- Use MacOS on a Windows PC on a virtual machine?
- Install MacOS alongside Windows on a PC, and boot it?
- Remove Windows and install MacOS on the PC in the hopes of using it just like a Macbook, if possible at all?
By Enes Deniz, 22 October, 2024
Forum
Windows
Comments
I don't think you can use mac OS as a VM.
I've looked into it and it iether doesn't seam possible or it's very tricky.
I hope someone else can help you with a more informed answer to your questions.
You can use macOS in a VM
I saw someone doing it but its a vary long process that I decided not to bother but if you really want to you can look up grace blind tech on YouTube, she did a video on it
Confirmed @Grace Blind Tech
Just finished the video. Not sure if it is permitted to post a direct link here, but this person is incredibly intelligent. I will warn you, though, that she is quite young, and as the young tend to be, she goes through her steps very, very fast. Impatiently, even.
So just a heads up there.
Her video is long, as mentioned above, but quite detailed as she walks us through getting the necessary tools, installing Mac OSX Catalina, and then finally updating it to macOS 12 Monterey. I am sure you can go above it nowadays, as her video is about 2 years old.
Also, she states her PC is Intel-based, and that she is unsure on how to make it work on AMD machines. Sadly, that leaves me out.
Anyway, good luck, Enes, if you decide to try this out.
You can, and on AMD too.
Very briefly:
1. Get VMWare.
2. Get the program that tells VMWare it can run Mac OS.
3. Run that, obviously.
4. Set up your VM and point it at an iso of Mac OS.
5.If you're on AMD, before you run the VM, add some gibberish to the VM config file you just set up.
6. Alternatively, you might be able to use Opencore Legacy Patcher.
However, if your AMD has integrated graphics,forget 6.
Here's my pro tip to finish up. Just get a Mac Mini, if you want to try a Mac.
I'm not sure how legal it is to run Mac OS in a VM, hence why I kept things vague. Plus, you're likely going to get an out-of-date version anyway. That might not be so bad with Windows, unless you're using Narrator as a screenreader.
But with Voiceover, you're losing any new features or improvements. Also, apps have minimum versions. SO do you want Garage Band or Pages? Minimum OS version is13.5.
Can you do it? Sure. And if your machine will run something as a VM, chances are it's possible to have it run directly on your hardware. But what will most likely happen is that you'll brick your hardware, or you'll be running an older version of the OS that's not really going to give you what you want anyway.
I guess if you're just interested in it as some kind of technical challenge, go for it, although if you're going directly to hardware I hope you have a backup machine around or sighted help to get Windows back on it. But if you're trying to run a Mac without running an actual Mac, you're most likely going to be disappointed, even if you manage to get it working.
Not for me, but...
Not for me, but good to know AMD can do this. I actually own an old MBP, currently OCLP'ed to macOS 12 Monterey. So if I wanna do Mac stuff, I just roll my desk chaor about 2 feet to my left and open the lid. 😇
Still it is really cool that this can be done, and from the aforementioned video, if you have decent Windows hardware, macOS can run pretty smooth. Of course the content creator was using the Alex VO voice. Who knows if it could handle the Nuance voices. 🙂
It's possible for sure
I've done it, and I didn't like the experience.
I don't understand how blind people would survive working with VM ever. There's noticible lag between the key press and the action and the feedback from the screen reader.
And, I found VO on MacOS confusing as hell. Got stuck at thousands of places, couldn't even open the web browser, let alone going to Youtube etc.
Any way. It's possible, but, it's not advisable owing to terrible experience.
According to the video...
Every action is a VO + double press of the spacebar. I am guessing that is how it can work at all within a VM. The content creater's channel is very easy to find from her channel, it was the first option after typing her channel name in YouTube's search field. So have a look at it. Not saying it is the best experience, but it is not only doable but macOS was running well enough on her equipment.
I can only assume that the OP of this thread was curious for curiositiessake. 🤷
I didn't have to double press anything.
I don't know what she used as a virtual host, and I'm not going to go look at the video to find out. But when I did it, before getting an M2 Mini and having a way better experience, I didn't have to double press anything. Once it was set up, it mostly worked, except for cmd and opt being flipped around, the Windows key is cmd. Also you'll have to work around some web stuff, cmd-l doesn't bring up the address bar, it sends Windows to the lock screen, because that's a Windows shortcut.
Also as I believe I already mentioned, because my AMD has integrated graphics, the latest thing I could run was 10.15, Catalina? I can never keep the dumb names straight, never could for Windows either.
Anyway, other than being old and incredibly slow, it was fine. It was enough to make me want a real Mac for all of the improvements. IMO that's how you'll be able to tell if you can deal with a Mac, by dealing with an actual Mac.
Well
To answer your last two questions, and yes, whilst it is very much possible to do this, it’s illegal, and I don’t know the experience will be good.
What you want is a hacintosh. A hacintosh is where you run macOS on a Windows computer without using a virtual machine, Using bypass methods. These bypass methods are made by the community, and it is also. Using Windows hardware.
It’s illegal, or if not illegal, not correct.
Personally I do not condone, endorse or recommend you run mackOS natively on windows. Not only is the possible legal complications and issue, but once Apple, fully ends support for Intel, unless Apple and Windows can spark up a Bootcamp alternative for Apple silicon Max, both Boot Camp, and hackintosh will meet there doom.
Again I’m not in it, but it can be done if you’re really technical and don’t care about legal complications. I care about them so I’m not gonna do it, also I really don’t want to mess around with hardware, software and drivers.
Fair enough
As I stated, this is not for me. Just simply replying to the OP of this thread. I have an AMD with a dedicated Radeon GPU, and still not going to mess with this. Also as I mentioned already, I actually own an older MBP. When/if I am feeling nostalgic, I can just open the lid and play away.
Again, I was merely providing info to the OP here. 😇
Topic Now Closed
Hi all,
As has been pointed out, running macOS software on non-Mac hardware is not permitted by Apple's license terms. Due to potential intellectual property/copyright issues, this is not a topic which can be discussed on AppleVis. Thank you for your understanding.