Mac OS X 10.6.2 is now available in Software Update in the Apple menu and via direct download:
Weighing in at almost 500MB, this is a significant update that’s been in the works for months. Here are the highlights according to Apple:
The 10.6.2 Update is recommended for all users running Mac OS X Snow Leopard and includes general operating system fixes that enhance the stability, compatibility, and security of your Mac, including fixes for:
- an issue that might cause your system to logout unexpectedly
- a graphics distortion in Safari Top Sites
- Spotlight search results not showing Exchange contacts
- a problem that prevented authenticating as an administrative user
- issues when using NTFS and WebDAV file servers
- the reliability of menu extras
- an issue with the 4-finger swipe gesture
- an issue that causes Mail to quit unexpectedly when setting up an Exchange server
- Address Book becoming unresponsive when editing
- a problem adding images to contacts in Address Book
- an issue that prevented opening files downloaded from the Internet
- Safari plug-in reliability
- general reliability improvements for iWork, iLife, Aperture, Final Cut Studio, MobileMe, and iDisk
- an issue that caused data to be deleted when using a guest account
That last item deserves a bit more of a mention. Mac OS X provides a Guest login feature where you can allow someone to use your machine without granting the access to any of your data. When they’re finished they log out and all traces of what they were ding are automatically deleted.
Except in 10.6.0 and 10.6.1 there was a fairly major bug in this feature. In some cases, when you logged back in after the guest logged out your home folder and all of its contents would be deleted!
So if you use the Guest login feature this is a very important update.
Also of note, this update reportedly removes some of the OS code required to run 10.6 on non-Apple, Intel Atom processor based netbooks. This has never been sanctioned by Apple, but machines like the Dell mini 9 have been very popular in “Hackintosh” circles. If this includes you, updating to 10.6.2 is not a good idea at this time.
As usual we recommend using Disk Utility’s Verify Disk and Repair Disk permissions before installing the update. Using the Combo Updater may result in fewer problems and feel free to wait a day or two for the dust to settle before applying it.
How did the update go for you? Post your results in the comments!