Run OS X 10.4.8 legally on any PC, kinda sorta

There's plenty of folks out there who would love to run Mac OS X on generic PC hardware. In fact we've chronicled some of their efforts on this here blog of ours. Well according to Reg Hardware, one such fellow, Semthex, has just released what he claims is a legal version of Apple's kernel, which will run on any generic x86-powered machine. There's one catch, though: you'll have to run OS X entirely from the command line, so say goodbye to those fantasies of running Aqua full blast to spice up your beige box. That being said, Semthex subsequently posted to his blog that running a GUI is possible, "but it needs a key-salt to be inserted into 'commpage.c,' I won't provide because it would violate Apple Right and the law. But I heard it is already around." No matter which version you try, as always, your mileage may vary, so proceed at your own risk; but if you do reach computing nirvana, or blow up your PC in the process, let us know either way, cool?

[Via Reg Hardware, photo courtesy of MacUser]

[HughJass @ Oct 25th 2006 4:52PM]

Actually, no, you can't run any OS on any computer on the planet. For example, you can't run the PowerPC version of OS X on a PC because PowerPC is not an Intel/x86 CPU. You are the one who is ignorant.

[telepheedian @ Oct 25th 2006 12:54PM]

It's called DARWIN.

[Travis Bell @ Oct 25th 2006 1:01PM]

hehe, actually...

It's called BUY A MAC.

[Andy @ Oct 25th 2006 1:11PM]

Exactly, this is just running the Darwin core, which has always been available for x86. What's different? This is a pointless waste of time that some guy did to get his name on a bunch of sites. It's not a step towards anything even since all he did was strip everything that required TPM (the GUI), and left the user with.... DARWIN.

[listo2k @ Oct 25th 2006 1:00PM]

Do people really have nothing better to do with their time?

[Alex @ Oct 25th 2006 1:05PM]

Doesn't that defeat the purpose entirely? hha

[Rob @ Oct 25th 2006 1:10PM]

Hasn't darwin been availible for x86 since the beta of os 10.0?

[Kiteless @ Oct 25th 2006 1:16PM]

Out of everyone that I know who has ever run OSX on a PC, it has never been more than a passing fancy. They always go back to Windows and it has never been a serious install. It is the same reason many of us check out all the flavors of Linux out there.

Why do people want to do this? Because they can. It is the simple and honest truth.

Personally I own a MacBook and think it is a great machine. But no computer is without it's flaws. Before I upgraded the HDD I ran "Boot Camp" on it to see it run Windows. Yay it ran, but since the upgrade I really have not found a need to try it again. Just a passing fancy. I also have a desktop running 64bit Windows after all. Don't most of us geeks have at least 2 computers?

At the time of this writing there are 4 people above, me and all of them are posting like they are 14 years old. Think positive folks.

Remember, in the end, Mac or PC, they are both good at downloading pr0n!

- Jason

[telepheedian @ Oct 25th 2006 1:21PM]

That would be great if he didn't just re badge something that is officially available on Apple's website. http://www.opensource.apple.com/darwinsource/ It's Mac OS X without a GUI. EXACTLY what he has.

[That Guy @ Oct 26th 2006 7:09AM]

I agree. I've installed it several times, to test various configurations but it's never stayed installed longer than a week.

I safari'd around
Itune'd a CD
Macvidia'd the display

I guess I qualify as a geek. 2 PC's 1 ibook and several parts left over.

[acidnine @ Oct 25th 2006 1:41PM]

I use OS X on a dell at work all the time, been doing it for months...not a passing fancy for me.

[dfn_doe @ Oct 25th 2006 1:42PM]

Well, the major reason, afaict, for that is there is no way to definatively tell how much of your "hackintosh" hardware will actually work under OSX. For instance, when installed on my core duo toshiba satellite OSX had no accelrated graphics, dvd-r, sound, wifi, usb, firewire, card reader, pcmcia, or expresscard. This led to a system which looked alright but was basically worthless for my desires. However on the complete other end of the spectrum, a recent install on my desktop machine (p4 beige box) yielded results far exceding my expectations; the desktop system is 100% functional under OSX including 3d accelration, sound, dvd-r, cd-r, networking, firewire, usb2, sata, etc... Even things I had no expectation of working seemed to work flawlessly, I.E. my usb Silicon Graphics 320VWS keyboard worked immediatly upon plugging as opposed to under windows where it caused me much grief by disabling my other HID devices BEFORE prompting me to install the driver for the SGI device, leaving me with an unclickable "ok" dialog which took many many many reboots to fix...

[Dave @ Oct 26th 2006 9:56AM]

I've run OSX for months now on a Dell machine while saving for a MacBook Pro. It's not a passing fancy - it's a stop-gap solution ;)

[HughJass @ Oct 25th 2006 1:48PM]

Agreed, this is nothing. This is simply Darwin, which is already freely available.

