With the release of macOS Sierra today, Apple also updated its line of iWork apps, including Pages, Keynote, and Numbers. Support Communities / Mac OS & System Software / macOS Sierra. Announcement: Upgrade to macOS Mojave With features like Dark Mode, Stacks, and four new built-in apps, macOS Mojave helps you get more out of every click. With the free version, you get a clean, highly productive and expandable email program that includes thrills such as link and open tracking, quick reply templates, and undo send. However, the free edition is limited to 10 accounts. Select a Software Category or view all items in one massive list. See also all Mac software reviewed and rated at our site. This list of Best Free Software for Mac OS now includes 281 applications in various categories. With the advent of 'iDevices', Mac OS has arguably become one of the fastest.
A version of the macOS operating system | |
Developer | Apple Inc. |
---|---|
OS family |
|
Source model | Closed, with open source components |
Initial release | September 20, 2016; 2 years ago |
Latest release | 10.12.6 (16G2128)[2] / July 29, 2019; 40 days ago |
Update method | Mac App Store |
Platforms | x86-64 |
Kernel type | Hybrid (XNU) |
License | APSL and Apple EULA |
Preceded by | OS X 10.11 El Capitan |
Succeeded by | macOS 10.13 High Sierra |
Official website | macOS - Apple at the Wayback Machine (archived August 30, 2017) |
Support status | |
Unsupported. Extended support ended in September 2019. iTunes ends in August 2020 |
Part of a series on |
macOS |
---|
|
macOS Sierra (version 10.12)[3] is the thirteenth major release of macOS (previously OS X), Apple Inc.'s desktop and server operating system for Macintosh computers. As the successor to OS X El Capitan, it was the first version of the operating system issued under the June 2016 rebranding as macOS. Sierra is named after the Sierra Nevada mountain range in California and Nevada.[4] Its major new features concern Continuity, iCloud, and windowing, as well as support for Apple Pay and Siri.
The first beta of macOS Sierra was released to developers shortly following the 2016 WWDC keynote on June 13, 2016. The first public-beta release followed on July 7, 2016. It was released to end users on September 20, 2016, as a free upgrade through the Mac App Store.[5]
- 2Changes
- 2.1System features
- 2.2Application features
- 2.3Security improvements
System requirements[edit]
macOS Sierra requires at least 2 GB of RAM and 8 GB of storage space and will run on:[6] Audacity like program for mac.
- iMac: Late 2009 or newer
- MacBook and MacBook 12-inch: Late 2009 or newer
- MacBook Pro: Mid 2010 or newer
- MacBook Air: Late 2010 or newer
- Mac Mini: Mid 2010 or newer
- Mac Pro: Mid 2010 or newer
- Xserve is no longer compatible.
Sierra is the first version of macOS since OS X Mountain Lion, released in 2012, that does not run on all computers that the previous version supported.[7] Developers have created workarounds to install macOS Sierra on some Mac computers that are no longer officially supported as long as they are packed with a CPU that supports SSE4.1.[8]
Changes[edit]
The default desktop picture is an image of Lone Pine Peak.
System features[edit]
Siri[edit]
A demonstration of Siri on macOS Sierra Beta.
The user can access the Siri intelligent assistant via the Dock, the menu bar or a keyboard shortcut and results are shown in a window in the upper-right corner.[9] Siri can send messages, search the web, find files and adjust settings. Results can be dropped into other applications or pinned to Notification Center.[9] For instance, pictures from search results can be dragged into a document.
iCloud Drive and Optimized Storage[edit]
This image shows what the Optimized Storage suggestions are.
iCloud Drive can upload the user's documents and desktop directories and sync them to other devices. The System Information application has a new section that gives the user detailed information about space usage per application or file and provides tools and suggestions for freeing up space. For instance, the user can let the system upload old files to iCloud Drive and remove their local copies, keeping them available on-demand in Finder. It can also remove old files from trash automatically. iTunes can delete watched, purchased films and TV programs from its library.[10][11]
Auto Unlock and Universal Clipboard[edit]
Building upon Continuity, an 'umbrella term [for] features that facilitate the communication between [Apple devices]' using Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, Sierra adds two features.[10] With Auto Unlock, the user can unlock their user account by holding a paired Apple Watch close to the device. Time of flight is used to prevent relay attacks. Auto Unlock requires a Mac that was introduced in 2013 or later. With Universal Clipboard, the user can share the clipboard for cut, copy and paste between macOS Sierra and iOS 10 devices, including text and rich content, such as pictures or videos.
Tabs and Picture-in-Picture[edit]
Applications that support multiple windows can support multiple tabs within a single window, allowing the user to keep windows organized similarly to Safari.[12] With Picture-in-Picture, videos can be played in a window that follows the user across the system.[13]
Apple File System[edit]
Apple released a preview of a new file system in Sierra, called Apple File System (APFS), to overcome the limitations of HFS Plus. It is intended for solid-state drives and flash memory and will adopt several features found in modern file systems, such as snapshots and cloning, as well as native support for features that Apple already provides in HFS Plus through supplementary software, such as file-system encryption and TRIM support. The file system was released in macOS High Sierra.[14]
Night Shift[edit]
Night Shift is new in macOS 10.12.4, with the same functionality as its iOS counterpart. Night Shift reduces blue light at night to aid sleep. This can be scheduled in the System Preferences app (in the Displays menu) and can be toggled on or off in the Notification Center or using Siri.[15]
Since this feature relies on the Metal framework,[citation needed] Night Shift is not available on all systems that support macOS Sierra.[16]
Application features[edit]
Photos[edit]
Apple says it has improved the face recognition of the Photos application, adding object and scene recognition. It groups similar pictures together using faces, locations and object recognition to create 'memories'. Memories contain picture slideshows with transitions and music selected by the algorithm, which can be modified to the user's liking. The 'People' album organizes photos by the people in them, and Places shows all photos on a world map.
Safari and Apple Pay[edit]
Safari provides an 'extension point' which enables developers to bundle Safari extensions within their Cocoa applications and communicate with them directly from the applications.[17] Safari conceals the presence of installed 'legacy' plug-ins, such as Adobe Flash Player, Java applets, Microsoft Silverlight, and QuickTime – from websites and requires the user to enable a specific plug-in on a per-use or per-website basis.[10]
Apple Pay allows vendors to embed an Apple Pay button on their websites. In Safari, users can click the Apple Pay button to check out, then complete a purchase using an iPhone or Apple Watch. Apple Pay requires a Mac that supports Continuity (2012 or later models) and either an iPhone 6 or later with iOS 10, or an Apple Watch with watchOS 3.
Messages[edit]
The Messages app adds aesthetic effects to messages, such as three times bigger emojis and click back with hearts or thumbs-up on a message bubble.[18] The ability to play YouTube videos and preview links in a conversation was introduced.[19] Users can view interactive content added to iMessage in iOS 10. The app also allows you to turn on or off read receipts on a conversation by conversation basis.[20][21]
iTunes[edit]
Apple Music within iTunes has been redesigned, making it simpler to find favorite songs and discover new ones. A new 'For You' tab has been added, which suggests new music the user might like (similar to the existing Genius).[citation needed] A refined MiniPlayer with the ability to view lyrics while listening has also been introduced.[22]
Notes[edit]
The Notes app allows the user to share and collaborate on notes. This is done by clicking on a share button at the top of the window.[22]
Other changes[edit]
- Disk Utility regains the ability to format and manage RAID sets, after it was removed in El Capitan.[10][23]
- Finder has an option to show folders always at the top of the view hierarchy, for instance in list views.[10]
- Mail adds a control to the top of email lists to quickly filter them, for instance, by read status or the presence of attachments.[10]
Security improvements[edit]
Gatekeeper[edit]
macOS Sierra slightly changes the Gatekeeperuser interface and adds two new mechanisms. A new default in System Preferences hides the 'Anywhere' option which allows the user to disable the mechanism and execute programs from any source without needing to approve each new one individually.
