# BEWARE Mac Security Update 2020-002!



## whinecellar (Apr 1, 2020)

Mac guys: Apple has another epic fail ready to completely screw up your MacBook “Pro” (among other machines) - rendering it anything BUT professional. 

The new “Security Update 2020-002” *disables* one of the two left USB-C/Thunderbolt ports, making it useless. In my case, there goes my 4-SSD RAID array and UA Apollo rig. No big deal, JUST THE CENTERPIECE OF MY WHOLE STUDIO.

I don’t know what they’re smoking in Cupertino, but this is insanity. I’ve tried SMC reset and other troubleshooting to no avail - and a quick search shows other people having the same issue. Even tried booting from a safety clone thinking it was a system software glitch, but it must have done something in firmware so rolling back won’t fix it.

Thanks, Apple. I have no idea what I’m going to do but I have a lot of work that needs to get done. 

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/security-updates-may-disable-usb-c-thunderbolt-port.2227917/


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## Wunderhorn (Apr 1, 2020)

Same happens on the 2019 Mac Pro. For some people the SMC reset works, but not in all cases. Happened over here as well and I called Apple support. They don't want to acknowledge that the issue is connected to the system update and suggest to bring the computer to one of the closed stores and camp out there for a few weeks/months until they re-open. They do not offer an option to mail it in either. Thus conveniently avoiding customers who need help.


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## whinecellar (Apr 1, 2020)

Wunderhorn said:


> Same happens on the 2019 Mac Pro. For some people the SMC reset works, but not in all cases. Happened over here as well and I called Apple support. They don't want to acknowledge that the issue is connected to the system update and suggest to bring the computer to one of the closed stores and camp out there for a few weeks/months until they re-open. They do not offer an option to mail it in either. Thus conveniently avoiding customers who need help.



You’ve GOT to be kidding me... even under AppleCare?!


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## kenose (Apr 1, 2020)

Wunderhorn said:


> Same happens on the 2019 Mac Pro. For some people the SMC reset works, but not in all cases. Happened over here as well and I called Apple support. They don't want to acknowledge that the issue is connected to the system update and suggest to bring the computer to one of the closed stores and camp out there for a few weeks/months until they re-open. They do not offer an option to mail it in either. Thus conveniently avoiding customers who need help.


Wow.


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## Wunderhorn (Apr 2, 2020)

whinecellar said:


> You’ve GOT to be kidding me... even under AppleCare?!



Well, it's April 1st, but no, not kidding. It does not matter whether you have Apple Care or not - There is no mail-in service for Mac Pros.
I told them about several threads e.g. on Macrumors where people are reporting this issue. Apple does not see any validity - or even potential validity in any of these sources. At least this was the impression I got when I spoke to them. Luckily I can still operate. But I do now have a brand new "flagship computer" that is crippled with no real prospect on a fix. At least for now.


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## Silence-is-Golden (Apr 2, 2020)

whinecellar said:


> Mac guys: Apple has another epic fail ready to completely screw up your MacBook “Pro” (among other machines) - rendering it anything BUT professional.
> 
> The new “Security Update 2020-002” *disables* one of the two left USB-C/Thunderbolt ports, making it useless. In my case, there goes my 4-SSD RAID array and UA Apollo rig. No big deal, JUST THE CENTERPIECE OF MY WHOLE STUDIO.
> 
> ...


thanks for posting so mac users like myself can avoid the problems for now.
i hope for your ( and others) sake that a fix will appear soon. Even though it seems a deeper firmware issue as well....


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## jcrosby (Apr 2, 2020)

whinecellar said:


> Mac guys: Apple has another epic fail ready to completely screw up your MacBook “Pro” (among other machines) - rendering it anything BUT professional.
> 
> The new “Security Update 2020-002” *disables* one of the two left USB-C/Thunderbolt ports, making it useless. In my case, there goes my 4-SSD RAID array and UA Apollo rig. No big deal, JUST THE CENTERPIECE OF MY WHOLE STUDIO.
> 
> ...


