Big Sur 11.6.8

[pshufd]

I'm installing it right now on my 2014 iMac 27 and it takes a long time.

The system is back up and running and it requires another update to sync with my old iPhone so I'm running that now. I did this update as the update to Monterey 12.5 went fine and I think that this update picks up the security fixes from 12.5. The security fix list from 12.5 was very long which is why I decided to update. I'm hoping that this fixes some RAM leaks that were backported from Monterey last fall though I'm not hopeful. I maxed the RAM out on this system so I only have to reboot every two weeks or so.

 

[jido]

That upgrade was quite painful on my MacBook Air M1.

It was taking forever, then it went into Rescue mode where it offered to Restore from backup or Reinstall Monterey (NO thank you!).

I used the Restart option instead, after which it installed the update again and was successful. But it complained about some kernel extensions from Apple, Inc and from Benjamin Fleischer (MacFuse 4.1.0) that couldn't be started and required a reboot.

It rebooted a couple of times and everything's working.

I will try to update my MacFuse now hoping it doesn't happen again for next MacOS update.

 

[cfm56d7b]

Any other impressions about Big Sur 11.6.8?

 

[pshufd]

It's stable for me on my Intel iMac. I am going to update to it on my M1 mini tonight.

 

[Glideslope]

Any other impressions about Big Sur 11.6.8?

Took quite a while on my 2017 27" iMac 3.8GHz i5 1TB SSD. Booted several times. Don't notice any changes in performance.

As always FWIW, I always eject my external drives and Quit my security apps before any Apple Big Sur Updates these days.

 

[cheddar-caveman]

So would you recommend Big Sur? I'm currently running 10.14.6 Mojave on my 15: 2018 MBP.

 

[Isamilis]

I just upgraded from Catalina. This version is faster than earlier Big Sur version (have tried few months ago, and downgraded back to Catalina due to slow performance). I would say, the speed is on par with Catalina.

 

[pshufd]

I just upgraded from Catalina. This version is faster than earlier Big Sur version (have tried few months ago, and downgraded back to Catalina due to slow performance). I would say, the speed is on par with Catalina.

It has been quite stable for me. There were some things broken late 2021/early 2022 but they seem to be resolved now. I haven't noticed any performance differences but my systems have always seemed fast enough for me. I am only running Big Sur on one system now as I've migrated the majority (that can run it) to Monterey. It's a 2014 iMac so I'd have to use OCLP to bring it up to Monterey and I'm going to do that very carefully. Probably on an external drive to test it out.

 

[Glideslope]

So would you recommend Big Sur? I'm currently running 10.14.6 Mojave on my 15: 2018 MBP.

If this is directed toward me, then I would have stayed on Mojave if Apple would have continued Security Updates.

Granted my iMac is a 2017 with an i5. I do have a 1TB SSD and 32g of RAM.

The move to Big Sur did slow my machine a bit. I really didn’t have any issues loosing 32bit support.

So it was Big Sur to continue receiving Security Updates. I loved Mojave and always will. 🙂

 

[davidlv]

It has been quite stable for me. There were some things broken late 2021/early 2022 but they seem to be resolved now. I haven't noticed any performance differences but my systems have always seemed fast enough for me. I am only running Big Sur on one system now as I've migrated the majority (that can run it) to Monterey. It's a 2014 iMac so I'd have to use OCLP to bring it up to Monterey and I'm going to do that very carefully. Probably on an external drive to test it out.

I also have a late 2014 iMac15,1 with 24GB of RAM. Originally, the iMac had a 1TB Fusion drive with a 121GB SSD.
I split the Fusion Drive and now run the machine from the 121GB SSD with OCLP 0.4.10 and Monterey 12.5. This configuration doesn't require any Post Install Root Patches, so it is easy to maintain and runs very well. Admittedly, I do not do anything that stresses the computer at all. Office 2019, Chromium web browser, and some dictionaries for translation work. What internal HD or SSD is installed? If possible, it is best to run from an internal SSD so you can get trim enabled. I also have an external USB 3.0 Crucial 512GB Disk, set up to run Big Sur, which also works fine.
Depending on the SSD installed, your iMac should work fine with OCLP.

Releases · dortania/OpenCore-Legacy-Patcher

Experience macOS just like before. Contribute to dortania/OpenCore-Legacy-Patcher development by creating an account on GitHub.

github.com

 

[pshufd]

I also have a late 2014 iMac15,1 with 24GB of RAM. Originally, the iMac had a 1TB Fusion drive with a 121GB SSD.
I split the Fusion Drive and now run the machine from the 121GB SSD with OCLP 0.4.10 and Monterey 12.5. This configuration doesn't require any Post Install Root Patches, so it is easy to maintain and runs very well. Admittedly, I do not do anything that stresses the computer at all. Office 2019, Chromium web browser, and some dictionaries for translation work. What internal HD or SSD is installed? If possible, it is best to run from an internal SSD so you can get trim enabled. I also have an external USB 3.0 Crucial 512GB Disk, set up to run Big Sur, which also works fine.
Depending on the SSD installed, your iMac should work fine with OCLP.

