The world of Apple’s operating systems can sometimes feel like a labyrinth of similar-sounding names and subtly different features. Two operating systems that often cause confusion are Mac OS Sierra (10.12) and Mac OS High Sierra (10.13). While High Sierra is clearly the “next” version, the actual differences between them are more than just a number. Let’s delve into a comprehensive comparison to illuminate the key distinctions and help you understand which system best suits your needs.
Under The Hood: A Foundation Of Change
While visually, Sierra and High Sierra might appear quite alike to the casual user, significant architectural changes occurred beneath the surface with High Sierra. These changes affect performance, storage, and future compatibility. Think of it as renovating the foundation of a house – the exterior might look similar, but the underlying structure is dramatically different.
The Leap To APFS (Apple File System)
One of the most pivotal changes in High Sierra was the introduction of the Apple File System (APFS). Sierra, on the other hand, primarily used the older HFS+ (Hierarchical File System Plus). APFS is a modern file system designed for flash storage and Solid State Drives (SSDs), which are now commonplace in Macs.
Why is APFS better? APFS offers several advantages, including improved speed, security, and reliability. Cloning files and directories becomes instantaneous, as APFS uses a “copy-on-write” mechanism. This means that instead of physically copying the data, APFS simply creates a pointer to the original data until a change is made, at which point only the changed block is copied. This saves considerable time and storage space. APFS also boasts enhanced encryption and crash protection, leading to a more robust and secure system. It is important to remember that High Sierra needed your hard drive to be formatted in APFS.
Metal 2: Graphics Get A Boost
High Sierra featured Metal 2, the successor to Apple’s Metal graphics API. Metal provides direct, low-overhead access to the GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), enabling developers to create visually stunning and high-performance applications and games. Sierra used the original Metal API.
Metal 2 brings several enhancements, including support for virtual reality (VR) and machine learning. It allows developers to harness the full power of modern GPUs, resulting in smoother graphics, faster processing, and more immersive experiences. This is particularly noticeable in graphics-intensive tasks like video editing, gaming, and 3D rendering.
Underlying Code Improvements
Beyond APFS and Metal 2, High Sierra benefited from various under-the-hood optimizations and improvements that enhanced overall system performance and stability. These improvements are not always immediately apparent to the user but contribute to a more refined and responsive experience. Memory management was tweaked and CPU usage was reduced in many cases.
Feature Enhancements: What You Can See And Use
While the architectural changes in High Sierra were significant, users also experienced a number of new features and enhancements that directly impacted their daily workflow. These changes made the operating system more convenient and powerful.
Photos App: Enhanced Organization And Editing
The Photos app in High Sierra received a significant overhaul. The most noticeable change was the introduction of a new, persistent sidebar for easier navigation of your photo library. It also included improved face recognition, allowing you to more accurately identify and organize photos of people.
Editing capabilities were also enhanced, with new editing tools such as Curves and Selective Color. Support for third-party editing extensions was also improved, allowing users to seamlessly integrate their favorite photo editing apps into the Photos workflow. Sierra had a less developed Photos app, missing some of these advanced features and organizational capabilities.
Safari: Smarter Browsing
Safari in High Sierra introduced Intelligent Tracking Prevention (ITP), a privacy feature designed to limit the ability of websites to track your browsing activity across the web. ITP identifies and blocks cross-site tracking data, helping to protect your privacy and prevent targeted advertising based on your browsing history.
Additionally, Safari in High Sierra offered performance improvements and enhanced support for modern web technologies. It was also more power-efficient, helping to extend battery life on Mac laptops. The Safari version in Sierra lacked the advanced privacy features and performance enhancements found in High Sierra.
Mail: Improved Storage And Search
The Mail app in High Sierra received improvements in storage optimization. It was designed to take up less space on your hard drive by compressing emails more efficiently. This was particularly beneficial for users with large email archives.
The Mail app also saw enhancements to its search functionality, making it easier to find specific emails and attachments. Sierra’s Mail app lacked these storage and search optimizations.
Siri: A Familiar Face, Similar Capabilities
While Siri remained largely the same between Sierra and High Sierra in terms of its core capabilities, there were subtle improvements in its voice recognition and responsiveness. Siri was also becoming increasingly integrated into the operating system, allowing you to control more aspects of your Mac with voice commands. The visual design of Siri remained very close to the older iteration.
