The Atera Agent is the backbone of Atera’s monitoring system. Installed on every device you want to monitor, it continuously tracks performance, availability, and health — securely sending data to the cloud for real-time insights. With low system impact, built-in auto-updates, and smart reporting intervals based on big-data analysis, the Atera Agent ensures you’re alerted only when it matters.
Note: Trial accounts are limited to 300 devices.
Supported operating systems
Using a supported operating system and setup ensures the agent installs correctly and performs reliably. The Atera Agent supports the following macOS versions and configurations:
- macOS 14 (Sonoma)
- macOS 15 (Sequoia)
- macOS 26 (Tahoe)
Additional requirement: For users of macOS devices with an M processor series, it is essential to have Rosetta, a dynamic binary translator developed by Apple, installed on your devices. In the majority of instances, macOS devices utilizing the M processor series come with Rosetta pre-installed. However, even if Rosetta is not present on your devices, during the agent installation process, Atera will make an attempt to install Rosetta if it detects the absence of the software application. Type the following command in Terminal: sudo softwareupdate --install-rosetta
For more information regarding Rosetta, see these articles:
If you need to install Rosetta on your Mac
About the Rosetta Translation Environment
Agent versions and updates
Agents are updated automatically as part of ongoing rollouts. If your version isn’t the latest yet, don’t worry — it will update soon. If you prefer not to wait, you can reinstall the agent manually to get the newest version. You can view the agent version within a device's Agent Console (check the Overview tab).
Latest version: Atera macOS Agent v2.5.0.0. This version is automatically installed for all new agent downloads on active subscriptions.
Enhancements in Agent v2:
- Upgraded to .NET 8 for improved reliability and performance.
- Strengthened security with support for TLS 1.2 only.
- Enables SSH connectivity for macOS devices.
Note: Agents will not yet be upgraded if they operate on an OS that isn’t compatible with .NET 8.
Features and capabilities
Silent installation
The Atera macOS Agent installs silently when you download and run the .pkg file — no user interaction required. This applies to both manual installations and deployments through MDM tools like Jamf or Intune.
Note: Silent installation is available for agent versions 1.8.5.7 and later.
Install Atera's macOS Agent
There are multiple ways to install Atera's Windows Agent. You can download the installer or copy the cURL command.
Note:
- Atera's macOS Agent is available for all IT Department plans.
- Atera's macOS Agent is available for Growth, Power, and Superpower plans.
- Full admin permissions are required to install the Atera Agent.
- Atera will install .Net Runtime 8 on macOS devices.
To install Atera's macOS agent:
1. Click Install agent in the menu bar at the top of the screen.
The Download agent installer window appears.
2. Select macOS (.pkg). Then click Next.
3. Assign the agent to a site. Then click Next.
Note: Assigning the agent will automatically allocate all policies, configurations, and automations applied to that site and/or folder. This assignment also comes in handy with any IT automation profiles that are intended to run on newly added devices. However, you also have the option to assign the agent at a later time. Learn more
3. Assign the agent to a customer. Then click Next.
Note: Assigning the agent will automatically allocate all policies, configurations, and automations applied to that customer and/or folder. This assignment also comes in handy with any IT automation profiles that are intended to run on newly added devices. However, you also have the option to assign the agent at a later time. Learn more
There are 2 installation methods:
Install via command line
- Click Copy command.
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Open Terminal on the device.
- You may need to enter the device's password (not your Atera password), and keystrokes may not appear.
- The command provided in the Atera dashboard is set for the "bash" shell. If your macOS uses "zsh," replace "bash" with "zsh" for compatibility.
- Enter the installation script and hit Enter to install the Atera Agent.
Within a couple of minutes, the Atera Agent will appear on the Devices page.
Download installer
The Atera macOS Agent installs silently when downloading and installing the .pkg file.
- From the Download installer tab, click Download.
- Right-click the .pkg file > Select Open With > Installer.
- Follow the onscreen instructions to install the Atera Agent.
Within a couple of minutes, the Atera Agent will appear on the Devices page.
Troubleshooting
If you experience any trouble with agent installation or stability, see:
