Dec 20, 2016 Apple has released the second beta versions of MacOS Sierra 10.12.3 and iOS 10.2.1 to users enrolled in the beta testing programs. Users participating in the beta programs can download iOS 10.2.1 beta 2 and MacOS Sierra 10.12.3 beta 2 from the.
In continuing with Apple's yearly operating system release cycle, the latest entry in the series after OS X El Capitan is macOS Sierra. Version 10.12 of the OS brings more than just a name change (the company dropped OS X with this release)—it further delivers on the seamless user experience established in previous OSes by extending Continuity, Siri, and Apple Pay to name a few of the technologies shared between the desktop and mobile platforms. The release also offers advanced malware protection and optimized storage functionalities.
This primer details what you need to know about macOS Sierra. We'll update this 'living' guide about macOS Sierra periodically when Apple releases updates, important security fixes, and new information about the OS.
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macOS Sierra is the latest release of Apple's operating system for its computing devices. On September 20, 2016, Apple made version 10.12 of its OS available for all to download from the Mac App Store.
Apple has merged the best features of its mobile OS to better integrate its services and make them seamless to the end user. Though not all of macOS Sierra is rooted in cross-platform features between it and iOS, macOS further expands security by protecting core system services from unauthorized access and malware infection, as well as eliminating less secure technologies.
SEE: Screenshots: A complete roundup of new macOS Sierra features (TechRepublic)
Alongside key changes to the core OS, new features have been introduced in an effort to simplify the use of products in the Apple ecosystem, ensuring a seamless transition between work being performed on one device and picking up where you left off on a second device without losing a step. New and upgraded features include the following.
System requirements
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For this release, Apple opted to rebrand the OS X moniker and upgrade the OS feature set to include a number of productivity-enhancing features for business users and new features to its existing applications, such as Photos and Maps. Added security has been implemented to strengthen its UNIX-based system services, including additional refinements to Gatekeeper's malware protection by way of implementing code signing for disk images and path randomization for applications.
Aesthetically, macOS Sierra is similar to previous versions of OS X, as Apple continues to work toward a more platform-unified design with further integration with iOS without fully merging the two.
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Apple users from all facets will be directly affected by this latest version of macOS, particularly users that rely on macOS and iOS to bridge the work-life balance and use Mac computers, iPhones, and iPads.
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Apple provided its first official glimpse of macOS Sierra to the world on June 13, 2016 at its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC). Developers were provided with a beta version of the OS, followed by a public beta available to users who signed up for the Apple Beta Software Program on July 7, 2016.
The final release build (16A323) of macOS Sierra was made available on September 20, 2016 for download on the Mac App Store.
Build 10.12.4
Build 10.12.4 was released on March 27, 2017 for download, deprecating the previously released builds 10.12.1, 10.12.2, and 10.12.3. Previous point upgrade builds were minor in size and focus solely on providing fixes for the stability and reliability of known issues.
With it, 10.12.4 brings several enhancements to macOS Sierra for consumers and enterprise users. Night Shift will automatically shift your display's color toward the warmer spectrum to aid while using devices in the evening. Support for Siri and dictation for additional sports and languages has been included, as well as more digital camera RAW format support.
Enterprise users have received several new updates to be used in conjunction with the newly released macOS Server 5.3, which includes added support for managing devices via Terminal, for Cache Server, Keychains and Profile Manager's Mobile Device Management (MDM) enrollment.
This update improves the stability and compatibility of macOS Sierra client and server operating systems and addresses security issues based on Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) related to the hardening of these OSes.
Build 10.12.5
Apple made build 10.12.5 available for download on May 15, 2017 as an update in the Mac App Store and in the form of a stand-alone combo update for deployment across the enterprise.
This build is slightly larger than previous updates. The crux of the change log mainly highlights several bug fixes to correct issues affecting audio played back over USB headphones, compatibility enhancements with the Mac App Store and its delivery of future software updates and continues added support of RAW formats for digital cameras.
There are a couple of bug fixes for enterprise users. One is a known issue that would affect the system date to be set incorrectly. Another fix stems from the use of the NetInstall server service, which would result in a kernel panic when trying to deploy macOS to Apple computers.
One new feature is support for Microsoft's latest version for Windows 10, aptly known as the Creators Update (or version 1703), for those looking to dual-boot using Boot Camp.
