sofa

# SOFA 
**S**imple **O**rganized **F**eed for **A**pple Software Updates

![Sofa logo](./docs/custom_logo.png "Optional title")

Hello 👋,

**SOFA** supports MacAdmins by efficiently tracking and surfacing information on updates for macOS and iOS. It consists of a machine-readable feed and user-friendly web interface, providing continuously up-to-date information on XProtect data, OS updates, and the details bundled in those releases.

Updated automatically via GitHub Actions, the SOFA feed is a dynamic, centralized, and accessible source of truth. It can be self-hosted, giving you complete assurances as to the provenance of the data your fleet and coworkers can consume. The goal is to streamline the monitoring of Apple's software releases, thereby boosting security awareness and administrative efficiency.

## Contributing to SOFA

We welcome contributions and feedback to SOFA! Please read our [contributing guidelines](./CONTRIBUTING.md) before opening a pull request. Most times opening an issue first works well. In general, any code changes should be discussed in an issue before a pull request is opened, especially for new features, behavior changes, refactors, dependency changes, architectural changes, compatibility changes, and large rewrites. Small documentation fixes, typo fixes, and clearly isolated bug fixes may not need prior discussion.

## Key Features

### Machine-Readable Feed, RSS Feed, and Web UI

- **JSON Feed**: Provides detailed, machine-readable data optimized for automated tools and scripts
- **RSS Feed**: Provides RSS Feed for use with entries sorted by date released
- **Web Interface**: Divided between the major version tabs at the top and organized into sections that cover the latest OS information, XProtect updates, and security details for each OS, SOFA facilitates both quick summaries and deep dives into relevant data points

## Deprecation notice
**IMPORTANT NOTE:** Update Your Use of SOFA Feed
- Implement a USER-AGENT in Custom Tools
To optimize hosting and caching for SOFA, please implement a user-agent in your integrations, tools, and workflows. This enhances performance and user interactions with SOFA.
- Update to the New Feed Location
Please update your scripts that are utilising the SOFA macOS and iOS feeds to point to **https://sofafeed.macadmins.io/v1/macos_data_feed.json** and **https://sofafeed.macadmins.io/v1/ios_data_feed.json** respectively.

The old feed addresses of https://sofa.macadmins.io/v1/macos_data_feed.json and https://sofa.macadmins.io/v1/ios_data_feed.json are **deprecated** and will be removed soon.

### Use Cases

SOFA supports a wide array of practical applications, whether for MacAdmin tooling directly or discussing the state of security on Apple platforms with security personnel.

- **Xprotect Monitoring**: Keep track of the latest XProtect updates centrally so agents running on your fleet can verify compliance with CIS/mSCP standards, ensuring Apple's tooling is up-to-date
- **Security Overv