Rosetta is a dynamic binary translator developed by Apple Inc. for macOS, an application compatibility layer between different instruction set architectures. It gives developers and consumers a transition period in which to update their application software to run on newer hardware, by 'translating' it to run on the different architecture. The name 'Rosetta' is a reference to the Rosetta Stone, the artifact which enabled translation of Egyptian hieroglyphs.^[1]

The first version of Rosetta, introduced in 2006 as a component of Mac OS X Tiger, allows PowerPC applications to run on Intel-based Macs. The second version, introduced in 2020 as a component of macOS Big Sur, is part of the Mac transition from Intel processors to Apple silicon.^[2]

Background[edit]

Apple has used four series of CPU architectures in its Macintosh line of computers: the Motorola 68000 series, the PowerPC series, the Intel Core series, and its own series of ARM-type processors. Each transition has rendered software produced for the earlier architecture incompatible with the new one, creating a need for software allowing the newer platform to emulate the previous one.

When it introduced its first PowerPC systems, Apple included software in System 7.1.2 and later versions of the operating system to emulate a 68000-series system. This emulator takes advantage of features built into the PowerPC processors, and accesses the very lowest levels of the OS, running at the same level as – and tightly connected to – the Mac OS nanokernel. This means that the nanokernel is able to intercept PowerPC interrupts, translate them to 68k interrupts (then doing a mixed mode switch, if necessary), and then execute 68k code to handle the interrupts. This allows lines of 68k and PowerPC code to be interspersed within the same fat binary.

Starting with OS X 10.7 Lion, OS X does not support the 'Rosetta' environment for running PowerPC based applications. This is a list of common PowerPC applications with information on upgrades and alternatives. Virtualise Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard (Server). First, thanks for thenprompt reply. Well, I am trying to do a test run of antibody-antigen docking via rosettadock3.3. Reading their manual, its suggested to have biopython as part of setting up the workspace environment. Publisher's note: When Mac OS X 10.7 Lion ships later this year, Rosetta, which has allowed Intel-based Macs to run PowerPC (PPC) software since 2006, will no longer be part of the Mac OS. Mac OS X 10.6 signals a shift at Apple as the company looks to the future of its operating system, and a clear example of that was the move to offer Rosetta as an optional install instead of.

Rosetta[edit]

Apple released the first version of Rosetta in 2006 when it began switching the Macintosh line from the PowerPC to the Intel processor. It was initially included with Mac OS X v10.4.4 'Tiger', the version that was released with the first Intel-based Macs, and allows many PowerPC applications to run on Intel-based Mac computers without modification. Rosetta is based on QuickTransit technology.^[3] It has no user interface, and launches as needed with no notification of the user, which led Apple to describe it as 'the most amazing software you'll never see'.^[4] Rosetta is not installed by default in Mac OS X v10.6 'Snow Leopard', but is available as an installable option.^[5] Rosetta is neither included nor supported in Mac OS X v10.7 'Lion' or later, which therefore cannot run PowerPC applications.^[5]

Because of the greater architectural differences between Intel and PowerPC processors, Rosetta operates at a higher level than the 68000 emulator did, as a user-level program that can only intercept and emulate user-level code. It translates G3, G4, and AltiVec instructions, but not G5 instructions. Although most commercial software for PowerPC-based Macs was compatible with these requirements (G4 systems were still widely used at the time), any applications that relied on G5-specific instructions had to be modified by their developers to work on Rosetta-supported Intel-based Macs. Apple advised that applications with heavy user interaction but low computational needs (such as word processors) would be best suited to use with Rosetta, while applications with high computational needs (such as games, AutoCAD, or Photoshop) would not.^[6]

Rosetta also does not support the following:^[7]

• The Classic environment, and thus any non-Carbon application built for Mac OS 9 or earlier
• Code that inserts preferences into the System Preferences pane
• Applications that require precise exception handling
• Screen savers
• Kernel extensions and applications that depend on them
• Bundled Java applications or Java applications with JNI libraries that cannot be translated
• Java applets in Rosetta-translated applications, meaning that a native Intel web browser application, rather than a legacy PowerPC version, must be used to load Java applets

Rosetta 2[edit]

In 2020, Apple announced Rosetta 2, to be included starting with macOS Big Sur and aid in the Mac transition to Apple Silicon from Intel processors.^[2][8] In addition to the just-in-time (JIT) translation support available in Rosetta, Rosetta 2 includes support for ahead-of-time compilation (AOT) translation when an application is installed.^[9] Rosetta 2's performance has been praised greatly.^[10][11] In some benchmarks, Rosetta 2 performed better than the older native Intel hardware Macs used. Rosetta 2 works for a lot of software, but not all, some doesn't work at all,^[12] or reported 'sluggish'.^[13] A lot of software could be made compatible with the new Macs, by recompiling by the vendor of the software, often a simple task, while for some software (such as software that includes assembly language code, or that generates machine code), the changes to make work aren't simple or automated.

