Prepare your Mac to jump from 32-bit to 64-bit applications from macOS Catalina (and II)

With this article we close the review of applications that today are compatible with the current operating system of our Mac, macOS Mojave or earlier, and will no longer be supported after installing macOS Catalina. Remember that it will foreseeably be available from September and therefore, it is appropriate to do the review as soon as possible to avoid last minute rush.

In the previous article we saw the most used applications on our Mac, which are written in 32 bits. Most are old versions of applications that have a current version, written in 64 bits and 100% compatible. Although there are some like iPhoto or Aperture that will cease to be operational.

Today we will see how to identify the operations we have on our Mac, to check their compatibility. There are many methods for this. In previous articles de Soy de Mac, we provided you with a form of verification. We recommend you read the article.

Another option is to install the application 32bits Check. We link you an article where the operation is described. In this article we have a link to download the application. Once installed, we recommend you go to the / Applications folder, and it will list which applications are running in 32 bits. With this application it is also possible to find which software components use a 32-bit "legacy" process, and thus create the same problem.

Another check option is run our Mac only in 64-bit mode. To do this, you must start the Mac by pressing the Cmd + R key. In this way you will enter the recovery participation. Now follow this path: Utilities> Terminal. Now type the following command:

nvram boot-args="-no32exec"

Restart your Mac, and it will only run 64-bit applications. Now test applications and peripherals. If one fails you, it may be due to this incompatibility. After testing, go back to the standard version, going back to the recovery partition (Cmd + R), but this time type the command:

nvram boot-args=""

And the last tip is, when in doubt, check with the developer or Apple, as appropriate. You are also not required to upgrade to macOS CatalinaTherefore, please rate the update in advance.