Can we ask something out of curiosity? Its sleek user interface, impressive features, seamless user experience, or a specific software application, what draws you to macOS? Either way, if you assume that you need Apple’s PC to run macOS, this article will guide you through the process of how to install macOS on a PC without a Mac device.
How to Install macOS on PC without Mac
Renowned for its user-friendly interface, sleek design, and advanced features, macOS offers a seamless experience to users, allowing them to easily navigate through their computers and access various applications and programs. Let’s see its possibility so we can pull the strings for Windows users as well. Continue reading to learn how to install macOS Big Sur on a Windows PC without a Mac device.
Is It Possible to Install macOS on PC?
Yes, you may be surprised to know that you can in fact install macOS on a Windows PC. We now already know that the macOS is Apple’s proprietary operating system.
- Before using any software that is the intellectual property of its developers, it is essential to obtain a legal license. It’s no different in the case of macOS.
- The second prerequisite to running macOS is compatible hardware components, i.e., the drivers and other sets of configurations in the hardware setup.
Questions often arise about the possibility of installing macOS on non-Apple hardware. The answer is, Yes, it is possible.
- Installing macOS on any device other than a Mac requires building a Hackintosh. For our readers unfamiliar with the term, a Hackintosh is a device that runs Macintosh OS, i.e., Apple’s macOS on computer hardware that is not licensed by Apple. However, it is important to note that building a Hackintosh is illegal in several countries.
- Alternatively, you can install macOS on a PC using a virtual machine such as Oracle’s VirtualBox or VMware Workstation.
Quick Answer
You can install macOS on Windows via VirtualBox. However, you will have to fulfill the following prerequisites for a successful installation:
1. Enable Virtualization Technology in the BIOS.
2. Disable Windows Hyper V.
Note: It is crucial to follow legal guidelines when using any software. It is also important to note that VirtualBox and VMware WorkStation are reputable software.
Where Can I download macOS Without a Mac?
This is a crucial question that requires consideration. To put it simply, you can download any version of the macOS from its official source, the Apple App Store.
However, if you do not have a Mac, you can still obtain macOS from third-party sources. It’s important to pay attention, however, that downloading macOS from unauthorized sources can pose significant risks that may compromise the security of your device.
DISCLAIMER: It’s essential to exercise caution when downloading macOS from third-party sources as these do not undergo the same rigorous security checks as the Apple App Store. Moreover, downloading unofficial OS forbids any licensing and support from the brand. Therefore, there isn’t even a slim chance of receiving updates and security patches, leaving your device vulnerable to malware and other security threats.
Pre-requisite Setting Changes Before Following Virtualization Process
Before performing any virtualization steps, these are the mandatory settings you need to ensure. The same are detailed below in a step-wise manner with pics.
Requirement 1: Enable Virtualization Technology in BIOS
Virtualization is a technology that lets one create a virtual representation of operating systems so that at an abstract level a user can run different operating systems on a single hardware setup. If we want to install MacOS through a virtual machine, it is important to enable Virtualization on your device’s BIOS. Although most PCs come with virtualization already enabled, we need to ensure it.
Note: The Function key to enter the system’s BIOS varies from manufacturer to manufacturer. To ensure the correct key to enter into your PC BIOS settings, reach out to the official customer support of the device’s manufacturer with the model number or simply search BIOS key of <brand and model name> laptop on any browser. The following steps were performed on the HP Envy X360 Convertible (Windows 11).
1. Shut down the PC first.
2. Turn on the PC and press f10 immediately to enter into the BIOS setup.
3. Using the arrow keys, move to the Configuration tab and select it.
4. Now, select Virtualization Technology.
5. Choose Enable if it is not already.
6. Press f10 again to save the settings.
7. Exit BIOS setup and Reboot.
Also Read: 15 Best VirtualBox Alternatives
Requirement 2: Disable Windows Hyper V
Hyper-V is Windows-owned virtualization software available on Pro and higher editions of both Windows 10 and Windows 11. If you want to learn how to install macOS on a PC without a Mac and have any of these Windows versions running on your device, you should disable Hyper-V on the device to avoid any conflict with the third-party virtualization programs.
1. Launch Windows Security on your device and click on Device Security.
2. On the right side, click on Core isolation details.
3. Turn off the toggle for Memory Integrity. Select Yes in the UAC prompt to confirm.
4. Now run Command Prompt as administrator.
5. Type the following command in the terminal and press Enter.
Set hypervisorlaunchtype off
6. Restart the PC and start with the method.
Must Read: MacBook Keeps Freezing? 14 Ways to Fix it
How to Install macOS Big Sur on Windows PC Without Mac?
macOS Big Sur is the seventh and the latest released macOS operating system to date. To install macOS Big Sur on a Windows PC, you would need to install it through a virtual machine. Read further to learn how to install macOS Big Sur on a Windows PC without Mac using the same.