Compatibility: Hardware And Software Considerations
When deciding whether to upgrade from Sierra to High Sierra, compatibility is a crucial factor to consider. This includes both hardware compatibility (whether your Mac is capable of running High Sierra) and software compatibility (whether your existing apps and peripherals will work properly).
Hardware Requirements
High Sierra generally supports the same Macs as Sierra. If your Mac could run Sierra, there’s a high likelihood it can run High Sierra. Apple’s official documentation provides a list of compatible models. However, it is always recommended to check your specific model against the official compatibility list before upgrading.
Software Compatibility
While most apps that worked on Sierra also worked on High Sierra, there were some exceptions. Older apps, particularly those that had not been updated in several years, might have compatibility issues. The move to APFS could also cause problems with disk utilities and other system-level tools that were not designed to work with the new file system.
It’s always a good idea to check the compatibility of your critical apps and peripherals before upgrading to High Sierra. Many developers provide compatibility information on their websites. You can also try searching online forums and communities to see if other users have reported any issues with specific apps or hardware.
Security: Protecting Your Data
Security is a paramount concern for any operating system, and Apple continuously improves the security features in each new release. High Sierra introduced several security enhancements designed to protect your data and privacy.
APFS Encryption
As mentioned earlier, APFS features built-in encryption, providing an extra layer of security for your data. When you encrypt your APFS volume, all data stored on the volume is encrypted, making it much more difficult for unauthorized users to access your files.
Kernel Extension Improvements
High Sierra introduced changes to the way kernel extensions (kexts) are handled. Kernel extensions are pieces of code that extend the functionality of the operating system. In High Sierra, Apple began requiring developers to sign their kexts, helping to prevent malicious kexts from being installed on your system.
Safari’s Intelligent Tracking Prevention
As discussed previously, Safari’s Intelligent Tracking Prevention (ITP) helps to protect your privacy by limiting the ability of websites to track your browsing activity across the web. This feature helps to prevent targeted advertising and other forms of online surveillance.
Performance: A Speed Boost Or A Burden?
The performance of an operating system is crucial for user experience. While High Sierra offered some performance improvements over Sierra, the actual performance you experience depends on your specific hardware and usage patterns.
APFS Optimizations
APFS was designed to be faster and more efficient than HFS+, particularly on SSDs. This means that users with SSDs typically saw improvements in boot times, app launch times, and file transfer speeds after upgrading to High Sierra.
Metal 2 Advantages
Metal 2 provided a performance boost for graphics-intensive tasks like video editing and gaming. If you use apps that take advantage of Metal, you likely saw improvements in performance after upgrading to High Sierra.
Potential Performance Issues
On older Macs with traditional hard drives, the performance benefits of APFS might not be as pronounced. In some cases, upgrading to High Sierra on an older Mac could even result in a slight decrease in performance. It is because older hard drives were not designed to handle APFS. However, this was becoming less and less of an issue as time went on and SSDs became more widespread. Also, older hardware that had been having problems before would probably have more problems after upgrading to a new OS.
The Verdict: Should You Upgrade?
Deciding whether to upgrade from Sierra to High Sierra depends on your specific needs and priorities. While High Sierra offered several improvements over Sierra, including APFS, Metal 2, enhanced security, and new features in Photos and Safari, the upgrade was not necessarily a no-brainer for everyone.
If you have a relatively new Mac with an SSD and you prioritize performance, security, and the latest features, upgrading to High Sierra was generally a good idea. If you have an older Mac with a traditional hard drive and you are concerned about potential performance issues or software compatibility, you might want to proceed with caution or consider upgrading to a later version of macOS instead. Ultimately, the best decision depends on your individual circumstances and your comfort level with upgrading your operating system. As time goes on, it is even more recommended that you upgrade, because older versions of operating systems will be less secure.
What Are The Key Performance Improvements Introduced In High Sierra Compared To Sierra?
High Sierra brought significant improvements in storage and graphics. Apple introduced the Apple File System (APFS), a modern file system designed for flash storage which provided faster file operations and improved data security. It also integrated Metal 2, an updated version of Apple’s graphics API, which optimized graphics performance and enhanced support for VR and machine learning applications.
