

The cloud storage services will likely pull support for older systems at some point, but there’s no telling when that will happen. Earlier versions of macOS don’t support it, so nothing changes for those running older systems for now. The File Provider extension first appeared in macOS 12.1 Monterey, though Apple’s Developer site suggests that it may have subsequently been made available in macOS 10.15 Catalina. I touched on this move a year ago in “ Cloud Storage Forecast Unsettled, with Possible Storms” (4 February 2022). It provides an Apple-approved framework for integrating remote files into macOS and displaying them in the Finder.

Over the last year, cloud storage services Box, Dropbox, Google Drive, and Microsoft OneDrive-and probably others-have migrated from custom kernel extensions to Apple’s new-ish File Provider extension. 1646: Security-focused OS updates, Photos Workbench review, Mastodon client wishlist, Apple-related conferencesĪpple’s File Provider Forces Mac Cloud Storage Changes.1647: Focus-caused notification issues, site-specific browser examples, virtualizing Windows on M-series Macs.#1648: iPhone passcode thefts, Center Cam improves webcam eye contact, APFS Uncertainty Principle.#1649: More LastPass breach details and 1Password switch, macOS screen saver problem, tvOS 16.3.3 fixes Siri Remote bug.

