macOS Sonoma 14
macOS Ventura 13
macOS Monterey 12
macOS Big Sur 11.0
macOS Catalina 10.15
macOS Mojave 10.14
macOS High Sierra
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Table of Contents
macOS User Guide
- Welcome
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- What’s in the menu bar?
- Work on the desktop
- Search with Spotlight
- Quickly change settings
- Use Siri
- Get notifications
- Open apps from the Dock
- Organize your files in the Finder
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- Connect to the internet
- Browse the web
- Preview a file
- Take a screenshot
- Change your display’s brightness
- Adjust the volume
- Use trackpad and mouse gestures
- Use Touch ID
- Print documents
- Keyboard shortcuts
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- Apps on your Mac
- Open apps
- Work with app windows
- Use apps in full screen
- Use apps in Split View
- Use Stage Manager
- Get apps from the App Store
- Install and reinstall apps from the App Store
- Install and uninstall other apps
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- Create and work with documents
- Open documents
- Mark up files
- Combine files into a PDF
- Organize files on your desktop
- Organize files with folders
- Tag files and folders
- Back up files
- Restore files
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- Change System Settings
- Choose your desktop wallpaper
- Add and customize widgets
- Use a screen saver
- Add a user or group
- Add your email and other accounts
- Automate tasks with Shortcuts
- Create Memoji
- Change your login picture
- Change the system language
- Make text and other items on the screen bigger
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- Set up a Focus to stay on task
- Set up Screen Time for yourself
- Use Dictation
- Send emails
- Send text messages
- Make a FaceTime video call
- Edit photos and videos
- Use Live Text to interact with text in a photo
- Start a Quick Note
- Get directions
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- Work across devices using Continuity
- Use iPhone as a webcam
- Use iPhone with Desk View
- Stream audio and video with AirPlay
- Use one keyboard and mouse to control Mac and iPad
- Hand off between devices
- Unlock your Mac with Apple Watch
- Make and receive phone calls on your Mac
- Sync music, books, and more between devices
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- Manage Apple ID settings
- Set your Apple ID picture
- What is iCloud?
- What is iCloud+?
- Store files in iCloud Drive
- Share and collaborate on files and folders
- Manage iCloud storage
- Use iCloud Photos
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- What is Family Sharing?
- Set up Family Sharing
- Set up Screen Time for a child
- Share purchases with your family
- Watch and listen together with SharePlay
- Share a Photo Library
- Collaborate on projects
- Find content shared with you
- Find your family and friends
- Play games with your friends
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- Play music
- Listen to podcasts
- Watch TV shows and movies
- Read and listen to books
- Read the news
- Track stocks and the market
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- Apple Music
- Apple TV+
- Apple Arcade
- Apple News+
- Podcast shows and channels
- Manage subscriptions in the App Store
- View Apple family subscriptions
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- Guard your privacy
- Use Mail Privacy Protection
- Control access to your camera
- Use Sign in with Apple for apps and websites
- Set up your Mac to be secure
- Keep your data safe
- Create a passkey
- Understand passwords
- Keep your Apple ID secure
- Find a missing device
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- Get started with accessibility features
- Vision
- Hearing
- Mobility
- Speech
- General
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- Connect an external display
- Use the built-in camera
- Connect a Bluetooth device
- Use AirPods with your Mac
- Optimize your Mac battery life
- Optimize storage space
- Burn CDs and DVDs
- Control accessories in your home
- Use Windows on your Mac
- Resources for your Mac
- Resources for your Apple devices
- Copyright
The procedures for keeping your backups secure depend on whether you back up to a Time Capsule or other disk that’s on a network, or to a disk connected directly to your Mac.
Encrypt your backup disk
The best way to keep your backups secure is to encrypt your backup disk. When you switch a Time Capsule or network backup disk from unencrypted to encrypted, your existing backups are erased and new encrypted backup sets are created. When you switch locally connected disks (such as an external disk) to encrypted backups, your data is preserved and encrypted.
If you want to change from unencrypted to encrypted backups, you must remove your backup disk and then set it up again. Follow these steps:
On your Mac, choose Apple menu>System Settings > General, then click Time Machine .
Select your backup disk, click Remove , then click Forget Destination.
Set up the disk again as an encrypted backup disk.
For instructions, see Choose a backup disk and set encryption options.
Safeguard a Time Capsule or other network disk
If you back up to a disk that’s used by multiple people, such as a Time Capsule or another network disk, be aware that under some conditions other users could have access to your backups.
Only an administrator or other trusted user should have the password for a network disk used for Time Machine backups. Anyone who knows the password can access any data backed up to the disk, regardless of which user owns the data. If the backup is encrypted, it’s safe from users and network administrators that know the network disk password, but don’t know the backup encryption password.
Don’t back up sensitive data to a network disk if you don’t trust the network administrators who control the disk. Instead, select a backup disk that’s under your own control, such as an external disk connected to your Mac.
For security when backing up to a Time Capsule, an administrator can create individual accounts on the Time Capsule. Each account has its own network volume and password. If you back up to your own account volume on a Time Capsule, other users can’t access your backups unless they know your password.
Note: A Time Capsule set up with individual accounts contains a shared volume. Be sure you select your own volume as your backup disk, using the account name and instructions given to you by the administrator. The shared volume is intended only for information that all users can access.
Safeguard a disk connected directly to your Mac
If you back up to an external disk and don’t use disk encryption, any person who gains possession of that disk can read any data backed up to that disk. Be sure to physically safeguard your backup disk so untrusted users don’t have access to it, and store it in a secure location.
See alsoWays to back up or protect your filesConnect a new backup disk to your Mac
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