Microsoft on Monday rolled out a major OneDrive update that adds full Apple M1 support for the first time. Version 22.022 now runs natively on Apple silicon chipsets, which should mean improved performance and efficiency.
The update also eliminates a kernel extensions issue, which broke both OneDrive and Dropbox, that macOS 12.3 beta testers recently ran into.
Microsoft OneDrive now native on Apple silicon
Microsoft began testing its newest OneDrive update with Apple silicon support late last year. Although it was a public beta, obtaining it was pretty complicated, so it was easier for most users to stick with the stable release designed for Intel.
But time was running out for Microsoft. In the coming weeks, Apple will roll out macOS 12.3, which deprecates the kernel extensions used by earlier versions of OneDrive and Dropbox. Apple promised both companies were planning updates.
Microsoft’s is now ready for all OneDrive users. “We’re excited to announce that OneDrive sync for macOS will now run natively on Apple silicon,” said Microsoft employee Ankita Kirti in a post on the company’s OneDrive Blog.
“This means that OneDrive will take full advantage of the performance improvements of Apple silicon. We know this has been a long-awaited and highly requested feature, and we’re delighted to make it generally available.”
Update OneDrive ASAP
You can download the version 22.022 update from within OneDrive’s preferences menu on Mac. It is recommended you do that as soon as possible, especially if you have an M1 machine and plan to upgrade to macOS 12.3.
It’s not yet clear when Dropbox will make its Apple silicon app available to all, but it is easy to access the Dropbox beta (bear in mind it may not be as stable as a final release) if you’re done with waiting.
Kirta also revealed that Microsoft is woking on a new Folder Backup feature for OneDrive. Like iCloud Drive on macOS, you can use it to automatically upload your Desktop and Document folders to the cloud.
