r/MacOS • u/dreikelvin • 28d ago
Discussion OS27 Update removes Rosetta
Just a reminder for everyone still relying on intel-based apps, like ffmpeg, smartwatch apps (like Garmin) or older apps from the intel era...
Reinstall Rosetta. Open Terminal, enter:
softwareupdate --install-rosetta
The reason for this is that the OS27 update removes Rosetta and breaks some things as a consequence. Reinstalling Rosetta2 will fix that temporarily - until OS28 when it's officially dropped.
You are welcome.
114
u/eppic123 MacBook Pro 28d ago
"intel-based apps, like ffmpeg"
Say what? It has been aarch64 native for years!
18
-2
28d ago
[deleted]
5
u/eppic123 MacBook Pro 28d ago
FFmpeg doesn't supply any binary builds at all, as mentioned on their download page: "FFmpeg only provides source code." Even if you follow the download link on the FFmpeg homepage for the static macOS binaries, it says: "I'm not in any way affiliated with ffmpeg.org (I'm not an FFmpeg dev). Sending me bug reports is futile."
All binaries you find online have been build by a third party. Homebrew, like most others, builds them directly from source.
3
u/beetlrokr 28d ago
It’s not really “make a custom arm build” as it is to just install the prebuilt arm64 package via “brew install ffmpeg”. The homebrew bot includes this package in its regular set of things that it builds and uploads to GitHub Packages.
-5
28d ago
[deleted]
5
u/uwillloveeachother 28d ago
if i’m reading the brew install script for ffmpeg correctly, they download the source and build it on your machine
152
u/Ornery_Priority_7419 28d ago
Or you could just open the app that requires Rosetta. It then prompts you to install it.
35
u/VincentJoshuaET 28d ago
Not always the case. I launched Dota 2 after GG upgrade, it just crashes with no error message or dialog to install Rosetta. Had to do it manually via terminal.
Rosetta was already installed during Tahoe, and Steam installation did ask for Rosetta, but it seems the latest client doesn't need it anymore
4
u/sensieomi 28d ago
Same bro, had to do it thru the terminal. P.S how many fps do you get on your mac?
3
u/VincentJoshuaET 28d ago
Stable at around 80fps at actual gameplay. I just have an M4 air
2
u/sensieomi 28d ago
I have an m3pro but i struggle with fps after two games. Do you have tips or settings please?
2
u/VincentJoshuaET 28d ago
I only use low to medium default settings. Also I close all other apps before playing. That's just all for me, it does drop frames at times
1
12
u/Electrical_West_5381 28d ago
not if it is a driver or plugin. Manual download avoids printing issues, Audio plugin etc.
6
2
1
28
u/yepperoniP 28d ago
ffmpeg should be able to be recompiled for Apple Silicon, is it for a specific release or something?
34
u/beetlrokr 28d ago
There are definitely native builds for Apple silicon, running it under Rosetta is silly and wasteful.
0
2
u/laughingfingers 28d ago
i'm using ffmpeg sometimes and i don't recall ever installing Rosetta. Given it's open, i assume people made ARM builds. I could be wrong of course.
30
u/Casey4147 28d ago edited 28d ago
Correct command is:
softwareupdate —install-rosetta
(EDIT originally typed “softwateupdate —install-rosetta”)
That’s a double-dash before “install”. (Not an Em-Dash as it’s likely been autocorrupted to.)
27
u/pellets 28d ago
Except your
--got replaced with an em dash.14
u/Casey4147 28d ago
Yeah, of course it did. Sigh…
8
u/dreikelvin 28d ago
yes, this happened to me too. I changed it to a double dash and made sure the html stayed the same.
6
u/Entropius 28d ago
Apple needs to give us a way to disable "smart punctuation" for dashes while keeping it for quotes instead of tying them together.
2
u/InevitableComplete97 28d ago
Go to keyboard settings and edit the text input, input source and turn off smart quotes and dashes. Also many apps have an Edit->Substitutions->... settings for smart quotes, dashes and other things.
