2018 MacBook Pro Supplemental Update – Is it worth it?

[mwsb]

Would anyone advise against installing the supplemental update for the 2018 MacBook Pro?

I have the i9 which so far is performing perfectly fine for my usage, but the thought that it could perform even better is very tempting. However I am seeing reports of people suffering issues (including KP), which they never had before installing the supplemental update/s.

What I really want to know is, if I have a Time Machine backup, can I 100% undo this supplemental update? Has anyone done exactly that?

Also can anyone confirm that supplemental update 2 also contains the first supplemental update from July, as both links are still available to download from Apple, which is confusing.

 

[SDColorado]

The supplemental update among other things will update your BridgeOS firmware. That will not be able to be undone with a Time Machine backup. If you have a machine that is working without a problem now, you might want to wait before installing the update.

 

[Maven1975]

The supplemental update among other things will update your BridgeOS firmware. That will not be able to be undone with a Time Machine backup. If you have a machine that is working without a problem now, you might want to wait before installing the update.

Supplemental update 2 fixed the wild power limit/throttling issues when using Bootcamp as well.

 

[haralds]

Works fine for me.

 

[joshellis625]

No problems here! Brand new 2018 13" TB i5/8GB/256GB

 

[yukari]

Why would you not update with Supplemental Update 2? It is intended to address problems associate with 2018 MBP. IF you do not have any problems, there will be no harm in updating.

 

[maflynn]

I think the question is, why do you feel its not something you want to apply? Given the "teething" problems these new Macs are experiencing, its a no brainer to apply it.

 

[SDColorado]

I think the question is, why do you feel its not something you want to apply? Given the "teething" problems these new Macs are experiencing, its a no brainer to apply it.

I may have misread or misinterpreted the OP’s post, but I believe his concern was regarding the BridgeOS thread.

There are reports from people who had no issues with their machines until after they installed the Supplemental Update 2 and now their once stable computer is crashing. It shouldn’t be a problem, but for some reason it has been for a few.

Sometimes with these early patches there is always a small degree of risk involved I guess.

 

[bevsb2]

I may have misread or misinterpreted the OP’s post, but I believe his concern was regarding the BridgeOS thread.

There are reports from people who had no issues with their machines until after they installed the Supplemental Update 2 and now their once stable computer is crashing. It shouldn’t be a problem, but for some reason it has been for a few.

Sometimes with these early patches there is always a small degree of risk involved I guess.

Thanks for supporting my own decision not to install the Supplemental Update 2. I read that a few had problems with crashes for the first time after installing the update and decided to wait a while. I have had my 15" i7 since July 15 with no crashes or other issues to date.

 

[SDColorado]

Thanks for supporting my own decision not to install the Supplemental Update 2. I read that a few had problems with crashes for the first time after installing the update and decided to wait a while. I have had my 15" i7 since July 15 with no crashes or other issues to date.

My guess is that there will be another supplemental update at the end of September. So far they have done one at the end of July and at the end of August. Maybe update 3 will come sooner since it seemed to not go as expected. Apparently it solved issues for some and caused issues for others.

Hopefully 3rd time is a charm?

 

[mwsb]

Why would you not update with Supplemental Update 2? It is intended to address problems associate with 2018 MBP. IF you do not have any problems, there will be no harm in updating.

For the reasons mentioned in the OP. Also I don't like fixing things that aren't broke. Think I'll hold off until I am affected by one of the issues.

I may have misread or misinterpreted the OP’s post, but I believe his concern was regarding the BridgeOS thread.

There are reports from people who had no issues with their machines until after they installed the Supplemental Update 2 and now their once stable computer is crashing. It shouldn’t be a problem, but for some reason it has been for a few.

Sometimes with these early patches there is always a small degree of risk involved I guess.

This is pretty much what I'm talking about. I also don't update any of my Apple devices unless I absolutely must.

I am now considering installing SU#1 and leaving SU#2 alone until I encounter an issue such as speaker cracking or a BridgeOS kernel panic.

Do you or anyone else know if SU#1 is undoable with a Time Machine backup? Correct me if I'm wrong, but perhaps it's less invasive to the system than SU#2, which is more for the T2 related issues and Bootcamp users?

 

[SDColorado]

For the reasons mentioned in the OP. Also I don't like fixing things that aren't broke. Think I'll hold off until I am affected by one of the issues.


This is pretty much what I'm talking about. I also don't update any of my Apple devices unless I absolutely must.

I am now considering installing SU#1 and leaving SU#2 alone until I encounter an issue such as speaker cracking or a BridgeOS kernel panic.

Do you or anyone else know if SU#1 is undoable with a Time Machine backup? Correct me if I'm wrong, but perhaps it's less invasive to the system than SU#2, which is more for the T2 related issues and Bootcamp users?

There is more to both of the updates than just the BrideOS firmware updates, but the firmware updates won’t be undone by restoring from Time Machine. Whether or not the firmware update is what has been causing problems for those that didn’t previously have them, is not something that I know for certain.

 

[Newtons Apple]

Do not understand why one would not want to update.

 

[jcg1013]

If you use PKI, I would NOT install this.

I have a less-than-one-year-old 15" MBP (the target for the update) and after I installed it, I am having problems getting into some web sites that require a login certificate. Oddly, not all web sites that want that particular PKI card are having problems, and the web sites that are having problems will accept a different PKI, but there is a weirdness that started happening after i accepted the update. I have asked for help from the sysadmins of the affected web sites (problems are occurring with Atlassian apps - Confluence, HipChat, Bitbucket - but not with VersionOne or Outlook).