You might be looking for the Mac version or build number to make sure it's up to date, and you are safe from all known vulnerabilities. macOS version also required checking the app compatibility. About This Mac display all the information related to macOS version and hardware specs as well. So to know the version and build of currently installed macOS, please follow the steps given below.
Check macOS version and build number
Previous Macintosh operating systems (versions of the classic Mac OS) were named using Arabic numerals, as with Mac OS 8 and Mac OS 9. The letter 'X' in Mac OS X's name refers to the number 10, a Roman numeral, and Apple has stated that it should be pronounced 'ten' in this context. However, it is also commonly pronounced like the letter 'X'. The letter 'X' in Mac OS X's name refers to the number 10, a Roman numeral, and Apple has stated that it should be pronounced 'ten' in this context. However, it is also commonly pronounced like the letter 'X'.
Apple re-branded Mac operating system from OS X to macOS, so If you are running a version older than v10.12.0, then you might see OS X while you are looking for details.
- On the screen top-left corner click the Apple () icon and then select About This Mac option from the menu.
- This will open up a window; here you can see the version of the operating system under the macOS name. If you can't see the build number on the window, then click on the Version number and then you have the build number as well.
- In the screenshot given below, you can see the macOS name High Sierra, version 10.13.2 and build number is 17C88, not only that you can see the other hardware related details as well.
- Note: The headings on this list indicate the Macintosh System bundle names; the bullet points indicate the version of the System File included in that bundle. This is to make it clearer for people searching for specific bundle versions as opposed to System File versions. Finder File versions are not indicated. 1 Classic Mac OS 1.1 Macintosh System Software (0 - 0.3) 1.1.1 System File 1 1.1.2.
- OS X El Capitan; OS X Yosemite; OS X Mavericks; OS X Mountain Lion; Mac OS X v10.7 Lion; Mac OS X v10.6 Snow Leopard; Mac OS X v10.5 Leopard; Mac OS X v10.4 Tiger; Mac OS X v10.3 and earlier; Mac OS X Technologies; Classic Mac OS (OS9, OS8 & System 7) Photos for Mac; QuickTime; Safari; Front Row.
Find macOS version using Terminal
Best imac for recording music. For command line lovers, If you spend more time using Terminal on your Mac then there is a command to find macOS version and build number.
- Open Terminal window on your Mac.
- Type the command:
sw_vers
hit return, and you can see the operating system version and build details right on the command line. - Here, you can see the ProductName: Mac OS X, ProductVersion: 10.13.2 and also build number 17C88.
Is your Mac up to date? Learn more how to update your Mac OS to the latest version.
Previous Mac OS versions and build numbers
List of OS X and macOS versions and builds numbers released by Apple, latest one is on the top and so on. Web browser comparison 2019. This list is helpful when you need to find compatibility with you macOS.
- macOS High Sierra (10.13.x)
- 10.13 (17A365, 17A405)
- 10.13.1 (17B48, 17B1002, 17B1003)
- 10.13.2 (17C88, 17C89)
- 10.13.3 beta 2 (17D25b)
- macOS Sierra (10.12.x)
- 10.12 (16A323)
- 10.12.1 (16B2555, 16B2657)
- 10.12.2 (16C67, 16C68)
- 10.12.3 (16D32)
- 10.12.4 (16E195)
- 10.12.5 (16F73, 16F2073)
- 10.12.6 (16G29, 16G1036, 16G1114)
- OS X El Capitan (10.11.x)
- 10.11 (15A284)
- 10.11.1 (15B42)
- 0.11.2 (15C50)
- 10.11.3 (15D21)
- 10.11.4 (15E65)
- 10.11.5 (15F34)
- 10.11.6 (15G31, 15G1004, 15G1108, 15G1212, 15G1217, 15G1421, 15G1510, 15G1611, 15G17023, 15G18013)
- OS X Yosemite (10.10.x)
- 10.10 (14A389)
- 10.10.1 (14B25)
- 10.10.2 (14C109, 14C1510, 14C1514, 14C2043, 14C2513)
- 10.10.3 (14D131, 14D136)
- 10.10.4 (14E46)
- 10.10.5 (14F27, 14F1021, 14F1505, 14F1509, 14F1605, 14F1713, 14F1808, 14F1909, 14F1912, 14F2009, 14F2109, 14F2315, 14F2411, 14F2511)
- OS X Mavericks (10.9.x)
- 10.9 (13A603 – GM2)
- 10.9.1 (13B42)
- 10.9.2 (13C64, 13C1021)
- 10.9.3 (13D65)
- 10.9.4 (13E28)
- 10.9.5 (13F34, 13F1066, 13F1077, 13F1096, 13F1112, 13F1134, 13F1507, 13F1603, 13F1712, 13F1808, 13F1911)
- OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.x)
- 10.8 (12A269 – GM )
10.8.1 (12B19)
10.8.2 (12C54)
12C60 (12C2034, 12C3104)
10.8.3 (12D78)
10.8.4 (12E55, 12E3067, 12E4022)
10.8.5 (12F37, 12F45, 12F2501, 12F2518, 12F2542, 12F2560)
- 10.8 (12A269 – GM )
- Mac OS X Lion (10.7.x)
- 10.7 (11A511, 11A511s, 11A2061, and 11A2063)
- 10.7.1 (11B26, 11B2118)
- 10.7.2 (11C74)
- 10.7.3 (11D50)
- 10.7.4 (11E53)
- 10.7.5 (11G56, 11G63)
- Mac OS X Snow Leopard (10.6.x)
- 10.6 (10A432, 10A433)
10.6.1 (10B504)
10.6.2 (10C540)
10.6.3 (10D573, 10D575, 10D578)
10.6.4 (10F569)
10.6.5 (10H574)
10.6.6 (10J567)
10.6.7 (10J869, 10J3250, 10J4138)
10.6.8 (10K540, 10K549)
- 10.6 (10A432, 10A433)
- Leopard (10.5.x)
- Tiger (10.4.x)
- Panther (10.3.x)
- Jaguar (10.2.x)
- Puma (10.1.x)
- Cheetah (10.0.x)
- Kodiak (Public Beta.x)
- Hera (1.0.x)
If you want to know anything about Mac operating system versions and build numbers please leave a comment below.
