Support Tip: Install Rosetta 2 on new Apple Silicon (M1) Macs to run apps built for Intel Macs

by | Jan 22, 2021 | Technology | 0 comments

This article is contributed. See the original author and article here.

Apple recently announced Apple Silicon Macs. These devices run on 64-bit ARM (RISC) CPUs relative to the previous generation of Macs that ran on Intel CPUs. Apple also announced a translation layer called Rosetta 2 that allows apps built for Intel Macs to run on the new Apple Silicon Macs.


 


Intune apps on macOS such as Intune Company Portal and the Intune MDM agent depend on the Rosetta 2 translation layer for managing Apple Silicon Macs. If you purchase a new Apple Silicon Mac running macOS 11.x (Big Sur), Rosetta 2 does not come pre-installed and the end-user is prompted by macOS to install it on first launch of an Intel-based application.


 


macOS installation prompt for RosettamacOS installation prompt for Rosetta


 


If you are upgrading to macOS 11 on Intel Macs, this is not an issue.


 


Issue: Apple Silicon (M1) Macs fail to run shell scripts when enrolled via Apple Automated Device Enrollment (ADE)


In this scenario, the device gets enrolled into Intune using macOS Setup Assistant. If you have configured shell scripts for these Macs, the Intune MDM agent is automatically installed on the Mac. However, the Intune MDM agent cannot start because Rosetta 2 is not installed. macOS 11 does not prompt the end user to install Rosetta 2 in this case.


 


If you are enrolling your Apple Silicon Macs using Company Portal, you will be prompted to install Rosetta 2 on first launch of Company Portal.


 


Recommendation


Install Rosetta 2 on Apple Silicon Macs to ensure app compatibility with Intel-based apps using one of the following steps:




  • Recommend users to install Rosetta 2 manually by launching any installed Intel-based app on the Apple Silicon Mac.




  • Recommend users to open Terminal and run the following command or provide a script that runs this command to users:



    • /usr/sbin/softwareupdate --install-rosetta (root permission not required)


    • /usr/sbin/softwareupdate --install-rosetta --agree-to-license (root permission required)





 


Let us know if you have any additional questions on this by replying back to this post or tagging @IntuneSuppTeam out on Twitter.

Brought to you by Dr. Ware, Microsoft Office 365 Silver Partner, Charleston SC.

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