MacOS and OSX compatibility for Endpoint Protection
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MacOS and OSX compatibility for Endpoint Protection

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Article ID: 152316

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Updated On:

Products

Endpoint Protection

Issue/Introduction

Compatibility information between the Symantec Endpoint Protection (SEP) client and macOS / OS X.

Resolution

Table of Contents

SEP 14.x Client for macOS/OS X Compatibility Chart

Mac Code Names and Version Numbers

High Sierra

 Mojave Catalina Big Sur

Monterey

Ventura

macOS 10.13

macOS 10.14 – 10.14.4

macOS 10.14.5 – 10.14.6

macOS 10.15 – 10.15.7

macOS 11.x

macOS 12.x

 macOS 13

14.0.1, 14.0.1 MP1, 14.2

  

14.2 MP1

  

14.2 RU1

  

14.2 RU1 (refresh)

  

14.2 RU1 MP1

  

14.2 RU2, 14.2 RU2 MP1

  

14.3, 14.3 MP1

  
 

14.3 RU1, 14.3 RU1-MP1, 14.3 RU2

  

 

14.3 RU3, 14.3 RU5

14.3 RU5

 

14.3 RU6

Note: Different product versions have specific system requirements.

  • The SEP client for Mac is managed by a Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager (SEPM) on a Windows server.
  • The Symantec Endpoint Security (SES) client for Mac is cloud-based and managed by the Integrated Cyber Defense Manager (ICDM) web page.
  • The SES Mac client is only supported on macOS 10.15.x and 11.x with the SES Mac agent build 14.3 RU1 and newer.

Symantec Agent for Mac version (SEPM)

Release Name Version (Build Number)
14.3 RU6 14.3.9204.6000
14.3 RU5 14.3.8263.5000
14.3 RU3 14.3.5055.3000
14.3 RU2 14.3.4625.2000
14.3 RU1 MP1 (Mac Hotfix) 14.3.3589.1100
14.3 RU1 MP1 14.3.3580.1100
14.3 RU1 (Hotfix) 14.3.3390.1000
14.3 RU1 14.3.3385.1000

*Mac versions prior to 14.3 RU1 follow the same versioning as Windows clients

Additional Notes

  • There is no 14.3 RU7 Mac client. The 14.3 RU7 Full installer download ships with the 14.3 RU6 Mac client.
  • MacOS 13 Ventura is currently supported on 14.3 RU5 and 14.3 RU6.
  • The 14.3 RU5 Full installer download ships with the 14.3 RU3 Mac client. The 14.3 RU5 Mac client will download to the SEPM when Liveupdate is run on the SEPM server.
  • There is no 14.3 RU4 Mac client. The 14.3 RU4 Full installer download ships with the 14.3 RU3 Mac client.
  • Apple M1 (M1 Pro/M1 Max/M1 Ultra) supported from SEP 14.3 RU2 and later.
  • Apple M2 is supported from SEP 14.3 RU5 and later.
  • Neither Apple or Symantec support macOS 10.12.x or older
  • Mac OS X 64-bit mode is supported.
  • PowerPC processors are not supported as of version 12.1.x.
  • As of version 12.1.2, SEP supports case-sensitivity in HFS volumes. Case-sensitive APFS volumes are not supported.
  • Remove legacy Symantec AntiVirus (SAV) for Mac installations before installing Symantec Endpoint Protection. 
    See Remove Symantec software for Mac using RemoveSymantecMacFiles.
  • Mac clients for Symantec Endpoint Protection Cloud do not support Mac OS X 10.11 (El Capitan).
  • As of macOS 10.13, you must authorize the Symantec Endpoint Protection kernel extension after installation for Symantec Endpoint Protection to fully function. You are prompted during the client installation to do it if needed.

    If you do not do it during the client installation, go to System Preferences > Security & Privacy, and click Allow. Neither Symantec Endpoint Protection nor the Mac operating system continue to remind you that you must do this.

    You only need to authorize the kernel extension once during the life of the computer's operating system. If you uninstall and reinstall the client, you don't need to reauthorize the kernel extension. If you have Symantec Endpoint Protection 14 and then upgrade to macOS 10.13, you don't need to reauthorize the kernel extension. However, if you reinstall the operating system, you need to reauthorize the kernel extension.
    See About authorizing kernel extensions for Symantec Endpoint Protection for macOS 10.15.
  • Kext notarization was added in macOS 10.14.5. If you install a client version earlier than 14.2 RU1 (refresh) on macOS 10.14.5, or upgrade the operating system to macOS 10.14.5 with an earlier version of Symantec Endpoint Protection already installed, you may experience issues. 
    See Endpoint Protection 14.2 RU1 and kext notarization for macOS 10.14.5.

Intrusion Prevention

Intrusion Prevention (IPS) is available in SEP 12.1.4 and later.

Device Control

Device Control is available in SEP 14 and later. You can only enable Device Control for managed clients.

Firewall

SEP client versions earlier than 14.2 do not include a firewall.

IPS was introduced in SEP 12.1.4, but broader firewall support (e.g. traffic rules) and feature parity with the Windows product was not included until version 14.2 and later. This firewall is only available to managed clients.

Web and Cloud Access Protection

SEP 14.3 RU6 introduced macOS management of Web and Cloud Access Protection via ICDm.

SEP 14.2 introduced basic PAC file management to the SEP for Mac client.

SEP 14.2 RU1 expanded this to support full explicit Web and Cloud Access Protection, including seamless identification with Cloud SWG (formerly known as WSS).

SEP 14.3 RU5 provided tunneling functionality with Web and Cloud Access Protection, including seamless identification with Cloud SWG (formerly known as WSS).
Note: SEP 14.2 RU1 MP1, or newer, is recommended for Web and Cloud Access Protection on macOS due to numerous fixes introduced with that release.

SEP 12.1.x Support

The End of Standard Support Life fell on April 3, 2019. See End of Support Life for Endpoint Protection 12.x.

SEP 11.x Support

Support for SEP version 11.x ended on January 5, 2015.

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