 2012".[228] According to Apple, Metal accelerates system-level🗝 rendering by up to 50 percent, resulting in faster graphics performance for everyday apps. Metal also delivers up to 10🗝 times faster draw call performance for more fluid experience in games and pro apps.[229]
macOS 10.12 Sierra
macOS 10.12 Sierra was released🗝 to the public on September 20, 2024. New features include the addition of Siri, Optimized Storage, and updates to Photos,🗝 Messages, and iTunes.[230][231]
macOS 10.13 High Sierra
macOS 10.13 High Sierra was released to the public on September 25, 2024.[232] Like OS🗝 X El Capitan and OS X Mountain Lion, High Sierra is a refinement-based update having very few new features visible🗝 to the user, including updates to Safari, Photos, and Mail, among other changes.[233]
The major change under the hood is the🗝 switch to the Apple File System, optimized for the solid-state storage used in most new Mac computers.[234]
macOS 10.14 Mojave
macOS 10.14🗝 Mojave was released on September 24, 2024.[53] The update introduced a system-wide dark mode and several new apps lifted from🗝 iOS, such as Apple News. It was the first version to require a GPU that supports Metal. Mojave also changed🗝 the system software update mechanism from the App Store (where it had been since OS X Mountain Lion) to a🗝 new panel in System Preferences. App updates remain in the App Store.
macOS 10.15 Catalina
macOS 10.15 Catalina was released on October🗝 7, 2024.[235] Updates included enhanced voice control, and bundled apps for music, video, and podcasts that together replace the functions🗝 of iTunes, and the ability to use an iPad as an external monitor. Catalina officially dropped support for 32-bit applications.[236]
macOS🗝 11 Big Sur
macOS Big Sur was announced during the WWDC keynote speech on June 22, 2024,[237] and it was made🗝 available to the general public on November 12, 2024. This is the first time the major version number of the🗝 operating system has been incremented since the Mac OS X Public Beta in 2000. It brings ARM support,[238] new icons,🗝 and aesthetic user interface changes to the system.[239]
macOS 12 Monterey
macOS Monterey was announced during the WWDC keynote speech on June🗝 7, 2024, and released on October 25, 2024, introducing Universal Control (which allows input devices to be used with multiple🗝 devices simultaneously), Focus (which allows selectively limiting notifications and alerts depending on user-defined user/work modes), Shortcuts (a task automation framework🗝 previously only available on iOS and iPadOS expected to replace Automator), a redesigned Safari Web browser, and updates and improvements🗝 to FaceTime.[240]
macOS 13 Ventura
macOS Ventura was announced during the WWDC keynote speech on June 6, 2024[241] and released on October🗝 24, 2024.[242] It came with the redesigned System Preferences to a more iOS-like settings, and now with the new Weather🗝 and Clock app for Mac. Users can use an iPhone as a webcam for video conferencing.
macOS 14 Sonoma
macOS Sonoma was🗝 announced during the WWDC keynote speech on June 5, 2024. It was released on September 26, 2024.[243]
Security
Apple publishes Apple Platform🗝 Security documents to lay out the security protections built into macOS and Mac hardware.[244]
macOS supports additional hardware-based security features on🗝 Apple silicon Macs:[245]
Write xor execute prevents some security vulnerabilities by making memory pages either writable or executable, but not both.🗝 [245]
PCIe or Thunderbolt devices are prevented by IOMMUs from reading system memory that is not explicitly mapped to them, unlike🗝 Intel-based Macs.[245][246]
macOS's optional Lockdown Mode enables additional protections, such as disabling just-in-time compilation for Safari's JavaScript engine, preventing some vulnerabilities.[247]
Only🗝 the latest major release of macOS (currently macOS Sonoma) receives patches for all known security vulnerabilities. The previous two releases🗝 receive some security updates, but not for all vulnerabilities known to Apple. In 2024, Apple fixed a critical privilege escalation🗝 vulnerability in macOS Big Sur, but a fix remained unavailable for the previous release, macOS Catalina, for 234 days, until🗝 Apple was informed that the vulnerability was being used to infect the computers of people who visited Hong Kong pro-democracy🗝 websites.[248][249]
macOS Ventura added support for Rapid Security Response (RSR) updates. These smaller updates may require a reboot, but take less🗝 than a minute to install.[250][251] In an analysis, Hackintosh developer Mykola Grymalyuk noted that RSR updates can only fix userland🗝 vulunerability, and cannot patch the macOS kernel.[252]
Malware and spyware
In its earlier years, Mac OS X enjoyed a near-absence of the🗝 types of malware and spyware that have affected Microsoft Windows users.[253][254][255] macOS has a smaller usage share compared to Windows.[256]🗝 Worms, as well as potential vulnerabilities, were noted in 2006, which led some industry analysts and anti-virus companies to issue🗝 warnings that Apple's Mac OS X is not immune to malware.[257] Increasing market share coincided with additional reports of a🗝 variety of attacks.[258] In early 2011, Mac OS X experienced a large increase in malware attacks,[259] and malware such as🗝 Mac Defender, MacProtector, and MacGuard was seen as an increasing problem for Mac users. At first, the malware installer required🗝 the user to enter the administrative password, but later versions installed without user input.[260] Initially, Apple support staff were instructed🗝 not to assist in the removal of the malware or admit the existence of the malware issue, but as the🗝 malware spread, a support document was issued. Apple announced an OS X update to fix the problem. An estimated 100,000🗝 users were affected.[261][262] Apple releases security updates for macOS regularly,[263] as well as signature files containing malware signatures for Xprotect,🗝 an anti-malware feature part of File Quarantine present since Mac OS X Snow Leopard.[264]
Reception
Usage share
As of January 2024 , macOS🗝 is the second-most widely used general-purpose desktop operating system used on the World Wide Web following Microsoft Windows, with a🗝 15.33% usage share according to statistics compiled by Statcounter GlobalStats.[265]
Promotion
As a device company, Apple has mostly promoted macOS to sell🗝 Macs, with promotion of macOS updates focused on existing users, promotion at Apple Store and other retail partners, or through🗝 events for developers. In larger scale advertising campaigns, Apple specifically promoted macOS as better for handling media and other home-user🗝 applications, and comparing Mac OS X (especially versions Tiger and Leopard) with the heavy criticism Microsoft received for the long-awaited🗝 Windows Vista operating system.[266][267]
See also
