PSA: Automatic Update Enables Itself with MacOS Sequoia 15.4 & iOS 18.4

The latest macOS, iOS and iPadOS updates force automatic software updates to enable! Important tips for Mac, iPhone and iPad users: After installing the latest updates of macOS Sequoia 15.4, iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4, your device will force the automatic software update feature of system updates.

Some users may have enabled the automatic update feature and will not notice this change, but many users intentionally disable automatic update and do not want to force it.

Once automatic update is enabled, your Mac, iPhone, or iPad will be automatically downloaded and installed when new system software updates are available without your approval or prompt.

There may be many problems with automatic updates. First, not all users have the bandwidth required to automatically download large software updates. Additionally, not all users want to install the latest software updates immediately when the update is available, and many users prefer to wait for a while to see if there are any serious errors or problems before installing the latest system software on their devices (which is a reasonable prudent practice, although not common, Apple has released some bad software updates in the past that have had to be withdrawn due to various issues). Of course, many Mac, iPhone, and iPad users simply prefer to manually update and manage their devices rather than letting their computers or devices operate on their own.

However, your personal computing habits and opinions don't matter, because Apple knows what is best for you, your iPhone, Mac, and iPad. Apple has decided that you will enable automatic updates on your device, and your installation of iOS 18.4, macOS Sequoia 15.4, or iPadOS 18.4 seems to be considered as consent to this setting change. If you don't like this, you can change it back and disable automatic system software updates.

How to disable automatic updates on your Mac

We've covered this approach before, but since Apple imposed this change on users, we'll go back to it again:

1. From the  Apple menu Go to System Settings and go to General
2. Go to "Software Update"
3. Click the tiny (i) button next to "Auto Update"
4. Toggle the switches for all automatic options you wish to disable

How to disable automatic updates on iPhone and iPad

1. Open the Settings app and go to General and Software Updates
2. Click "Auto Update" and switch the "Auto Install" and "Auto Download" settings to Off

Similarly, these updates will automatically re-enable Apple Intelligence on compatible devices, even if you have turned off this feature before.

This way of forcing system settings to be changed may not be familiar to users who have been using Apple products for a long time (to be fair, Apple has done so before in iOS), because Apple used to be very respectful of users and their preferences, but things have changed, and now Apple knows what is best for you and your device. You will have automatic software updates and you will love your automatic system software updates! But if you don't like it, luckily we can still turn off these settings... so for now.

How do you view such major changes to the software update behavior of Mac, iPhone and iPad systems? Do you mind automatic software updates, or do you don't like them? Please share your thoughts and experiences in the comments.

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