The first new mechanism allows developers to code-signdisk images that can be verified as a unit by the system. This allows developers to guarantee the integrity of external files that are distributed alongside the application bundle on the same disk image. An attacker could infect these external files with malicious code and with them exploit a vulnerability in the application, without having to break the signature of the application bundle itself. By signing the disk image, the developer can prevent tampering and force an attacker to repackage the files onto a new disk image, requiring a valid developer certificate to pass Gatekeeper without a warning.[24]
The second new mechanism is 'path randomization', which executes application bundles from a random, hidden path and prevents them from accessing external files relative to their location. To avoid this, the developer has to distribute the application bundle and its external files on a signed disk image or in a signed installer package. The user can avoid this mechanism by moving the application bundle without its external files to a new location.[24]
Directory permissions and sudo[edit]
The Unix permissions for writing to the /Volumes directory are now restricted to root and no longer 'world-writable'.[25] Apple expanded System Integrity Protection to /Library/Application Support/com.apple.TCC,[26] a directory that contains a list of applications that are allowed to 'control the computer', and restricts write access to programs which were signed with an Apple 'private entitlement'. The file-hosting serviceDropbox has been criticized for manipulating the directory to add their Dropbox application to the list, rather than asking the user to do it for them explicitly in System Preferences.[27]
The sudocommand-line utility with which a user can execute a command as another user, typically as root, is configured with the 'tty_tickets' flag by default, restricting the session timeout to the terminal session (such as a window or tab) in which the user authenticated the program.[28]
Removed functionality[edit]
Sierra removes support for garbage collection from the Objective-Cruntime,[29] a memory-management system that was added in Mac OS X Leopard (version 10.5) and declared deprecated in favor of Automatic Reference Counting in OS X Mountain Lion (version 10.8). [30][31] Applications that have been compiled with garbage collection will no longer run.
Apple removed native support for the VPN protocol PPTP and made recommendations for alternatives that it considers more secure.[32]
The 'time remaining' estimate has been removed in the 10.12.2 update after complaints of the battery life of 2016 MacBook Pros.[33][34][35]
The Game Center app has been removed.[22] However, the service still exists.
Reinstallation[edit]
Following the download of macOS Sierra (10.12) from the Mac App Store, the installer does not show under a users' 'Purchased' tab in the Mac App Store app. Users can still re-download the Sierra installer by visiting the macOS Sierra page on the Mac App Store.[36]
Reception[edit]
macOS Sierra has received generally positive reviews. Users and critics have praised its functionality, including the addition of Siri and support for Apple Pay in Safari.[37]Macworld gave it 4.5 stars out of 5.[38]Engadget gave it a rating of 87 out of 100 praising the new features such as Siri integration, Universal Clipboard, and Apple Pay while criticizing the unreliability of Auto Unlock, that 'Siri isn't always smart enough' and some of the Messages features are only available on iOS 10.[39] Developers of apps that rely on the PDFKit library built into macOS have complained that radical changes to PDFKit introduced in Sierra are causing instability and potential data corruption.[40]
Releases[edit]
Previous release | Current release | Beta |
Version | Build | Release date | Darwin | Notes | Standalone download |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
10.12 | 16A323 | September 20, 2016 | 16.0.0 | Original Mac App Store release | N/A |
10.12.1 | 16B2555 | October 24, 2016 | 16.1.0 | About the macOS Sierra 10.12.1 Update | macOS Sierra 10.12.1 Update |
16B2657 | October 27, 2016 | ||||
10.12.2 | 16C67 | December 13, 2016 | 16.3.0 | About the macOS Sierra 10.12.2 Update | macOS Sierra 10.12.2 Update macOS Sierra 10.12.2 Combo Update |
16C68 | December 14, 2016 | ||||
10.12.3 | 16D32 | January 23, 2017 | 16.4.0 | About the macOS Sierra 10.12.3 Update | macOS Sierra 10.12.3 Update macOS Sierra 10.12.3 Combo Update |
10.12.4 | 16E195 | March 27, 2017 | 16.5.0 | About the macOS Sierra 10.12.4 Update | macOS Sierra 10.12.4 Update macOS Sierra 10.12.4 Combo Update |
10.12.5 | 16F73 | May 15, 2017 | 16.6.0 | About the macOS Sierra 10.12.5 Update | macOS Sierra 10.12.5 Update macOS Sierra 10.12.5 Combo Update |
16F2073 | June 5, 2017 | ||||
