Composer Release History
About Versioning:
This page is updated to reflect Composer release history only when changes are made in the product. Consequently, the release version listed here may not align with the current Composer release version.
Composer 10.28.0
System-level Files Added to Exclusion List
/System/ is now added to Composer's default exclusion list. This ensures Composer no longer indexes System-level files when creating a package source. Packages containing /System/ files may cause package installation to fail on computers with macOS 11 or later. To add or remove default entries from Composer's exclusion list, click in the Composer menu bar.
For more information about Composer's exclusion list, see Exclusion List.
Composer 10.27.0
Package Building Enhancements for Mac Computers with Apple Silicon
Composer now allows you to configure when prompts about installing Rosetta on Mac computers with Apple silicon are displayed based on the types of executables (Intel-based or Universal) in packages. The Executable Types in PKGs pop-up menu in Composer's packaging preferences allows you to choose from the following options:
- Automatically detect executable types
(Recommended) Composer automatically detects if your package contains any Intel-based executables. If Intel-based executables are found and Rosetta is not installed, Mac computers with Apple silicon prompt users that install the package to also install Rosetta.
This setting is used by default and should be used if you are unsure of the executable types in your package source.
- One or more executables require Rosetta
Composer builds packages that contain Intel-based executables. If Rosetta is not installed, Mac computers with Apple silicon always prompt users that install the package to also install Rosetta.
This setting should only be used if you are certain that your package source contains Intel-based executables.
- All executables are Universal
Composer builds packages that only contain Universal executables. Mac computers with Apple silicon will not prompt users that install the package to install Rosetta.
This setting should only be used if you are certain that your package source does not contain any Intel-based executables.
For more information about Rosetta prompts on Mac computers with Apple silicon, see If you need to install Rosetta on your Mac from Apple's support website.
For more information about building packages with Composer, see Package Building.
Composer 10.25.0
Apple Silicon Compatibility
Composer now natively support Macs with Apple silicon*.
*Hardware support is based on testing with the Mac Developer Transition Kit.
Bug Fix
[PI-008713] Fixed an issue that caused Composer to quit unexpectedly.
Composer 10.23.0
Users are now prompted to allow Composer full disk access only if it has not already been granted. This check occurs each time Composer is launched.
Composer 10.22.0
Security Improvements in Composer
Composer 10.22.0 includes a bug fix for an issue found in versions 10.18.0 to 10.21.0, which allowed standard users to obtain access to resources that require root access if Composer and the privileged helper from 10.18.0 to 10.21.0 was previously installed on the same computer with an administrator account.
To ensure computers with Composer are not affected by this issue, upgrade to Composer 10.22.0.
Bug Fix
[PI-008065] Fixed an issue that caused Composer to crash when attempting to convert large .app files to source.
Composer 10.19.0
Package Building and Conversion Process Improvements with Composer
You can now stop package builds and source conversions mid-process by clicking the Stop button. This allows you to make changes to a package source immediately rather than waiting for the process to complete. You can stop the following processes: Building a PKG or DMG Converting a PKG or DMG to source
For more information about building packages and creating package sources, see Package Building and Package Source Creation.
Bug Fixes and Enhancements
After closing a Composer window, you can now click the Composer icon in the Dock to re-open the previously closed window.
When converting a package to source, the Composer progress window now displays a header that accurately describes the task.
Signing packages in Composer is now completed via the privileged helper tool.
Fixed an issue that sometimes caused Composer to ask for administrator credentials multiple times when launching a newly installed version of Composer.
[PI-007818] Fixed an issue that sometimes prevented users from creating PLIST files for package sources without an already existing PLIST.
[PI-007826] Fixed an issue that prevented Composer from prompting for full disk access on macOS 10.15.
Composer 10.18.0
Privileged Helper Installation
Composer now installs a privileged helper tool when first opened, which runs all Composer tasks that require root access. Administrator credentials are required to install the privileged helper each time Composer is opened. The following user experience improvements have been implemented with the privileged helper:
Composer opens in a more timely manner.
A second Composer icon no longer appears in the macOS dock when restarting as root.
Replacing pre-existing files in a source no longer causes Composer to fail.
Fixed issues that caused package privileges to not work as expected. All privileges are no longer set to "root:wheel 755" by default.
Preferences are now set on a per-user basis and no longer stored in a root location. Composer preferences are stored at ~/Library/Preferences.
The DMG Filesystem prompt only appears when expected.
Uploading Package Manifests to Composer
You can no longer upload package manifests directly to Composer. If you want to upload a package manifest to Jamf Nation, you must now navigate to a product page on Jamf Nation and upload a .composer manifest file. For more information, see Package Manifests.
Composer 10.16.0