MacOS Catalina explained

macOS Catalina
macOS Catalina
Screenshot Size:310px
Version Of:macOS
Developer:Apple Inc.
Source Model:Closed, with open source components
Update Model:Software Update
Supported Platforms:x86-64
Kernel Type:Hybrid (XNU)
License:APSL and Apple EULA
Preceded By:macOS Mojave
Succeeded By:macOS Big Sur
Tagline:The power of Mac. Taken further.
Support Status:Unsupported as of November 30, 2022. Finder is still able to download driver updates to sync to newer devices.

macOS Catalina (version 10.15) is the sixteenth major release of macOS, Apple Inc.'s desktop operating system for Macintosh computers. It is the successor to macOS Mojave and was announced at WWDC 2019 on June 3, 2019 and released to the public on October 7, 2019. Catalina is the first version of macOS to support only 64-bit applications and the first to include Activation Lock.[1] [2] It is also the last version of macOS to have the major version number of 10; its successor, Big Sur, released on November 12, 2020, is version 11.[3] [4] In order to increase web compatibility, Safari, Chromium and Firefox have frozen the OS in the user agent running in subsequent releases of macOS at 10.15.7 Catalina.[5] [6] [7]

The operating system is named after Santa Catalina Island, which is located off the coast of southern California.

macOS Catalina is the final version of macOS that supports the Unibody MacBook Pro, as its successor, macOS Big Sur, drops support for its mid 2012 and final model.

System requirements

All standard configuration Macs that supported macOS Mojave support macOS Catalina. 2010 to 2012 Mac Pros, which could run Mojave only with a GPU upgrade, are no longer supported.[2] Catalina requires 4 GB of memory, an increase over the 2 GB required by Lion through Mojave.[8] [9]

It is possible to install Catalina on many older Macintosh computers that are not officially supported by Apple. This requires using a patch to modify the install image.[10]

Changes

System

Catalyst

Catalyst is a new software-development tool that allows developers to write apps that can run on macOS, iOS and iPadOS. Apple demonstrated several ported apps, including Jira and Twitter (after the latter discontinued its macOS app in February 2018).[11] [12] [13]

System extensions

An upgrade from Kexts. System extensions avoid the problems of Kexts. There are 3 kinds of System extensions: Network Extensions, Endpoint Security Extensions, and Driver Extensions. System extensions run in userspace, outside of the kernel.[14] [15] Catalina will be the last version of macOS to support legacy system extensions.[16] [17]

DriverKit

A replacement for IOKit device drivers, driver extensions are built using DriverKit. DriverKit is a new SDK with all-new frameworks based on IOKit, but updated and modernized. It is designed for building device drivers in userspace, outside of the kernel.[18] [15]

Gatekeeper

Mac apps, installer packages, and kernel extensions that are signed with a Developer ID must be notarized by Apple to run on macOS Catalina.[19]

Activation Lock

See also: Laptop theft. Activation Lock helps prevent the unauthorized use and drive erasure of devices with an Apple T2 security chip (2018, 2019, and 2020 MacBook Pro; 2020 5K iMac; 2018 MacBook Air, iMac Pro; 2018 Mac Mini; 2019 Mac Pro).[20]

Dedicated system volume

The system runs on its own read-only volume, separate from all other data on the Mac.

Voice control

Users can give detailed voice commands to applications.[21] On-device machine processing is used to offer better navigation.

Sidecar

Sidecar allows a Mac to use an iPad (running iPadOS) as a wireless external display. With Apple Pencil, the device can also be used as a graphics tablet for software running on the computer.[22] Sidecar requires a Mac with Intel Skylake CPUs and newer (such as the fourth-generation MacBook Pro), and an iPad that supports Apple Pencil.[23] [24]

Support for wireless game controllers

The Game Controller framework adds support for two major console game controllers: the PlayStation 4's DualShock 4 and the Xbox One controller.[25] [26] [27] [28]

Time Machine

A number of under-the-hood changes were made to Time Machine, the backup software. For example, the manner in which backup data is stored on network-attached devices was changed, and this change is not backwards-compatible with earlier versions of macOS.[29] Apple declined to document these changes, but some of them have been noted.