10.12.6 | 16G29 | July 19, 2017 | 16.7.0 | About the macOS Sierra 10.12.6 Update | macOS Sierra 10.12.6 Update macOS Sierra 10.12.6 Combo Update |
16G1036 | October 31, 2017 | About the security content of Security Update 2017-001 Sierra | Security Update 2017-001 Sierra | ||
16G1114 | December 6, 2017 | About the security content of Security Update 2017-002 Sierra | Security Update 2017-002 Sierra | ||
16G1212 | January 23, 2018 | About the security content of Security Update 2018-001 Sierra | Security Update 2018-001 Sierra | ||
16G1314 | March 29, 2018 | About the security content of Security Update 2018-002 Sierra | Security Update 2018-002 Sierra | ||
16G1408 | June 1, 2018 | About the security content of Security Update 2018-003 Sierra | Security Update 2018-003 Sierra | ||
16G1510 | July 9, 2018 | About the security content of Security Update 2018-004 Sierra | Security Update 2018-004 Sierra | ||
16G1618 | October 30, 2018 | About the security content of Security Update 2018-005 Sierra | Security Update 2018-005 Sierra | ||
16G1710 | December 5, 2018 | About the security content of Security Update 2018-006 Sierra | Security Update 2018-006 Sierra | ||
16G1815 | January 22, 2019 | About the security content of Security Update 2019-001 Sierra | Security Update 2019-001 Sierra | ||
16G1917 | March 25, 2019 | About the security content of Security Update 2019-002 Sierra | Security Update 2019-002 Sierra | ||
16G1918 | March 29, 2019 | About the security content of Security Update 2019-002 Sierra | Security Update 2019-002 Sierra | ||
16G2016 | May 14, 2019 | About the security content of Security Update 2019-003 Sierra | Security Update 2019-003 Sierra | ||
July 22, 2019 | About the security content of Security Update 2019-004 Sierra | ||||
16G2128 | July 29, 2019 | About the security content of Security Update 2019-004 Sierra | Security Update 2019-004 Sierra |
References[edit]
![Pages Pages](/uploads/1/3/3/2/133281025/779635148.jpg)
- ^'macOS version 10.12 Sierra on Intel-based Mac computers'. The Open Group. Archived from the original on October 2, 2016. Retrieved September 29, 2016.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^'About the security content of macOS Mojave 10.14.6, Security Update 2019-004 High Sierra, Security Update 2019-004 Sierra'. Apple Support. July 29, 2019. Retrieved July 30, 2019.
- ^'Download - Apple Developer'. Apple Developer. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
- ^Loyola, Roman (7 July 2016). 'macOS Sierra FAQ: What you need to know about the new Mac operating system'. Macworld. Archived from the original on 15 July 2016. Retrieved 13 July 2016.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^Majo, Benjamin (7 September 2016). 'macOS Sierra will be released on September 20 for free to Mac owners'. 9to5Mac. Archived from the original on 8 September 2016. Retrieved 7 September 2016.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^'How to get macOS Sierra'. Apple. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
- ^Elliott, Matt (2016-06-13). 'See which Macs will -- and won't -- work with MacOS'. CNet. Archived from the original on 16 June 2016. Retrieved 16 June 2016.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^'MacOS 10.12 Sierra Unsupported Macs Thread'. MacRumors Forums. Archived from the original on 2016-06-16. Retrieved 2016-06-22.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^ ab'How to use Siri in macOS Sierra'. Macworld. Archived from the original on 2017-02-04. Retrieved 2017-02-16.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^ abcdefCunningham, Andrew; Hutchinson, Lee (September 20, 2016). 'macOS 10.12 Sierra: The Ars Technica review'. Ars Technica UK. Archived from the original on September 25, 2016. Retrieved September 28, 2016.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^Clover, Juli. 'macOS Sierra: Save Disk Space With the New 'Optimize Storage' Option'. Archived from the original on 2016-11-26. Retrieved 2016-11-25.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^'macOS Sierra: Apps Gain Safari-Style Tabs'. Archived from the original on 2018-01-26. Retrieved 2018-01-25.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^'macOS Sierra: Picture in Picture Mode for Safari and iTunes Videos'. Archived from the original on 2018-01-26. Retrieved 2018-01-25.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^'macOS High Sierra: You'll Hardly Notice You've Upgraded - The Mac Observer'. The Mac Observer. 4 October 2017. Archived from the original on 11 May 2018. Retrieved 10 May 2018.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^Clover, Juli. 'Apple Releases macOS Sierra 10.12.4 With New Night Shift Mode'. Archived from the original on 2017-04-01. Retrieved 2017-04-14.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^'How to Use Night Shift in macOS Sierra 10.12.4'. Retrieved 2018-06-13.
