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Apple releases Security Update 2010-001, Boot Camp 3.1 and Windows 7 support updates

Apple has released a security update for OS X, which currently is for Leopard and Snow Leopard systems. Apple has not issued any details on the update yet, and so far only states these updates improve the security of OS X.

Topher Kessler MacFixIt Editor
Topher, an avid Mac user for the past 15 years, has been a contributing author to MacFixIt since the spring of 2008. One of his passions is troubleshooting Mac problems and making the best use of Macs and Apple hardware at home and in the workplace.
Topher Kessler
3 min read

UPDATED! Full Windows 7 support includes more than just installing the Boot Camp update!

Apple has released a security update for OS X, which currently is for Leopard and Snow Leopard systems. Apple has not issued any details on the update yet, and so far only states these updates improve the security of OS X. Additionally, Apple has released the long-awaited support for Windows 7 with an update to Boot Camp and several driver and firmware updates for people upgrading from Vista.

Security Updates

As with other security updates, these generally address critical vulnerabilities in the system where hackers and malicious software can take advantage and either compromise the system or steal personal information. Be sure to back up before applying these updates, but it is highly recommended that you apply the updates, especially since once they are released Apple generally details the specifics of the update in a knowledgebase article.

The updates should be available through Software Update, but are also available from the following pages at Apple:

The update for Snow Leopard should be applicable to both the client and server, unlike the Leopard updaters which have been released for both the client and server separately.

Boot Camp

Along with the security updates, Apple has finally released the long-awaited update to Boot Camp which provides official support for Windows 7. While people have been able to run Windows 7 in Boot Camp, this update includes official drivers from Apple to support all Mac hardware in the latest version of Windows. Specifically, the update addresses issues with the trackpad and wireless keyboards, and adds support for the new Magic Mouse. Additionally, it fixes the problem where the red light in audio jacks was staying illuminated during sleep modes.

The update is available at the following Apple support page, and weighs in at 274.58MB: http://support.apple.com/kb/DL979

It is highly recommended that you update the Boot Camp software, especially if you are running Windows 7.

UPDATE: Windows 7 FAQ Available. For people who have had questions about Apple's support for Windows 7, Apple has a FAQ that covers what versions of Windows 7 are supported, along with the Macs that can run it and a few problems that people may encounter when installing Windows 7. The FAQ is available here, and I recommend you look it over before installing Windows 7 for the first time: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3986

UPDATE 2: Driver and Firmware updates for Windows 7 support. In addition to the boot camp drivers, apple has released a utility for upgrading from Vista in Boot Camp partitions. If you are updating from Vista, be sure to run this utility first, which unmounts the Mac partition so the upgrade will not touch it. The utility should be downloaded and run from within Windows Vista before upgrading, and can be obtained at this website: http://support.apple.com/kb/DL977

Apple has also released an graphics firmware update for people running NVidia Geforce 7300GT, 7600GT, and Quadro FX 4500 graphics processors, which provides graphics compatibility with Windows 7 when running in Boot Camp. These machines include iMacs and Mac Pro systems, and the update can be downloaded from the following web page but also should be available in Software Update: http://support.apple.com/kb/DL978

While it will not hurt to update the graphics firmware if you do not use Boot Camp, the update is not required if you only run the Mac OS or Windows versions other than Windows 7. This update should be installed before updating your Windows installation, and Apple provides installation instructions here: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3967



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