Forced to Switch: How OmniFocus 4.8.3 Locked Me Out

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FocusGuy

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OmniFocus 4.8.3: A Forced Leap That Drove Me to Things 3

The latest release of OmniFocus, version 4.8.3, landed on September 22, 2025, bringing a slew of refinements across platforms. From improved widget behavior and Quick Entry fixes on macOS to enhanced navigation and perspective management on iOS and iPadOS, the update is polished and forward-looking. But for users like me—those not riding the wave of Apple’s latest OS, macOS Tahoe—it’s a frustrating dead end.

A Format Shift That Broke Everything

OmniFocus 4.8.3 requires macOS 14 (Tahoe), iOS/iPadOS 17, and visionOS 2. That’s a problem. My aging Intel iMac runs Ventura, and my beloved MacBook Pro Retina is stuck on Big Sur. The new version of OmniFocus not only refuses to run on these machines—it also introduces a new data format incompatible with older versions. That meant I couldn’t sync or even open my existing database across my all devices. I was forced to abandon ship.

Goodbye OmniFocus, Hello Chaos

The consequences were maddening. I had to uninstall all previous versions of OmniFocus, purge my system of legacy data, and migrate everything to Things 3. That wasn’t just a switch—it was a full-scale adaptation. I had to reconfigure Things 3 to mimic the structure and behavior I’d perfected in OmniFocus over the years. Perspectives, tags, review cycles—everything had to be rebuilt from scratch.

A Decision Made in Frustration

I’m not happy. I’ve been a loyal OmniFocus user for years since OF1, and I would have preferred to stay. But the lack of backward compatibility and the complexity of reverting to the old format made it impossible. OmniFocus left me no choice. The transition to Things 3 wasn’t voluntary—it was survival.

Inspired by GTD Coach Meg Edwards

Ironically, my new setup in Things 3 is heavily inspired by GTD coach Meg Edwards, who—if rumors are true—has been a lifelong OmniFocus advocate. Thanks to her, her approach to task management with Omnifocus helped me recreate a semblance of order in Things 3. But it still feels like a compromise.
 
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Oh, I am sorry to hear that.

It goes to show that software and cloud services are ephemeral in nature. It is shocking that such a high profile tool should fail in such a catastrophic, sudden and thoughtless way. We should use tools while they are useful but always make sure our data is our own, and readable in other tools.

According to Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MacOS_version_history
Big Sur was released in 2020 with the latest update in 2023.
Ventura was released in 2022 with the latest update this year!
Technically both are unsupported by Apple.

Given that people like to keep their Macs for a long time (over a decade is not uncommon) this seems too soon for an established piece of software to stop running on them.

I am glad you managed to migrate to Things 3.
 
FocusGuy said:
My aging Intel iMac runs Ventura, and my beloved MacBook Pro Retina is stuck on Big Sur.
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You will be amazed at how much more capable when shifting from an Intel Mac to the Apple Silicon chip Macs. It's night and day.

You may be content with how things are on Big Sur but you'll be jumping light years ahead. I reckon that many of the new apps that will be released will no longer be updated with Intel code. Then it feels difficult to be left behind because we're just trying to milk every last bit out of an ancient machine.

I haven't looked back at my MBP 17" (Intel). it was great for its time but things will have to come to an end eventually.

And the features in OmniFocus 4.8.3 have been worth the upgrade for many who do use OmniFocus.
 
@Wilson Ng
Thanks for sharing your experience — it's really insightful. I totally get your excitement about Apple Silicon Macs. The performance and efficiency gains are impressive, and it's clear Apple is fully committed to this transition.

I do realize that the shift is accelerating, especially as more apps start dropping Intel support. It can definitely feel frustrating to be left behind.

Your example with OmniFocus 4.8.4 is a good one — I used it (My Main Mac is an iMac M4 using Tahoe) and I saw how some features really shine on newer machines. I know the time will come when I make the leap.

That said, the real issue for me is the complete inability to synchronize my data across my MacBook Pro Retina, my Intel-based Mac, and my M4 Mac — which has made it extremely difficult to maintain a smooth and consistent workflow.

I’m definitely not closing the door on OmniFocus. When I eventually upgrade my MacBook Pro and Buy an Apple Silicon chip Macs , it’s very likely I’ll revisit OmniFocus — or at the very least, I’ll reassess whether I prefer my current setup with Things or if OmniFocus fits my needs better at that point.
 