- ^'Safari App Extension Programming Guide: Safari App Extensions'. Apple Developer. Archived from the original on July 8, 2016. Retrieved September 29, 2016.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|dead-url=
(help) - ^'How to use Messages effects in macOS Sierra'. iMore. Archived from the original on 2016-11-23. Retrieved 2016-11-22.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^'10 tiny macOS Sierra features I love'. iMore. Archived from the original on 2016-12-30. Retrieved 2016-12-30.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^'7 hidden features in macOS Sierra you may have missed'. Macworld. Archived from the original on 2016-12-30. Retrieved 2016-12-30.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^'How to Use Read Receipts on the iPhone and Mac'. TekRevue. Archived from the original on 2016-12-30. Retrieved 2016-12-30.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^ abcMatt Elliott (November 10, 2016). '10 hidden MacOS Sierra features you need to know'. Archived from the original on 2017-02-18. Retrieved 2018-06-09.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^'How to configure a software RAID in macOS Sierra's Disk Utility'. Macworld. Archived from the original on 2017-01-08. Retrieved 2017-01-07.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^ abCunningham, Andrew (June 15, 2016). 'Some nerdy changes in macOS and iOS 10: RAW shooting, a harsher Gatekeeper, more'. Ars Technica UK. Archived from the original on June 16, 2016. Retrieved June 17, 2016.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|dead-url=
(help) - ^Trouton, Rich (September 21, 2016). 'macOS Sierra's /Volumes folder is no longer world-writable'. Der Flounder. Archived from the original on October 8, 2016. Retrieved September 28, 2016.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^Gruber, John (September 20, 2016). 'Dropbox's MacOS Security Hack'. Daring Fireball. Archived from the original on October 1, 2016. Retrieved September 28, 2016.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^Pauli, Darren (September 13, 2016). 'Dropbox apologies for clunky administrator account access on Macs'. The Register. Archived from the original on October 2, 2016. Retrieved September 28, 2016.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^Trouton, Rich (September 21, 2016). 'tty_tickets option now on by default for macOS Sierra's sudo tool'. Der Flounder. Archived from the original on October 8, 2016. Retrieved September 28, 2016.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^'Xcode Release Notes'. Apple Developer. May 29, 2018. Section 'Xcode 8.3'. Retrieved June 9, 2018.
OS X 10.11 was the last major release of macOS that supported the previously deprecated garbage collection runtime. Applications or features that depend upon garbage collection may not function properly or will not launch in macOS Sierra. Developers should use Automatic Reference Counting (ARC) or manual retain/release for memory management instead. (20589595)
- ^Siracusa, John (October 29, 2007). 'Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard: the Ars Technica review'. Ars Technica. At section 'Objective-C 2.0'. Archived from the original on November 17, 2016. Retrieved November 17, 2016.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^Siracusa, John (July 25, 2012). 'OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion: the Ars Technica review'. Ars Technica. At section 'Objective-C enhancements'. Archived from the original on November 17, 2016. Retrieved November 17, 2016.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^'Prepare for removal of PPTP VPN before you upgrade to iOS 10 and macOS Sierra'. Apple Support. July 16, 2016. Archived from the original on September 27, 2016. Retrieved September 29, 2016.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|dead-url=
(help) - ^Kahn, Jordan (2016-12-13). 'Why Apple is removing 'time remaining' battery life estimates following MacBook Pro complaints'. 9to5Mac. Archived from the original on 2017-01-08. Retrieved 2017-01-07.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^Schroeder, Stan. 'Apple's Sierra update 'fixes' Mac battery woes by removing 'time remaining' estimate'. Mashable. Archived from the original on 2017-01-05. Retrieved 2017-01-07.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^O'Kane, Sean (2016-12-13). 'Apple removes the 'time remaining' battery estimate in new macOS update'. The Verge. Archived from the original on 2017-01-08. Retrieved 2017-01-07.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^'How to download macOS Sierra'. Apple. October 17, 2017. Archived from the original on 2017-11-07. Retrieved November 1, 2017.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|dead-url=
(help) - ^'MacOS Sierra review: Six big ways it's going to change your Apple experience'. CNET. Archived from the original on 2017-01-16. Retrieved 2017-01-14.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^'macOS Sierra review: Mixing iOS with OS X to make a better Mac'. Macworld. Archived from the original on 2017-01-16. Retrieved 2017-01-14.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help) - ^Wollman, Dana (September 20, 2016). 'macOS Sierra review: Mac users get a modest update this year'. Archived from the original on 2017-02-18. Retrieved February 18, 2017.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|dead-url=
(help) - ^'Sierra PDF Problems Get Worse in 10.12.2'. Tidbits. Archived from the original on 2017-03-20. Retrieved 2017-03-20.Cite uses deprecated parameter
|deadurl=
(help)
External links[edit]
- Official website at the Wayback Machine (archived August 30, 2017)
Preceded by OS X 10.11 (El Capitan) | macOS 10.12 (Sierra) 09/2016 | Succeeded by macOS 10.13 (High Sierra) |
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=MacOS_Sierra&oldid=913501617'
Goodbye OS X 10.11 El Capitan and hello macOS Sierra. Apple announced at WWDC 2016 that its new operating system for its Mac computers and MacBook laptops has been given a new name – and a lot of exciting new features, and if you can now download and install macOS Sierra right now.
