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questions58 | MACFORMAT | DECEMBER 2019 macformat.com @macformat
Can I update
Adobe App
Manager to 64-bit?
Not directly, but you
should ensure that all
other Adobe apps,
Acrobat Reader in
particular, are 64-bit.
When you upgrade
to Catalina, old
components like this
won’t run, are disabled,
and easy to remove.
Why are 64-bit
apps listed in
Legacy Software?
Once software running
in Mojave has been
detected as not being
fully 64-bit, it’s added
to the Legacy Software
list in System Info.
Unfortunately, that list
is never checked again
or refreshed, so when
you upgrade an app to
64-bit, it stays there. If
you’re worried, check
the replacement using
the free ArchiChect
from bit.ly/
mf346elc32b.
solved by performing the elaborate procedure
to restore T2 firmware, which requires a
second Mac and a copy of Apple Configurator- This is detailed at bit.ly/mf346t2rst.
At present, Configurator is unable to solve
this problem. The T2 firmware which it tries
to install in this situation is not that provided
with the beta version of macOS, but the
current macOS release. As it can’t perform
a firmware downgrade when that would be
called for, the restore can fail, leaving that
Mac bricked. The only way forward then is
to return it to Apple to be fixed.
This should be resolved in the full release
of macOS Catalina, or by Apple ensuring that
Configurator doesn’t attempt such a firmware
downgrade. However, until this situation is
clearly resolved, you shouldn’t put a T2 Mac
at risk of an attempted firmware downgrade.
For the moment, it’s safer to upgrade.
Downgrading danger
Q
After running Catalina public betas,
I want to downgrade to Mojave. Is
that going to be straightforward?
by MIKE ROSEBERRYA
That depends on your Mac’s
hardware. Although it’s time-
consuming to perform a clean install,
erasing internal storage and installing macOS
10.14.6 should be fairly straightforward if your
Mac doesn’t have a T2 chip.
This gets more complicated if your Mac
has a T2 chip, because of its firmware. In
theory, downgrading it to Mojave shouldn’t
result in the installer attempting to download
and install an older version of BridgeOS, or
iBridge, the firmware which runs on the T2.
However, some users downgrading from beta
versions of macOS have reported that this can
run into problems. These would normally beRestoring BridgeOS firmware on a
T2-equipped Mac requires it to be
connected to another Mac running
Configurator 2, and is tricky.