Applications

iTunes

iTunes is replaced by separate Music, Podcasts, TV and Books apps, in line with iOS. iOS device management is now conducted via Finder.[30] [31] The TV app on Mac supports Dolby Atmos, Dolby Vision, and HDR10 on MacBooks released in 2018 or later, while 4K HDR playback is supported on Macs released in 2018 or later when connected to a compatible display.

Find My

Find My Mac and Find My Friends are merged into an application called Find My.

Notes

The Notes application was enhanced to allow better management of checklists and the ability to share folders with other users. The application version was incremented from 4.6 (in macOS 10.14 Mojave) to 4.7.

Reminders

Among other visual and functional overhauls, attachments can be added to reminders and Siri can intelligently estimate when to remind the user about an event.

Voice Memos

The Voice Memos application, first ported from iOS to the Mac in macOS 10.14 Mojave as version 2.0, was incremented to version 2.1.

Removed or changed components

macOS Catalina exclusively supports 64-bit applications. 32-bit applications no longer run (including all software that utilizes the Carbon API as well as QuickTime 7 applications, image, audio and video codecs). Apple has also removed all 32-bit-only apps from the Mac App Store.[32]

Z shell (executable "zsh") is the default login shell and interactive shell in macOS Catalina,[33] replacing Bash, the default shell since Mac OS X Panther in 2003.[34] Bash continues to be available in macOS Catalina, along with other shells such as csh/tcsh and ksh.

Dashboard has been removed in macOS Catalina.[35]

The ability to add Backgrounds in Photo Booth was removed in macOS Catalina.

The command-line interface GNU Emacs application was removed in macOS Catalina.

Built-in support for Perl, Python 2.7 and Ruby are included in macOS for compatibility with legacy software.[36] Future versions of macOS will not include scripting language runtimes by default, possibly requiring users to install additional packages.[37]

Legacy AirDrop for connecting with Macs running Mac OS X Lion, Mountain Lion and Mavericks, or 2011 and older Macs has been removed.[38]

Support for legacy Safari extensions such as uBlock Origin, and WebSQL has been removed in Safari 13.[39] [40]

Security

Ars Technica reported that macOS Catalina contained a critical privilege escalation vulnerability, which resulted in a backdoor being installed if users visited a Hong Kong pro-democracy website. The vulnerability was reported to Apple in August 2021, and patched in a Catalina update in September, but it had already been patched by Apple in macOS Big Sur 11.2, released 234 days earlier on February 1. Security experts have criticized Apple for not patching critical known vulnerabilities in older versions, and for not being transparent about older versions only receiving some, but not all, security patches. The latest major release of Apple's operating systems (macOS, iOS, and others) receive all security updates.[41] [42] [43]

Reception

Catalina received favorable reviews on release for some of its features.[44] However, some critics found the OS version distinctly less reliable than earlier versions.[45] [46] [47] [48] [49] The broad addition of user-facing security measures (somewhat analogous to the addition of User Account Control dialog boxes with Windows Vista a decade earlier) was criticized as intrusive and annoying.[50]

