MacOS Sonoma 14.6.1 & Ventura 13.6.9 Released with Bug Fixes

If you feel like you have spent a significant amount of your time updating system software on your Apple devices lately, you’re in for a treat; another round of system software updates! This time around, Apple has released MacOS Sonoma 14.6.1 along with MacOS Ventura 13.6.9 for Macs, complete with bug fixes, just one week after releasing MacOS Sonoma 14.6 and Ventura 13.6.8.

But that’s not all. The update adventures are not over, since Apple has also released iOS 17.6.1 for iPhone, iPadOS 17.6.1 for iPad, iOS 16.7.10 for older iPhone, and iPadOS 16.7.10 for older iPad models, so you’ll be busy with yet another round of installing updates on multiple devices.

How to Download & Install MacOS Sonoma 14.6.1 Update / MacOS Ventura 13.6.9

Don’t forget to use Time Machine to backup your Mac first, just in case something goes wrong.

1. Go to the  Apple menu and then to “System Settings”
2. In System Settings, go to “General” and then “Software Update”
3. Choose to “Update Now” to download and install MacOS Sonoma 14.6.1 or MacOS Ventura 13.6.9, depending on your MacOS version

Even though it’s a point release update with a bug fix, you’ll still need to restart your Mac to complete the installation.

If you’re running Ventura instead, you’ll find MacOS Ventura 13.6.9 with bug fixes instead of Sonoma 14.6.1.

MacOS Monterey users will be disappointed or relieved to discover they don’t have yet another update awaiting them (yet anyway).

MacOS Sonoma 14.6.1 Installer Direct Download

You can download a full installer for Sonoma 14.6.1, useful for making boot disks and the sort, from Apple:

• macOS Sonoma 14.6.1 InstallAssistant.pkg

MacOS Sonoma 14.6.1 IPSW Restore Firmware File

IPSW for Sonoma 14.6.1 is also available, which is handy if you want to restore a Mac or build a Sonoma VM:

• MacOS Sonoma 14.6.1 IPSW

Download the MacOS Ventura 13.6.9 Package Installer

• MacOS Ventura 13.6.9

MacOS Sonoma 14.6.1 Release Notes

Release notes for MacOS Sonoma 14.6.1 and MacOS Ventura 13.6.9 are short:

This update provides important bug fixes.

Be sure to check your iPhone and iPad for updates too, since iOS 17.6.1 for iPhone, iPadOS 17.6.1 for iPad, iOS 16.7.10 for older iPhone, and iPadOS 16.7.10 for older iPads, are also available.

With time consuming system software updates coming so frequently from Apple, you might be starting to see the utility of enabling auto-updates, whereby devices at least update themselves over night when they’re not in use. You can toggle that setting on in your Software Update preferences on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac.