Apple provides release candidate beta of macOS 11.4 for testing

By Malcolm Owen

Apple has provided developers with the fourth beta and release candidate of macOS 11.4 for developer testing.

The latest betas and configuration profiles can be downloaded from the Apple Developer Center, with subsequent changes available as over-the-air updates on enrolled devices. At this point in the cycle, public beta versions usually arrive a few hours later, via the Apple Beta Software Program.

The fourth build follows after the third, which landed on May 10, while the second surfaced on May 4. The first developer beta was released on April 21, followed by the initial public beta on April 22.

Previous betas have offered up no real clues as to what feature changes are being introduced in macOS 11.4, with it starting to seem more like a general performance improvement and bug fix release. One confirmed change in the release notes is that the betas work with new graphics cards based on AMD's Navi RDNA 2 architecture, including the 6800, 6800XT, and 6900XT.

Both AppleInsider and Apple strongly suggest users avoid installing betas on to "mission-critical" or primary devices, due to the potential for data loss or other issues. Instead, the recommendation is to install betas onto secondary or non-essential devices, and to ensure there are sufficient backups of important data before making any major changes.

Find any changes in the new betas? Reach out to us on Twitter at @AppleInsider or @Andrew_OSU, or send Andrew an email at andrew@AppleInsider.com.

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