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last mac os

hi, i was informed by apple suport that mac os ventura is the last os that will be ever installed in my imac.

i own a imac 2017 21 inch.

from sonoma os, my imac will not be supported anymore.


does that mean that there will be no more updates for my i mac?


what will happen from now and on to my imac? i mean since my os will not ne supported by years does that mean that in some years from now it will be for garbage? and buy a new one?


if that is so, from your experience when is that time?


its my first imac so i really have no idea!

Posted on Oct 4, 2023 6:17 AM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Oct 4, 2023 6:52 AM

macman1585 wrote:

hi, i was informed by apple suport that mac os ventura is the last os that will be ever installed in my imac.
i own a imac 2017 21 inch.
from sonoma os, my imac will not be supported anymore.

That is correct.

does that mean that there will be no more updates for my i mac?

No, macOS Ventura will continue to receive Security updates for around 2 or 3 more years.

what will happen from now and on to my imac? i mean since my os will not ne supported by years does that mean that in some years from now it will be for garbage? and buy a new one?
if that is so, from your experience when is that time?

You can continue to use the iMac until it dies or until you want/need to run a newer macOS version.

its my first imac so i really have no idea!

All computers (including windoz pc's) become obsolete at some point.

4 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Oct 4, 2023 6:52 AM in response to macman1585

macman1585 wrote:

hi, i was informed by apple suport that mac os ventura is the last os that will be ever installed in my imac.
i own a imac 2017 21 inch.
from sonoma os, my imac will not be supported anymore.

That is correct.

does that mean that there will be no more updates for my i mac?

No, macOS Ventura will continue to receive Security updates for around 2 or 3 more years.

what will happen from now and on to my imac? i mean since my os will not ne supported by years does that mean that in some years from now it will be for garbage? and buy a new one?
if that is so, from your experience when is that time?

You can continue to use the iMac until it dies or until you want/need to run a newer macOS version.

its my first imac so i really have no idea!

All computers (including windoz pc's) become obsolete at some point.

Oct 4, 2023 6:37 AM in response to macman1585

You should continue to receive critical security updates for the next 2 years. Beyond that, there will probably be no updates.


Apple supports the current version of macOS and the previous 2 versions, so you have a few years left.

App developers will most likely stop supporting Ventura in 2 to 3 years. Your Mac will continue to function as it does now, but you may find it difficult to get new software in a few years as developers phase out support for it.


The rapid pace of advancement in computer technology means that anything older than about 5 years will begin to lag behind and eventually become obsolete. This is not unique to Apple.

Oct 4, 2023 6:59 AM in response to macman1585

macman1585 wrote:

hi, i was informed by apple suport that mac os ventura is the last os that will be ever installed in my imac.
i own a imac 2017 21 inch.
from sonoma os, my imac will not be supported anymore.

Your Mac will be supported for security updates for at least 2 more years.


does that mean that there will be no more updates for my i mac?

No, it means it will get no more major version updates, but will still receive security updates, fixes and patches for at least 2 more years.


what will happen from now and on to my imac? i mean since my os will not ne supported by years does that mean that in some years from now it will be for garbage? and buy a new one?

Nothing will happen. The Mac will continue to work as it has. Why would be garbage? It just won't be able to run the newest version of macOS. Do you think Macs from 6 years ago are Garbage today? Do you think Windows PCs from 6 years ago are garbage today?

if that is so, from your experience when is that time?

As has been said, for at least 2 more years you will still receive security updates, past that time, you can still use the Mac and run many many apps.

You can probably realistically continue to use the Mac for at least 4 more years without much issue. At which point, yes a new Mac would be, if not required, highly recommended.


Just because it stops getting updates, doesn't mean it stops working. I have a 2011 Mac Mini that I still use as my file server. If you understand its limitations the Mac can continue to be useful for many many years even without updates.


As time goes by, apps will require a newer macOS version. And eventually, yes no newer apps will work on it, and it will be hard to use for every day tasks.


last mac os

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