“A looming set of changes to the macOS has some administrators worried that the way they manage and configure Apple systems might also need to be modified,” Shaun Nichols reports for The Register.
“Those changes, which have only been partly revealed by Apple, will see a new file system implemented in the OS and, in the process, a lockdown of key components of the OS – away from attackers and admins alike,” Nichols reports. “Central to the idea is the Apple File System (APFS), a technology Cupertino already uses for iOS that is currently being offered for tests in preview versions of macOS Sierra, with plans for a bootable release next year.”
“When the shift does happen, some admins believe Apple will also institute a number of the security policies and protections being used for iOS devices – such as isolating and protecting core system files – that were described loosely by Apple in its 2016 Black Hat security talk,” Nichols reports. “That move would likely include a shift in the way Apple devices are managed in the enterprise. Administrators would no longer be able to change basic system files – instead, permissions and policy would be instituted via the same Mobile Device Management (MDM) system used for managing iOS devices such as iPads and iPhones.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: APFS will be a boon for the Mac. We expect any Mac management system Apple deploys would be robust.