Silverlight (2007–2021) was Microsoft’s answer to Adobe Flash. It supported .NET-based development, DRM video (PlayReady), and hardware-accelerated graphics. On macOS, Silverlight was available as a Safari and Firefox plugin until Apple and Microsoft phased out NPAPI (Netscape Plugin Application Programming Interface) support.
Silverlight 1.0 * Silverlight also optionally supports built-in media streaming. This enables you to use a streaming server like W... Microsoft LIGHT UP THE WEB - Microsoft Download Center Silverlight DRM, Powered by PlayReady ... Silverlight DRM is a small, cross-platform version of the PlayReady client used exclusiv... Microsoft Show all Streaming: Used for "Smooth Streaming" of large-scale live events (e.g., Olympics, Wimbledon). DRM: Provided digital rights management for protected content via Microsoft PlayReady. Cross-Platform: Designed to run identical code on both Windows and macOS. YouTube +4 Installation Challenges In the past, installing Silverlight on Mac was often unreliable due to: "Resume" Feature: macOS Lion (10.7) and later had a "Resume" feature that could block successful installation; users were often advised to disable it during setup. System Restarts: Frequent restarts were often required for the plugin to be recognized by different browsers. Stack Overflow Current Usage If you encounter a legacy website that still requires Silverlight on your Mac: Internet Explorer: The plugin only fully functions on
CVE records (e.g., CVE-2016-0034, CVE-2015-6165) show Silverlight on macOS was susceptible to: silverlight plugin for mac
The Silverlight plugin for macOS was technically functional for a period but suffered from architectural mismatch (32-bit only, NPAPI dependency) and security liabilities. Its deprecation followed the broader industry move away from plugins toward HTML5/WebAssembly. For modern macOS systems, Silverlight is effectively dead, and remaining legacy applications should be migrated to open standards or containerized Windows environments.
Microsoft Silverlight is on Mac and reached its official end-of-life on October 12, 2021 . Because it is a 32-bit plugin, it is fundamentally incompatible with macOS Catalina (10.15) and all subsequent versions, including those running on M1/M2/M3 chips. Compatibility and Security Risks Silverlight 1
In conclusion, while Microsoft Silverlight is no longer supported, it's still possible to install and use the plugin on a Mac. However, due to its deprecated status, it's recommended to explore alternative technologies for building web applications.
Microsoft’s Patch Tuesday often released macOS-specific fixes later than Windows versions. Silverlight DRM is a small, cross-platform version of
| Event | Date | Impact on macOS Silverlight | |-------|------|-----------------------------| | Safari stops supporting NPAPI | 2018 | Cannot load in Safari 12+ | | Firefox drops NPAPI | 2017 | No Firefox support | | Google Chrome (already no NPAPI) | 2015 | Never supported Silverlight | | macOS Catalina (10.15) | 2019 | No 32-bit app execution | | Microsoft ends Silverlight support | Oct 2021 | No security updates |
Keep in mind that Silverlight is no longer supported by Microsoft, and many modern web browsers have dropped support for the plugin. If you encounter issues with Silverlight, you may need to consider alternative technologies like HTML5, Adobe Flash (although it's also deprecated), or other web development frameworks.