“Nudge" Notifications of macOS Updates

macOS updates keep your Mac secure

Your Mac holds sensitive personal and business data, like client details, addresses, documents, and more. Security is vital — a cyber breach could lead to data loss and system downtime, resulting in a loss of money, reputation, and productivity. Keeping your Mac up to date with the latest software is essential to your Defense in Depth protection.

Using our Apple Device Management tools, we automatically apply updates that do not require a restart. And to avoid interrupting your day, we ask that you initiate updates that do require a restart.

How To Update Your  Mac

This article is about running incremental updates. Always contact us before running a macOS upgrade. (Confusing? See, The Difference Between Software Updates and Upgrades.)

When new software updates are available for your Mac, you may receive a notification from our team. The exact text of the notification will depend on what needs to update on your Mac, but the blue Update Device button will always take you where you need to go. Please note the “Days remaining” field — once this reaches zero, you will not be able to close the notification until the update is run. To avoid this, please update as soon as is convenient! You can also check for updates at any time from System Preferences.

Macs running macOS 10.14 Mojave or later will see software update prompts that look something like this:

SIMPLE MODE

DETAILED MODE

1. To proceed with an update, click the Update Device button to bring up System Preferences, or if now is not a good time, click Later to dismiss the notification. You’ll be prompted again tomorrow.
   
   
2. Below are examples of what you’ll see if running 10.15 or earlier. Click Update Now to begin:NOTE: In Big Sur and later, the button may read “Restart Now” if the update has already been downloaded.
   
   If you see a macOS Upgrade Banner, ignore it (do not click it) and instead look underneath the banner to click the lower More Info button:
3. If the update does not start automatically, click Install Now to begin.

Trouble Applying Updates?

The Software Update infrastructure is unusually fragile. In certain situations, your Mac may not detect the available updates, or they may fail to run once triggered. We have developed a few fixes for this in MacManage. Here are some steps to take if you notice any unusual behavior.

• Reboot your Mac and check again
  
  
• Open MacManage and search for the item “Software Update - Kickstart Process.” Click the Install button, then check again

• Open MacManage and search for the item called “Refresh Receipts Log.” Click the Install button, then check again. If symptoms persist, reboot and check again.

I know there’s an update available, but the Software Update window says I’m running the newest OS allowed by my administrator.