FAQ

You can use the free tool CrystalFetch to download the latest installer image from Microsoft. Choose the ARM64 version for a Mac with Apple silicon, or the x64 version for an Intel-based Mac. You need your own Windows license.

New Windows virtual machines turn on Secure Boot and TPM automatically. For older virtual machines, you can turn on these 2 options manually in settings. Windows 11 also requires at least 2 CPU cores. When you emulate x86_64 on Apple silicon, the default is only 1 core, so change it to 2 or more in settings.

No. Intel-based Mac computers can't run macOS virtual machines. If your Mac has Apple silicon and runs macOS 12 or later, you can install macOS virtual machines. If you don't choose an IPSW file, VM64 downloads a compatible version of macOS automatically.

Yes. These systems run through QEMU emulation. On emulated 68k and PowerPC machines, you can install Mac OS 7.1 through Mac OS X 10.4. You can also install Windows 95 and Windows 98. You need your own Windows license. You also need to provide your own installer images, and some machines also require ROM files.

When a virtual machine has the same architecture as your Mac, VM64 uses virtualization for near-native speed. Other architectures run through QEMU emulation. Emulation is slower than virtualization, especially when you run x86 systems on Apple silicon. So on a Mac with Apple silicon, we recommend installing the ARM64 versions of Windows and Linux.

On a Mac with Apple silicon, create a Linux virtual machine with the Apple backend and turn on Rosetta. Your Mac needs macOS 13 or later. Then, in Linux, mount Rosetta, register Rosetta with binfmt, and install the x86_64 shared libraries.

Game compatibility is still being improved. QEMU virtual machines running Linux can use Vulkan 1.3 or OpenGL 4.1. Windows 11 virtual machines can use DirectX 11 and DirectX 12, which are experimental features. DirectX 11 requires macOS 13 or later. DirectX 12 requires macOS 14 or later, and on Apple silicon, you also need to install Rosetta.

To share the clipboard, install guest tools in the virtual machine first. Then turn on clipboard sharing in the virtual machine's settings. You can choose shared folders from the toolbar in the virtual machine window. When you share folders with a macOS virtual machine, both your Mac and the virtual machine need macOS 13 or later. When you share the clipboard with a macOS virtual machine, both your Mac and the virtual machine need macOS 15 or later.

QEMU virtual machines can use USB devices connected to your Mac. Many devices can't complete a hardware reset and may not work properly after you connect them. You can't connect the built-in camera on your Mac to a virtual machine. To transfer files, we recommend shared folders instead of USB storage devices.

Press the Control and Option keys at the same time. While you install a system, the mouse may not move properly. If that happens, click the Capture Mouse button in the toolbar.

In the virtual machine's settings, change the network mode to Bridged. The virtual machine then acts as a separate device on the local network.

Snapshots of QEMU virtual machines save both the disk and the running state. Create a snapshot in the Snapshots tab of the virtual machine details, and you can restore it later.

QEMU virtual machines can run in disposable mode, which discards all changes at shutdown. You can't save snapshots in disposable mode.