https://cleverlv.weebly.com/blog/access-program-for-mac. Apple usually releases updates at 10:00 PDT (13:00 ET, 18:00 BST, 03:00 the next day AEST), so you'll likely see the update appear now or soon after.
Siri, Apple's virtual assistant, makes its debut on Apple's desktop operating system, allowing users to control their Macs using just their voice. If you have an iPhone, then it will also work even better with your Mac running macOS Sierra thanks to improved Continuity features. Architectural cad software for mac.
If you experience any problems after upgrading to macOS Sierra, then check out our macOS Sierra problems: Here's how to fix the most common issues guide for a solution.
Can't wait until later on today when macOS Sierra releases? It's also available to download right now as a final release candidate from beta.apple.com.
The macOS Sierra final release candidate brings macOS Sierra that little bit closer to the final release, so if you're thinking of downloading it, you'll be faced with less issues than earlier versions.
- Check out our Mac help and support guides for more Mac tips and tricks
The macOS Sierra final release candidate is still an early version of the software, however. The final release candidate is basically what the final release of macOS Sierra will look like, but it's released early to make sure there are no major bugs. If there are, then these will hopefully be caught and fixed before macOS Sierra launches properly later on today, September 20.
This means that the macOS Sierra final release candidate will likely be very stable, but it's still possible there will be bugs. If you want to make sure your Mac is completely safe, we'd strongly recommend waiting until the final stable release of macOS Sierra later this month.
Check your Mac can run macOS Sierra
Before downloading and installing the macOS Sierra final release candidate you'll want to make sure that your Mac can run the new software. If you want to run macOS Sierra on a laptop you'll need a MacBook from late 2009 or better, or a MacBook Air or MacBook Pro from 2010 or later.
If you've got an iMac, you'll be okay with a model from late 2009 or better, and as for the Mac mini or Mac Pro, you'll need one from 2010 or later.
Back up your Mac before installing macOS
Whenever you upgrade your operating system – and especially when you're trying out a beta version – we highly recommend backing up the files on your Mac, so if anything goes wrong you can quickly restore your machine to its previous working order.
So, before you download and install macOS Sierra, make sure your Mac is backed up. For information on how to do this, head over to our ultimate guide to backing up your Mac
How to download macOS Sierra
With your Mac safely backed up, you can now check to see if macOS Sierra is ready to be installed. Launch the App Store on your Mac and in the search box type in macOS Sierra.
When the macOS Sierra update appears, click on 'Download' and if needed, enter in your Apple ID and password. You can see the progress of the download from the 'Purchases' tab.
Free Pages Program For Mac Sierra
When the download as finished an installer will appear to take you through the process of installing macOS Sierra.
If macOS Sierra hasn't appeared in the App Store, then you may have to wait until later on today for Apple to make the update available. If you really can't wait, read on to find out how to download the final release candidate.
How to download macOS Sierra final release candidate
You need to sign up for the Apple Beta Software Program. which gives you early access to Apple's software. Go to the Apple Beta Software Program website and follow the instructions to download and install macOS Sierra final release candidate your Mac
At the bottom of the page you'll see a button labelled 'Sign up'. Click it and then sign in with your Apple ID.
Pages Program For Mac
You'll see an Apple Beta Software Program Agreement page - here tap on 'Accept'. Once you have signed up you'll get an email inviting you to download the macOS Sierra final release candidate software.
Head back to the Apple Beta website and click on the blue button that says 'Get the macOS Sierra GM candidate'.
On the next page you'll see a step-by-step guide. Scroll down to step 2, which says 'Install the macOS Sierra GM candidate'. You'll see a redemption code for macOS Sierra final release candidate. Click on the button below it which says 'Redeem Code'.
Pages Program For Mac Free Download
This will open the Mac App Store on your Mac, and your redemption code will already be included. Click 'Redeem' next to the text box, and macOS Sierra final release candidate will begin downloading. Once it has finished the macOS Sierra final release candidate installation process will begin.