I feel your pain! I've been down this road myself. Not with this particular update, but with Security Update 2018-002 which caused "crackling audio" (which actually is related to some kind of jitter induced by some process in the OS). The issue eventually blew out the tweeters in the MacBook and the thing's sounded muffled ever since. Ever since then I've been crazy careful about security updates.

Thanks for the heads up, unfortunately I know how this plays out... You'll spend days scheduling phone calls with support, ultimately going nowhere. The most you'll get out of it is a reply from engineering telling you to update to Catalina if you're not on Catalina. (I'd wager my studio on this, this was the same line they fed me with Mojave, only people continued to report the issue happening in Mojave.)

I'd highly suggest skipping go and filing a complaint with customer relations immediately. Knowing how this plays out you'll most likely get nowhere and suggest filing a complaint about the unresolved previous one. Unfortunately there's not much else you can do short of contacting Apple corporate.

*Here's all of the contact info I have:*

[email protected]

Attention: Craig Federighi
Office of the CEO, Apple Inc.
One Apple Park Way,
Cupertino CA, 95014

[email protected]

Office of the CEO, Tim Cook
One Apple Park Way,
Cupertino CA, 95014



Also for reference this is how badly that security update wrecked my machine:


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## jcrosby (Apr 2, 2020)

Wunderhorn said:


> Well, it's April 1st, but no, not kidding. It does not matter whether you have Apple Care or not - There is no mail-in service for Mac Pros.
> I told them about several threads e.g. on Macrumors where people are reporting this issue. Apple does not see any validity - or even potential validity in any of these sources. At least this was the impression I got when I spoke to them. Luckily I can still operate. But I do now have a brand new "flagship computer" that is crippled with no real prospect on a fix. At least for now.


I've been there! Apple simply will not acknowledge these kinds of issues in a support call. Frankly the incident in the video above is the defining factor that lead me to build a hackintosh instead of buying a Mac Pro. Unfortunately with the MBP it's not as simple as taking matters into your own hands... Not sure what I'm going to do when it's time to replace this one, but Apple has completely shot all credibility with me AFAIC.

To the OP, unfortunately this is true. Something has gone completely askew at Apple and their service is essentially useless when it comes to issues kicked off by an update. They simply have no resources allocated to deal with it, even just in the form of logging bugs... I know how disheartening it is to hear, but it is the unpleasant reality of the situation.


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## Mike Marino (Apr 2, 2020)

whinecellar said:


> The new “Security Update 2020-002” *disables* one of the two left USB-C/Thunderbolt ports, making it useless.


Happened to me as well...


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## Cat (Apr 2, 2020)

so is this only MacBook Pros and Mac Pros? Or also iMacs and Mac Minis?

I have a 2018 Mac Mini updated to the latest and it all seems fine...Should I expect problems sown the road? I will stop any future updates for sure!


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## MGdepp (Apr 2, 2020)

Oh man ... I was just thinking about buying a 2019 Mac Pro. But I am not sure about that, reading this. Question: can’t you go back to the last time machine version before the update?
And does this concern Catalina, Mojave or both?


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## zvenx (Apr 2, 2020)

He did say  :


> I don’t know what they’re smoking in Cupertino, but this is insanity. *I’ve tried SMC reset and other troubleshooting to no avail -* and a quick search shows other people having the same issue. Even tried booting from a safety clone thinking it was a system software glitch, but it must have done something in firmware so rolling back won’t fix it.



rsp


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## whinecellar (Apr 2, 2020)

MGdepp said:


> Oh man ... I was just thinking about buying a 2019 Mac Pro. But I am not sure about that, reading this. Question: can’t you go back to the last time machine version before the update?
> And does this concern Catalina, Mojave or both?



It’s a firmware update (which they don’t bother telling you ahead of time unfortunately), so rolling back doesn’t fix anything. You’re stuck with the updated firmware!

And it affects various Mac models - Mini, Pro, MB Pro...


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## Luke W (Apr 2, 2020)

Thanks for the head's up, Jim! I'm disabling any automatic updates on my 2018 Mac mini now...


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## EvilDragon (Apr 2, 2020)

Wow, I thought it's only Microsoft who can fuck up updates! 