While Sierra performed adequately, High Sierra’s advancements delivered noticeable gains. APFS sped up tasks like copying files and launching applications. Metal 2 allowed for smoother animations, better responsiveness in graphically intensive applications, and paved the way for new technologies to be implemented on the macOS platform, providing a better overall user experience, especially for those with newer Macs utilizing flash storage.
How Does The File System Differ Between MacOS Sierra And High Sierra?
macOS Sierra primarily used the HFS+ file system, a long-standing standard for Apple devices. HFS+ had served macOS well for many years but was becoming outdated in the face of modern storage technologies, specifically solid-state drives (SSDs) becoming prevalent.
High Sierra introduced the Apple File System (APFS) as the default file system for Macs with SSDs. APFS is optimized for flash storage, offering improved performance, security, and reliability. It incorporates features like space sharing, snapshots, and strong encryption, making it a superior choice for modern Macs compared to the aging HFS+ found in Sierra.
Did High Sierra Improve Photo Management Compared To Sierra?
Yes, High Sierra brought notable improvements to the Photos app. A significant upgrade was the improved facial recognition, allowing for more accurate and efficient identification of people in your photos. Additionally, High Sierra introduced new editing tools, providing users with more creative control over their images directly within the Photos application.
Sierra’s Photos app, while functional, lacked the advanced features and refinements of High Sierra’s version. The enhanced facial recognition made organizing and searching for photos significantly easier, while the new editing tools allowed users to make more sophisticated adjustments to their images without needing to rely on third-party applications, improving workflow efficiency.
What Were The Main Privacy And Security Enhancements In High Sierra That Sierra Lacked?
High Sierra introduced Intelligent Tracking Prevention (ITP) in Safari. This feature limited the ability of websites to track user activity across the web, enhancing user privacy. It worked by identifying and blocking cross-site tracking data, helping to prevent targeted advertising and other forms of online surveillance.
Furthermore, High Sierra incorporated improvements in data encryption with APFS. This provided stronger protection for user data stored on the system’s drive. While Sierra offered some security features, High Sierra’s additions offered better safeguards against online tracking and unauthorized access to user data, representing a considerable step forward in macOS security.
How Did The Installation Process Differ Between Upgrading To Sierra And High Sierra?
The upgrade process from older versions of macOS to Sierra was generally straightforward, utilizing the Mac App Store as the primary method for downloading and installing the operating system. The installation process was fairly standard, requiring users to download the installer, run it, and follow the on-screen prompts.
Upgrading to High Sierra from Sierra was similarly performed through the Mac App Store, but the key difference was the potential conversion of the file system to APFS during the upgrade. Users with SSDs typically experienced a seamless conversion to APFS, but those with traditional hard drives generally remained on HFS+. This file system conversion added a layer of complexity and potential for data loss if not handled correctly, although the installer usually managed the process smoothly.
Were There Any Compatibility Issues With Older Software When Upgrading To High Sierra From Sierra?
Yes, upgrading to High Sierra sometimes resulted in compatibility issues with older software. The introduction of APFS and changes to the system framework could cause some older applications, particularly those not regularly updated, to malfunction or stop working altogether. This was a common issue encountered by users who relied on legacy software.
While Sierra also had its compatibility concerns, High Sierra’s fundamental changes to the file system exacerbated the problem. Many older applications that were written assuming HFS+ would function correctly required updates or workarounds to function seamlessly on APFS. Therefore, checking for software compatibility before upgrading to High Sierra was highly recommended to prevent disruptions in workflow.
Did High Sierra Require Different Hardware Specifications Compared To Sierra?
The minimum hardware requirements for High Sierra were largely the same as those for Sierra. Apple supported a similar range of Macs for both operating systems, meaning that if your Mac could run Sierra, it would generally be able to run High Sierra as well. This allowed many users to upgrade without needing to invest in new hardware.
However, to take full advantage of the performance benefits offered by High Sierra, especially APFS, having a Mac with an SSD was highly recommended. Although High Sierra could technically run on machines with traditional hard drives, the performance gains were significantly less pronounced. Therefore, while the minimum requirements were similar, the optimal experience was best achieved on Macs with SSDs.