OS X 10.9.2 Released with Fix for Mail Problems, SSL Security Flaw, & More

Apple has released OS X 10.9.2, a fairly major update to OS X Mavericks that includes resolutions to many problems and bugs encountered by Mac users. Critically, the OS X 10.9.2 update patches the SSL / TSL vulnerability for Macs that was fixed earlier for mobile devices with the iOS 7.0.6 update. The SSL fix alone makes the 10.9.2 update a particularly important release that all Mac users running Mavericks should install as soon as possible.

The OS X Update 10.9.2 also resolves remaining issues with OS X Mail, including resolutions to new email retrieval from services like Gmail and Outlook, fixes the Mail Archive problems, and the bundled SMB fixes should solve some of the issues encountered within the Finder. Separately, some additional features have been added to OS X, including native FaceTime Audio support, FaceTime call waiting support, iMessage blocking, and a variety of other stability and performance improvements.

OS X 10.9.2 Released with Fix for Mail Problems, SSL Security Flaw, & More

OS X 10.9.2 Release Notes

The release notes bundled with the Mavericks 10.9.2 update are as follows. Notably, there is no specific mention of the SSL / TSL security bug or a fix for it for Macs, but we can confirm the SSL bug has been patched with the 10.9.2 final build.

• Adds the ability to make and receive FaceTime Audio calls from OS X to OS X and to iOS
• Adds call waiting support for FaceTime audio and video calls
• Adds the ability to block incoming iMessages from individual senders
• Includes general improvements to the stability and compatibility of Mail
• Improves the accuracy of unread counts in Mail
• Resolves an issue that prevented Mail from receiving new messages from certain providers
• Improves AutoFill compatibility in Safari
• Fixes an issue that may cause audio distortion on certain Macs
• Improves reliability when connecting to a file server using SMB2
• Fixes an issue that may cause VPN connections to disconnect
• Improves VoiceOver navigation in Mail and Finder
• Improves VoiceOver reliability when navigating websites
• Improves compatibility with Gmail Archive mailboxes
• Includes improvements to Gmail labels
• Improves Safari browsing and Software Update installation when using an authenticated web proxy
• Adds additional layers of awesomeness to OSXDaily.com readers who read release notes
• Fixes an issue that could cause the Mac App Store to offer updates for apps that are already up to date
• Improves the reliability of diskless NetBoot service in OS X Server
• Fixes braille driver support for specific HandyTech displays
• Resolves an issue when using Safe Boot with some systems
• Improves ExpressCard compatibility for some MacBook Pro 2010 models
• Resolves an issue which prevented printing to printers shared by Windows XP
• Resolves an issue with Keychain that could cause repeated prompts to unlock the Local Items keychain
• Fixes an issue that could prevent certain preference panes from opening in System Preferences
• Fixes an issue that may prevent migration from completing while in Setup Assistant

The complete security specific notes can be found here.

Additional Security Updates for OS X Mountain Lion & Lion Available Separately

Aside from the OS X Mavericks 10.9.2 update, there is a Security Update to OS X Mountain Lion and OS X Lion Security Update available for users who are continuing to run Macs with older versions of OS X. Those updates can also be found in the Mac App Store on those machines, or downloaded directly from Apple as available here Security Update 2014-001 (Mountain Lion) and Security Update 2014-001 (Lion).

As usual, it is generally recommended to install the latest version of OS X available to you.

Mountain Lion: Beautiful New Wallpapers from OS X Mountain Lion

OS X Mountain Lion is due to be released next month but if you’re like us you don’t want to wait that long to get your hands on the new beautiful wallpapers. These come to us from the latest Mountain Lion developer preview, and each of the 15 images is at a gigantic 3200×2000 resolution, making them ready for whatever retina Mac or iOS device you want to dress up.

Click any picture below to open the full sized image.

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Free Up Inactive Memory in Mac OS X System with Purge Command

Mac OS X has fairly good memory management but it’s not perfect, and sometimes RAM can be held unnecessarily in the “inactive” state despite the contents no longer being needed. If you’ve been participating in memory heavy activities or you just need to free up some available RAM you can actually force Mac OS X to clear out inactive memory.

free-up-memory-mac

Launch Terminal, found in /Applications/Utilities/ and enter the following command

purge

Give OS X a minute or two to complete the process

Open Activity Monitor to see the before and after results yourself, you’ll find dramatic changes at the “Free”, “Used”, and “Inactive” meters under System Memory.

The purge command forces disk and memory caches to be emptied, offering a ‘cold disk buffer cache’ which is similar to the state of the operating system after a reboot. Of course, the benefit of using purge rather than rebooting is that you don’t have to restart the machine and you can maintain currently active applications while still freeing up memory

Mac OS X 10.7.3 Update Released – Download Links

Apple has released Mac OS X 10.7.3 to the public, the third minor update to OS X Lion. The update includes bug fixes including a Wi-Fi stability update, and also fixes a handful of other issues that have effected OS X 10.7. The update also includes support for several new languages, and updates Safari to 5.1.3.