Sorry to hear your troubles, but... yeah I guess the grass is never really greener on the other side no matter how you turn.


I wonder if there's a repository of firmware updates somewhere so that you could maybe download previous version and force a re-flash over the FUBAR'd one...


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## robgb (Apr 2, 2020)

This is why I only do updates after they have been deemed "safe" by the music community.


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## David Kudell (Apr 2, 2020)

robgb said:


> This is why I only do updates after they have been deemed "safe" by the music community.



My policy as well, except I usually install security updates without hesitating. I’d never have thought a security update would do something so drastic as disable an external port!


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## sourcefor (Apr 2, 2020)

whinecellar said:


> Mac guys: Apple has another epic fail ready to completely screw up your MacBook “Pro” (among other machines) - rendering it anything BUT professional.
> 
> The new “Security Update 2020-002” *disables* one of the two left USB-C/Thunderbolt ports, making it useless. In my case, there goes my 4-SSD RAID array and UA Apollo rig. No big deal, JUST THE CENTERPIECE OF MY WHOLE STUDIO.
> 
> ...


Yess this happened to me ...thinking I need to get it repaired!!! I'm glad (well not so much) someone else found this problem! Lets hope there is a fix!


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## sourcefor (Apr 2, 2020)

Mike Marino said:


> Happened to me as well...


Yes me as well..wtf!


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## Nick Batzdorf (Apr 2, 2020)

I wonder whether this has anything to do with the Zoom mini-fiasco.

But it's weird that a security update would affect the hardware. Is there a firmware update with it?

For what it's worth I did the security update on my heart-transplanted 2009 Mojave Mac Pro and haven't had any issues I know about.

My sympathies, of course. This isn't the right time for computer dancing.


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## STec (Apr 2, 2020)

Happened to me, my 4K Dell monitor was connected with thunderbolt. When my computer restarted the monitor wasn't working anymore. Thankfully the SMS reset worked. It was my mac mini 2018 btw.


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## Nick Batzdorf (Apr 2, 2020)

I know nuffin about this issue, but usually it's a good idea to reset the PRAM as well after resetting the SMS.

For the uninitiated, that means holding down Command-Option-P-R until you hear the chime a couple of times when you start up.


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## Wunderhorn (Apr 2, 2020)

What I don't like is Apple's lack of transparency. An update needs to be labeled appropriately if it contains a firmware update and I want to know exactly what has changed. And I don't want having to dig deep somewhere on the Apple web site to find it either.

I know, dumbing it down for novices makes sense and keeps the questions down. But it is time to distinguish between power users who's Mac is a tool with which they make their living with and people who are signing up for a game subscription on their iPhone. Not only the tech support but also MacOS needs to be on a separate level.


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## sourcefor (Apr 2, 2020)

is this on Catalina as well as mojave?


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## sourcefor (Apr 2, 2020)

is catalina safe now?


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## Wunderhorn (Apr 2, 2020)

sourcefor said:


> is catalina safe now?



It apparently happens on Mojave (security update 002) as well as on Catalina (10.15.4 update).

I advise strongly against Catalina if you can avoid it unless you are a masochist. I have to deal with it because my 2019 Mac Pro can not run Mojave. I still have Mojave on my older Trashcan and it is like an angel compared to Catalina on the newer Mac Pro.


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## jcrosby (Apr 2, 2020)

whinecellar said:


> It’s a firmware update (which they don’t bother telling you ahead of time unfortunately), so rolling back doesn’t fix anything. You’re stuck with the updated firmware!
> 
> And it affects various Mac models - Mini, Pro, MB Pro...


Are you 100% sure of this? I fixed the previous issue I had by wiping the internals and cloning back. (I'm not saying this will work, I'm just saying maybe double check and see if anyone has done a full rollback where they cloned back to the internal and can confirm it didn't solve the issue.)

As far as firmware the T2 chip _*is*_ the firmware, in that its OS (bridgeOS) replaced what used to be the SMC chip. Basically every security update will have new bridgeOS updates. (Which is what concerns me about them putting the chip in everything. The thing has been a series of failures for 3 years now.)