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I think I've figured out the root of the problem. I was so traumatized by my system change that I even asked Culture Code (Things developer) if they were going to do the same thing to me, and here's what they answered...

"We can't say what the future holds. But it's entirely possible that, at some point, we will have to cease support for old Operating Systems, as we have already done in the past.

This simply means that you won't get any updates anymore, but whatever Things version worked last on that OS will keep working there just fine. We usually try to make sure that, before we drop an OS, the current Things version runs stable on that OS so customers can keep relying on it.

Eventually, there'll come a time when we'll have to make deeper changes to the app, which require something we refer to as "schema change". That means we have to change how the app stores and processes data. When that happens, newer versions will not be able to sync with older versions of the app. If one of your devices can run the newer version, and the other is stuck on an older version, you need to make sure that you don't update the app on the newer device to keep syncing. That's happened twice in the past, and we have many customers who can still use Things on older Operating Systems, though they don't get any of the new stuff.

But it's not feasible to keep supporting old OS's in perpetuity. There are very few users on old Operating Systems, and the issues that old OS support causes us in development are simply too huge to deal with at some point"
 
@FocusGuy

I am a long time OmniFocus user and even recently reached out to Omni to license V1 for an old PowerMac G4 I've brought back to life. This older version isn't intended to sync with my Omni database - it's for projects and actions I only want to see when I am on the PowerMac. Version 1 is special! All of that to say - I have been using OmniFocus for a long time as well as Outliner and Graffle for many projects.

As I read your post, I can relate to the frustration you are experiencing. When Evernote switched to the more costly subscription, I jumped ship and transitioned to DevonThink and then to OneNote. I was frustrated with the changes "happening to me" and it all made me very upset. Ultimately, I think Evernote has made a comeback and thanks to Dave Edwards videos, has brought me back to using it again. But now I have a bunch of stuff in OneNote - so I'm torn. Now I kind of wish I wouldn't have left so quickly.

Before I had settled on Omni, I used to jump around apps a bit to test the waters. I used ToDoist for a season, Things, Nozbe, Wonderlist, Superlist, ToDo, Tick Tick, etc... then, I found myself coming back to Omni realizing I just needed to develop better habits in actually using my system - and that's when I decided to just stick with OF moving forward.

When software companies make decisions driven by the latest OS and changes in the code/schema, it causes everyday users to experience unnecessary pain that seems avoidable. Sometimes it's the operating system features we can't see yet that we're being prepared for, and other times it's a company acquisition, or other driving force behind the scenes. With ToDoist, I was bothered by all of the constant tweaking and changing to the interface. I desired consistency.

The update to OmniFocus 4 on iOS with liquid glass has been a total game changer for me personally, and for the first time, I'm able to move around Omni much more quickly on my phone. However, on my MacBook M1, I am running OmniFocus 3 with no issues. I also run OF3 on my intel Mac Pro on V3.11.4 with no sync issues. I have not felt the need to update to 4 on my computer - and guess I won't need to unless I am forced to? (I wonder if you might be able to run OF3 on your older Mac and still be able to sync?) I haven't yet seen enough features in V4 that would require an update. You might be using features or have custom perspectives set up. I have given myself permission to not to have to be on the latest build -- or use all of the features.

Your post caught my attention and caused me to consider this for myself - so I'm thinking this through as I write this reply... If I am faced with the situation where I have to update the app and/or database in order to sync across all devices... here's how I might approach this:

1. Is this an opportunity for me to upgrade my tech ecosystem? And if so, what else could that be an opportunity for?

2. Is this an opportunity to clean my lists and rebuild the database? Exporting database to HTML, Plain Text, or CSV could provide a historical archive if I ever need it for reference. OmniFocus makes it easy to get the raw data out.

3. How might I need to simplify or re-frame some of the new features in the app so that I can maintain how I approach the software? (i.e. when Omni changed from contexts to tags)

That's all I have for now.. grateful for your post and for the chance to think this through.
 
cfoley said:
e should use tools while they are useful but always make sure our data is our own, and readable in other tools.
Click to expand...
And therein is the biggest reason I've "jumped ship" for Obsidian. Because at its heart, it's markdown files and if push really came to shove I can write my own way to deal with them. Not elegant, not full featured but also not orphaned.
Josh Mitchell said:
When software companies make decisions driven by the latest OS and changes in the code/schema, it causes everyday users to experience unnecessary pain that seems avoidable
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The flip side of this is, as a developer, if we do not support the latest and greatest version of operating system X, we are considered out of date. never mind that the old stuff, with minor tweaking can probably run on newer systems. If we don't update and integrate the newest features we risk being blackballed and forbidden from the various "official"software release channels.

