Pepperdine IT Advisory: Sierra OS 10.12 Upgrade
Overview
January 18, 2017
On Tuesday, September 20, 2016, Apple released macOS 10.12 (Sierra). Since that time, Pepperdine IT recommended that you delay upgrading your Apple computer to this new operating system. Known issues with Sierra (10.12) included problems with email, Microsoft Office, whole disk encryption, device management, and several other applications.
As of today, Pepperdine IT now supports the use of macOS 10.12 (Sierra) on personal computer and non-PGP encrypted, university-owned computers. If you use PGP encryption, you will be notified directly when you are able to upgrade the operating system.
Current Compatibility Status of Commonly Used Applications
|
Product |
Status |
Notes |
| University anti-virus (Sophos) | Compatible | 9.5.2 (current latest version) had support for Sierra Beta 2. Full support will likely require an update. See http://downloads.sophos.com/readmes/savmosx_9_P_rneng.html#unique_1 |
| University whole disk encryption | Not Compatible | Whole disk encryption users should not purchase new Macs or upgrade existing systems to El Capitan. Wait for instruction from Pepperdine IT Information Security Office (ISO). |
| University device management | Potentially Compatible | Tested and working but no official word from Dell. |
| Adobe Acrobat Pro XI | Potentially Compatible | Tested and working but no official confirmation from Adobe. Website states that macOS 10.11 and above work. Refer to: Adobe Acrobat System Requirements. |
| Adobe Connect | Potentially Compatible | Service is largely based on browser compatibility. Refer to: Adobe Connect System Requirements. |
| Adobe Photoshop, illustrator, Premiere, and other CC programs | Compatible | Adobe CC has been tuested and confirmed by Adobe. Adobe Compatibility Information. |
| Sharp Printer Drivers | Potentially Compatible | Tested and working. No official word from Sharp or PaperCut. |
| ExamSoft | Compatible | An update was released on Nov 1. |
| Finale | Compatible | Finale is compatible with Sierra according to their website. Refer to: Finale System Requirements |
| Firefox | Potentially Compatible | Sierra is not listed, but testing so far has been successful. Refer to: Firefox System Requirements |
| Google Apps | Compatible | Google lists macOS version Lion (10.7) and up as compatible with Google Drive, Docs, etc. Refer to: Google Apps System Requirements |
| Google Chrome | Compatible | Google lists macOS version Mavericks (10.9) or later as compatible. Refer to: Google Chrome System Requirements |
| Microsoft Office 2011 | Potentially Compatible | Tested and working. Microsoft support pages list macOS 10.8 and higher. Refer to: Microsoft Office 2011 System Requirements. |
| Microsoft Office 2016 | Compatible with known issues | Tested and working but there are known issues. Refer to: Microsoft 2016 Known Issues. |
| Pro Tools | Potentially Compatible | Refer to: ProTools 12 System Requirements. |
| SPSS Statistics | Potentially Compatible | SPSS Statistics 24 is confirmed on Sierra, but not other versions of the software. Refer to: SPSS System Requirements. |
| Adobe Flash | Compatible | Tested and working. Download page lists Sierra. NOTE: Flash is turned off by default in Safari 10 |
| Cisco Jabber | Potentially Compatible | Tested and working. No official announcement from Cisco. |
| Java | Compatible with known issues | Tested and working but there are known issues. Refer to: Java FAQ. |
| Cisco VPN | Potentially Compatible | Tested and working. No official announcement from Cisco. |
Last Update: 01/11/2017
- Several software vendors have not updated system requirements list to include Sierra support. Software may or may not run properly.
- Several other specialty applications also reported as incompatible such as AutoCAD, select audio/sound applications, screenwriting software, video editing software, and many others.
Pepperdine IT cannot test every application on every operating system. Users should check with the vendors of any critical software applications to evaluate potential compatibility issues.