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OpenCore Legacy Patcher or Linux: what to put on an old Mac

Both are free and both keep alive an Intel Mac Apple has left behind. OpenCore Legacy Patcher installs a newer macOS than Apple allows; Linux switches systems. This is what each one gives you and what it costs.

What OpenCore Legacy Patcher is

OpenCore Legacy Patcher (OCLP) is a free, open-source project that lets Intel Macs Apple no longer supports install newer macOS versions. Officially it goes up to macOS 15 Sequoia; macOS 26 Tahoe only with experimental builds, and macOS 27 runs on no Intel Mac, so the road ends there. To make the graphics, Wi-Fi and the rest work, it modifies files of the system itself: the so-called "root patches".

What it has going for it

  • You stay on macOS: your apps, iCloud, Messages, Photos and the apps that only exist for the Mac. With Sequoia, Chrome, Office and Spotify come back as desktop apps.
  • It's free.
  • It covers many more models than the kit, including the 2016 to 2020 ones with a Touch Bar or T2 chip.

What it costs

  • Performance: macOS 15 is designed for much newer Macs. OCLP's own documentation warns that newer systems are harder to run and can feel slower on an old Mac, and that little can be done about it. On 2012 Macs, from macOS 13 the graphics run on patches, Maps and Find My don't display properly, and some apps crash because the processor lacks instructions (AVX2) newer macOS takes for granted.
  • Security: the patches break the "seal" on the system disk and turn off macOS checks such as code-signature verification. You get Apple's patches, but with some of macOS's protections switched off.
  • Updates: every macOS update wipes the patches and they have to be applied again, and the whole system downloads each time. Sequoia also keeps offering Tahoe, which OCLP doesn't officially support yet: accepting it by mistake can leave parts of the Mac not working.
  • An end date: Apple patches the current macOS and the two before it. On that pattern, Sequoia stops getting patches when macOS 28 ships, around September 2027, and no Intel Mac can go past Tahoe.
  • It's technical: building the USB for your exact model, installing OpenCore on the disk and redoing the patches after every update.

Why Linux usually runs smoother on these Macs

  • A light desktop: Xubuntu uses Xfce, built for modest machines. It doesn't ask the graphics chip for recent macOS's transparency and animations, and it's comfortable in 4 GB of memory, which is what many of these Macs have.
  • Graphics without patches: Linux ships the driver for Intel graphics, the kind in the MacBook Air, 13-inch MacBook Pro and Mac mini, out of the box, with full acceleration from the first start.
  • Normal updates: small, with nothing to re-patch and no system protection turned off. Xubuntu 26.04 LTS gets them until April 2029, and before then the system itself offers a free upgrade to the next version; it doesn't depend on Apple still supporting your model.
  • Tested: we've installed and used it on a 2013 MacBook Air with 4 GB.

What you give up with Linux: macOS. No iCloud, Messages or AirDrop, and none of the Mac-only apps; Office works on the web. Before deciding, check whether the apps you use have a Linux version in the apps table. See the apps table

Side by side

OCLP with macOS 15Linux (Xubuntu 26.04 LTS)
Mac appsYesNo: Linux version, web or an alternative
Smoothness on a 2012–2015 MacHeavy system, patched graphicsLight desktop; Intel graphics without patches
UpdatesRe-patch after each oneNormal
System protectionsSome turned offNone turned off
Security patchesProbably until September 2027Until April 2029, then the next version, free
PriceFreeFree; the kit that installs it for you, €24.99

Which to choose

If you depend on an app that only exists on macOS, OpenCore Legacy Patcher is the sensible choice, knowing what it costs. If you use the Mac for browsing, email, office work, video and music, Linux usually gives you a snappier Mac, patched for longer and with no tricks at every update. Xubuntu is free and you can install it on your own; the kit installs it for you, with a wizard and the drivers for these Macs ready.

ResucitaTuMac has no connection with the OpenCore Legacy Patcher project. Facts from its official documentation (dortania.github.io), October 2026.

If you want to keep using this Mac with everything up to date

Linux is a free system that still gets updates on these Macs. With it you get up-to-date apps like Chrome, Steam, Signal or VS Code again, and security patches for the whole system. The ResucitaTuMac Kit installs it for you with a wizard, in English or Spanish, without sending the Mac anywhere: you can keep macOS alongside and choose at power-on.

It's for Intel Macs from 2012 to 2015 and the 2017 MacBook Pro without Touch Bar. One-off payment of €24.99.

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