back to article Run Mac OS X on a PC

Want to run Mac OS X on a PC? Perhaps you don't want to pay the premium for Apple's hardware - or Apple doesn't make the kind of computer you need, such as a netbook. Because of its native roots in Motorola and PowerPC code, this has traditionally required instruction level emulation. Two things have changed. Apple based Mac OS …

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  1. Anonymous Coward
    Jobs Halo

    Why Kalyway?

    I'd second a previous commenter's suggestion to install the iDeneb release. I got this from a torrent site a couple of weeks ago and installed it with none of the issues or bizarre workarounds detailed here - it worked straight away for me (fortunately, I already know my hardware inside out, so it was just a matter of selecting the correct hardware kexts). So far nothing's fazed it, and I'm using it daily.

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Unhappy

    Why would anybody ....

    ... Want to waste precious hours of their life doing this? Having an OS that doesn't support USB and freezes, requiring a reinstall(!!) when trying to do an update isn't my idea of a clever. Plus (actually more importantly) this is illegal (downloading and using a pirated version of a commercial product), which as someone who works in the software industry, I have a very big problem with (actual people write this stuff in order to make a living). It's things like this that make me think that DRM has a point and Microsoft actually have the right idea forcing online activation on people (and there's something I never thought I'd say)!

    Typing this on a mac mini using OS X Leopard, which was bought legally and installed by (a) popping DVD in the drive and (b) going away to get a coffee for half an hour and coming back to find everything working on hardware with which it's been tested to within an inch of it's life.

    And before anybody says anything, I've been putting together my own PCs for about as long as I can remember (but haven't bothered since being exposed to OS X. It's amazing how much a little user friendliness can do for you).

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Joke

    @ Professor Denis "Mac" Smith

    Hmm... I see what you mean.. I mean, I guess I could:

    "look at the Cocoa APIs, like Core Image, Core Data, Core Animation? Have you ever had a look at the Quarz Compositor, the WM of MacOSX and made the comparison with X11, which is the only real pile of junk?"

    but you see, I don't have time for all that... I need an OS that "just works" ;o)

  4. Drak

    it comes down to how apps install (or dont install)

    The only thing that attracts me to Mac is there installationless apps, and the only thing bad about Ubuntu and most other Linux distros is the hacked way they install software with package managers. If someone ever comes up with a way to run apps on Linux like OSX does, then its bye bye Mac forever

  5. Stevie
    Happy

    Err...

    Anonymous Coward Posted Monday 20th October 2008 13:33 GMT<i>No, AC, Mac OS X isn't Linux. Mac OS X is fully certified BSD Unix - just like Solaris. </i>

    Hackcherly, Solaris isn't BSD. Never was.

    Solaris is SVR4 derived.

    Ported by those nice chaps at ICL.

    I think the authors of Unix textbooks would be a tad disapponted that people don't actually read the obligatory thirty page "History O Unix" chapter. One might conclude they only added that material to pad out an expensive text book.

  6. steve
    Happy

    instal off a real retail Leopard OSX disk

    If you use a boot 123 boot disk (google) you can install a real OSX system on a PC without using a hacked copy, that won't be destroyed by apple updates. You need relatively compatible hardware and an intel cpu

  7. Giles Jones Gold badge

    Old kernel

    Running a hackintosh is fine if you want to run a 3rd party compiled kernel that's way out of date compared with the official kernel.

  8. Anonymous Coward
    Unhappy

    @Marc: Why would anybody...

    Re: your comments about all this being illegal etc, consider the following:

    1. Personally, I already owned a Mac Pro (top of the range Apple kit costing mucho $$$), and so I already had paid a lot of $$$ to Apple for the hardware and software, but I was curious to see it running on a cheap machine I built myself to see if it would really work.

    2. Don't you think that some people who try this will be tempted to buy a real Mac computer? If your answer is yes, then consider that Apple will have increased their sales -- so this could be seen as try before you buy. If your answer was no, then would they have bought a Mac anyway? If not then where is the loss?

    DRM has been tried and dropped by music companies -- caused too many interoperability problems, costs and headaches -- they made P2P easier and more user-friendly. Own goal.

    My thoughts about all this are that it (1) increases publicity about a great OS and user-friendly system and (2) if people try this they will probably want a real Mac to ensure that the OS keeps working as it should after updates etc. There will always be a minority of hardcore people smart enough to find a way to get things for free, but as long this remains a minority the system works.