Release history

VersionBuildDateDarwin versionRelease NotesStandalone download
10.1519A583October 7, 201919.0.0Original Software Update releaseSecurity content
19A602October 15, 2019Supplemental update
19A603October 21, 2019Revised Supplemental update
10.15.119B88October 29, 201919.0.0
xnu-6153.41.3~29		About the macOS Catalina 10.15.1 UpdateSecurity contentmacOS 10.15.1 Update
10.15.219C57December 10, 201919.2.0
xnu-6153.61.1~20		About the macOS Catalina 10.15.2 UpdateSecurity contentmacOS 10.15.2 UpdatemacOS 10.15.2 Combo Update
19C58
10.15.319D76January 28, 202019.3.0
xnu-6153.81.5~1		About the macOS Catalina 10.15.3 UpdateSecurity contentmacOS 10.15.3 UpdatemacOS 10.15.3 Combo Update
! rowspan="2" 10.15.419E266March 24, 202019.4.0
xnu-6153.101.6~15		About the macOS Catalina 10.15.4 UpdateSecurity contentmacOS 10.15.4 UpdatemacOS 10.15.4 Combo Update
19E287April 8, 2020Supplemental updatemacOS 10.15.4 Supplemental Update
! rowspan="2" 10.15.519F96May 26, 202019.5.0
xnu-6153.121.1~7		About the macOS Catalina 10.15.5 UpdateSecurity contentmacOS 10.15.5 UpdatemacOS 10.15.5 Combo Update
19F101June 1, 202019.5.0
xnu-6153.121.2~2		Supplemental updateSecurity contentmacOS 10.15.5 Supplemental Update
! rowspan="2" 10.15.619G73July 15, 202019.6.0
xnu-6153.141.1~9
Jul 5 00:43:10 PDT 2020		About the macOS Catalina 10.15.6 UpdateSecurity contentmacOS 10.15.6 UpdatemacOS 10.15.6 Combo Update
19G2021August 12, 202019.6.0
xnu-6153.141.1~1
Jun 18 20:49:00 PDT 2020		Supplemental updatemacOS 10.15.6 Supplemental Update
10.15.719H2September 24, 2020! rowspan="2" 19.6.0
xnu-6153.141.2~1
Mon Aug 31 22:12:52 PDT 2020		! rowspan="2" About the macOS Catalina 10.15.7 UpdateSecurity content! rowspan="2" macOS 10.15.7 UpdatemacOS 10.15.7 Combo Update
19H4October 27, 2020
19H15November 5, 202019.6.0
xnu-6153.141.2.2~1
Thu Oct 29 22:56:45 PDT 2020		Supplemental updateSecurity contentmacOS 10.15.7 Supplemental UpdatemacOS 10.15.7 Supplemental Update (Combo)
19H114December 14, 202019.6.0
xnu-6153.141.10~1
Tue Nov 10 00:10:30 PST 2020		About the security content of Security Update 2020-001Security Update 2020-001 (Catalina)
19H512February 1, 202119.6.0
xnu-6153.141.16~1
Tue Jan 12 22:13:05 PST 2021		About the security content of Security Update 2021-001Security Update 2021-001 (Catalina)
19H524February 9, 2021Supplemental UpdateSecurity contentmacOS Catalina 10.15.7 Supplemental Update 2
19H1030April 26, 202119.6.0
xnu-6153.141.28.1~1
Mon Apr 12 20:57:45 PDT 2021		About the security content of Security Update 2021-002Security Update 2021-002 (Catalina)
19H1217May 24, 202119.6.0
xnu-6153.141.33~1
Thu May 6 00:48:39 PDT 2021		About the security content of Security Update 2021-003Security Update 2021-003 (Catalina)
19H1323July 21, 202119.6.0
xnu-6153.141.35~1
Thu Jun 22 19:49:55 PDT 2021		About the security content of Security Update 2021-004Security Update 2021-004 (Catalina)
19H1417September 13, 202119.6.0
xnu-6153.141.40~1
Tue Aug 24 20:28:00 PDT 2021		About the security content of Security Update 2021-005Security Update 2021-005 (Catalina)
19H1419September 23, 202119.6.0
xnu-6153.141.40.1~1
Thu Sep 16 20:58:47 PDT 2021		About the security content of Security Update 2021-006Security Update 2021-006 (Catalina)
19H1519October 25, 202119.6.0
xnu-6153.141.43~1
Tue Oct 12 18:34:05 PDT 2021		About the security content of Security Update 2021-007 Security Update 2021-007 (Catalina)
19H1615December 13, 202119.6.0
xnu-6153.141.50~1
Sun Nov 14 19:58:51 PST 2021		About the security content of Security Update 2021-008 Security Update 2021-008 (Catalina)
19H1713January 26, 202219.6.0
xnu-6153.141.51~3
Thu Jan 13 01:26:33 PST 2022		About the security content of Security Update 2022-001 Security Update 2022-001 (Catalina)
19H1715February 14, 2022Security Update 2022-002 Security Update 2022-002 (Catalina)
19H1824March 14, 202219.6.0
xnu-6153.141.59~1
Tue Feb 15 21:39:11 PST 2022		About the security content of Security Update 2022-003 Security Update 2022-003 (Catalina)
19H1922May 16, 202219.6.0
xnu-6153.141.62~1
Mon Apr 18 21:50:40 PDT 2022		About the security content of Security Update 2022-004 Security Update 2022-004 (Catalina)
19H2026July 20, 202219.6.0
xnu-6153.141.66~1
Tue Jun 21 21:18:39 PDT 2022		About the security content of Security Update 2022-005 Security Update 2022-005 (Catalina)

