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sam_dean

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Original poster
Sep 9, 2022
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Stuck on 2021 macOS Monterey? Your final official Security Update will be released by mid 2024 for the following Macs.
  • iMac (2015)
  • MacBook (2016)
  • MacBook Air (2015 & 2017)
  • MacBook Pro (2015 & 2016)
  • Mac Mini (2014)
  • Mac Pro (2013)
In my situation I'd replace it with a Mac model that was released after the final official Security Update was released.

So say final Security Update arrives in June 2024 then I'd get the Mac that was released in Oct/Nov 2024 when it becomes available. This is so I can maximize the Security Update without significantly compromising my data's security.

So from a 22nm or 14nm Mac to a 2nm Mac!
 
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sam_dean

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Sep 9, 2022
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Save your money...

OpenCore-Legacy-Patcher's great as a stop gap but your Mac's approaching a decade old by 2024 and due to wear and tear the hardware may not be as reliable, responsive or speedy when used further with a newer macOS version.

Not to mention the patcher does not fully work 100% of the time. When the macOS version is 2-5 version newer is installed then certain macOS features do not work or may not be reliable because of the lacking hardware or those maintaining the patchers have not figured out yet to make them work.

People buy Macs for the convenience of the quality of life improvements it brings. Using patchers is somewhat worse than using a Windows 11 PC.
 
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Bazza1

macrumors 6502a
May 16, 2017
706
533
Toronto, Canada
Great. So my 2017 Air (sold throughout most of 2018 as the 'newest' Air, and then well into 2019) - and kept up-to-date with the lastest OSs and patches (sorry....'updates') right up to and including Monterey (released in 2021) - may become a security challenge later this year.

Meanwhile, Microsoft ended its security updates for Win 7 Pro (released in 2009) just last month...
 

sam_dean

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Sep 9, 2022
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Meanwhile, Microsoft ended its security updates for Win 7 Pro (released in 2009) just last month...
End of Win7 support was January 14, 2020

IIRC each version of Windows gets approx 122 months of support.

If your hardware's that old do yourself a solid and buy a new one released this year for the purpose of preventive maintenance.
 

unrigestered

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Jun 17, 2022
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End of Win7 support was January 14, 2020

it still received malware removal and native web browser updates until the very end of last year though

now, since 01/01/2023 all i'm getting are the daily Windows Defender definition updates, but MS Edge is still quite recent and i'm having Firefox installed anyway
 

sam_dean

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Sep 9, 2022
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it still received malware removal and native web browser updates until the end of last year though

now, since 01/01/2023 all i'm getting are the daily Windows Defender definition updates, but MS Edge is still quite recent and i'm having Firefox installed anyway
Ralph time to move to Win10 then move to Win11 after October 14, 2025
 

unrigestered

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Jun 17, 2022
879
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i've been and will continue to be fine with Win 7

that machine is an i7 dual core laptop from 2010 with just 6GB of RAM (yeah, i know ;) ) and a 128GB SSD.
Win 11 will not even install on it and who knows how much Win 10 is going to like that.
it's not my main system though and my important and sensitive stuff has been done on more current versions of iOS / macOS for a long time now anyway
 
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jagan

macrumors member
May 1, 2006
33
10
IMO, on Mac, keeping your browser up to date is more important than OS updates.
Chrome recently updated its macOS system requirement from 10.11 to 10.13, so it will be many years until Ventura or newer is needed for an updated browser.
 
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amarmot

macrumors member
Jul 1, 2009
63
7
Seattle
People buy Macs for the convenience of the quality of life improvements it brings. Using patchers is somewhat worse than using a Windows 11 PC.
I don't think you can make such a blanket statement. Many Mac users have carefully curated hardware and software setups that rely on continued use of MacOS on older hardware. Unlike PCs (where hardware is continuously updated but the OS is updated infrequently), Mac users have to handle almost continuous changes in OS, while new hardware (that is good enough to warrant upgrading) only comes out once in a blue moon. Call it a "stopgap" measure if you want. But my MacPro 5,1 setup is still better (for my use case) than anything Apple is making now. Although I am starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel, it is probably still going to be a few years before I can re-create a similar set-up for a reasonable cost.
 
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