Apple posts OS X Yosemite 10.10.4 with Wi-Fi fixes, Mail and Photos improvements and more

OS X Yosemite Desktop

In addition to the new iOS 8.4 software update with a redesigned Music app, Beats 1 radio and Apple MusicĀ for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad, Apple also released the freeĀ OS X Yosemite 10.10.4 software update for Macs.

In addition to various other big fixes, enhancements and nice-to-haves, this release of OS X Yosemite gets rid of the dreaded ā€œdiscoverydā€ network process which was responsible for a range of network issues, marking the return of the old but way more reliable ā€œmDNSResponderā€ process.

In order to apply the update, open the Mac App Store on your Mac and click the Updates tab.

OS X 10.10.4 update prompt

As I explained before, OS X 10.10.4 should fix a number of complaints regarding Yosemite’s Wi-Fi performance, ranging from intermittent connections, taking a long time to re-connect to a wireless network after waking a Mac from sleep, reduced Wi-Fi performance,Ā discoveryd eating up system resources and leading to excessiveĀ battery drain, and more.

Security content of various Apple updates isĀ listed here.

Here’s what applying OS X Yosemite 10.10.4 does to your Mac:

  • Improves networking reliability
  • Improves Migration Assistant reliability
  • Addresses an issue that prevented some external displays from functioning properly
  • Improves the reliability of upgrading iPhoto and Aperture libraries to Photos
  • Improves reliability when syncing photos and videos to iCloud Photo Library
  • Addresses an issue that could cause Photos to unexpectedly quit after importing some Lecia DNG files
  • Resolves an issue that could delay outgoing email messages in Mail
  • Fixes an issue where a website could prevent the user from navigating away by presenting repeated JavaScript alerts in Safari

For enterprise customers, OS X 10.10.4 addresses an issue where OS X systems bound to directory services could stop responding under certain conditions, adds the ability to create mobile accounts with the createmobileaccount tool and fixes an issue in Profile Manager that could allow a user to install pre-release software even when the setting is disabled.

It’s always a good idea to back up your Mac before installing major OS X updates.

If you use Time Machine, just open System Preferences > Time Machine, tick the ā€œShow Time Machine in menu barā€ box. Now click the Time Machine icon in menu bar and choose Backup Now.

This way, if anything goes awry during the OS X 10.10.4 update process, you’ll have a full backup of your Mac available in Time Machine.