Apple released macOS 14.4 almost two weeks ago, but if you haven’t installed it yet, you might want to wait. Oracle recently posted on its Java Blog that Java processes on Macs running macOS Sonoma 14.4 will terminate unexpectedly and that there are currently no workarounds. Therefore, Oracle recommends that users who use Java do not install macOS 14.4.
The issue affects versions from Java 8 to early access versions of JDK 22, as well as all Macs with Apple silicon (Intel-based Macs have not been fixed by Oracle). According to the Java Blog, the issue involves a feature in Apple silicon that “controls how and when dynamically generated code can be produced (written) or executed per thread.” Basically what happens is that a bad signal is sent after a just-in-time compile and run cycle accesses the protected memory regions. This incorrect signal terminates the process instead of continuing it.
“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. The bug is filed in Oracle’s Java Bug Database as JDK-8327860.
Java is an object-oriented programming language designed to allow programmers to “write once, run anywhere”, meaning that software written in Java can run on any platform. form without needing to be recompiled. Java was created by Sun Microsystems, acquired by Oracle in 2009.
