Apple released the macOS Sonoma 14.4 update two weeks ago, and while you’re enjoying its new Emojis, you might also encounter some major issues that hinder your ability to properly use your Mac. In a rare series of incidents affecting a point-in-time update, several users have reported serious bugs occurring since installing macOS 14.4.
No less than three major bugs have upset users over the past two weeks, including (in order of the most users possibly affected):
macOS 14.4: USB devices no longer work
Several users from different sites have reported that their USB devices stop working after installing macOS 14.4. Some users fixed the issue by going to System Settings > Privacy and Security > Allow accessories to connectthen setting it to Always. You may need to change it to Always then pass it to Ask every time. Before performing these steps, you may need to disconnect all USB devices, then after adjusting the settings, the Mac will need to restart. After that, connect the devices, which should trigger a confirmation prompt and the devices will be able to work again. Learn more about the macOS 14.4 USB bug.
macOS 14.4: iCloud Drive does not save file versions
This bug involves using an app that allows users to revert to previous versions of a file and your file is saved to iCloud Drive. If iCloud Drive is set to Optimize Mac Storage and you use the Remove Download feature, previous versions of the file disappear. If you already have version 14.4 installed, you can avoid this bug by disabling Optimized Mac Storage (System settings > your Apple ID > iCloud.) Learn more about the macOS 14.4 iCloud Drive bug.
macOS 14.4: unexpected shutdown of Java
Oracle reports that Java processes in macOS 14.4 will terminate unexpectedly, so anyone using Java should avoid 14.4. The issue appears to be isolated to Apple Silicon Macs, where an erroneous signal is sent after a just-in-time compile and run cycle that accesses protected memory regions. “Pre-compiled applications built with GraalVM Native Image should not be affected, but your ability to create new images may be,” according to the Java Blog. Learn more about the macOS 14.4 Java bug.
macOS 14.4: What to do?
Apple has not yet responded with advice on how to deal with the bugs nor has it withdrawn the update, which also includes around 60 security fixes. Still, if you haven’t installed macOS 14.4 yet, you might consider waiting until Apple releases the next update, likely 14.4.1. Quite unusually, Apple has yet to release a beta for macOS 14.5, so it’ll likely be a month or more before it’s released.
If you have macOS 14.4 installed, the only way to revert to macOS Sonoma 14.3.1 is to erase all data on your Mac (System, Settings > General > Transfer or reset > Erase all content and settingsand restore your Mac from an old backup made while running the previous version.
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