External links

Notes and References

  1. Apple previews macOS Catalina. Apple Inc.. en-US. June 3, 2019. June 4, 2019.
  2. Web site: macOS Catalina. Apple Inc.. June 3, 2019. November 10, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201110141732/https://www.apple.com/macos/catalina/. live.
  3. Web site: Carman. Ashley. 2020-11-10. Apple announces macOS Big Sur release date. 2020-11-10. The Verge. en.
  4. Web site: Apple unveils macOS 11.0 Big Sur, featuring a new aesthetic and redesigned apps. June 22, 2020. TechCrunch. June 22, 2020 . en-US.
  5. Web site: 1175225 - chromium - An open-source project to help move the web forward. - Monorail. 2022-02-25. bugs.chromium.org.
  6. Web site: 1679929 - Cap the User-Agent string's reported macOS version at 10.15. 2022-02-25. bugzilla.mozilla.org. en.
  7. Web site: 217364 – [macOS] Bump reported current shipping release UA to 10_15_7]. 2022-02-25. bugs.webkit.org.
  8. Web site: How to upgrade to macOS Catalina. Apple Support. https://web.archive.org/web/20191021092959/https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201475. October 21, 2019.
  9. Web site: How to upgrade to macOS Mojave. Apple Support. https://web.archive.org/web/20191219031644/https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT210190. December 19, 2019.
  10. Web site: macOS Catalina Patcher. dosdude1.com. February 9, 2020.
  11. Web site: Twitter discontinues its Mac desktop app after years of spotty support. Statt. Nick. February 16, 2018. The Verge. June 3, 2019.
  12. Web site: Apple unveils new macOS update with iPad apps. Warren. Tom. June 3, 2019. The Verge. June 3, 2019.
  13. Web site: iOS apps will run on macOS with Project Catalyst. June 3, 2019 .
  14. Web site: SystemExtensions. Apple Developer Documentation.
  15. System Extensions and DriverKit. Apple Developer Documentation.
  16. Web site: Kernel Extensions Won't Work in macOS 10.16. The Mac Observer. March 26, 2020.
  17. Web site: Apple begins phasing out kernel extensions in macOS 10.15.4. AppleInsider. March 25, 2020.
  18. Web site: DriverKit. Apple Developer Documentation.
  19. Web site: Developer ID: Upcoming Requirements . Apple Developer.
  20. Web site: Here are 6 MacOS Catalina security changes coming from Apple this fall. Stephen. Shankland. June 7, 2019. CNET.
  21. Web site: Voice Control. September 2019. Voice Control lets users control the entire device with spoken commands and specialized tools, while Siri is an intelligent assistant that lets users ask for information and complete everyday tasks using natural language. Voice Control offers comprehensive capabilities such as voice gestures, name and number labels, grid overlays, text editing commands, and deep customization, while Siri assists with setting reminders, making appointments, looking up directions, and learning game scores..
  22. Web site: You can use your iPad as a second display with Sidecar in macOS Catalina. Andrew . O'Hara. AppleInsider. en. June 3, 2019.
  23. Web site: macOS 10.15 Catalina: The Ars Technica review. Cunningham. Andrew. October 7, 2019. Ars Technica. en-us. October 7, 2019.
  24. Web site: You need a MacBook with a butterfly keyboard or a modern Mac desktop to use macOS Catalina's Sidecar. Peters. Jay. October 7, 2019. The Verge. en. October 8, 2019.
  25. Web site: Supporting New Game Controllers. Apple Developer. en-US. July 5, 2019.
  26. Web site: Apple adding support for PS4, Xbox One controllers to iOS, TVOS and MacOS. CNET. en-US. July 5, 2019.
  27. Web site: iOS 13: How to connect a PlayStation controller or Xbox game controller to your iPhone and iPad. 9to5Mac. en-US. September 6, 2019. September 2019.
