As noticed by several users running the developer preview version of OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion, Apple is no longer including its X11 application for running software through the X Window System interface. A popular option for scientists and others seeking to run specialized UNIX software both on local machines and across networks, X11 has been available on OS X for a number of years and has been included as a default install since Mac OS X Leopard.

x11 mountain lion alert
The X Window System has an extensive open source history, with development on the Mac side being handled under the XQuartz project. Apple's X11 application has been based on this effort, although as with many open source projects bundled for use in commercial software, X11 has generally been somewhat behind the latest XQuartz releases. The current version of X11 is 2.6.3, while XQuartz is currently available in version 2.7.0.

With Mountain Lion, Apple seems to eliminating its dedicated support for the X11 application, instead redirecting users to the open source XQuartz project, which it will continue to support.

Top Rated Comments

jeremyhu Avatar
178 months ago
THis is having an incredible negative effect upon programs in ML.

GIMP wont run even with Xquartz
It runs fine for tons of users. Are you experiencing a specific issue? If so please report a bug.


CrossOver does not launch Windows programs correctly, and instead shuts down
CrossOver ships their own server and does not actually use anything from Apple's X11 except for quartz-wm. I suggest you contact Codeweavers for access to test versions of Crossover that will work on Mountain Lion.


MacPorts is useless (Not just because of X11, but because of changes to Xcode)

Yeah, there are a few bugs to be worked out
As with most updates, MacPorts will need to adjust to this change. We're working on it, and you can follow the thread I started on macports-dev for specific information.

----------

This isn't just a removal, where reinstallation via XQuartz fixes things all nice and neat.
Please use the latest rc version of XQuartz (currently 2.7.1_rc4). As you probably discovered, earlier versions (like 2.7.0) don't fixup some things.


All the underlying launchd mechanisms that made the Apple X11 function so well with previous versions are gone as well. All the automatic $DISPLAY setting methods, for example, are ripped out. Installation of the XQuatrz package does nothing to fix that.
That's not true. XQuartz sets $DISPLAY for you (and always has). You need to logout and log back in to get $DISPLAY. This is mentioned on the download page and in the installer.

----------

Since there's no way to get the old startx methods to work anymore -- because they're just gone.
What do you mean? The entire startup sequence for XQuartz is based on xinit and startx. If you're having issues, please file bug reports with specific information.


This is not something they'll be fixing. I hope XQuartz manages to do something about it, but there are no guarantees. This is the kind of thing that can become orphanware in a hurry.
About what? File bugs, and they'll get fixed in time. I can't fix bugs I don't know about ;)

----------

Bingo! There was no point in Apple shipping it since we could get the latest version via open source. Only problem here is that Apple is no longer guaranteeing that X11 will work when a new version of the OS ships.
Note that All of X11 is based off of public APIs except for a small set of "private" APIs in a library that lives at /usr/lib/libXplugin.dylib ... as long as that library is updated for future releases, it should "just work"


Its possible for OS X to break X11 and the open source XQuartz team to have to quickly produce an update to support new operating system releases.
Yeah, but seeing as how the "open source XQuartz team" is 99% @apple.com, I think that's probably not difficult...


Its probably not much of a concern if you wait a couple weeks after the release of a new version of OS X to upgrade. They should have any required updates available to XQuartz within a few weeks (or possibly before) release of OS X, given the availability of developer previews.
Actually versions of XQuartz that work with Mountain Lion were released well in advance of Mountain Lion. You just need to be using the rc versions of XQuartz. 2.7.1_rc4 works great with it.

----------

Can someone confirm that Matlab works with XQuartz?
Yes.

----------

Make no mistake. XQuartz doesn't work in its present form on ML.

Don't know if I can make it plainer.
File bug reports.


Yep. Installed. Tested. Failed. Debugged. Failed. Next?
You installed the wrong version. Install 2.7.1_rc4.

----------

Is the fact that removing X11 causes various applications to break not a valid concern?
It is a valid concern. Please report problems.


I occasionally use GIMP, but according to various posters, it no longer works, even with XQuartz. Will you be buying me a similar photo editing application so I can work with my photos when 10.8 comes out?
No, but I will fix bugs if you report them. gimp runs fine here, but I'm by no means a gimp power user.
Score: 38 Votes (Like | Disagree)
theluggage Avatar
178 months ago
THis is having an incredible negative effect upon programs in ML.

Yeah. What they ought to do is release some sort of "Developer Preview" 5 or 6 months ahead of the release of the new OS so that developers heard about these things and had time to produce fixes.
Score: 33 Votes (Like | Disagree)
macduke Avatar
178 months ago
Is ML really an update? It seems like a downgrade in many respects.

Do you really know what you're talking about? It seems like you really don't know what you're talking about in many respects.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
godknows Avatar
178 months ago
Is ML really an update? It seems like a downgrade in many respects.

Stuff like this should really be optional. Not everyone uses it.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
KnightWRX Avatar
178 months ago
I guess this will be another "dumbing down" thread. :rolleyes:

Anyone who was using X11 on OS X (myself included) never really bothered with Apple's version anyhow and went straight to XQuartz.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
displaced Avatar
178 months ago
Too early to be worried...

So, the facts are:


* Xquartz is the open source X11-compatible window server for Mac OS X
* Xquartz is maintained by Apple-employed developers. It's an Apple-sponsored open source project.
* The 'X11' app bundled with various OS X releases has historically been a snapshot of the Xquartz code, renamed and integrated with the Mac OS X release.
* There was some extra 'glue' which made the Xquartz snapshot known as X11.app behave extra nice with OS X ($DISPLAY setting, etc)


So the actual change in Mountain Lion is that:


* Apple will no longer be bundling re-labelled Xquartz versions with OS X.
* OS X will instead prompt the user to download Xquartz when an X11-dependent application runs.


