While using macOS, there will of course be some updates of software on your system. And we don’t just mean major system updates, but also updates of apps and ‘separate’ software, as well as things like Gatekeeper. Check your macOS update history!
When you install a major system update or even upgrade under macOS, you usually remember that. After all, it takes relatively time and falls into the category of more radical operations. But of course there are also the regular app updates. Partly they run via the app store, and partly you undoubtedly also have software on your system that comes from outside that store.
Furthermore, without regular mention, Apple regularly releases updates for security components such as Gatekeeper. That is a kind of protection against malware, in the distance comparable to somewhat fantasy with a virus scanner. Gatekeeper is a standard part of macOS. A database of compatibility data for software is also regularly updated. You do not notice it at all, it is only very small files that have been transferred into the well-known shit and a sigh.
Update history
MacOS has a way to neatly list all updates, or an update history. You can find this in the apple menu at About this Mac to click. In the window that opens, you first see the version of macOS you are running, as well as some essential information about your computer. Including the serial number, which can sometimes come in handy. You now know where to find it. Press the button System overview. A new window will open, click here in the column to the left under the heading Software on Installations. A list of all installed software on the Mac will now appear on the right. To sort this order of updates, click on the column heading Installation date. Click it again to sort the list in descending order so that the most recent updates are at the top (see image at the top of this article).
So you can see at a glance what’s going on on your Mac. And do you, for example, extract software that has not been updated for years. Perhaps it is time to look for an alternative for that type of ‘orphan’ software. Its developer has probably thrown it all in, which means that any bugs and (or) security holes are just as likely never to be repaired. Done watching? Then simply close both open windows.
