Apple has started to distribute the release candidate fourth developer beta of tvOS 17.1 to developers for testing.
Developers who are involved with the beta can get the latest builds via the Apple Developer Center, or by updating any Apple TV set-top boxes that are already running the beta. Public beta versions usually surface a short time after the developer counterparts, and the public can sign up to test them via the Apple Beta Software Program when they become available.
The fourth developer beta of tvOS 17.1 follows after the third, which was issued on October 11. The second was released on October 3, which in turn took over from the first, which Apple provided to testers on September 27.
The fourth beta is build number 21K69, replacing the third build, number 21K5064a.
While iOS and watchOS updates typically include more visible features, tvOS instead usually has what could be considered background changes, performance improvements, and bug fixes. Feature changes do occasionally surface, but far less regularly than Apple’s other operating systems.
AppleInsider and Apple strongly advise users don’t install beta operating systems, or beta software in general, on to “mission-critical” or primary devices, as there is the chance of issues that could result in the loss of data. Testers should instead use secondary or non-essential hardware and ensure they have sufficient backups of their critical data at all times.