  28. Web site: How To Connect PS4, Xbox One Controller To iPhone, Apple TV, Mac. ValueWalk. en-US. September 6, 2019. September 2, 2019.
  29. Web site: Oakley . Howard . Time Machine and backing up in Catalina . Eclectic Light . November 11, 2019 . 11 March 2021.
  30. Web site: Apple breaks up iTunes, creates separate Podcasts, TV, and Music apps for macOS. Carman. Ashley. June 3, 2019. The Verge. June 3, 2019.
  31. Web site: Apple Is Officially Killing iTunes, Replacing It With Three Dedicated Media Apps. Roettgers. Janko. June 3, 2019. Variety. en. June 3, 2019.
  32. Web site: 235 Mac apps get the ax with Apple's next update. Here's how you find them on your rig. Katie. Conner. September 10, 2019. CNET.
  33. Web site: Use zsh as the default shell on your Mac - Apple Support . July 1, 2019.
  34. Book: Landau. Ted. Frakes. Dan. Mac OS X Help Line, Tiger Edition. December 20, 2005. Peachpit Press. 9780132705240.
  35. Web site: Apple will permanently remove Dashboard in macOS Catalina. Statt. Nick. June 4, 2019. The Verge. June 5, 2019.
  36. Web site: macOS 10.15 Catalina Deprecates UNIX Scripting Languages. The Mac Observer. June 5, 2019.
  37. Web site: macOS 10.15 Beta Release Notes. Apple Developer. June 6, 2019. Scripting language runtimes such as Python, Ruby, and Perl are included in macOS for compatibility with legacy software. Future versions of macOS won’t include scripting language runtimes by default, and might require you to install additional packages..
  38. Web site: Can not connect my 2 macs with AirDrop. discussions.apple.com.
  39. Web site: Apple neutered ad blockers in Safari, but unlike Chrome, users didn't say a thing . 2019-09-21 . ZDNET . en.
  40. Web site: Safari 13 Release Notes . 2019-09-19 . Apple Developer Documentation . en-US.
  41. Web site: Cunningham . Andrew . 2022-10-27 . Apple clarifies security update policy: Only the latest OSes are fully patched . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20230212160619/https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2022/10/apple-clarifies-security-update-policy-only-the-latest-oses-are-fully-patched/ . February 12, 2023 . 2023-02-12 . Ars Technica . en-us.
  42. Web site: Cunningham . Andrew . 2021-11-12 . PSA: Apple isn't actually patching all the security holes in older versions of macOS . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20230101032826/https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2021/11/psa-apple-isnt-actually-patching-all-the-security-holes-in-older-versions-of-macos/ . January 1, 2023 . 2023-02-12 . Ars Technica . en-us.
  43. Web site: 2021-11-11 . Analyzing a watering hole campaign using macOS exploits . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20211219214808/https://blog.google/threat-analysis-group/analyzing-watering-hole-campaign-using-macos-exploits/ . December 19, 2021 . 2023-02-12 . Google . en-us.
  44. Web site: Cunningham . Andrew . macOS 10.15 Catalina: The Ars Technica review: Conclusions . . October 7, 2019 . June 23, 2020.
  45. Web site: Shayer . David . Six Reasons Why iOS 13 and Catalina Are So Buggy . . October 21, 2019 . June 23, 2020.
  46. Web site: Mod . Craig . Brilliant Hardware in the Valley of the Software Slump . Craig Mod . June 23, 2020.
  47. Web site: Gruber . John . My 2019 Apple Report Card . Daring Fireball . June 23, 2020.
  48. Web site: Bohn . Dieter . macOS Catalina review: transition period . The Verge . October 7, 2019 . June 23, 2020.
  49. Web site: Gruber . John . What You See in the Finder Should Always Be Correct . Daring Fireball . June 23, 2020.
  50. Web site: Snell . Jason . Apple in 2019: The Six Colors report card . Six Colors . January 31, 2020 . June 23, 2020.

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