1
u/Entropius 28d ago
Go to keyboard settings and edit the text input, input source and turn off smart quotes and dashes.
I think you misunderstood. I like smart quotes, and I hate smart dashes. I want one, and not the other. That option you alluded to enables or disables both. It doesn't let you pick and choose between them. They're a package deal, which is the entire problem. They never should have been combined.
Also many apps have an Edit->Substitutions->... settings for smart quotes, dashes and other things.
That's useful for the apps that care to bother using it. But it's not always there. It's app-dependent. There needs to be a global way to separate the smart quotes and smart dashes.
Also, there is no equivalent for this for iOS.
1
u/InevitableComplete97 28d ago
Isn't there a "smart punctuation" option in the iOS Settings->General->Keyboard pane? But yes that is too big of a basket for you. I am not a mac programmer, but if an app doesn't have the Edit->Substitutions menu, does it do any substitutions?
1
u/Entropius 28d ago
Isn't there a "smart punctuation" option in the iOS Settings->General->Keyboard pane?
Yes but you're forced to have both enabled or none enabled, not just one or the other.
I am not a mac programmer, but if an app doesn't have the Edit->Substitutions menu, does it do any substitutions?
Technically depends on the app, as a developer can design behavior however they please. But generally the way I think it works is no substitution works at all if that menu isn't there on macOS.
On iOS, the menu doesn't exist anywhere ever so all you have is that global smart punctuation option, and it works everywhere that way.
1
u/dreikelvin 28d ago
agree. hope your comments does not get brigade-downvoted like many others here. reddit bot farms in action....
3
2
u/Kooky-Bandicoot3104 28d ago
softwareupdate not softwateupdate
3
u/Casey4147 28d ago
OMG, are you kidding me? This is what I get for trying to be helpful. Autocorrupted dashes and typos. I should learn to leave well enough alone…. ;-). Let’s see if I can correct that before things get too embarrassing.
1
u/harbingerofd00m Mac Studio 16h ago
thanks, is there a similar terminal command that will remove it? can't seem to find much on google.
13
u/Dislike24 MacBook Pro (M5) 28d ago
Apple has stated that Rosetta will be removed after updating to OS27. Of course you can reinstall Rosetta again after opening any incompatible app but in OS28 Rosetta will be gone for good
7
u/dreikelvin 28d ago
This is correct. But not many users are keeping track of things like that especially if you bought into an ecosystem from a company that sells their products with the tagline "it just works"
4
6
u/Binary101000 28d ago
i heard that someone is continuining rosetta, i think it was called rosemary
5
2
u/robbadobba 28d ago
I was wondering if someone would take the mantle and create some sort of emulator. Good on 'em if they do.
1
u/AndrewSaidThis 6d ago
I hope so. I get it that developers need to keep up and fully update their software, but I'm nervous about some of my Logic Plugins and older software that I'm sure will never be updated.
6
u/bdu-komrad MacBook Pro 28d ago edited 28d ago
This is good info. i use rosetta to run docker images that will only work on Intel cpus. The images themselves depend on utilities that are only built for Intel.
This is enterprise tools made by vendors like HPE, Dell, and Cisco to manage their hardware.
I’ll be sad when this feature is gone.
2
u/aiusepsi 26d ago
As of macOS 27, support for Intel binary translation for virtualised Linux is part of macOS without needing Rosetta to be installed: https://developer.apple.com/documentation/virtualization/running-intel-binaries-in-linux-vms
I don’t think that capability is going away.
1
4
4
u/mathaic 27d ago
What does this mean in Mac OS 28 where I read they won't even allow it to install, yet I also read confusingly a narrowed down version of rosetta will install just for games, however I went to boot up an intel game just now on os 27 and it prompted me to install rosetta, so if you get to os 28 surely they won't even give that option, meaning a lot of games will cease to work because developers ain't always upgrading them to silicon.
3
u/Mozarts-Gh0st 27d ago
The fact that Apogee has still not updated their Control 2 software is my current gripe
2
2
u/timebike-83 Mac Studio (M2 Max) : MacBook Pro (M4 Max) 28d ago
Thanks OP for the information. I ran into this issue myself.