    I think Apple is smart not to put activation/codes etc into the OS installation process.

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Pirate

    "University of Berkeley"

    ROTFLMAO!!!

    - Ah - WHAT state is that in???

  10. Anonymous Coward
    Alien

    @dave

    <quote>

    Windows has actually been POSIX compliant for ages.

    </quote>

    Really???

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/POSIX#POSIX-oriented_operating_systems

  11. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Re: re Why would anybody...

    Yep, I can see where you're coming from.

    As for the try as you buy though, it could also have the opposite effect of being so unstable (my reading of the article was that it wasn't exactly smooth sailing) to put people off macs for life. Then again, YMMV I suppose.

    Personally I'm too afraid of picking up malware from hacked iso images to ever give this a go. My concern re: piracy, etc. was more along the lines that I'm surprised the register is actually publishing details of the exact image name to download and advising people how to skip the registration, etc. I'd probably be a lot less vocal if there were at least some disclaimer or something in the article (having said that I accept that I may just have read too fast to notice it). As it is it seems a bit irresponsible...

  12. Neoc
    Thumb Down

    Promoting Piracy?

    So, let me get this straight...

    This isn't even a piece about how to shoe-horn a legal copy of OS-X on standard Intel hardware (legally dubious, but morally defendable). Nope, this is a piece on how to install a piece of *pirated* software. The author even admits this is pirated software.

    Damn, I hope you guys have good lawyers.

  13. Cristhian Mejia
    Thumb Up

    Good for the curious

    I used to run OS X86 like this since it was first released with the "deadmoo" image. I then did it with the 10.4.8 Intel DVD, and then the Leopard 10.5 Disc. And after some trials and errors I finally got it to perfectly work without having to use to many altered kexts; I used a total of 4. That gave me some good insight in to OS X which I haven't used before play around with it for about a year, then I made the switch to a real Mac by purchasing an iMac and I haven't looked back. My old OSx86 machine is still there with 10.5.4 in plastic in a box. I like the project very good if you want so high end hardware with OS X capabilities. But I got tired of the wires and opted for the all-in-one solution that the iMac is.

  14. Cristhian Mejia
    Thumb Up

    My Config

    My setup was:

    Intel Core2Duo 1.86Ghz

    Asrock Conroe945G-DVI

    Intel GMA950 w/fixed 64MB

    ALC888

    RTL Gigabit LAN (8118B I think)

    2x1GB 667mhz DDR2

    250GB WD 7200rpm HDD (SATA)

    Pioneer DVR-110 (shows as Superdrive on OS X)

    20in LCD

    Built for $250 pretty good since I paid over $1300+ for my 24in iMac.

    Everything works out of the box except the onboard GMA950 & the ALC888 audio. But those can be fixed with a kexts.

  15. Anonymous Coward
    Jobs Horns

    At least with a home-built mac you know what is inside it ...

    I've never bought a Windows ready PC nor built one myself but have instead succumbed to the over-priced crappily built machines that Apple produce.

    My first machine a 2000 iMac (you know the coloured ones without the slot loading trays) was great for a while but suffered intense set backs from heat related issues. After using it for a few hours (in summer) it would freeze up and start throwing up random windows and eventually crash. My only way of getting it to start was to let it cool down (anywhere from 2-4 hours) and then start working again - not fun. To avoid these issues I used to have a little desk fan sitting directly above the machine which would have to be turned on all the time the machine was running - but if it wasn't on the right angle it would freeze up and cause said problems - all this because supposedly they could cool from convection - yeah right

    My next machine was an eMac (2004 model) great machine but the DVD drive was retarded by apple engineers to not burn dual layer discs and faster media. It also has had a nasty habit of being completely picky about what discs it will accept - sometimes it will accept DVDs sometimes not - but it loves CDs - go figure. Another thing is it has had an annoying whining sound that shows itself about every hour or so which has been there from day one - not good for audio recording :(.

    In line with this I also maintain around 90 macs for a college and have had interesting experiences with a wide range of different macs from iMac G5s (the first release with the dodgy capacitors - which Apple still won't replace - unless they're completely dead), PowerMac G5's with 19" Apple Monitors and less than stellar performance and stability from built in USB and firewire ports and the subtle yet annoying differences between the cheaper iBooks and more expensive PowerBooks.