It's a tough balancing act between supporting old software versions and being allowed to even ply your wares to folks running new stuff.
 
Life is indeed unpredictable.

I thought it would be impossible to sync all my devices again—especially my beloved MacBook Pro Retina running Big Sur. But I was wrong. After digging into the issue with the technical team at OmniGroup, I found an indirect solution. Maybe someone else will face the same problem, so I’m sharing it here.

Since I couldn’t find any synced database available, here’s what I did:

1. On my MacBook Pro Retina, I saved a new database using the old format. Then I transferred it to my iMac M4 desktop via AirDrop.
2. I opened OmniFocus Tahoe on the iMac and copied every project from the iMac database into the MBP database. This saved the data to the MBP database.
3. I then imported the old-format database to the MBP again via AirDrop and opened it with OmniFocus on the MBP.
4. Finally, I synced and replaced the server database with the old-format version.

✅ Now everything syncs—including my iPhone!

Here’s my current setup:

• MacBook Pro Retina running OmniFocus V3.15.8
• iMac M4 running OmniFocus Tahoe V4.8.4 (though none of my custom perspectives—built over years—were preserved). Fortunately, I’ll be able to recreate them, but I’ve asked the OmniGroup team if there’s a way to recover them directly.

When I get a new MacBook Pro or Air next year, I’ll update the database accordingly.

My next weekly review is scheduled for Friday, and it will refresh my system. It won’t take long.

I’m deeply accustomed to OmniFocus. Things is great—but a bit too lightweight for my needs.

Omnifocus I am back ! ;)
 
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I'm increasingly pleased that I never bothered to upgrade past 3.11.7.

(And I am now threatening, as retirement approaches, to move my personal stuff to...a paper zettelkasten. (Yes, I realize that the part that closely resembles GTD isn't really zettelkasten, but it will also be on cards in a box.))
 
FocusGuy said:
Life is indeed unpredictable.

I thought it would be impossible to sync all my devices again—especially my beloved MacBook Pro Retina running Big Sur. But I was wrong. After digging into the issue with the technical team at OmniGroup, I found an indirect solution. Maybe someone else will face the same problem, so I’m sharing it here.

Since I couldn’t find any synced database available, here’s what I did:

1. On my MacBook Pro Retina, I saved a new database using the old format. Then I transferred it to my iMac M4 desktop via AirDrop.
2. I opened OmniFocus Tahoe on the iMac and copied every project from the iMac database into the MBP database. This saved the data to the MBP database.
3. I then imported the old-format database to the MBP again via AirDrop and opened it with OmniFocus on the MBP.
4. Finally, I synced and replaced the server database with the old-format version.

✅ Now everything syncs—including my iPhone!

Here’s my current setup:

• MacBook Pro Retina running OmniFocus V3.15.8
• iMac M4 running OmniFocus Tahoe V4.8.4 (though none of my custom perspectives—built over years—were preserved). Fortunately, I’ll be able to recreate them, but I’ve asked the OmniGroup team if there’s a way to recover them directly.

When I get a new MacBook Pro or Air next year, I’ll update the database accordingly.

My next weekly review is scheduled for Friday, and it will refresh my system. It won’t take long.

I’m deeply accustomed to OmniFocus. Things is great—but a bit too lightweight for my needs.

Omnifocus I am back ! ;)
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I’m glad you’re happy, but one of my larger frustrations with OF was the construction of perspectives. OF does not support a complete set of Boolean operations (as I recall, Todoist does) in filtering. Also, Things is not simple, just not bogged down by features. :)
 
mcogilvie said:
OF does not support a complete set of Boolean operations (as I recall, Todoist does) in filtering.
Click to expand...
It's gotten better.... You can use ALL OF THE FOLLOWING for "and" operations or you can use ANY OF THE FOLLOWING for "or" operations. And now there are other conditions such as finding due soon within the next 7 days or all completed tasks within the last 7 days.

OmniFocus Release Notes - The Omni Group

Creators of Mac, iPad, and iPhone productivity software. Proud to bring you OmniFocus, OmniOutliner, OmniGraffle, and OmniPlan.
www.omnigroup.com www.omnigroup.com
 
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