macOS 27 update: Apps not compatible, how to get list?

You can get an idea of the compatibility of most of your apps by getting System Information.

Otherwise, you will get no list of the compatibility of all of your apps.

Press and hold the Option key (⌥) then click the Apple menu  and select System Information.

Below the Software heading in the sidebar you'll find Applications. Select that and your applications list will populate the main panel on the right. You'll find a heading there for "Kind". Click that and you list will sort by order of the kinds of app that these all are, including Apple Silicon, Universal and Intel.

NoBite wrote:

The reason I hope for a list is because every time in the past few weeks that I have restarted my Mac, I have gotten a notification that a particular app will no longer be supported with the next OS update and I should seek to replace it. However, each notification has been for a different app.

Those would be for old Intel apps that will no longer be supported since Rosetta will be deprecated at that time. If the Developer of those apps have not been offering support or updates since the release of the first Silicon Macs, you should really be looking for a replacement app from a developer who is more involved in providing updates. Information about the transition away from Rosetta is available here:

Using Intel-based apps on a Mac with Apple silicon - Apple Support

As for other apps, this is the time where the beta for the new OS is released and Developers can test their apps on the new software and make updates for any compatibility issues. There is no way to guess which developers are actively doing this to test their apps and working on any necessary updates if needed for when the new OS version becomes available to the public as a Shipping Release. You may find on some third party sites, some reviews/lists by users who are experiencing problems with apps on the beta release, but that list would not be maintained by Apple and the Developer of the app is the contact for their plans on compatibility.

NoBite wrote:

macOS27 - apps that will not be compatible?

Please don't get ahead of yourself. We are still on macOS 26, with its overwhelming list of bugs. Apple started off the WWDC keynote by acknowledging this problem.

In particular, there is a bug in macOS 26 that incorrectly displays these messages because of an Apple bug. The Intel code in question is coming from a colour picker, or print dialog, but is being incorrectly attributed to the app that loads it.

Being listed as Intel does not automatically mean the app needs to be replaced before macOS 27. On Apple Silicon, an Intel-only app runs through Rosetta, and macOS 27 is still intended to provide Rosetta support... the bigger cutoff is macOS 28. So I wouldn’t go through every app and blindly replace everything marked Intel.

The warnings you’re seeing are a more useful clue because they indicate something that is actually being invoked, and some of those warnings can also come from Intel components such as drivers, plug-ins, or helper processes rather than the main app itself. If you want a practical list, System Information → Software → Applications is a good starting point... sort by Kind and investigate the Intel entries you actually use, especially anything that installs background helpers or hardware drivers.

For each one, check the developer for a current Apple Silicon/Universal release. Apple Silicon-only is preferable if available, but Universal is perfectly fine too. The key is to identify the Intel dependencies you actually rely on, rather than treating every Intel binary on the Mac as an app that must immediately be replaced.

A warning is triggered when you launch an Intel-only app, and you will see it every time you launch such an app. Launching a recently used Intel app again won't trigger it, but if enough time has passed then you'll see the warning again for that app. For example, I last used the SynologyAssistant app to check on my NAS over a month ago, and launching it generated the banner message.

To avoid this issue you need to run only Universal or Apple Silicon apps. For apps that are Intel only, contact the developers and push them to release updated versions of their apps (but keep in mind that they have over a year before their apps stop working on macOS). 

To see which of your apps are Intel and thus need to be updated or they won't run on macOS 28 (Fall 2027), go to System Settings > General > About > System Report (button at the bottom). Select Applications in the Software section of the sidebar, then click on the Kind column header to sort them. 

Some apps aren't readily identifiable by the name, but when you select that app you will get more info. For example, 'commandFilter' is a component of the Epson printer drivers. Apps like that can be safely deleted. 

Here's what Apple has to say about updating your apps:

Learn how to update Intel-based apps for Apple silicon - Apple Support

FWIW, you will have just one more year for Intel apps on Apple Silicon. The announcement at WWDC said that macOS 27 will be the last version of macOS that will support Rosetta, the Intel code translation layer.