Method 1: Using Virtual Box
You have been looking for how to install MacOS on a PC without a Mac. In order to do that, we will use a VirtualBox and run Apple’s macOS on a PC running Windows.
1. You need to download VirtualBox. Launch the official VirtualBox binaries website in a web browser.
2. Click on Windows hosts under the latest VirtualBox version, i.e., VirtualBox 7.0.6 platform packages.
Note: The following methods were performed on VirtualBox 7.0.6 version.
On clicking, download for the VirtualBox software should start.
3. Move to the Downloads folder and click on VirtualBox-7.0.6-155176-Win.exe platform installation package.
4. Select Yes in the UAC prompt that appears and then follow the on-screen instructions to install the package.
Note: We advise you not to make any changes in the install location unless you are very sure of that.
5. Click Yes for the warning message it shows as it may temporarily disconnect your internet.
6. Click on Install.
Now you have to download and install the VirtualBox extension package. Follow these steps to download the expansion pack.
7. Again launch the VirtualBox website in a web browser.
8. Under VirtualBox 7.0.6 Oracle VM VirtualBox Extension Pack, click on All supported platforms.
9. Now, from the Downloads folder, double-click on the expansion pack, follow the on-screen instructions, and install it.
After you have installed VirtualBox, it is now time to install macOS in the VirtualBox created. For this first, you would need to download the macOS file.
Note 1: The Big Sur macOS file requires a good amount of storage. Make sure you have that. Moreover, we would recommend you download the macOS file from the official Apple Store itself.
Note 2: In case you do not have a Mac to access it and are thinking about how to install macOS on PC without a Mac, you might download it from any third-party source like Media Fire, just make sure it is reputed and trustworthy. However, we do not endorse such third-party sources; therefore, use them at your own discretion and ensure you have a backup of your data to prevent data loss.
After you download the file, you might need to unzip it to extract the contents of the file to a specific location. Refer to our guide on Zip or Unzip Files and Folders in Windows 10.
10. Launch Oracle Virtual Box on the Windows PC.
11. Click on the New option at the top.
12. Under Basic settings in General, enter a name for the new virtual machine, e.g., macOSvirtualbox.
13. Click on the dropdown arrow next to Machine Folder to select the location you want to store the virtual machine. Ensure that the disk you select should have at least 100GB of free space.
14. MacOS X will be the Type. For Version, choose Mac OS X (64-bit).
15. On the next window, slide the slider to allocate RAM to the new virtual machine. Ideally, it should be nearly 50% of the total RAM of the device. 8GB of space would be ideal.
16. Select Create Virtual Hard Disk and click on Create.
17. Under Hard disk file type, select VHD (Virtual Hard Disk) and click on Create.
18. Save the virtual hard drive to a location with at least 60GB of space and continue.
After creating the macOS Virtual Machine, we would need to configure its settings and load it into the virtual machine in order to suffice the need of how to install macOS on PC without a Mac.
19. Select the Virtual Machine created. In our case, macOSvirtualbox.
20. Click on the Settings option at the top. On the left, click on System and move to the Motherboard tab.
21. Under Boot Order, uncheck Floppy and make Optical the first boot option and Hard disk as second. Also, make sure ICH9 is the selected Chipset.
22. Move to the Processor tab and allocate at least 2 CPUs (more if possible). Leave the Execution Cap at 100%.
23. Enable PAE/NX and click on OK to save.
24. Click on the Display option in the left panel.
25. Choose Screen and slide the Video Memory bar to 128 MB.
26. Choose Storage from the left panel and click on Controller: SATA under Storage Devices.
27. After you tick Use Host I/O Cache in the right panel, click on Empty.
28. Click on the CD icon next to Optical Drive and then Choose a disk file.
29. Select macOS Big Sur (.iso) and Open it.
30. Below Storage Devices, click on the macOS.vhd file. Using the dropdown menu next to Hard Disk, et the SATA Port to 2.
