This simple script allows macOS system updates, such as Tahoe, to be enabled or disabled on an OCLP enabled unsupported Apple Mac. All other updates such as Safari are still available.
It is also useful for virtualised macOS where updates are always displayed.
The name is a pun "just say no to Tahoe"!
macOS calls an Apple hosted service to find macOS system updates relevant to that Mac. OCLP Macs and VMs present themselves as a virtualised Mac which means the Apple OTA update service returns any newer macOS major and minor updates independent of the underlying machine type.
This service is accessed through a URL gdmf.apple.com. To stop these updates we need to block access to this URL and the simplest way is to block it through an entry in the hosts file located in the /etc folder on your Mac. This is done by adding a line like this to the file.
127.0.0.1 gdmf.apple.com
This redirects the URL to the host machine, which of course cannot provide the relevant details. macOS sees this as no updates.
For Big Sur, Monterey and Ventura you will also need to block access to:
swscan.apple.com
swdist.apple.com
and you will not be able to see any updates from Apple servers. This should not be a problem if you set it up after makiong sure you system has all relevant updates installed.
If you do not want to run the script you will need to manually add the line to the hosts file. After saving it reboot the machine or run these 3 commands from Terminal to reset the update system.
sudo dscacheutil -flushcache
sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder 2>/dev/null
softwareupdate -l
There are 2 things to be aware of if you use this solution.
Note
All other updates such as Safari, Command Line Tools for Xcode and security updates etc. will continue to be updated for Sonoma and Sequoia.
Important
No macOS updates will be presented, for example, macOS 26 Tahoe upgrades or Sequoia or Sonoma minor updates. If you need to run a minor update you will need to toggle the blocker off, run the update and then re-enable it, or use the Tanoe updates command.
- Download a release from Releases on GitHub.
- Unzip the downloaded file.
- Open a terminal and navigate to the folder where you extracted the files.
Note
Updating the /etc/hosts file requires admin privileges and you will be prompted for your password.
Tip
Tanoe checks that macOS automatic software updates are disabled to ensure your safety.
Run ./tanoe on
admin@sequoihoe ~ % ./tanoe on
Adding entry to /etc/hosts...
Backup created: ./hosts.backup.20260205_134308
✓ Successfully added entry
Flushing DNS cache...
Updating available updates...
Software Update Tool
Finding available software
Software Update found the following new or updated software:
* Label: Command Line Tools for Xcode-16.2
Title: Command Line Tools for Xcode, Version: 16.2, Size: 751786KiB, Recommended: YES,
* Label: Command Line Tools for Xcode-16.4
Title: Command Line Tools for Xcode, Version: 16.4, Size: 861558KiB, Recommended: YES,
* Label: Command Line Tools for Xcode 26.2-26.2
Title: Command Line Tools for Xcode 26.2, Version: 26.2, Size: 858715KiB, Recommended: YES,
* Label: Safari26.2SequoiaAuto-26.2
Title: Safari, Version: 26.2, Size: 224749KiB, Recommended: YES,
Run ./tanoe off
admin@sequoihoe ~ % ./tanoe off
Removing entry from /etc/hosts...
✓ Successfully removed entry
Flushing DNS cache...
Updating available updates...
Software Update Tool
Finding available software
Software Update found the following new or updated software:
* Label: Command Line Tools for Xcode-16.2
Title: Command Line Tools for Xcode, Version: 16.2, Size: 751786KiB, Recommended: YES,
* Label: Command Line Tools for Xcode-16.4
Title: Command Line Tools for Xcode, Version: 16.4, Size: 861558KiB, Recommended: YES,
* Label: Command Line Tools for Xcode 26.2-26.2
Title: Command Line Tools for Xcode 26.2, Version: 26.2, Size: 858715KiB, Recommended: YES,
* Label: Safari26.2SequoiaAuto-26.2
Title: Safari, Version: 26.2, Size: 224749KiB, Recommended: YES,
* Label: macOS Sequoia 15.7.3-24G419
Title: macOS Sequoia 15.7.3, Version: 15.7.3, Size: 947432KiB, Recommended: YES, Action: restart,
* Label: macOS Tahoe 26.2-25C56
Title: macOS Tahoe 26.2, Version: 26.2, Size: 5047881KiB, Recommended: YES, Action: restart,
Run ./tanoe status
admin@sequoihoe ~ % ./tanoe status
✓ Status: ENABLED
Entry '127.0.0.1 gdmf.apple.com' is present in /etc/hosts
admin@sequoihoe ~ % ./tanoe status
✗ Status: DISABLED
Entry '127.0.0.1 gdmf.apple.com' is not present in /etc/hosts
This command checks a Tanoe maintained file (https://drdonk.github.io/Tanoe/assets.json) to find the latest full installer packages available from Apple. This means if there is a macOS update you can retrieve the full installer without having to disable Tanoe.
Run ./tanoe updates
If there are no updates the command will exit.
admin@sequoihoe Tanoe % ./tanoe updates
Current macOS version: 15.7.9
Checking for available updates...
✓ No updates available - macOS 15.7.9 is already the latest available.
If there is a newer version available you are given the option to download the full installer from Apple's servers.
admin@sequoihoe Tanoe % ./tanoe updates
Current macOS version: 15.7.8
Checking for available updates...
Updates available for macOS 15.7.8:
1) Sequoia 15.7.9 (15.7.9) build 24G830
0) Cancel
Select an update to download (0-1):
Here are screenshots from a MacBook Air 2017 (MacBookAir7,2) running a test with older version of Sequoia and Xcode tools.
(C) David Parsons, 2026