Apple Releases macOS Sonoma 14.3 With Collaborative Apple Music Playlists

[ThomasJL]

Yeah. That's right.

Thank you for being so helpful. 😊

In the past when I've used full installers (in the days before Catalina), after the OS was installed, I had to use Migration Assistant to reimport my data from a Time Machine backup on an external hard drive. Would I have to do the same with a Sonoma full installer?

 

[sashavegas]

I am wondering if they fix erratic mouse movement in 14.3

 

[tywebb13]

Thank you for being so helpful. 😊

In the past when I've used full installers (in the days before Catalina), after the OS was installed, I had to use Migration Assistant to reimport my data from a Time Machine backup on an external hard drive. Would I have to do the same with a Sonoma full installer?

What you are describing is called a "clean install".

Running a full installer over the top of an existing older system (or even the same system) should keep files and apps in place and should not require migration assistant. That is not a clean install.

Nevertheless there may be times when a clean install may be necessary. For example if you have a really old mac - one that allows you to swap out the solid state drive or hard drive - and you swap it out with a completely emtpy drive.

Another example, although not strictly necessary, nevertheless a good idea to do is if you get a second hand mac and want to wipe it completely and start from scatch.

 

[Xavier]

The Apple Care warranty information all in one spot is such a basic thing. Can't believe that wasn't there already..

 

[DesertNomad]

I was running macOS Ventura until six days ago when Apple force upgraded my system to Sonoma with no user input from me. I'd like to see a MacRumors article explaining what is going on here and how to prevent it in the future.

The same happened to my 16" MBP running Monterey. I have been using Apple products since 1986 and a developer since 1989 and have never seen this happen - it'll take all day to restore it back to what it was.

 

[nutmac]

So silly that an entire OS update is still required to roll out an enhancement to one app

Apple has adopted a continuous delivery schedule, where every point releases are scheduled roughly a month apart. Whatever fixes and improvements nearing completion are picked for each release.

Because there are so many teams, it's almost never just a single app that is picked for the release. There will be at least security or bug fixes.

 

[genzai]

So silly that an entire OS update is still required to roll out an enhancement to one app

you seem confused. Those are the forward facing changes (arguably these don't always need to be tied to macOS updates and some could be app updates)- there are likely many under the hood bug fixes and code changes to the OS, not to mention apple's apps are deeply integrated and might require new OS level code to enable new features anyway.

g\

 

[thorntonp]

Are the screen saver enter/exit animations still slow and choppy?

Yes, and on my M1 Studio ultra, the screensavers still freeze, as has been the case since the first release of Sonoma. Something specific with the Studio Ultra's it seems. Does not happen on my Mac mini lo MacBook pro. Bug reports have not been actioned.

 

[itselijahciali]

It might just be bad memory on my part but I feel the menu bar items are much more densely packed after the update. I did update and start up docked this time though (14" MacBook Pro), so it might just be that.

Edit: My bad. I set Bartender spacing to small which requires a logout and I just haven't done that til now 😳

 

[kagharaht]

Nevertheless there may be times when a clean install may be necessary. For example if you have a really old mac - one that allows you to swap out the solid state drive or hard drive - and you swap it out with a completely emtpy drive.

Exactly what I did. Going from Late 2013 iMac stuck with Catalina (buggiest OS ever), to iMac M3, no way I'm migrating from TM. I moved the files manually and all my iCloud stuff did its thing perfectly.

 

[Corefile]

I've now disabled beta updates for Sonoma. Only full official non-betas here until WWDC 2024.

 

[n-evo]

Are the screen saver enter/exit animations still slow and choppy?

They’re butter smooth on my end. Have been from the start. Seems like only certain models are affected.

 

[ThomasJL]

What you are describing is called a "clean install".

Running a full installer over the top of an existing older system (or even the same system) should keep files and apps in place and should not require migration assistant. That is not a clean install.

Nevertheless there may be times when a clean install may be necessary. For example if you have a really old mac - one that allows you to swap out the solid state drive or hard drive - and you swap it out with a completely emtpy drive.