Summary:
Illegal file/folder names and conventions for the following operating systems:
Windows
Mac OS 9
Mac OS X
Description:
EXPLANATION & OVERVIEW
In the realm of cross-platform file sharing, sometimes the end users are not aware of the limitations posed by the operating system. This article will explain which characters can cause problems with files that use these characters.
WINDOWS CONVENTIONS
The Windows operating system can use two different file systems, Protected-Mode File Allocation Table (FAT) file system and the New Technology File System (NTFS). The two systems have much in common, but the characters permitted in a file or folder name may differ. In the conventions listed below, it is true for both systems unless otherwise specified. Specifically there are cases where NTFS does not have the limitations (see note below).
The following characters are invalid as file or folder names on Windows using NTFS:
/ ? < > : * | ' and any character you can type with the Ctrl key
In addition to the above illegal characters the caret ^ is also not permitted under Windows Operating Systems using the FAT file system.
Under Windows using the FAT file system file and folder names may be up to 255 characters long
Under Windows using the NTFS file system file and folder names may be up to 256 characters long
Under Window the length of a full path under both systems is 260 characters
In addition to these characters, the following conventions are also illegal:
Placing a space at the end of the name
Placing a period at the end of the name
The following file names are also reserved under Windows:
com1, com2, com3, com4, com5, com6, com7, com8, com9, lpt1, lpt2, lpt3, lpt4, lpt5, lpt6, lpt7, lpt8, lpt9, con, nul, and prn
Note:
The previous conventions are true only if the application used in managing them is does not use the Unicode API. Although the file system may support most of the above mentioned conventions the operating system may not. For example the NTFS file system allow paths to have a length up to 32,767 characters with each component (folder, file, etc.) being limited to 255 characters. However some windows applications like Explorer, for example, may not behave correctly in this circumstance. Other software, like ExtremeZ-IP uses the Unicode API so that file and folder names with invalid characters may be stored onto the NTFS file system.
Below the Macintosh conventions will touch the fact that the colon ':' is an invalid character in the Macintosh Operating Systems. Under Windows and the NTFS file system the colon is an illegal character, because it is used to open alternate file streams. However all other characters can be moved on and off the NTFS file system if a program with Unicode support is used. Both ExtremeZ-IP and MassTransit support this Unicode filenaming convention.
MACINTOSH OS 9 CONVENTIONS
The only illegal character for file and folder names in Mac OS 9 is the colon ':'
File and folder names may be up to 31 characters in length
MACINTOSH OS X CONVENTIONS
Os X Wikipedia
Since Mac OS X is build on top of UNIX there are a few inherent conventions that OS 9 users may not expect. Because of this, migrating certain files and folders from OS 9 to OS X may cause unexpected behavior.
The only illegal character for file and folder names in Mac OS X is the colon ':'
File and folder names are not permitted to begin with a dot '.'
File and folder names may be up to 255 characters in length
EXAMPLES OF UNEXPECTED BEHAVIOR
The only illegal character for file and folder names in Mac OS X is the colon ':'
File and folder names are not permitted to begin with a dot '.'
File and folder names may be up to 255 characters in length
EXAMPLES OF UNEXPECTED BEHAVIOR
Os X Names And Numbers
Below are a few scenarios that show what can happen if file names that are acceptable on one operating system are moved to another:
Example 1:
Create a file named com1 on Mac OS 9
Move the file to a Windows machine
Under Windows 2000 viewing the folder which contains the file via Explorer will result in Explorer crashing
Under Windows 2003 the file name cannot be changed because the file will require inherent access permissions
Example 2:
Create a file named .text on Windows
Move the file to a Mac OS X machine
The file will not be visible via the Finder
(File and folder names beginning with a dot mean the file or folder is hidden)
Example 3:
Create a file named foo/ on Mac OS X
Move the file to a Windows machine
If the file is viewed via Explorer the file name will not appear as it did on the OS X machine