Now, clearly there's been a shift in responsibility here. The OS X team no longer take responsibility for integrating Xquartz (branded 'X11') into OS X major releases.

Rather, the Xquartz team (still Apple employees, remember) need to build up their process for producing releases independently of the OS X team. This is where the 'glue's got lost. Whatever OS X used to do for X11.app/Xquartz, Xquartz is now going to have to do for itself. From their point of view, it's almost certainly too early to start down that road since ML is still such a moving target. Hence the lack of integration in the present DP state.

I'm failing to see the malice, neglect or otherwise here. Rather, it's letting the Xquartz team control their schedule and deliver their updates independently of OS X without having to rely on people seeking out and installing Xquartz on their own.

Bear in mind also that the third-party developers will also take a little bit to adjust. They've been used to being able to test against 'the X11 that comes with <OSX_VERSION>. Instead, they'll need to test against the current release of Xquartz.

We're only about 24hrs into Mountain Lion's public history... so let's give everyone involved a chance to sort things out.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

apple oct 2024 mac tease

Apple Expected to Announce These Two to Three Products 'This Week'

Sunday October 12, 2025 7:05 am PDT by
Apple plans to announce new products "this week," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Apple's "Mac Your Calendars" teaser last October In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said the products set to be updated this week include the iPad Pro, Vision Pro, and "likely" the base 14-inch MacBook Pro, with all three likely to receive a spec bump with Apple's next-generation M5 chip. Gurman...
10

Apple to Launch New Products Starting Next Week, Claims Dubious Leak [Updated]

Friday October 10, 2025 5:57 am PDT by
Update: the Naver account appears to be referencing a speculative post on X by Vadim Yuryev, dated October 6. The original article follows. Apple will announce new products through a series of press releases beginning as soon as next week, according to a dubious claim posted on the Korean blog Naver. The Naver blog account yeux1122, which aggregates rather than originates Apple...
iPhone 17 Pro Colors

iPhone 18 Pro Already Rumored to Have These 6 New Features

Saturday October 11, 2025 10:10 am PDT by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are still nearly a year away, a handful of new features and changes have already been rumored for the devices. Below, we have recapped some of the early iPhone 18 Pro rumors so far. Smaller Dynamic Island The standard iPhone 18, iPhone 18 Pro, and iPhone 18 Pro Max will be equipped with a slightly smaller Dynamic Island, but the devices will...
iOS 26 Feature

Apple Preparing iOS 26.0.2 Update for iPhones

Saturday October 11, 2025 6:59 pm PDT by
Apple's software engineers are internally testing iOS 26.0.2, according to MacRumors logs, which have been a reliable indicator of upcoming iOS versions. iOS 26.0.2 will likely be a minor update that addresses bugs and/or security vulnerabilities, but we do not know any specific details yet. The update will likely be released within the next few weeks. Last month, Apple released iOS...
Tim Cook MacBook

Apple's Next CEO Identified

Wednesday October 8, 2025 12:30 pm PDT by
Apple's hardware engineering chief John Ternus remains the "leading contender" to become the company's next CEO, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Ternus is 50 years old, so he is still young enough to have a long run at the helm of Apple, after current CEO Tim Cook retires. He is already a key decision-maker at Apple, according to Gurman, and he appears to have a charismatic...
vivo liquid glass

iOS 26 Liquid Glass Design Copied by Android Smartphone Maker

Thursday October 9, 2025 4:07 pm PDT by
Chinese smartphone maker Vivo has taken some inspiration from Apple's Liquid Glass design language for its latest operating system update, OriginOS 6. Unveiled this week, OriginOS 6 has the same rounded buttons and translucent glass look as iOS 26. In a demo video, a Vivo smartphone features an interface that could be easily mistaken for iOS 26. There's a Liquid Glass clock, Control Center,...
10

Apple Event This October? Here's the Latest on What to Expect

Thursday October 9, 2025 7:00 am PDT by
While it is unclear if Apple will host an October event this year, or stick to press releases, rumors suggest it will announce several new products this month. The graphic for Apple's "Unleashed" event in October 2021 Below, we have recapped everything to know about a potential Apple event this October. When The table below outlines when Apple teased its October launches over the past...
apple invite colorado%402x

Apple Hosts Unusual Colorado Event to Showcase Latest Hardware

Thursday October 9, 2025 1:17 pm PDT by
Apple has invited a group of social media influencers to Colorado this week for an unusual event involving group hiking, trail running, and other outdoor activities designed to showcase the company's recently launched iPhone 17 Pro Max, AirPods Pro 3, and Apple Watch Ultra 3. An invitation was shared on X (Twitter) by photographer Johnny Hawk, featuring a simple message: "Hi Johnny. We're so ...
Apple MacBook Pro M4 hero

Apple Rumored to Launch MacBook Pro With M5 Chip Before M5 Pro and M5 Max Models

Friday October 10, 2025 1:18 pm PDT by
Apple is planning to release a base MacBook Pro with a standard M5 chip before higher-end models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, according to AppleInsider's sources with "knowledge of macOS Tahoe development and hardware testing." The report said a MacBook Pro with an M5 chip is "nearing release," and Apple has apparently been testing this model with an unreleased macOS 26.0.2 version....