I have a question that may seem silly, but here goes anyway! Apple achieved UNIX 03 certification for their macOS operating systems beginning with version 10.5 "Leopard." There is a new version of the Single UNIX Specification now, version 4 ((UNIX V7), so why has Apple not kept current and had macOS certified to this new edition of the specification?
I suppose Apple may have the answer to this question, even if they are not telling us what it is, but I thought that some of the people in these forums might have an answer as well
A certification is expensive.
Perhaps Apple, seeing the Unix market share going down, does not expect further customers because of more Unix compatibility.
Thank you for your speedy reply, MadeInGermany! Apple has struggled over the years to find an identity for itself and to find a market for its products. UNIX certification makes more sense in the enterprise than it does on consumers' desktops. If macOS is intended to be purely a desktop operating system, then certification makes less sense. But if Apple intends to push more deeply into corporate computing, then UNIX certification can be a way for them to integrate with other systems that are certified, which allows the wealth of UNIX applications to be easily ported to Apple platform(s)
One thing I find interesting about UNIX V7 is "role-based access control," where it goes beyond access control lists and allows more granular control over access privileges. Perhaps the reason that macOS is not V7 certified is because macOS does not have role-based access control features, and therefore is not eligible for this certification?
I am sort of asking a question, but also pondering possible reasons for Apple's not attaining v7 certification.
Thank you again, MadeInGermany, your answer is very helpful!
Apples has one of the largest cash reserves of any company in the world. I don't think they worry about paying for certification if they think that it has value.
This is true for servers and other high end UNIX systems.
However, Apple has the largest consumer base of UNIX users globally in macOS and so it could be that Apple simply does not see any value in UNIX certification in the (huge) consumer marketplace.
I completely disagree with this statement. Apple has not struggled, and currently has the largest market cap of any company on the planet. It make zero sense to call the worlds largest company by market capitalization "struggling". Apple has computer stores in just about every major city on the planet. No other tech company has such a global footprint. Apple is not struggling at all, especially compared to other tech companies!
Yes, this I agree with. Actually, UNIX certification makes little sense at all in my view.
Apple does not seen to have any intention to move into the server market because the consumer market is larger. With or without UNIX certification, computers integrate well already via networking protocols. Apple has been clear which market they are after; it's the consumer market and in particular, the high-end of the consumer market which includes high end workstations for creators.
As mentioned, if Apple thought obtaining additional certification was necessary, they would have already done it.
In my view, Apple originally certified for marketing reasons (to claim macOS was UNIX certified) because Apple, like everyone else, realized that UNIX certification has little practical value in todays world. However, for marketing reasons, Apple probably thought it a good idea to get the "UNIX Certification" check box. There are few valid technical reasons to be "certified" in the year 2022 in my view and I think Apple also has this view (except for clicking a marketing checkbox).