Download Mac OS X 10.7.3 Update

Download Mac OS X 10.7.3 Update

You can download Mac OS X 10.7.3 Update through Software Update, it’s about 1GB, or through these download links from Apple:

• OS X Lion Update 10.7.3 (Client)
• OS X Lion Update 10.7.3 (Client Combo)
• OS X Lion Update 10.7.3 (Server)
• OS X Lion Update 10.7.3 (Server Combo)

Mac OS X 10.7.3 Release Notes are below:

What’s included?

The OS X Lion v10.7.3 Update includes Safari 5.1.3 and fixes that:

• Add Catalan, Croatian, Greek, Hebrew, Romanian, Slovak, Thai, and Ukrainian language support
• Address issues when using smart cards to log into OS X
• Address compatibility issues with Microsoft Windows file sharing
• Address an issue printing Microsoft Word documents that use markup
• Address a graphics performance issue after sleep on some earlier iMacs that use ATI graphics
• Resolve a Wi-Fi connection issue when waking from sleep
• Address an issue that may prevent Safari from opening before joining a wireless network
• Fix a potential issue authenticating to an SMB DFS share
• Include RAW image compatibility for additional digital cameras

Directory Services

• Improve binding to read-only Active Directory Domain Controllers
• Improve binding and login speed for Active Directory users in a domain whose name ends in “.local”
• Improve reliability of Dynamic DNS (DDNS) updates by Active Directory clients
• Allow login with an Active Directory username that contains a space
• Improve compatibility with Active Directory schemas that have been extended with the “apple-user-homeDirectory” and “apple-user-homeurl” attributes
• Fix home directory Dock item for Active Directory users with mobile accounts
• Allow NIS users with MD5-hashed passwords to log in

Mac OS X 10.7.3 beta build 11D33 goes out to testers ahead of public release

Apple has seeded Mac OS X 10.7.3 build 11D33 to testers (not developers yet). Apple asks these testers (full release notes after the break) to focus on the Mac OS X Address Book application, iCal, Mail, Spotlight, and Safari. Apple says there are no known issues with this build. The 11d33 build will likely make its way to registered Mac developers soon.

Apple Mac OS X Lion 10.7.3

Apple says this build can install as a delta update to the previous beta builds labeled 11D16and 11D24. Apple should release 10.7.3 to the public fairly soon as sources say Apple is nearly done with work on Mac OS X 10.7.3 save for any last minute hiccups in the final rounds of testing. Like most point upgrades to major OS X versions, 10.7.3 focuses on bug fixes, performance, and minor enhancements.

Installation Information

You will not be able to revert back to your previous system after updating. Please install this update on a system or partition you are prepared to erase if necessary. As this is a pre-release build, it is not advisable to use this software on a production system with information on it that you depend on for your business. You need to understand the OS X Lion Instructions for reinstalling the OS. Please read this entire article before installing the software update,http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4718.
REVERSIONERS ARE NO LONGER REQUIRED – The 11D33 Delta and Combo will install on top of the previous 11D16 and 11D24 seeds as well as our previous GMed systems.

Software Update Delta Installation

Install the delta version of OS X 10.7.3, 11D33 on your OS X 10.7.2 11C74 GM Build. Detailed Installation information can be found on the AppleSeed Discussion Board.

SoftwareUpdate Combo Installation

Install the combo version of OS X 10.7.3, 11D33 on your OS X 10.7.0, 10.7.1, or 10.7.2 GM Builds. Detailed Installation information can be found on the AppleSeed Discussion Board.

Known Issues
• N/A

Focus Areas
• Address Book
• iCal
• Mail
• Spotlight
• Safari

Apple servers were slammed as users attempted to download updates to iTunes, Mac OS X 10.7.2 and iOS 5 that contain many security fixes.

Coinciding with the launch of the new iCloud service, Apple has rolled out massive updates fixing scores of security vulnerabilities in Mac OS X, iOS and related software.

The latest mobile operating system iOS 5 went live Oct. 12 which requires the latest version of iTunes to install. Apple released a new version of its iTunes software for Windows on Oct. 11. If those two major upgrades weren’t enough, Apple also updated the Mac OS X Lion operating system with 10.7.2. A security update for Snow Leopard users, 10.6, is also available.

Apple Mac OS X Lion 10.7.2

Apple Mac OS X Lion 10.7.2

Users trying to access so many updates so close together are putting a strain on Apple servers, resulting in long download times and strange error messages when trying to install, according to irate users on Twitter and Apple support forums.

The upgrades are necessary for users interested in using iCloud to synchronize music, photos, documents and other files across their iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch and the Mac desktop. The latest iTunes, version 10.5, is necessary to upgrade to newer models of the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch to iOS 5. Both the Mac and Windows versions of iTunes have all the features necessary to take advantage of iCloud support, wireless synchronization and iOS 5.

The iTunes 10.5 for Windows update patched 79 security vulnerabilities in a slew of components, including WebKit, ColorSync, CoreFoundation, CoreAudio, CoreMedia and ImageIO, according to Apple’s advisory. WebKit alone accounted for 73 bugs that Apple fixed in this version of iTunes. The framework is a core part of iTunes and the Safari Web browser and all but one of them were memory corruption vulnerabilities. Several of the bugs, if exploited, could have resulted in an attacker remotely executing code on the affected Mac. Other WebKit issues would have resulted in denial-of-service conditions or crashed iTunes, according to Apple.