    I actually bought a G4 PowerBook after working on the quite well designed iBooks for a year - what I found was the USB ports didn't power portable USB drives (you would have to plug it in to two USB ports or power it from mains) the problem is that on PowerBooks the USB ports are on opposite sides of the machine - yeah smart design my arse. The other major issue was battery life - the iBooks would last for 4-6 hours while the PowerBooks only 2-3 - what a rip - especially since PowerBooks would be more likely used in the field for production etc. The other issue was heat - the PowerBooks get so hot that unless it's the middle of winter you would never have the machine on your lap due to the excessive heat they would give off.

    Other issues I've found consistent with a lot of different macs old and new is the stability issues while trying to run two firewire devices off two separate ports. Alot of macs will either disconnect one of the devices or stop them both working until you restart the machine. This is completely unacceptable and a flaw that has been consistent through many models, Apple won't even admit that it is a problem - BAH!

    All this combined with problems with the new 2007+ iMacs with the cheap TN screens that Apple is denying is a problem to the problems with the Nvidia chips in the MacBook Pros to god knows whatever else is happening inside their so called well built and designed machines.

    Apple has persistently been able to hide these flaws by offering brand new, spectacular looking offerings to the masses every few months or so.

    I need not go into problems with software nor the many other issues loyal mac users have had to endure - but I say this and I say this loud...

    THE NEXT OS X SYSTEM I INSTALL (FOR PERSONAL USE) WILL BE ON A BOX I'VE BUILT MYSELF!

    I don't care if it's a fugly hacked together piece of kit - it will work, if it breaks I will fix it, the only thing I will rely on Apple wise is their OS but hey if something better comes along then I'll go for it instead.

    Apple has progressively become more belligerent towards its criticizers and tries to slap a NDA on anyone who comes even close to proving them wrong.

    How long will people take this shit for?

    I have long been a faithful Apple user and supporter but no more - they can literally suck my balls!

  16. Anonymous Coward
    Linux

    whats the difference ?

    Between OS/X and linux ? Linux is for heterosexuals.

    Actually, the GUI in OS/X is polished, uniform, pretty and functional. The linux GUI is perhaps functional.

    The real difference is that software publishers are so afraid of being pirated they refuse to produce linux versions. If they do, 30 sec. after they are released, they are everywhere. Zero sales potential. So there are no linux versions of photshop, autocad, ....

  17. Anonymous Coward
    Happy

    @Dru Richman

    "The value of Time

    Perhaps I'm just strange. My time has value! At my current billing rate to my clients (USD $87.50, €64.78, £50.03)"

    Some people do this sort of thing for fun you know, I think it counted as a hobby. I guess at night you don't watch TV as when you break the costs down it's too expensive, it's prop cheaper to pay someone else to watch it for you.

  18. Luke Speer

    IIRC

    Duh Windows Black.

  19. David Kelly

    @AC: re home built

    "I've never bought a Windows ready PC nor built one myself but have instead succumbed to the over-priced crappily built machines that Apple produce."

    So how do you know Apple machines are "crappily" built compared to, say, Dell or Gateway? Yes, Apple machines have their fair share of troubles (all machines do) but relatively speaking they tend to be much better built than other brands (IME).

    "My next machine was an eMac (2004 model) great machine but the DVD drive was retarded by apple engineers to not burn dual layer discs and faster media"

    You do know that you can flash the firmware on these drives right? Apple makes them picky about disks and run slower partly to make them more reliable (less support calls) and partly to try and "encourage" you to buy media from them. I don't condone that practise and generally flash the drive of any new Apple machine I buy.

    As far as building something yourself goes, for me the time spent is not worth the savings. (No, I don't watch TV). I'd be keen to get a pre-built quality machine and use the EFI-X solution though. If anyone knows a machine which has all the right compatible hardware please post a link on here.

  20. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Just get a PC

    Mac's crash & burn just as well as XP - only you pay a lot more for the privilege.

  21. Anonymous Coward
    Jobs Halo

    iLife

    There are a couple of points missing from this, an otherwise standard Mac vs PC thread.

    The first, is that being a Mac user, I don't have to think about spyware, adware, malware or viruses. The anti-spy, ad, mal etc. ware is not installed on my machine. I don't have to worry that it's getting in the way of things, nor do I think about updates, responding to potential threats and all that related malarky. It is simply not an issue in our household. In 8 years of Mac use I have yet to have a significant problem operationally, let alone one that could attributed to any kind of attack.