31. Click on the macOS Big Sur file and set SATA Port to 0 using the drop-down next to Optical Drive.
32. Click again on macOS.vhd file and set SATA Port to 1. Click on OK to save.
33. Now, click on USB and choose USB 3.0 (xHCI) Controller.
34. Move to the Network menu in the left panel, click on Adapter 2, and tick Enable Network Adapter.
35. From the drop-down menu next to Attached to, select Bridged Adapter. Select the wireless adapter installed on the PC using the drop-down next to Name.
36. Save with OK.
Now, we would have to run a few commands before installing macOS.
37. Before we execute the next steps, you need to close the VirtualBox properly. End Task for it and exit out of it.
38. Press the Windows key and search for the Command Prompt that you need to Run as administrator.
39. Change the location of the VirtualBox installation file by typing the following command and press Enter.
cd “C:\Program Files\Oracle\VirtualBox\”
Note: This is code for the default location of installation files. If you saved the installation file at a different location on the PC, type cd followed by the location of VirtualBox Installation in parenthesis as shown above in the example.
40. Type the following command and press the Enter key to execute.
VBoxManage.exe modifyvm "[macOS_VM_Name]" --cpuidset 00000001 000106e5 00100800 0098e3fd bfebfbff
Note: Do not input [macOS_VM_Name] in your command. Instead, replace it with the name you gave to the virtual machine initially. For example: In our case, the name we gave to our virtual machine was macOSvirtualbox. So, the command for us should look like: VBoxManage.exe modifyvm “macOSvirtualbox” –cpuidset 00000001 000106e5 00100800 0098e3fd bfebfbff
41. The following are the commands you need to type one after the other and make sure to press Enter after each command.
VBoxManage setextradata "[macOS_VM_Name]" "VBoxInternal/Devices/efi/0/Config/DmiSystemProduct" "iMac11,3"
VBoxManage setextradata "[macOS_VM_Name]" "VBoxInternal/Devices/efi/0/Config/DmiSystemVersion" "1.0"
VBoxManage setextradata "[macOS_VM_Name]" "VBoxInternal/Devices/efi/0/Config/DmiBoardProduct" "Iloveapple"
VBoxManage setextradata "[macOS_VM_Name]" "VBoxInternal/Devices/smc/0/Config/DeviceKey" "ourhardworkbythesewordsguardedpleasedontsteal(c)AppleComputerInc"
VBoxManage setextradata "[macOS_VM_Name]" "VBoxInternal/Devices/smc/0/Config/GetKeyFromRealSMC" 1
Proceeding further in our process of how to install macOS on PC without Mac, we would install macOS on the virtual machine.
42. Launch VirtualBox and select the macOS virtual machine (macOSvirtualbox) you created.
43. Click on the Start button with a green arrow and wait until the process takes place.
44. Select Language and Continue.
45. Select Disk Utility and Continue.
46. Now, select VBOX HARDDISK Media and click on Erase.
47. In the bar at the top of the pop-up, type a name for the hard drive, e.g., vbmacOS HD and Erase.
48. Now, close Disk Utility.
49. On the new page, select Install macOS and click on Continue to begin the installation.
50. Now follow the on-screen instructions, Agree to the Terms and Conditions, and follow the process as per instructions on the screen.
Note: The instructions would include choosing the recently formatted hard drive, choosing the country, and keyboard layout, enabling accessibility features, rejecting to transfer data from a previous Mac or Windows PC, creating an Apple ID, and some more. You need to execute the steps carefully.
After all these steps are performed, macOS Big Sur will be installed on the Windows PC using VirtualBox. Hopefully, this answers the question Is it possible to install macOS on a PC?
Also Read: VirtualBox Vs. VMware Player: Which is Best for Virtualization?
Method 2: Using VM Ware Workstation Player
Another virtualization software just like VirtualBox is VM Ware WorkStation Player. In response to your search for how to install macOS on PC without a Mac, we have another method you can follow to install MacOS Big Sur on a Windows PC.
Note: If you do not have a Mac to download the official Big Sur OS file, third-party sources are the only way. We do not endorse any third-party sources; therefore, use it at your own discretion and ensure you have a backup of your data to prevent data loss.
1. Download the Big Sur 11.0.1 package.
2. Create a folder on the desktop and extract the files from the first (.rar) file using a WinRAR or 7zip. The package contains all the essential downloadable files you would need.
3. From the macOS Big Sur Package you just extracted to the New Folder, install VM Ware Workstation Player 15.04¸using the installation file included in the package. The 15.04 version works fluently with the Mac OS Big Sur and is compatible with both Intel and AMD PCs.
