If you run the ThinLinc client on an Apple Silicon Mac (M1 or later), recent macOS versions have started showing a warning when you launch it, saying the app relies on Rosetta and that Rosetta support will end in a future macOS release. This post explains what that means, and what we are doing about it.
Why you see the warning
The current ThinLinc client for macOS is an Intel-only build. On Apple Silicon, it runs through Rosetta 2, Apple’s translation layer for Intel apps. That has worked well and is still fully supported today, but Apple is now winding Rosetta down, so macOS flags any Intel app that depends on it. The warning is informational. It does not block the client, and it does not mean the client has stopped working.
Apple’s timeline
Apple laid this out at WWDC 2025:
- macOS 26.4 (early 2026) started showing the warning when you open an Intel app. macOS 26.5 made it more prominent.
- Rosetta 2 remains fully supported through macOS 27 (fall 2026). macOS 27 is the last release with full Rosetta support.
- From macOS 28 (expected fall 2027) Rosetta is largely removed.
What we are doing
We are actively working on a native Apple Silicon build of the ThinLinc client. The main work is in our build infrastructure, which is what we need to sort out to produce native Apple Silicon macOS client builds. We aim to have a native Apple Silicon client available well before Rosetta support ends in fall 2027. As of publishing this post, we are targeting the end of 2026. That timeline depends on clearing the remaining build-system work, so treat that as our goal rather than a firm commitment. We will post further updates as we have them.
If you have questions regarding the transition to Apple Silicon, feel free to reply below.