Either way if your machine isn't currently usable than no reason not to try cloning back. Really do hope it works if you decide to try! One other option would be _configurator _which Apple uses to restore the actual T2 chip. Unfortunately I never had to go this route so no idea how to actually pull it off, but the article below explains more...









Restoring a Bricked iMac Pro Requires a Second Mac and Configurator 2


If an iMac Pro becomes unresponsive and requires restoring, like if there's a power failure during a software update, there are a special set of...




www.macrumors.com


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## sourcefor (Apr 2, 2020)

my computer is usable it's just the one port that is NOT..i can live with it for now!


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## sourcefor (Apr 3, 2020)

Has anyone else had this experience and what did you do to get the usb port back!???


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## onebitboy (Apr 3, 2020)

Have you done an SMC and NVRAM reset yet?


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## sourcefor (Apr 3, 2020)

Yes, with the apple tech on the line..to no Avail!


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## sourcefor (Apr 3, 2020)

They told me they have not heard of this....


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## jcrosby (Apr 3, 2020)

Wunderhorn said:


> I know, dumbing it down for novices makes sense and keeps the questions down. But it is time to distinguish between power users who's Mac is a tool with which they make their living with and people who are signing up for a game subscription on their iPhone. Not only the tech support but also MacOS needs to be on a separate level.


Notice that Apple doesn't have a public facing area on their site to file bug reports. The only way this will ever happen is if enough people complain via Apple's site and support. As far as support goes this has to be done via a formal _complaint. _(Explained below.)

Not only does the short article linked below explain why Apple issues go unaddressed for months, even years; I eventually managed to get someone from customer relations to confirm the article is correct.

*Article*: _Former Apple developer explains why the company’s software is struggling_

The short version is this:

Apple uses an internal _voting _system to rank bugs and products issues.
The highest ranked issues get dealt with, the lowest ranking issues might as well be stuck in a void. Project Managers, (not developers), can override the priority of any given issue.
You can infer from this that high margin products take priority, i.e. iPhone/iOS issues supersede mac issues miles. (Sadly.)

Complaints:

You can file a complaint with customer relations via phone by asking for a senior advisor then asking for customer relations then immediately telling them you want to file a complaint.

You can file complaints via their site using the macOS feedback form.
(No official way to send feedback as a complaint, I can't help but think this is by design.)
https://www.apple.com/feedback/macos
You could also register as a developer and report a bug. But knowing Apple if you don't have actual products in the App store it probably wouldn't accomplish much.





Feedback Assistant







feedbackassistant.apple.com





The other thing I do is filling in the comment section of a crash report detailing issues like this. Sadly outside of that Apple gives us no tools other than sending formal letters to Apple corporate and voting with the wallet.


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## whinecellar (Apr 3, 2020)

OK guys, after a fresh attempt today at resetting the SMC controller, I GOT MY PORT BACK! Turns out resetting the SMC is a tad more involved on some recent Macs, especially the MacBook Pro 2018+. When I tried it the other day (multiple times), I had no luck - likely because I didn't do the additional steps at this link below. Hope it helps someone!









How to Reset SMC on MacBook Air & MacBook Pro (2018 and Later)


Resetting the SMC on newer model MacBook Air and MacBook Pro computers from the 2018 & 2019 model year onward is a different process than resetting the Mac SMC on prior Macs, this is because o…




osxdaily.com


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## Virtuoso (Apr 3, 2020)

You would think Apple support would try that first! 

For anyone with a T2 desktop (Mac Pro, iMac Pro, Mac Mini) it's a bit easier. Unplug the power cable, wait 15 seconds, plug it back in, wait 5 seconds and then turn it on again.


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## sourcefor (Apr 3, 2020)

whinecellar said:


> OK guys, after a fresh attempt today at resetting the SMC controller, I GOT MY PORT BACK! Turns out resetting the SMC is a tad more involved on some recent Macs, especially the MacBook Pro 2018+. When I tried it the other day (multiple times), I had no luck - likely because I didn't do the additional steps at this link below. Hope it helps someone!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I will try this thanks!!!


