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there seem to be a large number of wrappers around Apple's ARM Virtualization.framework: VirtualBuddy, Viable, Tart, vz, virtualOS, Virtual Machines Hub, Cheeta

there seem to be a large number of wrappers around Apple's ARM Virtualization.framework: VirtualBuddy, Viable, Tart, vz, virtualOS, Virtual Machines Hub, Cheetah, etc, etc not sure we need yet another one. a comprehensive comparison of all of them would be nice.

darcyliu 3y ago
Hi all, thank you all for the comments, suggestions, and the questions. Yes, Cheetah is just another GUI wrapper of the Virtualization.framework. It was mainly created for my personal needs. The original version was modified from Apple’s sample code with the Objective-C version in 2022. I want it to be able to run in the background, managed from the Menu Bar, and easily configurate the settings, not only for the number of compute units or memory size, but more importantly, the hard disk size. Cheetah is an updated version that I developed this summer, starting around Aug 10th with SwiftUI. As a developer, I always strive to learn new stuff every year. So basically speaking, when compared to other existing solutions based on Virtualization.framework, there isn't much difference, unless the feature could make my life easier (e.g., detecting the assigned IP address, keeping the instance running in the background after closing the GUI window). I spent around two or three hours after work every day in the past two weeks to make it available for download from the Mac App Store. I know there are just a few people still making Mac Apps since people are more likely to pay for and install apps on their phones. I do not expect this app to make me rich, but I need to pay the Apple Developer account bills every year. So, the subscription price is $4.99 per year (not monthly) if you want to run more than two instances (please note that due to Apple’s license, you can only run two macOS virtual instances at the same time; subscribing to Cheetah does not enable you to bypass this restriction). That means $500 is enough for you to use it for 100 years. As I said, it is not something to make big money, and I haven’t spent too much time on it so far. The product description is generated by ChatGPT since I am not a native English Speaker, and the Logo is generated by stable diffusion. I would appreciate it if anyone could help with the docs or app Logo. All the remaining icons are from SF Symbols. I would like to keep it as small as possible (as you know Apple’s storage is expensive) to expose macOS’s Virtualization feature to everyone in a simple way as a gift (for free within two instances). Currently, Cheetah has about 6000 lines of code, with 55% written in Swift and 45% in Objective-C. I’ll continue to keep it small and simple, as light as possible. I won’t add new features for running other guest OS unless Virtualization supports it, as there are already many other tools like UTM that already support it. I might invest some time in the future to make it work for Apple silicon to run FreeBSD if I have the time. Please feel free to comment, provide suggestions, or ask questions.
saagarjha 3y ago
This is because there is very little code required to write one.
- fooblat 3y ago
  That's why I laugh when I see they want to charge a subscription for this. It's easy enough for any competent developer to take available open source tools and crank out something to meet their needs in an afternoon. Before UTM came out I was using xhyve with a little custom scripting. Not a solution for the masses but good enough for me.
  - qubex 3y ago
    I’m so fed up of paying for software subscriptions. If I can choose between a single payment and a subscription service, I go for the one-shot every time. I don’t even know how to describe it, but it just nauseates me at this point. I’ve also cancelled Netflix and Amazon Prime is not going to be renewed either. I know it’s irrational but I’ve just been pushed to the brink.
    - fooblat 3y ago
      Yeah, I refuse to buy any product that requires a subscript simply to be able to use it. A subscription should bring new value every month, like a magazine. I'm OK with subscribing to streaming video services as long as they keep updating the content. I mostly run open source at this point because I'm also tire of everything commercial having telemetry built in.
      - qubex 3y ago
        Yeah that’s a good point: if substantial value is added every month (as in a streaming service), a subscription model is not quite so offensive. Subscription models for software that remains essentially static (aside from bug-fixes and occasional features) is just a rip-off. And yes, I understand that these folks need a constant revenue stream to pay their bills… but so does everybody else, including the mom & pop grocery stores that have to get by with whatever margin they make on the goods they sell and don’t have the option of charging for a monthly membership just to have the privilege of walking through their door. This crap has to stop. I’ve stopped paying for subscriptions. Hopefully I’m not the only one and revenues will be impacted enough for developers to react. I’m sure I’ll draw substantial ire from developers here who depend on the subscription model but I don’t really care. You have monthly expenses for your AWS services? Mom & pop pay for rent. Unlike them you can probably re-architect your app to rely on on-device processing. I’m through with this crap.

