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Mac users will be able to install the first public beta of macOS Sierra on Thursday.

The release comes two days after Apple released its second developer preview of macOS Sierra.

To install the beta, head to beta.apple.com. There, you can sign-up with your Apple ID and get a download for the new software.

New name, new features, same core Mac goodness

Even though it has a new name, underneath the hood, macOS Sierra is still the OS X we’ve all come to know and love. But this year, Apple is adding a bunch of new features, including Siri on the Mac, a universal clipboard (that lets you copy/paste stuff from your Mac to your iOS device and vice versa) and better iCloud integration.

Because this is a public beta, there will be bugs. Apple doesn’t recommend installing this on your primary Mac just yet. On my own systems, I haven’t run into many apps that don’t work properly under macOS Sierra – but there are a few. So be aware that there are bugs.

If you do decide to install the beta, be sure you back up your Mac first with Time Machine.

As in the past, Apple will release periodic updates to the beta over the summer. Beta users will be able to install the final version when it ships later this fall.

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