Another example, although not strictly necessary, nevertheless a good idea to do is if you get a second hand mac and want to wipe it completely and start from scatch.

I see. Thank you, @tywebb13 , for that helpful information.

Would downloading and running the Sonoma full installer be equally comprehensive, less comprehensive, or more comprehensive than using macOS Recovery to reinstall Sonoma? (I've included a link below to the explanation of the latter process.)

Reinstall macOS

You can reinstall macOS on your Mac while keeping your files and user settings intact.

support.apple.com

 

[tywebb13]

I see. Thank you, @tywebb13 , for that helpful information.

Would downloading and running the Sonoma full installer be equally comprehensive, less comprehensive, or more comprehensive than using macOS Recovery to reinstall Sonoma? (I've included a link below to the explanation of the latter process.)

Reinstall macOS

You can reinstall macOS on your Mac while keeping your files and user settings intact.

support.apple.com

It's a personal preference.

I like to download the full installers, make the bootable usbs and have them on hand in case of disaster and hope I never have to use it.

Others (like schools or businesses who may have hundreds of macs) - may want a bootable usb because it is going to be faster than downloading hundreds of times for each mac.

In the case of macOS recovery, the bootable usb is not necessary. But what it does is download the full installer - and then install it. The end result will be the same.

BUT ... having the bootable usb on hand already means the download part of the process is not necessary. That part has already been done.

So if you already have the bootable USB, it's going to be faster than using the macOS Recovery.

 

[miguelbesy]

Does this update fixes the ExFAT issues with external hard drives?

 

[bradl]

Going to ask the question. How stable is Sonoma now compared to when it was initially released?

I'm still running Monterey on my M1 Pro, and while 12.7.3 is now available (which I'm about to install), how is stability on Sonoma, to the point where it is safe now to update to it? I'd still be going off of the full USB installer, but am more worried about how stable it is, because at the moment, Monterey is fairly stable..

BL.

 

[Eric_Z]

The add a sketch feature in iMessage on OSX is still buggy I see.

Ie, nothing will happen. Until you use the take a picture feature. Then both the picture and the sketch will appear.

 

[ThomasJL]

It's a personal preference.

I like to download the full installers, make the bootable usbs and have them on hand in case of disaster and hope I never have to use it.

Others (like schools or businesses who may have hundreds of macs) - may want a bootable usb because it is going to be faster than downloading hundreds of times for each mac.

In the case of macOS recovery, the bootable usb is not necessary. But what it does is download the full installer - and then install it. The end result will be the same.

BUT ... having the bootable usb on hand already means the download part of the process is not necessary. That part has already been done.

So if you already have the bootable USB, it's going to be faster than using the macOS Recovery.

How wonderful! Thank you. You've convinced me to stop using OTA to update my Mac and instead use the full installer.

After reading your posts, I used the full installer via macOS Recovery, and my Mac is running good. Someday in the future when I get another Mac, I will download the full installer instead of using macOS Recovery in order to save time by not having to download a second time for more than one Mac.

Aside from a Mac, the only other Apple product I have is an iPhone. Whenever an iOS update comes out, I never use OTA but instead use a USB cable to connect my iPhone to my Mac and use the Finder to update my iPhone with the IPSW file. Would you happen to know if that is the most comprehensive update option for iPhone, or is there a more comprehensive update option similar to a full installer?

 

[dpCM]

The same happened to my 16" MBP running Monterey. I have been using Apple products since 1986 and a developer since 1989 and have never seen this happen - it'll take all day to restore it back to what it was.

Well, according to Apple Support and many members of this forum this is impossible and it must have been your mistake. However, both you and I and plenty of other people know this is exactly what happened.

 

[tywebb13]

How wonderful! Thank you. You've convinced me to stop using OTA to update my Mac and instead use the full installer.

After reading your posts, I used the full installer via macOS Recovery, and my Mac is running good. Someday in the future when I get another Mac, I will download the full installer instead of using macOS Recovery in order to save time by not having to download a second time for more than one Mac.

