Jamf recommends updating operating systems on computers using managed software updates. For more information, see Managed Software Updates in the Jamf Pro Documentation.
This guide provides options and instructions to manage software updates for computers with Jamf Pro. Apple releases a new operating system for computers annually and several minor updates throughout the year. Jamf recommends you upgrade or update to the latest macOS version to reduce security vulnerabilities, support greater user efficiency and productivity with new features, and use new management capabilities.
Jamf Pro supports many methods to deploy software upgrades and updates for computers. These methods include built-in updating mechanisms that you can manage by both command-line tools with Jamf policies for computers or by sending remote commands that leverage Apple's MDM protocol. In some environments, you may want to use additional methods for upgrading computers by utilizing full macOS Install Assistant installer applications.
When deploying macOS upgrades and updates, each deployment method process may have different end user experiences and network bandwidth considerations. Because all software upgrades and updates require time to complete, you should also consider user interruptions and notifications.
Jamf recommends testing these workflows on a small number of computers in your environment before broadly targeting the computers in your organization.