This update improves the stability and compatibility of macOS Sierra client and server operating systems and addresses security issues based on Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs) related to the hardening of these OSes.
Build 10.12.6
Apple released update 10.12.6 to macOS Sierra on July 19, 2017. While the update does not add any new features or enhancements, it does include fixes to certain issues that lead to instability and/or compatibility concerns on your Mac. The update resolves issues that prevents users from making SMB connections, as well as, a bug that restarts your Apple computer which serves as an Xsan client. Additionally, a stability improvement has been included for the Terminal app.
Update 10.12.6 also includes 37 security updates to address Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs) for a variety of vulnerabilities affecting Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and the system's Kernel, just to name a few of the more pressing fixes in this important and highly recommended update.
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The latest version of Apple's operating system is available for download from the Mac App Store. Continuing the licensing structure established with OS X Mavericks (version 10.9), Apple has made the download available for free to all Apple users (consumers and business users).
Users will upgrade directly from the downloaded installer app. The upgrade process is identical to previous versions for supported devices—this means no specialized versions or multiple SKUs. All downloads have the same software features and functionality.
Regardless of the underlying version of OS X, the base system may be upgraded directly to macOS Sierra by running the installer app download. Performing a clean install is also possible, yet not necessary to make the jump to macOS Sierra. If you wish to perform a clean install, remember to back up your data prior to installing the new OS.
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Sign up today Sign up todayNote that bad features, poor interface design, and problems with third-party apps, etc., are listed separately here.
Following the release of Sierra 10.12.6, this list has been superseded by the new list for 10.12.6. This list is no longer maintained: please refer to that last for the latest information.
If you are looking for a list of bugs in previous versions of Sierra, that for 10.12.4 is here, for 10.12.3 is here, for 10.12.2 is here, for 10.12.1 is hereand for 10.12 is here. Note, though, that those are no longer maintained.
Time Machine and activities scheduled by Grand Central Dispatch – backups and other activities run at irregular intervals
Macs which are left running, without system sleep, for longer than about a week may start to make Time Machine backups at very irregular intervals. This is almost certainly the result of a bug in Grand Central Dispatch’s Duet Activity Scheduling (DAS), which suddenly stops performing regular evaluations of its list of scheduled activities.
This is also likely to affect all other scheduled activities, and could for example make servers unreliable when they have been running for periods of around 14 days or more. Although this appears most commonly when a Mac has been running for over ten days, it can occur after just two days.
Full details and log excerpts are here. I have reported this to Apple on its Radar system.
Workaround: restart the Mac every week or so, or possibly to allow it to sleep.
About This Mac / Storage never completes
If you open About This Mac and select the Storage tab, the top bar should, after a while, display the disk usage on your startup volume. Many users report that this remains stuck at Calculating…, and that one or more of the sections in the left of the Manage… dialog also remain busy and never report a size, even after months. These appear to be bugs, and have been present since 10.12. No workaround has been discovered.
Console – no access to full historic log data
The Console utility does not provide full access to log entries already gathered before the app is opened. This has been the case since Sierra 10.12.
Workaround: use the log show
command in Terminal, or LogLogger5d from here. Alternatively, you can export the whole log to a .logarchive file, then browse that using Console.
log
(command) – bugs in show
and collect
options
Using log show
, the --start
and --end
options now work better than in 10.12, but still do not discover all log entries in the specified time period, or may use an incorrect time period. Widening the time window will normally result in discovering more entries in any given period. There also appear to be deeper issues in the new log system itself, which are discussed here and timestamp drift is discussed here.
Workaround: widen the time window specified by --start
and --end
, or use --last
instead.
Additionally, the log collect --size
option still does not restrict the size of log entries output – it is functionless and there is no workaround.
Recovery mode – may require a wired USB keyboard to enter
Prior to macOS Sierra, it was usually possible to enter Recovery mode, holding the Command and R keys during startup, using a wireless keyboard. Trying to do the same in Sierra 10.12.1 or later may fail, and normal startup proceeds.
Workaround: use a wired (USB) keyboard, or connect an Apple Magic Keyboard using its charging cable.
Energy Saver pane – inconsistencies in controls, and misbehaviour on some models
The features available in the Energy Saver pane of System Preferences are inconsistent between Macs, and incomplete, for example not providing a separate control slider for system sleep on some hardware. Further details are here.
A further bug affect some models, including the iMac17,1: irrespective of the setting to put hard disks to sleep (ticked or not), system sleep invariably puts hard disks to sleep. The only way to prevent hard disks from being put to sleep is to prevent system sleep altogether.
These are long-standing issues which date back to El Capitan.
Finder – incorrect column width
This can occur when using Finder windows which are set to column view. When switching folder in the view, the rightmost column being displayed has excessive width, filling the Finder window, its divider being placed incorrectly at the right edge of that window.
This long-standing but intermittent bug dates back to Mavericks if not earlier, and I have whinged about it here and here. It was also present in every version of El Capitan. The only workaround is to select a different folder, then to select the correct folder again.
Finder – inconsistencies and other bugs in List views
There are several bugs in the Finder’s handling of maximize (zoom), which are most prominent, and perhaps largely confined to, List views. The most obvious, reported here, is that maximising List views often doesn’t result in a window which is deep enough to contain all the items in the view, even though there is ample space to do so. Various other issues have been reported – see the comments to this article for fuller details.
Although these don’t have major impact, and can be worked around, they are messy and inconsistent.
System Integrity Protection (SIP) – zero-day vulnerability
There is a zero-day vulnerability in El Capitan’s and Sierra’s SIP which could be locally exploited. Further information is here, and full details here.
As this cannot (yet) be exploited remotely, users should be wary of this potential for local attack. Although awaiting confirmation, there is nothing in the security notes to suggest that this has been fixed in 10.12.2 or 10.12.3.
Finder and file system (HFS+) – strange behaviours with ~/Library/Mobile Documents
The ‘folder’ ~/Library/Mobile Documents cannot be opened in the Finder, but redirects to iCloudDrive. The odd behaviours associated with this are detailed here, and are not bugs but ‘features’. The workaround is to access them via Terminal, as detailed in that article.
Apple Magic Keyboard – duplicated letters
Sometimes, when typing normally, letters are incorrectly duplicated although if the key had been held pressed for too long, that would not have resulted in keystroke repeat, but would have popped up the accented character picker. This has been a sporadic problem since El Capitan and persists in Sierra, although it now appears quite infrequent.
I suspect the workaround is to use a wired keyboard.
Bluetooth – spontaneous disconnections and others
Although much improved from El Capitan, there are still problems which may be attributable to bugs in Bluetooth drivers. These include spontaneous disconnection of connected devices such as the Magic Trackpad 2, and loss of Continuity features on some models. These are generally infrequent, and now seem innocuous.
Keyboard – unexpected shift of text insertion point
When typing on a MacBook Pro built-in keyboard, mainly in Xcode 8.2.1, sometimes in Pages, the insertion point behaves incorrectly. On pressing Return, the insertion point moves to the start of the next line, then jumps down a further line. Text entry occurs at the correct location, following which the insertion point spontaneously returns to the correct place. The insertion point can move down a line spontaneously on other occasions.
Thanks to Tony for reporting this.
OS X internals – clicking on a window causes it to jump
When switching between apps by clicking on a window, sometimes the selected app comes to the front and its window jumps to a new position on screen. This long-standing bug, which persisted through versions of El Capitan, now seems to occur less frequently in 10.12.2, but does still happen at times.
With the Messages app, in 10.12.3, when you first switch to the app by clicking on its window, you may be unable to place the insertion point of the cursor in its text editing box, but have to click on the head of the window, which then causes the window to jump to a different screen location. Only then can you start editing a new message.
The workaround is to switch to that other app by clicking on its icon in the Dock.
Active Directory – various issues
Several issues have been reported connecting to Active Directory. Among these is trying to access a shared drive where the user isn’t explicitly given access, but is in an Active Directory group which does have access. See Comments below.
(Thank you James.)
security
(command) – show-keychain-info
writes its output to stderr
The security show-keychain-info
command and verb do not return their results to standard output, but to standard error. This may apply to other verbs (not tested). The path supplied also has various issues with supplied path strings, which may result in errors. Further details are here.
Workaround: collect its output from the standard error stream when calling from other code.
Previous bugs believed to have been fixed in 10.12.3
An obscure bug in Safari which surfaced during battery endurance tests has been fixed. This resulted in shortened endurance if the Safari Develop menu was enabled, and caching turned off there. It is most unlikely to affect ordinary users, it seems.
Please add your own experiences and I will incorporate as necessary…
(Updated 26 February 2017)