    Second, no one has mentioned iLife, the creative productivity suite that comes free with every Mac. Yes, I'm aware there are music libraries, video editors, photo organisers and web page makers out there, for free, for PCs. Do these integrate? Do they allow media sharing? I don't mean 'File Open..' either - I mean media browsing within the app. Is there, specifically, an app that does what iDVD does? You know, iDVD - the underrated i-app that allows you to author professional looking DVD front ends for your home movies. I'd really like to know.

    Of course, the Vast majority do not need this out-of the-box functionality. I do.

  22. andy gibson
    Coat

    The Mac

    is a solution to a problem that doesn't exist.

  23. Anonymous Coward
    Flame

    Remind me again...

    why bundling Windows Media Player (for instance) with Windows was an abuse of antitrust legislation, but bundling iDVD (for instance) with OSX is what makes the Mac wonderful?

  24. Anonymous Coward
    Jobs Horns

    Yeah baby

    Been running my Hackintosh for 6 months now, purpose built the rig for the task = less than 1/2 cost of a Mac for same power.

    Crazy talk.

  25. Pooper Scooper
    Thumb Down

    @AC re pirating

    "The real difference is that software publishers are so afraid of being pirated they refuse to produce linux versions. If they do, 30 sec. after they are released, they are everywhere. Zero sales potential. So there are no linux versions of photshop, autocad, ...."

    Right, because no one pirates them on Windows or Mac.

  26. Pooper Scooper
    Unhappy

    @AC re bundling

    "why bundling Windows Media Player (for instance) with Windows was an abuse of antitrust legislation, but bundling iDVD (for instance) with OSX is what makes the Mac wonderful?"

    Dunno, never figured this out. They bundle iTunes, iDVD, iPhoto, Safari, QuickTime, Garage Band, Mail, on and on and on. And every time I reboot they revert all of these to be the default applications (some bug with FileVault that Apple refuses to admit).

  27. Kristian Walsh Silver badge
    Thumb Down

    Next week on the reg...

    "Installing a cracked copy of Photoshop"

    "Stealing DVDs for fun and profit"

    "Warez: Cutting Procurement costs for IT Organisations"

    Seriously, there are ways to run OS X on generic hardware that are easier and don't involve stealing the software. Perhaps you could replace this article with one that details those?

  28. Anonymous Coward
    Jobs Horns

    @David Kelly

    So how do you know Apple machines are "crappily" built compared to, say, Dell or Gateway?

    Well from a hell of a lot of hands on experience, don't get me wrong they used to be top notch machines 8-10 years ago (for example - the G4 quicksilvers are amazing machines) but gradually over the last 6-7 years the quality of internal components has gotten worse and worse. The capacitor problems with the first generation G5 iMacs was a complete fuck up on their behalf, all because they wanted to save a few cents per machine.

    The problem is that Apple touts their machines as well designed and well built pieces of kit, the price they charge suggests this too. Unfortunately they have started to use cheaper components to try and maximize profits which has come at a cost - the cost of true quality.

    I wouldn't have made the comment unless it was true - although the same issues affect with other computer manufacturers too. The difference is that other computer manufacturers give you what you pay for - Apple think that people will pay through the nose just because it has an Apple logo on it - not for what is inside.

    You do know that you can flash the firmware on these drives right?

    Yes and I did, although it still didn't behave in the way it should. Also the other problems I was talking about seemed to slowly creep up a few months after the flash. In this situation I was stuck with a drive that was void of warranty because of the flash and hell I wouldn't have had to flash the thing if Apple had left it alone in the first place. Why stop a drive doing what it was initially manufactured to do?

    As for a pre-built machine go to Psystar, although they are in talks with Apple to cease their production they are still selling the machines online.

    The problem overall is somewhere along the line Apple began thinking more of profit than of quality, maybe they were blinded by the sales of iPods (despite their initial hardware failings - scratches/batteries etc) and thought that they could extend that approach to their entire line - hell if they are that arrogant what's going to happen next, what is the next iProduct to suffer?

  29. Michael Wojcik Silver badge

    @Professor Denis "Mac" Smith, Re: X11

    "... the WM of MacOSX and made the comparison with X11, which is the only real pile of junk?"

    Since X11 isn't a window manager, that would be a completely pointless comparison. (Some professors know enough to do their research before they make contentious claims.)

    X11 is a windowing-system protocol, and various implementations of that protocol (the "device-independent X" layer) plus support for the hardware functions it uses (the "device-dependent X" layer). Window managers run on top of X11. They are not part of it. There are many of them, with various appearances and affordances - many of which are unavailable on the OSX window manager.