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## sourcefor (Apr 3, 2020)

Worked like a charm got the port back...thanks soooooo much!!!


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## whinecellar (Apr 4, 2020)

sourcefor said:


> Worked like a charm got the port back...thanks soooooo much!!!



Awesome- I’m glad!


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## Wunderhorn (Apr 6, 2020)

After several attempts resetting SMC I was able to run one of my screens again on the affected port. But only after I also did an NVRAM reset right after the SMC reset.

However what remains is that my OWC drive docks act as if they are dead when connected. They did not use to have any issues before the OS update. Now they only work when using the USB connection (Thunderbolt is dead.)

I am also finding out that I can no longer send encoded sound formats such as DTS surround through the HDMI ports.

Anybody else have similar experiences?


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## Shad0wLandsUK (Apr 6, 2020)

EvilDragon said:


> Wow, I thought it's only Microsoft who can fuck up updates!
> 
> 
> Sorry to hear your troubles, but... yeah I guess the grass is never really greener on the other side no matter how you turn.
> ...


The benefit with my Windows machine is that I can rollback Security updates... Not with Apple, either a Time machine restore or a wipe :/


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## Shad0wLandsUK (Apr 6, 2020)

whinecellar said:


> Mac guys: Apple has another epic fail ready to completely screw up your MacBook “Pro” (among other machines) - rendering it anything BUT professional.
> 
> The new “Security Update 2020-002” *disables* one of the two left USB-C/Thunderbolt ports, making it useless. In my case, there goes my 4-SSD RAID array and UA Apollo rig. No big deal, JUST THE CENTERPIECE OF MY WHOLE STUDIO.
> 
> ...


I think this may be exactly what has caused the weird Bridge OS issue on my 2018 Mac mini!
I thought it was due to the Dell Display (U3818DW), but this is looking more like it since it uses USB-C

Might have to restore to an earlier time it seems...


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## Nick Batzdorf (Apr 6, 2020)

I just saw this, for what it's worth:









Some Users Experiencing System Crashes on macOS 10.15.4, Especially During Large File Transfers


A sizeable number of Mac users are experiencing occasional system crashes after updating to macOS Catalina version 10.15.4, released a few weeks ago....




www.macrumors.com


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## jbuhler (Apr 6, 2020)

I've had a lot of instability on Mojave after installing this system update. Several peculiar, spontaneous crashes from kernel panics. Last night I quit Final Cut Pro and the machine apparently crashed but didn't go through the startup routine. It was more like it logged me out and dropped me at the login screen.


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## Wunderhorn (Apr 8, 2020)

Apple just issued a "supplementary update" it supposedly addresses the aforementioned problems - they also mention the TB3 port issue.

However, I must warn: My computer stalled during the installation of this supplementary update. I was on the phone for 4 hours with Apple technicians. In the end even more damage was done. This "fix" is even more detrimental.

If you can, stay away from Catalina and do NOT install 10.15.4!


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## whinecellar (Apr 8, 2020)

Wunderhorn said:


> Apple just issued a "supplementary update" it supposedly addresses the aforementioned problems - they also mention the TB3 port issue.
> 
> However, I must warn: My computer stalled during the installation of this supplementary update. I was on the phone for 4 hours with Apple technicians. In the end even more damage was done. This "fix" is even more detrimental.
> 
> If you can, stay away from Catalina and do NOT install 10.15.4!



Geez. 10.14.6 may be the last Mac OS I stay on for a long time to come. I just can’t risk all this crap, and I have too much legacy stuff (which isn’t too old!) that I need to work. It’s like every year brings a new headache with Mac OS...


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## scoringdreams (Apr 8, 2020)

Thank goodness for this thread, I have just cancelled the update notification which has just appeared on my screen.


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## mauriziodececco (Apr 9, 2020)

I just did the update; the update warn at the beginning that the screen will stay black for a while.
During the update the Mac rebooted three or four time, and between the reboots stayed as "switched off" for a while (up to more than a minute). Having read the text, i just waited, and everything went fine.
But you need cold blod, the Mac seems dead for a while, before restarting, each time.