Apple fixed the security issues in iTunes only in the Windows version, and rolled the fixes in to the OS X updates for Mac users.

In the Mac OS X 10.7.2 update and the update for 10.6 (Snow Leopard), Apple fixed 75 known vulnerabilities in the operating system, Chester Wisniewski, senior security advisor at Sophos, told eWEEK. Most could lead to arbitrary code execution while others could result in denial of service or escalation of privileges, Wisniewski said.

Apple addressed “quite a few important security issues,” including the vulnerabilities with Open Directory that had been introduced this summer with the release of Lion, the latest Mac OS X operating system. The various flaws in Open Directory allowed people to read other users’ password hashes, change passwords without having to know the old password, and logging into the system without a password, according to Wisniewski. The OS X update also fixed how Web cookies are stored and handled so that malicious sites could no longer read information stored on them.

Apple also released a new version of the Safari Web browser for Lion and Snow Leopard. Wisniewski estimated there were approximately another 70 security flaws fixed in the browser update.

Apple also removed the DigiNotar certificates from its mobile devices in iOS 5. While the company had removed the embattled certificate authority from the desktop last month after reports emerged of attackers compromising DigiNotar to issue fraudulent SSL certificates for major Websites, mobile devices running Safari had remained unprotected.

There is already a jailbreak available for iOS5. At the moment, only a tethered jailbreak exists for iOS 5 running on iPhone 4, 3GS, iPad and iPod Touch. A tethered jailbreak means the user has to connect the mobile device to the computer to run the code. An untethered jailbreak is expected shortly, according to rumors.

Apple has activated the new Find My Mac tool for developers with early access to Apple’s iCloud service, allowing users to locate, lock and even wipe a lost Mac computer

The new tool closely resembles the Find My iPhone service, despite the fact that Macs lack GPS,MacRumors reports. People familiar with the matter note that the service appears to use Wi-Fi networks to determine a Mac’s location.

Apple launches Find My Mac tool for iCloud.com beta

Find My Mac first appeared in contained evidence that Apple was planning to migrate MobileMe accounts over to the new iCloud service, codenamed “Castle.”

Four digit PIN code to regain access to the device

Upon locating a Mac, users can use the tool to play a sound, send a message, lock the screen and erase the hard drive. The service is expected to release to the public this fall along with iCloud.

After a Mac is locked by Find My Mac, a user will need to input a four digit PIN code to regain access to the device.
Apple announced iCloud in June at the Worldwide Developers Conference. The free service will include revamped versions of most of the MobileMe features; allow re-downloads of purchased iOS apps, books and music; and provide backup storage.

Apple activated the login page for iCloud.com, though not all users have been able to successfully login

On Monday, Apple activated the login page for iCloud.com, though not all users have been able to successfully login.

Apple has posted a not yet fully functional login page for its new iCloud service, representing a revamped version of its existing Mail, Contacts, Calendar and Find My iPhone MobileMe apps as well as newly integrating the document sharing features of iWork.com.

Apple posts new iCloud login page as a revamped MobileMe, iWork.com

The new iCloud login page, which appears as an Apple Store-like name tag on a lanyard, enables some users to log into functional apps. Other users are presented with an iOS-style popup asking them to migrate their data from MobileMe to iCloud, a feature which isn’t yet working.

Hope for mobile users

The iCloud login page is also available from mobile devices (below), suggesting that Apple will finally make its web-based apps accessible from iOS devices. MobileMe web apps are currently blocked from iOS mobile users, apparently because Apple’s mobile browser does not support the “real web” well enough to work acceptably with them. This prevents iOS users from accessing a secondary account.

Android and other mobile users are similarly blocked from accessing MobileMe, and get the same “download the iOS native apps” message iOS users get, despite there being no MobileMe native apps that Android or other mobile users can install.

The first user to report successfully logging into the new service, Rafael Fischmann of the Brazilian MacMagazine blog, presented screen shots of the new Mail, Calendar and Contacts apps, all of which have adopted a new iPad-like appearance.

The new service also includes iCloud for Keynote, Pages and Numbers, which “stores your documents and keeps them up to date on your devices and the web.” This new service goes above and beyond the former iWork.com, which simply enabled users to share documents over the web to other users, with a web app client that enabled others to view and comment on documents even without owning iWork.

icloud_mail

icloud_calendar

icloud_contacts

The new iCloud for iWork apps incorporates “iCloud for Documents,” a new storage and sync feature that third party developers can incorporate in their own apps to allow their users to keep documents in sync across the users various devices, updating changes made on one machine across every other instance of that file, automatically.

The new service also includes iCloud for Keynote, Pages and Numbers

The first 5GB of documents users store within iCloud will be free, while Apple appears set to make 10, 20 and 50GB options available annually for $20, $40, or $100, respectively.

Missing in the transition from MobileMe to iCloud is the Gallery and iDisk web apps, which are largely replaced by similar functionality offered by iCloud’s Photo Stream and Documents features.