4. Now extract the unlocker 302 Zip File. Then open the unlocker 302 folder.
5. Right-click on win-install.cmd and Run as administrator.
6. Launch the VM Workstation Player and click on Create a New Virtual Machine.
7. Select I will install the operating system later and Next.
8. Select Apple Mac OS X.
9. From the drop-down menu, choose Mac OS 10.14 and Next.
10. Change the Virtual machine name according to your comfort, e.g., BigSurOSvmware, and ensure the Location of the file. Click Next.
11. Now, choose Store virtual disk as a single file and allocate the Maximum disk size (GB) to at least 100GB or so Next.
12. Click on Customize Hardware.
13. Now slide the slider and allocate Memory to at least 4GB (more if you can).
14. Select Processors, and edit the number to the half of CPU cores present on the PC, e.g., if you have an 8-core PC, allocate 4 cores for this.
15. Tick the checkbox next to Virtualize Intel VT-x/EPT or AMD-v/RVI.
16. Now, click on CD/DVD (SATA) and select Use ISO image file.
17. Click on Browse and navigate to the folder where the macOS Big Sur Package was extracted.
18. Select the macOS Big Sur 11.0.1.iso file and Open it.
19. Now, click on USB Controller and change the USB compatibility to USB 2.0. Tick the checkbox next to Show all USB input devices.
20. Click on Close at the bottom and then click on Finish.
21. Now close the VM Ware Player to exit out of it.
22. Move to the Documents folder on the PC.
Follow this address: Virtual Machine > macOS Big Sur.
23. Right-click on macOS Big Sur.vmx and Open with – Notepad.
24. Minimize everything and move to the macOS Big Sur Package folder and open the VMX text file, e.g., for Intel, open VMX Code For Intel.txt, or for AMD, open VMX Code For AMD.txt file.
25. Copy the entire code and paste it at the bottom of the open VMX text file in Notepad.
Note: The next step is for AMD users, If you are using a Intel-based PC, you do not need to follow this step.
26. Scroll above and change virtualHM.version to “10”.
27. Save it from the File menu and close the VMX file.
28. Open the VMware Workstation and choose macOS Big Sur.
29. In the right pane click on Play virtual machine. Wait until the process complete.
30. Select your preferred Language and click on the (->) arrow mark at the bottom right corner.
31. Select Disk Utility and Continue.
32. From the left pane, select VMware Virtual SATA Hard Drive Media.
33. Click on Erase in the right pane.
34. Set the Name, e.g., macOSHDD. For Format ensure APFS is chosen and Scheme is selected as GUID Partition Map. Now, click on Erase option below it and Done when the process completes.
35. Exit from the Disk Utility window. Choose Install macOS Big Sur and Continue. Follow the on-screen instructions.
36. Select macOSHDD (the name you gave to the VMware Virtual SATA Hard Drive Media in the aforementioned step). Wait for the process to take place.
37. Follow the on-screen instructions. For Migration Assistant, select Not Now.
38. For Sign In with Your Apple ID, click on Set Up Later and Skip.
39. Agree to the Terms and Conditions.
40. Create a Computer Account by adding credentials and Continue. Follow the on-screen instructions.
Finally going through the steps for how to install macOS on PC without Mac and successfully installing macOS Big Sur on the PC, we need to install VMware Tools to improve compatible performances of the macOS with Windows.
41. Click on Install macOS Big Sur iso image file on the screen.
42. Click on Player at the top-right corner of the screen, and select Removable Devices > CD/DVD (SATA) > Settings.
43. Tick the checkbox next to Connected. Under the ISO image file, click on Browse.
44. Select darwin.iso and Open. Click on OK.
45. Double-click on Install VMware Tools and Continue and then on Install.
46. Enter the user account Password. Wait for a while and click on Open Security Preferences. Wait and click on it once again when it appears.
47. Click on the lock icon at the bottom-left corner and enter the Password again. Click on Unlock.
48. Allow and click on Not Now.
49. When the installation is successful, click on Restart to restart the Virtual Machine.
Now, as we installed macOS Big Sur using VM Ware WorkStation Player, you know how to install macOS Big Sur on Windows PC without Mac.
Also Read: 20+ Best Rufus Alternatives for Windows, Linux and macOS
The same methods can be followed for other Mac OS versions as well. You only need to find out reliable ISO files for the macOS versions you want and an extra unlocker tool for installing using VM ware and if the hardware is compatible, you can install it on a Windows PC using VirtualBox and VM Ware. We hope that with the help of this guide, you were able to learn how to install macOS on PC without a Mac. If you have any queries or suggestions, then feel free to drop them in the comments section below.