About the Mac OS X 10.4.4 Update (Combo)

The Mac OS X 10.4.4 Update (Combo) updates Mac OS X 10.4, 10.4.1, 10.4.2, or 10.4.3 to version 10.4.4. (Note: This document discusses the Mac OS X 10.4.4 client update, if you're looking for Mac OS X 10.4.4 Server Update information, see this article.)

Important: Please read before installing.

• You may experience unexpected results if you have third-party system software modifications installed, or if you've modified the operating system through other means. (This does not apply to normal application software installation.)
• The installation process should not be interrupted. If a power outage or other interruption occurs during installation, use the standalone installer (see below) from Apple Downloads to update.
• If issues occur during installation—for example, Software Update quits unexpectedly—please see this article.

Installation

You have two ways to update to Mac OS X 10.4.4: Use Software Update or the standalone installer. You only need to use one of these methods to update your computer.

Automatic Software Update
Software Update, located in System Preferences, can automatically download and install the latest Apple software. (Software Update might have linked you to this article to learn more about the update.)

Software Update notes:

• The update's size may vary from computer to computer when installed using Software Update.
• Because some updates are prerequisites for others, you may need to run Software Update more than once to get all available updates.

Standalone installer
Two versions of the installer (Delta and Combo, described below) are available from Apple Downloads as standalone updates. After you download an update, you can use it to update your computer without being connected to the Internet.

• The Delta Update installer (described in this article) updates Mac OS X 10.4.3 to 10.4.4.

• The Combo Update installer (described here) updates Mac OS X 10.4, 10.4.1, 10.4.2, or 10.4.3 to 10.4.4.

The standalone installer, particularly the Combo Update described here, is useful if you have multiple computers to update and only want to download the update once.

Improvements

This update offers many improvements. For a list of some of them, see this article.