Apple tells its Support Community to STFU
User-to-user forum goes read-only ahead of November 20 closure, with archive's fate unclear
Apple has unexpectedly halted the creation of new posts on its Support Community forum, placing it in read-only mode as of November 20, 2026. This abrupt closure followed by the permanent shutdown of the forum comes as users seeking assistance with their Apple devices were met with a message stating: "The Apple Support Community will permanently close on November 20, 2026.
Starting today, the site will no longer accept new posts and is available in a read-only state." Apple expressed gratitude towards the dedicated community members who had generously contributed their time and knowledge to aid others with their Apple products. However, it was emphasized that the forum is no longer suitable for seeking help as it is now a read-only platform.
Some reports trace the forum's inception back to 1998, during a period when Apple was winding down the Newton platform and launching Mac OS 8.5. With the advent of advanced technology and artificial intelligence, user-to-user forums like this one have become less prevalent. Despite this, it is acknowledged that useful answers were never guaranteed in such forums.
One user lamented on X, "rip to every thread that ended with 'same problem here' and zero solutions." The abrupt closure marks the end of nearly three decades of accumulated advice, troubleshooting, and unanswered questions within the forum. Apple has not disclosed if the existing archive will remain accessible after the closure.
The Register reached out to Apple for reasons behind the termination, but the company has not yet provided a response.
Written by urgent.news from The Register's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
