What is oahd (Rosetta 2) on Mac?
By Junaid, maker of Taskglass · Last reviewed
Rosetta 2: translates Intel-only apps so they can run on Apple silicon Macs.
oahd is part of Rosetta 2, the technology that lets apps built for Intel Macs run on Apple silicon. The first time you open an Intel app, or after it updates, Rosetta translates it and saves the result, which can briefly use a lot of CPU. Later launches reuse the translation and are much lighter.
- Category
- macOS system
- Made by
- Apple
- Safe to quit:
- With care
Shown in Activity Monitor as oahd, oahd-helper
Why is oahd (Rosetta 2) using so much CPU or memory?
- Opening an Intel-only app for the first time
- An Intel app was just updated and needs translating again
- Installers or command-line tools built for Intel
What to do
- 1Wait; translation is a one-time cost per app version
- 2Check if the app has an Apple silicon version (Get Info on the app shows its Kind as 'Universal' or 'Apple Silicon')
- 3Update or replace Intel-only apps where possible
Safe to quit? With care.
macOS relaunches it; the Intel app being translated may fail to open until it does.
Related processes
Part of the Taskglass Process Library