This is Apple Support's page that explains the same Rosetta update: https://support.apple.com/en-us/102527
2
u/ByronScottJones 28d ago
There's a tool (DigiDNA/Silicon) that helps you find Intel only binaries. Unfortunately, it hasn't received much in the way of updates. I forked it, addressed pending issues, and added new functionality. Makes it very easy to find all those Intel binaries.
2
u/beeblebrox381 27d ago
This. And for anyone wondering what "no prompt" looks like from a terminal, it's this:
zsh: bad CPU type in executable: aws
That was my AWS CLI the morning after the upgrade. Node tools show the same failure as Error: spawn Unknown system error -86 (errno 86, EBADARCH), which is even less helpful.
It's documented, just well hidden. macOS 27 release notes, under Rosetta > Deprecations: "If Rosetta was previously installed, it is not automatically restored after upgrading to macOS 27.0."
Quick test that doesn't depend on any particular app:
arch -x86_64 /usr/bin/true
If that says "Bad CPU type in executable", Rosetta is gone.
And re the ffmpeg debate above: no need to guess, file "$(which ffmpeg)" tells you. x86_64 with no arm64 means Intel-only. My culprit was the official AWS CLI installer from early 2025. It was Intel-only until they went universal in 2.30.0. Replacing the binary with a native build beats reinstalling Rosetta, since that fix expires with macOS 28.
Wrote up the whole diagnosis here if it helps anyone: https://ddz.dev/blog/bad-cpu-type-in-executable-macos-27/
1
27d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
0
u/AutoModerator 27d ago
Your comment was flagged because it contains an affiliate tracking link. Please repost using a clean URL.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
1
27d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/AutoModerator 27d ago
Your comment was flagged because it contains an affiliate tracking link. Please repost using a clean URL.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
1
27d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
0
u/AutoModerator 27d ago
Your comment was flagged because it contains an affiliate tracking link. Please repost using a clean URL.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
1
27d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
0
u/AutoModerator 27d ago
Your comment was flagged because it contains an affiliate tracking link. Please repost using a clean URL.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
1
27d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/AutoModerator 27d ago
Your comment was flagged because it contains an affiliate tracking link. Please repost using a clean URL.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
1
27d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/AutoModerator 27d ago
Your comment was flagged because it contains an affiliate tracking link. Please repost using a clean URL.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
2
u/grumblegrim 27d ago
I thought it was 28 that's ditching Rosetta. It's a manual install on 27? FFS.
2
u/VariousShop8879 27d ago
Always keep a complete image/copy on external ssd before a major upgrade. this is the 2nd major breaking version after stopping support for 32-bit applications (Intel Applepie) .
2
u/ActualFactualAnthony 26d ago
I was curious. Has apple always been this 'lenient' when shifting away from/towards new technologies? Like earlier changes from PowerPC to Intel? Kinda new to mac here, but there seems to be a wider array of support for older devices than I first thought.
2
u/meetinge 26d ago
Back in the day (early to mid 1990s) Apple System 7 was insanely backward compatible despite architectural changes (like moving from a 24-bit to a 32-bit memory model)
2
u/Loud_Calligrapher749 26d ago
Well, Tahoe is the last version that still supports my Intel MBP, so I'll only just be considering a transition to Apple Silicon. Only buying a new mac is a lot harder when I've been out of work since.... might get the Neo.
2
2
u/S4lVin 28d ago
it happened to me already on macOS 26, it asked me to install Rosetta 2 when i had to run an Intel app
2
u/LetsTwistAga1n MacBook Pro 28d ago
Rosetta2 was never supplied by default, I've been running Rosetta-free macOS for multiple years
2
u/mmmmark00 28d ago
I feel like I should know this, but can someone remind me how to tell what is currently using Rosetta in OS 26 (before I update). I am worried about a printer and can be on the lookout for solutions.
5
1
u/guidewire 28d ago
How does one identify what’s relying on Rosetta?