Similar to the first version, Rosetta 2 does not normally require user intervention. When a user attempts to launch an Intel-only application for the first time, macOS prompts them to install Rosetta 2 if it is not already available. Subsequent launches of x86 programs will execute via translation automatically. An option also exists to force a universal binary to run as Intel code through Rosetta 2, even on an ARM-based machine.

See also[edit]

• Fat binary § Apple's fat binary – combined 68k/PPC applications that run natively on both processors
• Universal binary – combined PPC/Intel applications that run natively on both processors
• Universal 2 binary – combined Intel/ARM applications that run natively on both processors

References[edit]

Mac Os 10.7 Iso

1. ^Core Duo iMacs debut speedy new chipsArchived March 3, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
2. ^ ^abWarren, Tom (June 22, 2020). 'Apple is switching Macs to its own processors starting later this year'. The Verge. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
3. ^'The brains behind Apple's Rosetta: Transitive'. CNET News.com. June 8, 2005. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved July 4, 2007.
4. ^'Rosetta'. Apple. Archived from the original on November 16, 2010. Retrieved September 5, 2011.
5. ^ ^abAppleInsider Staff (February 26, 2011). 'Mac OS X Lion drops Front Row, Java runtime, Rosetta'. AppleInsider. AppleInsider, Inc. Archived from the original on April 29, 2014. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
6. ^'Rosetta'(PDF). Universal Binary Programming Guidelines, Second Edition. Apple. Archived from the original(PDF) on August 3, 2012. Retrieved September 5, 2011.
7. ^'What Can Be Translated?'(PDF). Universal Binary Programming Guidelines, Second Edition. Apple. Archived from the original(PDF) on August 3, 2012. Retrieved September 5, 2011.
8. ^Mayo, Benjamin (June 22, 2020). 'Apple announces Mac architecture transition from Intel to its own ARM chips, offers emulation path'. 9to5Mac. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
9. ^WWDC2020 Keynote. Apple Inc. June 22, 2020. Event occurs at 1h39m37s. It translates the apps when you install them, so they can launch immediately and can be instantly responsive. Rosetta 2 can also translate code on the fly when needed.
10. ^Evans, Jonny (November 19, 2020). 'Everything you need to know about Rosetta 2 on Apple Silicon Macs'. Computerworld. Retrieved December 8, 2020.
11. ^'Yeah, Apple's M1 MacBook Pro is powerful, but it's the battery life that will blow you away'. TechCrunch. Retrieved December 8, 2020.
12. ^Carlton, Sam (December 8, 2020). 'ThatGuySam/doesitarm'. Retrieved December 8, 2020.
13. ^'r/mac - Apps on Rosetta 2'. reddit. Retrieved December 8, 2020.

External links[edit]

• Apple Rosetta Web site at the Wayback Machine (archived January 7, 2011)
• Transitive Corporation web site at the Wayback Machine (archived September 14, 2008)
• Rosetta compatibility index
  • Does it ARM? – a similar compatibility page for the current Rosetta 2

macOS is the operating system used in Macintosh computers since their introduction in 1984. Some appliances (notably the iPhone and iPad) also run derivative versions of Mac OS, named iOS. The current version is macOS High Sierra (10.13), which is derived from NeXTSTEP, and has a Mach-based microkernel running a BSD compatibility layer. Most applications are written in Objective-C and Swift using the Cocoa framework.

Mac Os X 10.6.8 Upgrade To 10.7

Versions of macOS from 10.0 to 10.11 were branded as Mac OS X, and the current release is still unofficially referred to as such. Previous versions were simply called Mac OS, while the oldest versions were referred to as System followed by the version number, e.g. 'System 7'.

'Mac' is a term which describes the broader class of Apple computer hardware and their Macintosh operating systems.

Pre-X versions of Mac OS (Mac OS 9 and lower) were written in-house at Apple and were based in part on the slightly earlier Lisa Office System. 'Classic' Mac OS is still in use on many older Macs, especially 68k Macs (Macs with a Motorola 680x0 processor), which are unable to run versions newer than 8.1. (In fact, many older Macs can't run OS 8 at all.) Depending on the specific model, PowerPC Macs support anywhere from System 7.1.2 up to OS X 10.5. (OS X 10.6 dropped support for PowerPC Macs, although an emulation layer called Rosetta was included through 10.6.8 to run PowerPC apps on Intel Macs.)