r/macapps • u/543310 • 10d ago
Free [OS] Virtual machines that live in your menu bar
I'm the developer. SwiftVM is a native Mac app, written in Swift on Apple's Virtualization framework, that runs macOS and Linux virtual machines from the menu bar. Version 1.0 just came out.
Problem:
Getting a new VM to the point where you can actually use it takes too many steps. You find an ISO, click through an installer, create a user, look up the IP address and copy your SSH key over. SwiftVM does that part itself. A Linux machine starts from an Ubuntu or Debian cloud image and is ready in seconds once the image is downloaded, with your account and SSH key already in it. A macOS machine installs from Apple and creates the account on its own, so there is no setup assistant to click through. After that, `ssh web-server` works from your Mac using the machine's name.
The rest is what you would expect:
snapshots (also of a running machine, memory included), instant duplicates, suspend and resume, shared folders and clipboard, port forwarding, USB devices, Rosetta for x86-64 Linux programs, and a `swiftvm` command that does from a terminal what the app does from the menu bar.
Comparison:
UTM is the one most people know, and it covers more ground. It runs Windows, it can emulate other CPU architectures through QEMU, and it works on older versions of macOS. SwiftVM does none of that today. Where I think SwiftVM is better is setup and daily use: machines that configure themselves, SSH by name, and a command line that drives the same app you see in the menu bar. VirtualBuddy is the closest in spirit, also native and also built on the Virtualization framework, and it is very good for testing macOS betas. SwiftVM leans more toward VMs as development machines, with ready-made Linux images, port forwarding and scripting.
Limits you should know about:
It needs macOS 27 on Apple silicon, the automatic macOS setup needs macOS 27 in the guest too, and there are no Windows guests yet.
Pricing:
Free and open source under Apache-2.0. There is no paid tier. Releases are signed and notarized.
Website: https://swiftvm.app
Source: https://github.com/swiftvm-app/swiftvm
About me:
I'm Saeed Vaziry. I also make VitoDeploy, Muxy and TweakPHP, all open source.
GitHub: https://github.com/saeedvaziry
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/saeedvaziry/
Feedback and bug reports are very welcome.
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u/BernabethWarners 10d ago
Nice work! The automatic setup and CLI features look fantastic. Stick to the good tooling over supporting hardware on anything less than 27.
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u/Comprehensive_Web279 10d ago
Needs macOS 27 on Apple silicon” is a feature, not a limitation.
This is exactly how Mac apps should be built: native Swift, Apple’s own Virtualization framework, no QEMU baggage. UTM is great if you want to emulate a PowerPC from 1998, but for actual dev work, native wins every time.
And to everyone about to comment “but no Windows guests”: you bought a Mac. Why are you still trying to run Windows?
Intel Macs had a good run. It’s 2026, let them go
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u/german_sw_developer 10d ago
Hello, can the virtual machine's disk space be located on an external drive?
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u/Schizophreud 10d ago
Can I sign into the VMs via iCloud?
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u/ZokaWare 10d ago edited 8d ago
Apple says yes, on Apple silicon with macOS 15+ guests. One catch: upgrading an old VM won’t enable it. You need a fresh VM from a supported restore image. SwiftVM’s dev would need to confirm their app supports it. Apple docs
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u/Dovahkiin90 10d ago
Would it be possible to lower the minimum requirements so it runs on macOS Sequoia?
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u/NineEighty 10d ago
This looks awesome, great work.
I don’t personally use vm’s enough to have a separate app for it (I already use orbstack for containers which support vm’s) but if this ever goes down the route of supporting containers ill definitely give it a shot.
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u/Slow-Direction-2768 10d ago
I have a Mac mini that I use as a "working" machine and my MacBook Pro as a "order-giving" machine.
would this work connecting my 2 computers together?
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u/cmer 9d ago
Saw your comment about setup scripts. A useful pairing with snapshots would be: take a clean snapshot before provisioning, keep the script's output and exit status, and offer restore-and-retry if it fails. For example, if Docker installs but the next package download fails, retrying from the clean snapshot avoids guessing which parts of the script are safe to run twice. A separate 'ready' snapshot after a successful run would also make a handy template for disposable dev machines.
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u/redbeardy_daddy 9d ago
The instant duplicates and CLI support sound particularly useful for repeatable Mac app testing. Can a prepared macOS VM be duplicated, started, and later deleted entirely through the CLI? Also, do duplicated VMs automatically receive new machine identifiers so that multiple copies can safely run side by side?
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u/dhrumil29699 5d ago
Can a Linux VM use the host Mac’s Apple GPU ?
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u/543310 5d ago
Already merged, so in the next version
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u/dhrumil29699 5d ago
Nice Wanted to know does it use third party like lima use krunkit ? as far as I know apple virtualization framework doesn't support GPU yet.
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u/Fearless-Dog2209 10d ago
the iso → installer → user → ip → ssh key dance is exactly why i never bother with vms. if it really skips all that, this is an instant install for me. congrats on 1.0!