macOS Catalina (10.15)

Overview

macOS Catalina (10.15) is a version of Apple Inc.'s operating system for Mac hardware released on October 7, 2019.

If you use specialized Academic software, or have installed unique personal software, please verify with the software publisher that it is compatible with macOS Catalina before upgrading, or contact IT Services for assistance.

In this article:

• Requirements
  • Hardware Requirements
  • Supported Models
• Software Compatibility
• Software Incompatibility
• Checking Which Installed Applications are 32-Bit

Requirements

The following requirements must be met in order to install macOS Catalina. However, some features, such as Sidecar, will only function on some of the newer models of Mac.

Hardware Requirements

• RAM: At least 4 GB
• Storage Space: 15 GB of available disk space.

Supported Models

• iMac: Late 2012, and later
• MacBook: Early 2015, and later
• MacBook Pro: Mid 2012, and later
• MacBook Air: Mid 2012, and later
• Mac Mini: Late 2012, and later
• Mac Pro: Late 2013, and later

Software Compatibility

The following software have been verified with macOS Catalina.

• Cisco AnyConnect VPN Client v4.8, or later: Individuals must enable the AnyConnect system extension in their macOS Preferences Security & Privacy pane. A restart may be required after manually approving any AnyConnect extension. If you need to install the latest version you can download the latest installer from the UAA Software Downloads page.

Software Incompatibility

The following software incompatibilities have been identified.

• Catalina has deprecated support of legacy System/Kernel Extensions (KEXTs).
• Catalina does not support 32-bit Applications.
• Catalina does not support legacy media formats.
• Catalina does not support Dashboard applications/widgets.
• Catalina has a dedicated system volume - third party backup/cloning/disk repair software should be checked and updated/upgraded if necessary to work with this version of macOS.
• Adobe Acrobat X (10): Running Acrobat Pro 2015 or earlier is a high security risk.
• Adobe Creative Suite (CS) 6: Several applications, such as Dreamweaver CS6 and InDesign CS6 are 32-bit applications; additionally, components of Adobe CS 6 may (appear) to require Apple Java v6. Unfortunately, Apple Java 6 was end-of-life in February 2013 and hasn't been updated since October 2013 which posses a security risk. Considering Adobe released CS 6 in April 2012, and it has been superseded by the Adobe Creative Cloud since June 2013, IT Services strongly recommends no longer using this version of the Adobe CS software.
• Apple QuickTime Player 7: You can use QuickTime Player 10 included with macOS; however, it doesn't support all the video codecs/features that QuickTime 7 does.
• Bare Bones BBedit v11/v12: Update to version 13.0 or later.
• Bare Bones TextWrangler: Upgrade to BBedit 13.0 or later.
• Cisco AnyConnect VPN Client (32-bit): If your AnyConnect client is no longer working after updating to macOS Catalina, please uninstall it, and download the latest installer from the UAA Software Downloads page.
• Fetch 5.7.7 and earlier: Individuals are suggested to update to v5.8 or later.
• FileMaker Pro: Update to v18 or later.
• Google Drive: Upgrade to Backup and Sync v3.36 or later, or Drive File Stream.
• Microsoft Office 2011: Individuals are suggested to update to the latest release of Microsoft Office 2019, or Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise.
• Parallels 13: Update to v14 or later; however, Parallels recommends updating to at least version 15.

Checking Which Installed Applications are 32-Bit

macOS 10.14, or later

If you are running macOS 10.14, or later, you can check to see which applications are 32-bit as follows. This can take a few minutes if you have a lot of applications installed.

1. Click the Apple menu.
2. Click About This Mac.
3. Click the System Report... button.
   • The System Information application will open.
4. In the left column scroll down to the Software section, and click on Legacy Software.
   • No information found: If this is displayed, you have no software installed that is incompatible with Catalina.

macOS 10.13, and earlier

If you are running macOS 10.13, or earlier, you can check to see which applications are 32-bit as follows. This can take a few minutes if you have a lot of applications installed.

1. Click the Apple menu.
2. Click About This Mac.
3. Click the System Report... button.
   • The System Information application will open.
4. In the left column scroll down to the Software section, and click on Applications.
5. In the right panel click on the 64-Bit (Intel) column to group applications.
6. Check for items listed as No.
   • Some of the items listed may be system software that will be updated when the a new Operating System is installed. You'll want to look for third-party software (e.g. Microsoft Office, Fetch, Cisco AnyConnect, etc.) that you use that have a no in this column.

Need additional help or have issues

For immediate assistance please review the Contact Us page for ways to contact the appropriate support group.