[Tavo33 @ Oct 25th 2006 2:19PM]

OK GIRLS!!!! (read Kris and Rohit) stop the fight or there won't be any supper tonight!

[DJ Moxy @ Oct 25th 2006 2:22PM]

"You can install and run any OS in this planet on any PC!!!

The thing is you CAN'T use it properly because of the MISSING drivers."

Oh get over yourself. I'm sure Engadget knows this, but what they're talking about is actually being able to install it smoothly. They're not talking about being capable- they're talking about being FEASABLY capable.

It's like George Carlin saying "Screw that, I'm not getting ON the plane. I'm getting IN the plane." Yeah, whatever. You have a point but I think everyone knows what we're talking about here.

No need to have a nerd-gasm.

[cire @ Oct 25th 2006 2:41PM]

Just buy a Mac....lol

[bsm0f0 @ Oct 25th 2006 2:47PM]

@ Kris(sy)
"You can install and run any OS in this planet on any PC!!!"

lol wtf you noob ... no ... no you can't. I'd love to see you install Windows CE or the Palm OS on your beige box ... and before you open your asshole, yes, they are operating systems. Sun happens to have a x86 machine ... good luck trying to get Windows on v220 Sunfire.

[Thecompkid @ Oct 25th 2006 5:51PM]

Actually, you can. Compile WinCE/Palm for x86 and all you need is DRIVERS for your hardware.

I can run os x on my cell phone if i compile it for the phones processor and get the right drivers.

What people (including you) don't understand is that many operating systems (most of them, including os x's aqua, excepting linux/unix) are closed source and, thus, it is not possible to recompile the os without the source code.

Essentially, the OS X we see is nothing more than a desktop environment, like KDE or GNOME, running on top of darwin unix.

[RevAaron @ Oct 25th 2006 3:15PM]

@bsm0f0: Umm... I've run WinCE on some generic x86 PCs quite a bit. I was actually using it as my main OS for a while.

That said, was Kris said was pretty retarded.

[Harbinger @ Oct 25th 2006 3:16PM]

bsm0f0,
There are emulators in the devkits for both those systems.
You missed his point.

Next.

[Tyler @ Oct 25th 2006 3:25PM]

link for darwin anyone?

[telepheedian @ Oct 25th 2006 5:52PM]

http://www.opensource.apple.com/darwinsource/

[Mauswe @ Oct 25th 2006 3:44PM]

How come everybody is so damn happy when you can run Windows on a mac, but when it is revesed, everybody hates it? I know its crap that you cant run the GUI but. I thinks this is cool. Of i could, i would run Apple software on my PC. I'm not bying a god damn mac for the god damn hardvare anyway. Cheers

[kezeka @ Oct 25th 2006 4:30PM]

I have OSX 10.4.5 running right now... this isn't that big a deal considering any 13 year old kid with the basic knowledge of using the internet, ultraiso, and nero could get it running... osx86.com pretty much has a forum and a wiki solving every problem with x86 macs.

[RedBull Runner @ Oct 25th 2006 5:45PM]

Hey... Ive been running OSX on my AMD64 eMachines t6420 for months now. (10.4.6) Its not a passing fancy... In fact it has now become my main operating system. The only problems are: No accellerated graphics (which is being worked on), sound doesnt work, and network doesnt work... Sound and network have been fixed simply by installing a network card and getting an external sound card. Works great, nice and smooth... In fact, windows is not even on this machine any more.


And what the others were saying is correct, Darwin has been out there and open source for such a long time, but finally someone has brought it to mainstream attention. There are other ways of putting a gui on it, seeing as how it IS basically BSD. X11 works fine on it, Im wondering if anyone has tried using Gnome, KDE, XFCE, etc on it.

[Christian Martin @ Oct 25th 2006 5:55PM]

Sorry, but "computing nirvana" for me does not involve OS X.x.x.x.x.x. Next please.

[Pete @ Oct 25th 2006 6:31PM]

"There's plenty of folks"

should say

"There're plenty of folks"

[Jared @ Oct 25th 2006 10:01PM]

This bickering about what you can run on what is senseless. Obviously binaries for different processors architectures definitely can't run on each other in most cases - unless they are very very similar ie HC11 vs HCS12 some of the relocatable code could be copied into an existing binary and run from a CALL or JSR or inline assuming your boundaries lined up (perhaps another good place for NOP padding!) - this is pointless yet but just commenting for what it's worth on that subject.

