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How Do I Apply Software Updates to My Operating System and What Should I Know about How This Process Works?

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For Mac OS X 10.3 and higher, Software Update is available under the Apple menu.

You must have an Administrator user name and password to install software updates.

Make sure you have enough disk space. Even small application updates may require a few hundred megabytes of space to complete the optimization phase of the installation. Mac OS X itself requires up to 1.5 GB of free space.

You may want to avoid using your computer while the updates are being installed, although it is not required to install most updates. You may even want to restart your computer immediately before installing an update. If the Classic environment is running, turn it off; it will maximize the amount of available memory for the installation.

Some installations automatically restart the computer; you may not notice if you start the installation, then leave your computer.

Using the Software Update feature, you can get updates immediately or schedule when Mac OS X checks for updates. Because some updates are prerequisites for others, you may need to use Software Update more than once to get all the desired updates.

The basic installation steps are provided below. More detailed information is available; see Mac OS X: Updating Your Software.

Update Now

To immediately get updates for Mac OS X versions 10.3 and higher:

  1. Select Software Update from the Apple menu.
  2. In the Software Update window, select the items you want to install, then click Install.
  3. Enter an Administrator user name and password.
  4. Once the update has completed, restart the computer, if necessary.
  5. Repeat these steps to see if more updates are available. Because some software updates are prerequisites for others, you may need to repeat these steps several times to complete the software update sequence.
  6. Optional: You may want to make software you do not need "inactive." You will most likely encounter some updates that you do not need, such as support for languages that you do not use. When you choose not to install an update, you will still see it each time you use Software Update. If you want to hide them, see Mac OS X: How to Make a Software Update Inactive or Active (on Apple's Web site).

Schedule an Update

Software Update can be configured to open and look for updates immediately after you log on to your computer on a regular basis, assuming you are connected to the Internet. You can set this to occur daily, weekly, monthly, or not at all (not recommended).

To schedule updates for Mac OS X versions 10.3 and higher:

  1. Select System Preferences from the Apple menu.
  2. Select Software Update from the System area.
  3. Make sure the box next to Check for updates is selected.
  4. Select the interval you prefer (daily, weekly, or monthly) from the pull-down menu.
  5. You may also choose to Download important updates in the background by selecting this option.
  6. Close the System Preferences window.

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08/13/08

Last Updated: 8/19/08