Releases · dortania/OpenCore-Legacy-Patcher

Experience macOS just like before. Contribute to dortania/OpenCore-Legacy-Patcher development by creating an account on GitHub.

github.com

It has a 500 GB Internal SSD. My standard procedure, though, is to always test on an external SSD so that I don't disturb production stuff. The system has 32 GB RAM, i7 and 4 GB video card. It's actually really nice, even though it's so old.

 

[davidlv]

It has a 500 GB Internal SSD. My standard procedure, though, is to always test on an external SSD so that I don't disturb production stuff. The system has 32 GB RAM, i7 and 4 GB video card. It's actually really nice, even though it's so old.

Yeah, that does sound good! These 2014 machines have issues at times with defective video cards. the machine I am using with no issues at all, had a terrible habit of tearing video when using the internal monitor and one external. So my friend bought a MacMini and set this iMac off to the side. I asked and he agreed to let me try it, with no other monitor attached. It works fine as long as I don't attach another monitor. Your's should be even better with that 500GB SSD.

 

[pshufd]

Yeah, that does sound good! These 2014 machines have issues at times with defective video cards. the machine I am using with no issues at all, had a terrible habit of tearing video when using the internal monitor and one external. So my friend bought a MacMini and set this iMac off to the side. I asked and he agreed to let me try it, with no other monitor attached. It works fine as long as I don't attach another monitor. Your's should be even better with that 500GB SSD.

Two of the thermal issues with these iMacs are the GPU and the HDD. HDDs generate a lot of heat so the SSD is nice. The GPU on mine normally runs 60-75 degrees. It goes up into the 80s with an external monitor so I don't run an external monitor on it. I only run office stuff on this iMac. I run my production stuff on an M1 mini with three monitors. The combination of the two is nice. I got the old iMac for a good price as a production company was selling all of their 5k iMacs and giving their employees Apple Silicon MacBook Pros because they went to a work-from-home model.

 

[cfm56d7b]

After upgrading to Big Sur 11.6.8, no problems were detected until about a few days ago Spotlight stopped working: newly added files could not be found via Finder. Restarted Spotlight indexing via Terminal. The problem persisted. Restarted Spotlight indexing via Preferences / Spotlight. All is well now.

I will be skipping Monterey while waiting for reports about Venture from Intel-based Macbook Pro owners.

 

[pshufd]

Monterey and iOS received security updates yesterday and I'm waiting for them to propagate to Big Sur. I'm staying on Big Sur for the time being on my 2014 iMac but plan to test out Monterey on OCLP on an external drive at some point. Ventura via OCLP isn't viable yet though I am curious if I could test it out in a virtual machine as I have 32 GB of RAM on the iMac.

At any rate, I will be watching for Big Sur 11.6.9. I suppose that I should just go to Monterey for the security updates.

 

[davidlv]

Monterey and iOS received security updates yesterday and I'm waiting for them to propagate to Big Sur. I'm staying on Big Sur for the time being on my 2014 iMac but plan to test out Monterey on OCLP on an external drive at some point. Ventura via OCLP isn't viable yet though I am curious if I could test it out in a virtual machine as I have 32 GB of RAM on the iMac.

At any rate, I will be watching for Big Sur 11.6.9. I suppose that I should just go to Monterey for the security updates.

Check with the Software Update Pane, Safari 15.6.1 has been released for Big Sur and Catalina. That is the only security update Apple will release. If you use another browser, get the related update, Chromium is available as an Ungoogled version of Chrome (no Google services or tracking) at: https://softaro.net/ungoogled-chromium/

 

[pshufd]

Check with the Software Update Pane, Safari 15.6.1 has been released for Big Sur and Catalina. That is the only security update Apple will release. If you use another browser, get the related update, Chromium is available as an Ungoogled version of Chrome (no Google services or tracking) at: https://softaro.net/ungoogled-chromium/

I use Firefox and will get the update when it's pushed from Mozilla. I should probably update Safari as well even though I rarely use it. I only use it when Firefox and Brave don't work.

There is a Safari update and I'm installing it.

 

[cfm56d7b]

I've been tracking a new problem since the upgrade to Big Sur 11.6.8. Symptoms - all related to Bluetooth functionality:

- Apple Bluetooth keyboard: keystrokes delayed
- Apple AirPods Pro: audio breaking / crackling

Reboot solves the problem. But the problem returns in a few days after several sleep / wakeup cycles.