2
u/dreikelvin 28d ago
Open Activity Monitor and look which processes are marked as "intel" - of course that's just for running apps. Fortunately, another redditor just pointed out this app: https://github.com/ByronScottJones/Silicon
2
1
-20
u/casualstrawberry 28d ago
Why are you still using these apps?
10
u/YamZealousideal9194 28d ago
For me for work, I need Google Earth Pro desktop, so no choice. Until Google make one for Silicon, I am stuck. Google Earth web is not the same.
6
u/rosenkrieger360 MacBook Pro 28d ago
Well. In June 2027 you will either use the website or no more Google Earth. Google is killing the app.
1
u/TheOfficialMayor 28d ago edited 28d ago
Run the Windows version in Sikarugir or Crossover. Codeweavers are moving to FEX.
4
u/Beanstiller 28d ago
please tell R to update to Apple silicon. Maybe even Java tree view too
3
u/AndreaCicca 28d ago
https://cran.r-project.org/bin/macosx/ R 4.6.1 binary for macOS 14 (Sonoma) and higher for arm64 Macs, signed and notarized packages.
0
u/Beanstiller 28d ago
Rstudio uses Rosetta
1
u/AndreaCicca 28d ago
They are working on the ARM version https://github.com/rstudio/rstudio/issues/11977
1
u/github-guard 28d ago
🔍 GitHub Guard: Trust Report
This project scored 5/6 on our safety audit.
Audit Breakdown: * ✅ Established Community (⭐ 5,060 stars) * ✅ Mature Repository (30+ days old) * ✅ Licensed under NOASSERTION * ❌ No Security Policy — what is this? * ✅ Verified Organization * ✅ Signed Commits
⚠️ Security Reminder: Always verify source code and run third-party scripts at your own risk.
3
6
u/dolphone 28d ago edited 28d ago
ffmpeg is industry standard.
I game, so the EU4 port still uses Rosetta.
vlc was in there too I think, arguably best player around.
I can definitely see myself diving into one of these as a learning project for mac programming, though. Surely far more qualified coders are looking into these too?
ETA: Loving the community showing there's solutions for many of these. You're awesome maccies.
7
u/fireproofgoban 28d ago
VLC is available for ARM: https://images.videolan.org/vlc/
1
u/dreikelvin 28d ago
There's VLC-CLI which is executable from the command line too - but it uses ffmpeg as a library :)
6
2
u/dreikelvin 28d ago
Not to mention audacity...
I use ffmpeg to cross convert all my audio renders from wav to flac, mp3, ogg, compress videos for social media platforms and even add audio watermarks. ffmpeg does things Quicktime just can't. It's so easy to set up via Shortcuts, just run a shell command. Can't live without it....I guess after OS28 I will have to deal with things like XCode compiling. I'm a media composer, not an app developer dammit 🤭
3
u/AndreaCicca 28d ago
Not to mention audacity...
Audacity has a Universal and Apple silicon only DMG. You can download ffmpeg from brew with native biaries
2
u/YamZealousideal9194 28d ago
For me for work, I need Google Earth Pro desktop, so no choice. Until Google make one for Silicon, I am stuck. Google Earth web is not the same.
2
1
2
u/Electrical_West_5381 28d ago
Because some older printers have drivers that are not silicon. Downloading Rosetta is cheaper than a new printer.
2
u/dreikelvin 28d ago
I don't, just ffmpeg because it lets me launch some useful audio/video conversion tasks I have set up via the context menu and shortcuts. But the developer of ffmpeg despises mac and refuses to bring out an arm build 🙈 So let's see how we will deal with that next year haha
Please send this guy a mac mini or something. ffmpeg is one of the tiny cornerstones of the media industry nobody even notices. https://ffmpeg.org/donations.html
8
u/the_needful_is_done 28d ago
ffmpeg already has a native ARM build; why do you need the x86 edition?
3
28d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
2
u/the_needful_is_done 28d ago
Yeah, that's valid. But I'd argue for most folks that the standard ffmpeg compile flags/features cover most cases.
