Default wallpaper The default
desktop picture depicts North Lake in the
High Sierra biome.
System Apple File System Apple File System (APFS) replaces
HFS Plus as the default
file system in macOS for the first time with High Sierra.
Metal 2 Metal, Apple's low-level graphics API, has been updated to Metal 2. It includes
virtual reality and
machine-learning features, as well as support for
external GPUs. HEVC hardware acceleration requires a Mac with a
sixth-generation Intel processor or newer (late 2015 27-inch
iMac, mid 2017 21.5-inch iMac, early 2016
MacBook, late 2016
MacBook Pro or
iMac Pro).
Other In High Sierra,
kernel extensions ("kexts") require explicit approval by the user before being able to run. Certain UI elements, such as the Low Battery notification and App Store icon, were redesigned to either be based on the iOS 11 equivalents or match with the overall less detailed design used in all releases since Yosemite. The time service
ntpd was replaced with
timed for the time synchronization. The
FTP and
telnet command line programs were removed. Caching Server, File Sharing Server, and Time Machine Server, features that were previously part of
macOS Server, are now provided as part of the OS. A new “now playing” widget has been added to the Notification Center, based on the music Lock Screen toggle in iOS 11. The screen can now be locked using the shortcut Cmd+Ctrl+Q. The ability to lock screen using a menu bar shortcut activated in Keychain Access preferences has now been removed. The 10.13.4 update added support for external
graphics processors for Macs equipped with
Thunderbolt 3 ports. The update discontinued support for external
graphics processors in 2015 or older Macs, equipped with
Thunderbolt 1 and 2 ports. Starting with 10.13.4, when a 32-bit app is opened, users get a one-time warning about its future incompatibility with the macOS operating system.
Applications Final Cut Pro 7 Apple announced the original
Final Cut Studio suite of programs will not work on High Sierra. Media professionals that depend on any of those programs were advised to create a double boot drive to their computer.
Photos macOS High Sierra gives Photos an updated sidebar and new editing tools.
Safari macOS High Sierra includes Safari 11. Safari 11 has a new "Intelligent Tracking Prevention" feature that uses
machine learning to block third parties from tracking the user's actions. Safari can also block auto playing videos from playing. The "Reader Mode" can be set to always-on. Safari 11 also supports
WebAssembly. The last version of Safari that High Sierra supports is 13.1.2. This version has known security issues.
Notes The
Notes app includes the ability to add tables to notes, and notes can be pinned to the top of the list. The version number was incremented to 4.5.
Siri In High Sierra,
Siri uses a more natural and expressive voice. It also uses machine learning to understand the user better. Siri synchronizes information across iOS and Mac devices so the Siri experience is the same regardless of the product being used.
Messages The release of macOS High Sierra 10.13.5 (and iOS 11.4) introduced support for Messages in iCloud. This feature allows messages to sync across all devices using the same iCloud account. When messages are deleted they are deleted on each device as well, and messages stored in the cloud do not take up local storage on the device anymore. In order to use the feature, the user has to enable
two-factor authentication for their
Apple ID. ==Reception==