    The only WM I ever really cared for - and I've used many of them - was uwm on X11R4, because it was the only sensible one. The rest are mostly baubles for infants coupled to time-wasting inconveniences designed to relieve the lazy of the need to learn how to use their tools.

  30. Ivan Headache

    @AC

    "The capacitor problems with the first generation G5 iMacs was a complete fuck up on their behalf, all because they wanted to save a few cents per machine."

    Slight error there. It wasn't just the G5 imacs, it was the Airport BS and the G4 eMac as well. However, Apple didn't save the pennies - the company that manufactured the boards saved a few pennies. They are the ones who told Apple they could build the unit for a given price because they knew they a had a source of cheap capacitors. Now they are counting the cost because they didn't know why those capacitors were cheaper and they (and many other manufacturing companies) put the same capacitors into products that didn't carry the Apple name.

    As for your issue with the flashed optical drives - I've not experienced it on any that I've done.

    And finally - your general rant about build quality "The problem is that Apple touts their machines as well designed and well built pieces of kit, the price they charge suggests this too"

    Have you opened up a mac Pro? If you can put your hand on your heart and say that it is not a well built piece of kit, I wonder what you would class as well built.

  31. Nicholas Krijger
    Thumb Up

    Perfect

    Wow

    I installed OS X onto a spare 20GB hard disc and it worked properly the first try.

    My spec is:

    Motherboard: Gigabyte GA P35-DS3R

    Graphics: Nvidia Geforce 8400 GS 256MB

    CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E4600

    Memory: 2GB

    works perfectly except for microphone.

  32. kain preacher

    @AC

    "The capacitor problems with the first generation G5 iMacs was a complete fuck up on their behalf, all because they wanted to save a few cents per machine."

    Talk to Dell. Almost every dell board I've replaced in the last year were do to bad caps.

  33. Mick F
    Alien

    MacTards

    "The first, is that being a Mac user, I don't have to think about spyware, adware, malware or viruses."

    I love these head in sand comments. I don't think Mac owners know how close they are to the first real OS X virus, when it hits it will hurt - big time. The more people moving to Mac's with this "no-one can hurt me" attitude, the more virus writers will target the OS.

  34. Jason Bloomberg Silver badge
    Paris Hilton

    Why ?

    Quite simply because I'd like to try before buying ( hence Paris ).

    The pain doesn't seem to be worth the gain for me though so until someone is willing to lend me some legitimate Mac hardware for free I guess I'll be sticking with what I have.

    PS : Doesn't a failure to say "freetard" in the article go against El Reg editorial policy ?

  35. Ivan Headache

    @Mick F

    "I love these head in sand comments. I don't think Mac owners know how close they are to the first real OS X virus, when it hits it will hurt - big time. The more people moving to Mac's with this "no-one can hurt me" attitude, the more virus writers will target the OS"

    Well Mick, they've been saying that for an awful long time now. Yes there's been some proof of concepts but....

    As for me - I'm just going to clean pounds I've saved out of my sand hole.

  36. V
    Thumb Up

    @Steve

    [/quote] If you use a boot 123 boot disk (google) you can install a real OSX system on a PC without using a hacked copy, that won't be destroyed by apple updates. You need relatively compatible hardware and an intel cpu [/quote]

    You mean Boot 132. Have a look at insanelymac for lots of info on how to install a purchased copy of OSX on generic PC hardware.

    There is also a good noob guide here: http://menoob.com/2008/09/04/hackintosh-install-a-mac-leopard-os-x-retail-dvd-on-a-pc/

  37. Jeff
    Alien

    Re: The value of Time

    "I'm always amazed that the Do-It-Yourselfers spend enormous amounts of time in trying to circumvent certain manufacturers and build, in this case, a Hackintosh.

    Perhaps I'm just strange. My time has value! At my current billing rate to my clients (USD $87.50, €64.78, £50.03), if I were to spend, say, 15 hours assembling, building, installing a pirated copy of Mac OS X, testing, having the install blow up, re-installing Mac OS X, having the install blow up again, doing more research, re-installing Mac OS X, testing, etc., etc., etc, and then having a System that still doesn't work 100% - it'd be well worth my time to just purchase a Mac from the get-go. [A Mac can be had for less than £400, €513]"

    Strange indeed you may be, as not everyone's time is worth £50.03 per hour. Unfortunately. :)

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