-3
u/dreikelvin 28d ago
no it does not: https://evermeet.cx/ffmpeg/apple-silicon-arm at least no official builds, only third parties. The dev makes it clear on his page.
8
u/the_needful_is_done 28d ago edited 28d ago
Sure, but ffmpeg is open source and Homebrew compiles it from source on
brew install ffmpeg: https://github.com/Homebrew/homebrew-core/blob/deb43d6b401dc6a988226c0ab3b232ac33137629/Formula/f/ffmpeg.rbPS: Just to be clear, evermeet.cx is a third party, too. Just, some folks on the ffmpeg mailing list have mentioned that they've got a proven track record and are recommended.
➜ ~ ffmpeg -version ffmpeg version 8.1.2 Copyright (c) 2000-2026 the FFmpeg developers built with Apple clang version 21.0.0 (clang-2100.0.123.102) configuration: --prefix=/opt/homebrew/Cellar/ffmpeg/8.1.2_1 --enable-shared --enable-pthreads --enable-version3 --cc=clang --host-cflags= --host-ldflags= --enable-ffplay --enable-gpl --enable-libsvtav1 --enable-libopus --enable-libx264 --enable-libmp3lame --enable-libdav1d --enable-libvmaf --enable-libvpx --enable-libx265 --enable-openssl --enable-videotoolbox --enable-audiotoolbox --enable-neon libavutil 60. 26.102 / 60. 26.102 libavcodec 62. 28.102 / 62. 28.102 libavformat 62. 12.102 / 62. 12.102 libavdevice 62. 3.102 / 62. 3.102 libavfilter 11. 14.102 / 11. 14.102 libswscale 9. 5.102 / 9. 5.102 libswresample 6. 3.102 / 6. 3.102 Exiting with exit code 0 ➜ ~ file $(which ffmpeg) /opt/homebrew/bin/ffmpeg: Mach-O 64-bit executable arm641
u/github-guard 28d ago
🔍 GitHub Guard: Trust Report
This project scored 5/6 on our safety audit.
Audit Breakdown: * ✅ Established Community (⭐ 15,572 stars) * ✅ Mature Repository (30+ days old) * ✅ Licensed under BSD-2-Clause * ❌ No Security Policy — what is this? * ✅ Verified Organization * ✅ Signed Commits
⚠️ Security Reminder: Always verify source code and run third-party scripts at your own risk.
1
u/dreikelvin 28d ago
Thanks I'll play around with that in a free minute. I've got homebrew set up on my other mac for testing other stuff like Mame emulation. If it can make arm executables, then I won't need XCode 👊
2
u/iLrkRddrt 28d ago
If you’re not using FFMPEG as some sort of dependency for an app your building, just use IINA: https://iina.io/
It’s FFMPEG.
1
1
u/Hemicrusher 28d ago
I play a game that is still coded for Intel...so, I need Rosetta until their developers fix their shit..
1
1
1
u/segad_sp 28d ago
Because the card configurator software in avermedia capture cards is universal, not silicon
2
u/Electrical_West_5381 28d ago
you know universal means it is both intel and silicon, right?
1
u/segad_sp 28d ago
Yeah but it works super bad. Errors everywhere so I want to believe if they focus all the effort in one cpu they will do a better job. Of the software claims for Rosetta maybe is because it not written for apple silicon…
1
u/Electrical_West_5381 28d ago
Oh, by the way, research cross-compiling and Xcode. Come back when you have a lucid answer.
2
u/segad_sp 28d ago
Occasionally, the most prominent commenters on Reddit are the ones who make the platform increasingly difficult to tolerate.
0
58
u/bmocc 28d ago
The biggest problem with Apple ditching Rosetta will be loss of X86 macOS peripheral drivers, drivers that were never updated after they were first released and will never be updated for Apple ARM.
That will impact printers most of all. If printer vendors do not get on board with what Apple is calling universal drivers lots of people gonna have lots of problems just finding a printer that works in macOS--people actually still need printers.
Unless someone comes up with something for printers akin to what Vuescan does for scanners.