In other instances if an emulator is available then again it is possible.

http://pearpc.sourceforge.net/screenshots.html

[keith waddington @ Oct 25th 2006 10:45PM]

hey I got a cheap ass Dell that runs like crap an i stuffed os x on it an it works great but i got no sound an i cant print and the network doesnt work and the graphics is slow but aren't I great an screw apple im not buying their expensive hardware even if it is cheaper than Dell.

yeah
http://www.waddo.net/

[Jamar @ Oct 26th 2006 4:50AM]

You are the kind of idiot that doesn't deserve to even own a computer, trolling this place with stupid comments. If you'd take any amount of time searching everything can be solved with time. I'd install OS X if I could (I did before, but the trackpad didn't work and wireless didn't work- there was no fix for those, but everywhere I go I can use a wired connection or use GPRS) but my computer no longer has the hard drive space to hold OS X.

[whoa @ Oct 28th 2006 1:41PM]

I have been switching back and forth with mac and windows on a Gateway, there are apps that i use that require this or that OS so that's no fad to me.

@dfn_doe: same here, i have tried this trick at the classroom to show students about differences in OS's and such... they have worked on the most unimaginable combinations of hardware, which has leaded me to believe that Apple could start thinking of letting other non mac (but certainly mac certified) PC's. (I mean you cannot justify the cost of even the lowest end mac, but you can certainly spend little over 200 to buy an OSX friendly pc).

[Alex @ Oct 29th 2006 1:59PM]

Wow, mac os x is so pretty. lol

[prasad7710 @ Nov 10th 2006 4:25AM]

Please give me Run Mac OS X 10.4.8 on any PC run cd or dvd download link

[prasad7710 @ Nov 26th 2006 9:52AM]

thanks

[Nekto @ Apr 26th 2007 4:22PM]

There is a comprehensive guige how to install Mac OSX 10.4.9 on ordinary PC. Look at:
http://macosx.mybesthost.com/osx86.html

[Evan @ Jun 14th 2007 4:36PM]

I think that this kind of thing is useful in the computing world. This type of experimentation leads to new developments in technology.


I do not like the structure that apple has taken in regards to what hardware the Mac OS X can run on. This has nothing to do with the price of the hardware. This has everything to do with the configuration that i like. This is like a car stereo salesman selling you a car stereo and then making you buy the only car it is allowed to work with. I would like to configure my machine to be customized for the things that i like to do. i.e. If i was into listening and creating music why would i want an expensive over powered video card when a smaller cheaper model will do.

This is not a matter of whether the software will run on any hardware it is a matter of whether they want it to run on any hardware.

If Mac OS X was available to purchase to install on any x86 hardware then this could possibly give apple a larger market share. Why would a company not want to make more money?

[jcraig0433 @ Oct 24th 2007 1:15PM]

Ok so here is what I think, not that anyone cares. I'm not here to take sides. I just read all this and want to add my two cents.

First of all I think apple (as in the whole company) is in business to make money. I also think that apple only makes money on OS X, and not the hardware. I could, personally care less id my computer is silver, or white, or "looks cool" or alows me to fit in with the liberal, "hug a tree and kiss a frog" group. Which by the way I noticed that most, not all mac users, but most of them are a little more free spirited and liberal in their views and owning a mac for them is like being in a special "we are better than you" club. I have owned macs and actually had a guy once at a coffee shop want to sit with "the mac people". I moved. I don't care what kind of damn computer you use. They all take us to the same internet and its a device for communication, and it makes typing things easier.

That being said I need to wrap this up. I don't think apple will EVER let other computer manufactures release one of their products with OS X. Its a shame because I like OS X. Its reliable and it WORKS. I am currently using a DELL because its CHEAP. Apple is way OVERPRICED and I have heard horror stories about mac hardware failing. I also HATE, yes I HATE the ipod. I have had three and they ALL SUCK. Because of hardware. A great product if it would last. And no I don't use a Zune.

In conclusion I don't really care either way. I just want a computer that works. That does'nt have to worry about viruses and is there when I need it to be. OS X can deliver that but until then I will use a DELL cuzz I can afford it. As for all you who are "making" it work. Good for you. Do it, love it, share it.
I wish I could order a "tough as nails" DELL with OS X and when that happens then cool I'll be the first to have one. Until then I'll dream about it.

laters
Josh

[CockneySean @ Sep 14th 2008 4:24PM]

Apple is indeed very overpriced. All you are paying for is stylish looking hardware that they have designed anyway.

At least with a PC you can build it from scratch yourself and choose your own look. It's a shame that they don't want it to run on x86 hardware, but hey, its their company, let them do what they want.

If you are desperate for OS/X and want full functionality, then you can either install Apple OS/X and hope for the best, or you could install a linux flavour of your choice and then customise it to look and behave exactly like OS/X. I did this once with Kubuntu, looked exactly like a mac and behaved like one.

At the end of the day, OS/X is only BSD with a bit of fettling by the Apple developers. If you look you will find other closed source *nix OS's too.