Aside from a Mac, the only other Apple product I have is an iPhone. Whenever an iOS update comes out, I never use OTA but instead use a USB cable to connect my iPhone to my Mac and use the Finder to update my iPhone with the IPSW file. Would you happen to know if that is the most comprehensive update option for iPhone, or is there a more comprehensive update option similar to a full installer?

For iphone the ipsw would be the most comprehensive.

I usually update iphone via OTA.

Once I bought an iphone second hand and used the ipsw to clean install ios but I don't usually download ipsws for the iphone.

 

[bradl]

Well, according to Apple Support and many members of this forum this is impossible and it must have been your mistake. However, both you and I and plenty of other people know this is exactly what happened.

Not that I doubt you, but I'm also going to give my experience. My background: Apple user since 1983, Linux sysadmin since 1992, ACSP certified.

This is how I have my preferences set for updating, and have not experienced what you have. I'm on a 16" M1 Pro MBP. I've also had this set on my mid-2011 13" MBA ever since I bought it 13 years ago, and have not had that issue there either.

Again, not saying what has happened to you two is wrong, but I'm sharing my experience. I'm still on Monterey, and about to update to 12.7.3.

BL.

 

[dpCM]

Not that I doubt you, but I'm also going to give my experience. My background: Apple user since 1983, Linux sysadmin since 1992, ACSP certified.

View attachment 2339982

This is how I have my preferences set for updating, and have not experienced what you have. I'm on a 16" M1 Pro MBP. I've also had this set on my mid-2011 13" MBA ever since I bought it 13 years ago, and have not had that issue there either.

Again, not saying what has happened to you two is wrong, but I'm sharing my experience. I'm still on Monterey, and about to update to 12.7.3.

BL.

Fair enough and thanks for your reply.

I just fired up my mid-2012 MBP and took a screenshot of the settings in Mojave. It's been like this for a long time and it has never updated to Catalina which is as far as it can go.

For years, I used to make long jumps between different versions of OS X and mac OS - Snow Leopard to Sierra, Sierra to Mojave, Catalina to Ventura (all on different machines) and this has never, ever happened before. In fact, I have never updated OS X nor macOS but always performed a clean install once I decided to upgrade.

The settings in my System Preferences have been the same, I believe, since Sierra.

 

[bradl]

Fair enough and thanks for your reply.

I just fired up my mid 2012 MBP and took a screenshot of the settings in Mojave. It's been like this for a long time and it has never updated to Catalina which is as far as it can go.

For years, I used to make a long jumps between different versions of OS X and mac OS - Snow Leopard to Sierra, Sierra to Mojave, Catalina to Ventura (all on different machines) and this has never, ever happened before. In fact, I have never updated OS X nor macOS but always performed a clean install once I decided to upgrade.

The settings in my System Preferences have been the same, I believe, since Sierra.

Could it be the check for Install System Files and Security Updates that is doing it? If so, there could have been an update that triggers the full OS upgrade. Do you have anything installed prior to the Sonoma update in the installations history? About This Mac - System Report - Software - Installations?

BL.

 

[dpCM]

Could it be the check for Install System Files and Security Updates that is doing it? If so, there could have been an update that triggers the full OS upgrade. Do you have anything installed prior to the Sonoma update in the installations history? About This Mac - System Report - Software - Installations?

BL.

This is exactly what I believe has triggered it this time - Install Security Responses and system files. This setting, however, is not the same as upgrade my macOS to the new version and it has never been before. I reckon it's a bug (I hope so). From now on all of these settings will be turned off.

 

[sleestak]

Well, it was bound to happen eventually...but Sonoma 14.3 was the first macOS update in 15 years of using Macs that ended with me booting into recovery and re-installing the entire OS and recovering from a TimeMachine backup. Got an endless bootloop on my M1 Air with the OTA update that was impossible to recover from. Hopefully everyone else has a better experience. Currently typing from my Windows 11 machine that...just works 😆

EDIT: I'll give credit to the macOS restore/recovery process. Incredibly smooth and essentially like nothing ever happened...now sitting on 14.3.