I have no idea if this is what happened to the others writers in this thread, but if you try to switch on/off the Mac during these long pauses, it may screw up the update.

Just my experience
Maurizio


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## Ashermusic (Apr 9, 2020)

I just finished the update. I didn’t watch the computer during the process, it appears to have gone fine.


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## MGdepp (Apr 9, 2020)

I finally installed the update on my hackintosh (Mojave). There were no problems - which is kind of ironic, isn’t it? 

It seems like Catalina is now fully Hackintosh compatible (it worked before, but either without side car or without DRM content in Safari). Have you guys moved forward to Catalina? Looks like it was a major PITA on release - especially for musicians! How does it work for you today? I run Cubase.


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## gamma-ut (May 3, 2020)

Cleared some deadlines and updated to 10.15.4 yesterday. I got the problem with the left-hand Thunderbolt port attached to the monitor (ironically making the problem I was trying to fix - brightness set to stun after wakeup - worse), but an SMC reset fixed that.

Left the machine to do a long Time Machine backup overnight. Shut it down this morning and powered it on and...nothing. Not a peep. I am now the owner of an expensive metal brick. 

Apple didn't take long to say send it in for repair but after some searching (and remembering I'd seen something about this when deciding not to update until I'd got stuff out of the way) decided to try reflashing the firmware. I had nothing to lose as I couldn't really brick it any further short of zapping it with ESD.

But reflashing with the Apple Configurator did work, even though it timed out with error 4005. Pulling the power cord again before reinserting and hitting the power button coaxed the Mac into booting normally. In case anyone hits the issue, there's a good guide here: https://mrmacintosh.com/category/t2-dfu-mode/. However, one small thing is that it doesn't need a host Mac with USB-C. It worked using a 2015 MBP and a USB-A to USB-C cable. I think Apple changed this after the original guide it published went online. But you do need the two Macs to be on the same major version of the OS (the MBP was on 10.15.3, so subreleases don't seem to matter much).


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## jcrosby (May 3, 2020)

I've been down this road several times since Dec 2018. (Including a supposed patch that also wound up doing even more damage...) If people don't start vehemently complaining in writing this will just keep happening, and by the looks of it only get worse before it gets better.

Unfortunately the only tools Apple gives you are asking to file a complaint with customer relations while on a support call, the macos feedback page, or sending a letter to corporate.

Feedback can be submitted below... Complaints can be submitted by asking for a Sr. care advisor, the asking to file a complaint. (Which can take some force. They'll typically try and "applecare" their way out of you filing a complaint by insisting they can talk you through the issue.. As I said it requires some stick-to-itiveness.)



Feedback - macOS - Apple


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## gamma-ut (May 3, 2020)

I'm going to send feedback about this. I don't have an issue with tech support: faced with a bricked machine, I suspect they have no alternative but to get the user to send it in for service. But something has gone wrong in engineering.

The machine's delayed reaction to the firmware update makes me think these problems are due to a design flaw or a badly thought-out security framework. The way this happened makes me think the bricking is actually down to some anti-tamper mechanism that's not uncommon in things like payment terminals. If they detect activity that's suspicious, which might be new firmware and some other event, like a power spike, the device assumes it's a hacking attempt and locks up until it can be put into a known good state (ie someone with an external machine that can toggle some bits inside or a known good copy of the firmware). 

I find it hard to believe that a firmware update would brick the machine so completely it doesn't even cough after a power cycle. You'd have to be insane to design something so that even the power control is at the whim of an internet-downloaded firmware update. It's easy enough to isolate that from the higher-level functions controlled by something like a T2. And it's clear the moment you plug in an external machine running the Configurator the power supply isn't actually borked. So, to me, the problem seems more and more to be collateral damage from an overly paranoid anti-hacking countermeasure. The weird thing is, the update itself proceeded as expected other than the issue with the USB-C monitor when restarted the first time.

The trouble is, if it is anti-tamper countermeasures at fault, Apple is never going to admit it unless there's some kind of class-action suit that forces discovery. My guess is they are running around trying to find firmware fixes for the T2 and accept a certain level of total failures on each update as reasonable.


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