This page lists all the environment variables that can be used to configure the container.
An empty default means the variable is unset and its value is determined automatically when applicable.
| Variable | Default | Description |
|---|
VERSION | 14 | macOS version to install, such as 14 or sonoma. |
MODEL | iMacPro1,1 | Mac model identifier used by OpenCore. |
SN | | Mac serial number. Generated automatically when unset. |
MLB | | Mac board serial number. Generated automatically when unset. |
UUID | | Mac system UUID. Generated automatically when unset. |
CONNECTIONS | 4 | Number of connections used for recovery image download. |
| Variable | Default | Description |
|---|
CPU_CORES | 1 | Number of virtual CPU cores, such as 4, half, or max. |
CPU_MODEL | | QEMU CPU model. Selected automatically for Intel or AMD hosts when unset. |
CPU_FLAGS | | Additional QEMU CPU flags. |
SMP | | Custom CPU topology. Determined from CPU_CORES when unset. |
KVM | Y | Enables KVM hardware acceleration. |
RAM_SIZE | 4G | Amount of RAM assigned to macOS, such as 8G, half, or max. |
RAM_CHECK | Y | Checks whether enough host memory is available before starting macOS. |
| Variable | Default | Description |
|---|
DISK_SIZE | 64G | Size of the primary disk. |
DISK_FMT | raw | Disk image format: raw or qcow2. |
DISK_TYPE | blk | Disk device type, such as ide, scsi, or blk. |
DISK_CACHE | none | Disk cache mode, such as none or writeback. |
DISK_IO | native | Disk I/O mode, such as native, threads, or io_uring. |
DISK_DISCARD | unmap | Discard/TRIM mode for the primary disk. |
DISK_ROTATION | 1 | Rotation rate reported to the guest. Use 1 to identify the disk as an SSD. |
DISK_FLAGS | | Additional options used when creating qcow2 disks. |
DISK_OPTIONS | | Additional options appended to QEMU disk devices. |
ALLOCATE | N | Preallocates space for the primary disk. |
STORAGE | /storage | Storage directory used for disks, firmware variables, and downloads. |
| Variable | Default | Description |
|---|
NETWORK | | Network mode, such as nat, user, or N to disable networking. |
DHCP | N | Enables macvtap networking so macOS receives a DHCP address. |
HOST | | Optional macOS computer name and advertised network hostname. |
IP | | Overrides the automatically selected guest IPv4 address. |
MAC | | Guest network adapter MAC address. Generated automatically when unset. |
ADAPTER | virtio-net-pci | QEMU network adapter model. |
DEV | eth0 | Container network interface used as the uplink. |
MTU | | MTU assigned to the guest network interface. |
MASK | 255.255.255.0 | IPv4 netmask for guest network. |
TAP | qemu | TAP or macvtap interface name. |
BRIDGE | docker | Bridge name used for NAT networking. |
HOST_PORTS | | Ports excluded from guest forwarding. |
USER_PORTS | | Additional ports to forward to macOS when using user-mode networking. |
DNSMASQ_OPTS | | Additional options passed to dnsmasq. |
DNSMASQ_DEBUG | N | Enables dnsmasq debug output. |
DNSMASQ_DISABLE | N | Disables the internal dnsmasq resolver. |
PASST_OPTS | | Additional options passed to passt. |
PASST_DEBUG | N | Enables passt debug output. |
| Variable | Default | Description |
|---|
DISPLAY | web | Display backend, such as web, vnc, disabled, or none. |
VGA | vmware | QEMU video adapter model. |
WIDTH | 1920 | Display width configured for macOS and OpenCore. |
HEIGHT | 1080 | Display height configured for macOS and OpenCore. |
GPU | N | Enables experimental GPU acceleration. |
RENDERNODE | /dev/dri/renderD128 | Render node used for GPU acceleration. |
| Variable | Default | Description |
|---|
WEB | Y | Enables the web interface. |
WEB_PORT | 8006 | Port for the web interface. |
VNC_PORT | 5900 | Port for the VNC server. |
LOSSY | N | Enables lossy VNC compression to reduce bandwidth usage. |
AUDIO | N | Streams guest audio to the web viewer. |
PROTECT | N | Enables password protection for the web interface. |
| Variable | Default | Description |
|---|
MACHINE | q35 | QEMU machine type. |
PCI_BUS | pcie.0 | Overrides the PCI bus used for attached devices. |
RNG | Y | Adds the Virtio RNG device to the machine. |
HPET | off | HPET timer setting. |
VMPORT | off | VMware port setting. |
MOUSE | usb-tablet | Pointing device used by the machine. |
SOUND | usb-audio | Audio device used when AUDIO=Y. |
ARGUMENTS | | Additional raw arguments appended to the QEMU command line. |
| Variable | Default | Description |
|---|
PICKER | N | Shows the OpenCore boot picker. |
SMM | N | Enables System Management Mode. |
LOGO | Y | Enables the custom boot logo. |
BOOT_INDEX | 9 | Boot priority index for the OpenCore boot media. |
MEDIA_TYPE | | Device type used for installation media. |
USB | nec-usb-xhci,id=xhci | QEMU USB controller configuration. |
Also see Dynamic memory allocation for usage instructions and important caveats.
| Variable | Default | Description |
|---|
BALLOONING | N | Enables dynamic memory ballooning. |
BALLOONING_MIN_MEM | 33% | Minimum amount of memory retained by the VM. |
BALLOONING_RAM_THRESHOLD | 80.0 | Host RAM usage percentage at which ballooning begins adjusting memory. |
BALLOONING_RAM_THRESHOLD_HARD | 90.0 | Host RAM usage percentage at which ballooning becomes more aggressive. |
BALLOONING_PSI_PRESSURE | 10.0 | PSI memory pressure level at which ballooning becomes more aggressive. |
BALLOONING_PSI_PRESSURE_MAX | 50.0 | PSI memory pressure level at which ballooning reaches its strongest response. |
BALLOONING_HYSTERESIS | 128M | Minimum memory change before the balloon target is updated. |
BALLOONING_KP | 0.5 | Proportional gain used by the ballooning controller. |
BALLOONING_KI | 0.05 | Integral gain used by the ballooning controller. |
BALLOONING_INTERVAL | 5 | Polling interval in seconds. |
BALLOONING_DEBUG | N | Enables debug output for the ballooning monitor. |
| Variable | Default | Description |
|---|
SHUTDOWN | Y | Enables graceful ACPI shutdown. |
TIMEOUT | 115 | Maximum time, in seconds, to wait before forcing macOS to stop. |
| Variable | Default | Description |
|---|
DEBUG | N | Enables verbose debug output. |
TRACE | N | Enables shell command tracing. |
SERIAL | mon:stdio | QEMU serial device configuration. |
MONITOR | | QEMU monitor configuration. |
QMP | | QEMU Machine Protocol configuration. |