darcyliu 3y ago

Hi all, thank you all for the comments, suggestions, and the questions. Yes, Cheetah is just another GUI wrapper of the Virtualization.framework. It was mainly created for my personal needs. The original version was modified from Apple’s sample code with the Objective-C version in 2022. I want it to be able to run in the background, managed from the Menu Bar, and easily configurate the settings, not only for the number of compute units or memory size, but more importantly, the hard disk size. Cheetah is an updated version that I developed this summer, starting around Aug 10th with SwiftUI. As a developer, I always strive to learn new stuff every year. So basically speaking, when compared to other existing solutions based on Virtualization.framework, there isn't much difference, unless the feature could make my life easier (e.g., detecting the assigned IP address, keeping the instance running in the background after closing the GUI window). I spent around two or three hours after work every day in the past two weeks to make it available for download from the Mac App Store. I know there are just a few people still making Mac Apps since people are more likely to pay for and install apps on their phones. I do not expect this app to make me rich, but I need to pay the Apple Developer account bills every year. So, the subscription price is $4.99 per year (not monthly) if you want to run more than two instances (please note that due to Apple’s license, you can only run two macOS virtual instances at the same time; subscribing to Cheetah does not enable you to bypass this restriction). That means $500 is enough for you to use it for 100 years. As I said, it is not something to make big money, and I haven’t spent too much time on it so far. The product description is generated by ChatGPT since I am not a native English Speaker, and the Logo is generated by stable diffusion. I would appreciate it if anyone could help with the docs or app Logo. All the remaining icons are from SF Symbols. I would like to keep it as small as possible (as you know Apple’s storage is expensive) to expose macOS’s Virtualization feature to everyone in a simple way as a gift (for free within two instances). Currently, Cheetah has about 6000 lines of code, with 55% written in Swift and 45% in Objective-C. I’ll continue to keep it small and simple, as light as possible. I won’t add new features for running other guest OS unless Virtualization supports it, as there are already many other tools like UTM that already support it. I might invest some time in the future to make it work for Apple silicon to run FreeBSD if I have the time. Please feel free to comment, provide suggestions, or ask questions.

saagarjha 3y ago

This is because there is very little code required to write one.

fooblat 3y ago
That's why I laugh when I see they want to charge a subscription for this. It's easy enough for any competent developer to take available open source tools and crank out something to meet their needs in an afternoon. Before UTM came out I was using xhyve with a little custom scripting. Not a solution for the masses but good enough for me.
- qubex 3y ago
  I’m so fed up of paying for software subscriptions. If I can choose between a single payment and a subscription service, I go for the one-shot every time. I don’t even know how to describe it, but it just nauseates me at this point. I’ve also cancelled Netflix and Amazon Prime is not going to be renewed either. I know it’s irrational but I’ve just been pushed to the brink.
  - fooblat 3y ago
    Yeah, I refuse to buy any product that requires a subscript simply to be able to use it. A subscription should bring new value every month, like a magazine. I'm OK with subscribing to streaming video services as long as they keep updating the content. I mostly run open source at this point because I'm also tire of everything commercial having telemetry built in.
    - qubex 3y ago
      Yeah that’s a good point: if substantial value is added every month (as in a streaming service), a subscription model is not quite so offensive. Subscription models for software that remains essentially static (aside from bug-fixes and occasional features) is just a rip-off. And yes, I understand that these folks need a constant revenue stream to pay their bills… but so does everybody else, including the mom & pop grocery stores that have to get by with whatever margin they make on the goods they sell and don’t have the option of charging for a monthly membership just to have the privilege of walking through their door. This crap has to stop. I’ve stopped paying for subscriptions. Hopefully I’m not the only one and revenues will be impacted enough for developers to react. I’m sure I’ll draw substantial ire from developers here who depend on the subscription model but I don’t really care. You have monthly expenses for your AWS services? Mom & pop pay for rent. Unlike them you can probably re-architect your app to rely on on-device processing. I’m through with this crap.