As for any apps that are not Intel apps, only the developer will know if its app will be compatible with any future macOS upgrade.

Unfortunately, there will be those developers that won't provide updated versions until after an upgraded macOS has been released whether the app is Intel or Apple Silicon.

not sure how that would work really

apple or anybody else has no idea which apps outside of apps in app store

there exist in the world

I could make an app and put it on my own site for download or on some other app downloading site with no affiliation with apple.

if it's apps from apples store then the app store entry for said app would list it's supported platform

One way to find out (takes a little time, but a worthwhile exercise) is to open Applications in Finder, right-click each one and select "Get Info" to see whether it is an Intel app. If there is no Universal equivalent available from the provider, there is not a great deal we can do, though conventional wisdom suggests they will probably continue to work with macOS 27.

NoBite wrote:

@D.I. Johnson - Thank you! Ok, I have my list. Now am I to understand that every app listed as an Intel app needs to be replaced by an Apple Silicon alternative, if available?

You're welcome.

In a nutshell, yes. Intel apps will no longer be supported.

I would start at the publisher website of any Intel apps that you regularly use and see if they have updated versions. If so, then just take advantage of that. If not, then you'll have to look elsewhere for some alternative.

And yes, replace them with apps whose specs say they are Universal apps and/or are Apple Silicon Mac required. Preferably the latter, as even if an app is Universal there is a small chance that some random included component may still carry Intel coding and cause friction.

NoBite wrote:

The reason I hope for a list is because every time in the past few weeks that I have restarted my Mac, I have gotten a notification that a particular app will no longer be supported with the next OS update and I should seek to replace it. However, each notification has been for a different app. I am hoping for a comprehensive list of all such apps that have been identified in some manner. For instance, one app is related to the external HD I use for TM backups. But, there are others that have triggered an alert for some reason. Apparently, these are apps that start up every time my Mac restarts. Naturally, there could be other apps that I'd never become aware of incompatibilities until I tried to use them.

Notation

The Site seems to have Naming Error in that they refer to macOS 27 Golden State as as Golden Gate

" If you have apps that still use Rosetta, you'll get a warning every time you restart your Mac or open an Intel app. ‌macOS Golden Gate‌ also adds a new list where you can check which apps are going to stop working in the future"

Just to make sure you understand, macOS 27 Golden Gate will only run on Apple Silicon Macs BUT Rosetta 2 will still be there to run Intel based apps. It’s macOS 28 that will remove full Rosetta 2 support.

Some talking heads claim that macOS 27 will remove Rosetta 2 upon installation but the user will be able to manually install Rosetta 2 if needed. I have no idea if that’s true.

NoBite wrote:

I am a little confused as to what needs to be replaced. If it says it is an Intel app, it needs to be replaced, correct? Apple Silicon apps are fine. Universal apps are fine. When I look for a replacement, is Apple Silicon preferred?

"Apple Silicon" applications and "Universal" applications both contain Apple Silicon machine code. That means that both should survive Apple's planned removal of Rosetta 2 support from macOS 28.

"Universal" applications also contain Intel machine code, which

• Lets them run natively on Intel-based Macs
• Lets them run under Rosetta 2 translation on Apple-Silicon-based Macs (e.g., so that if you have a Universal version of Photoshop, and a bunch of old Intel-only plugins, you have a way to use those plugins)
• Causes them to take up more space on your disk (since you are storing two full sets of machine code)

Remove Rosetta.

See which apps break.

That’ll get your list, and — probably more importantly — get the list of apps you actually use.

You then get to look for updates, replacement apps, or (for printers or such) steps or reconfigurations, such as switching from vendor drivers to AirPrint.

Run out of time or scheduling priorities, re-add Rosetta, run the app, and then remove Rosetta when done.

macOS already displays app warnings, so most if this already happens automatically.

Any app listed as Intel based will either need an update or a replacement found before the next OS upgrade a year from now. Universal apps have the code for both Intel and Apple Silicon so that’s just as good as a Silicon only app - just larger since it contains code for both.