We Recommend Upgrading to macOS 13 Ventura

When it comes to upgrading to a new version of macOS, we err on the side of caution by blocking macOS upgrades until an organization has tested, planned, and communicated its readiness to upgrade. With the release of macOS 13, Ventura, Apple has enforced a 90-day deadline on this period, and we will no longer be able to fully block the newest OS from installing 90 days after it releases. If you've tested the new OS in your environment and would like to unblock it early, please reach out and let us know.

Upgrading is not a question of if; it’s a question of when. The process is simple, but if you upgrade a business-critical device before testing, the new version of macOS could render important apps inoperable, create workflow interruptions, or have other negative consequences. On the other hand, waiting too long can lead to compatibility problems and security concerns (older versions of macOS stop receiving security updates after a certain amount of time). 

There’s no reason you must upgrade to macOS 13 Ventura immediately, but if you want to, you should now be able to do so without undue interruptions. Ventura has been a stable OS since its release, with a few minor updates for bug fixes and security patches. 3 months in from launch, the vast majority of developers have updated their apps to work well with the new OS.

You can continue to delay as long as you’re running macOS 11 Big Sur or macOS 12 Monterey and are staying up to date with Apple’s security updates. Earlier versions of macOS no longer receive security fixes, rendering them more vulnerable to attack. Reasons to delay further include:

• You’re too busy. The upgrade process will take a few hours, and it may take additional time to configure everything properly afterward. When you are ready to upgrade, aim for when a little downtime will be convenient.
  
  
• You’re using incompatible software. The jump from Big Sur or Monterey to Ventura isn’t a big one, so most modern apps should have been updated to ensure compatibility with Ventura by now. But if you’re still running macOS 10.15 Catalina or earlier, you'll no longer be receiving security updates and should prepare to upgrade soon.
  
  
• You need consistent versions for workflow reasons. We’re unaware of any significant issues, but it’s not inconceivable that a coworker could be stuck on an older version of macOS and thus older versions of shared productivity apps. If your upgrade would force you to update those apps and introduce compatibility issues when collaborating with that coworker, you may have to wait until your coworker can upgrade as well.

Ventura won’t upend your experience of using a Mac, but it has numerous welcome features, both large and small. Apple improved searching across the OS and in Mail, introduced Passkeys for easier website authentication, and added the Stage Manager interface to help you focus while switching between apps. They also enabled the use of your iPhone as a webcam with Continuity Camera, a collaboration app called Freeform that's also available for iPhone and iPad, a complete redesign of System Preferences (now called System Settings), and much more. Perhaps even more important, Ventura shares numerous features with Apple’s other operating systems: iOS 16, iPadOS 16, watchOS 9, and tvOS 16. To take full advantage of those features across all your Apple devices, your Mac must be running Ventura.

Before You Upgrade

Once you’ve decided to upgrade to Ventura, you have three main tasks:

• Update apps: Make sure all your apps are as up-to-date as possible. If you regularly put off updates, now’s the time to let them complete, so you have Ventura-compatible versions.
  
• Clear space: Ventura needs about 36 GB of free space to upgrade, and the Ventura installer itself is about 12 GB, so we recommend making sure you have at least 50 GB free. Don’t cut this close—you should always have at least 10–20% free space for virtual memory, cache files, and breathing room.
  
• Please make a backup: It’s best to never install a major upgrade to macOS without ensuring that you have at least one current backup first. In an ideal world, you’d have an updated Time Machine backup, a bootable duplicate, and an Internet backup. That way, if something goes wrong, you can easily restore it.
  
  
  

Upgrading

After the above-listed tasks are complete, make sure you don’t need your Mac for a few hours. There’s no telling exactly how long the upgrade will take, so never start an upgrade if you need the Mac soon.

For many clients of Ntiva, you can find a convenient one-click Ventura installer in MacManage (this app lives in your Applications folder). If you upgrade using this method, you don’t need to provide administrator credentials to begin the upgrade. If your office has approved the upgrade, but you don’t see either MacManage or the “Install macOS Ventura” item, please reach out to us for a resolution.

Everyone else can initiate the upgrade by opening System Preferences > Software Update, clicking the Upgrade Now button, and following the instructions. If you’d like more hand-holding, check out Joe Kissell’s ebook Take Control of Ventura.

After You Upgrade

Part of the reason to set aside plenty of time for your Ventura upgrade is that there are usually cleanup tasks afterward. We can’t predict what you’ll run into, depending on what version of macOS you’re running now and what apps you use, but here are a few situations we’ve noticed in the past:

• macOS may need to update its authentication situation by asking for your Apple ID password, your Mac’s password, and if you have another Mac, its password too. This is not a security breach — it’s expected.
• Some apps may ask for permission to access your contacts and calendar even though you previously granted consent. Again, that’s fine and won’t happen again.
• If you use your Apple Watch to unlock your Mac and apps (and you should, it’s excellent!), you may need to re-enable that in System Preferences > Security & Privacy > General.
• If you use Gmail, Google Calendar, or other Google services, you may need to log in to your Google account again.
• Websites that usually remember your login state may require that you login again. If you’re using a password manager like 1Password, that’s easy.
• You may have to re-enable text message forwarding to your Mac on your iPhone in Settings > Messages > Text Message Forwarding.

With all that housekeeping done, it’s time to check out all the new features in Ventura!

(Featured image by Apple)