Running macOS in a virtual machine on Apple silicon

At a glance

Project structure

Source bundle/
├── Swift/
│   ├── macOSVirtualMachineSampleApp/
│   │   └── AppDelegate.swift
│   ├── InstallationTool/
│   │   └── main.swift
│   └── Common/
│       └── MacOSVirtualMachineDelegate.swift
└── Objective-C/
    ├── InstallationTool/
    │   ├── main.m
    │   └── MacOSRestoreImage.h
    ├── macOSVirtualMachineSampleApp/
    │   ├── main.m
    │   ├── AppDelegate.h
    │   └── AppDelegate.m
    └── Common/
        ├── MacOSVirtualMachineDelegate.h
        ├── MacOSVirtualMachineDelegate.m
        ├── MacOSVirtualMachineConfigurationHelper.h
        └── MacOSVirtualMachineConfigurationHelper.m

Structure observations

• Architecturally prominent files are ranked from entry points and role-named declarations; resource-only paths are omitted.
• Primary languages: C/Objective-C header, Objective-C, Swift.
• The verified tree contains 9 project/configuration file(s) and 10 source declaration(s).

Overall architecture

flowchart LR
    Bundle["Sample bundle"]
    V1["Objective-C"]
    V2["Swift"]
    Boundary["Virtualization APIs"]
    Bundle --> V1
    V1 --> Boundary
    Bundle --> V2
    V2 --> Boundary

Reference code

Swift/macOSVirtualMachineSampleApp/AppDelegate.swift:12 — architecture anchor

@main
class AppDelegate: NSObject, NSApplicationDelegate {
    // ...
}

Interpretation

The branches represent separate entry-bearing project variants in the downloaded bundle, not runtime calls between those variants. Each branch is intentionally collapsed at the documented framework boundary; the detailed target-local flow remains in the cited files. Ownership is claimed only where the next section cites a stored property or assignment.

Ownership and state

classDiagram
    AppDelegate o-- NSWindow : window
    AppDelegate o-- VZVirtualMachineView : virtualMachineView
    AppDelegate o-- MacOSVirtualMachineDelegate : virtualMachineResponder
    AppDelegate o-- VZVirtualMachine : virtualMachine

Ownership evidence

Swift/macOSVirtualMachineSampleApp/AppDelegate.swift:15 — stored dependency or nearest verified ownership anchor

    @IBOutlet var window: NSWindow!

    @IBOutlet weak var virtualMachineView: VZVirtualMachineView!

    private var virtualMachineResponder: MacOSVirtualMachineDelegate?

    private var virtualMachine: VZVirtualMachine!

Composition arrows indicate a source-visible construction expression or locally owned value state; aggregation means the owner stores or receives a dependency without proving exclusive lifetime ownership.

Class and protocol design

Swift/macOSVirtualMachineSampleApp/AppDelegate.swift:13 — representative type boundary

class AppDelegate: NSObject, NSApplicationDelegate {
    // ...
}

No local protocol conformance is claimed as protocol-oriented design; external framework conformances are listed only as dependencies.

Access control

Reference code

Objective-C/macOSVirtualMachineSampleApp/AppDelegate.m:19 — representative boundary

@interface AppDelegate ()
// ...
@property (weak) IBOutlet VZVirtualMachineView *virtualMachineView;
// ...
@end

Swift declarations without a modifier are internal; explicit private, fileprivate, private(set), public, or open entries above are interpreted by language semantics. Objective-C/C samples instead rely on header and implementation boundaries, which are not equivalent to Swift lexical privacy.

Logic ownership and placement

Design patterns

Naming conventions

• Types: Delegate: AppDelegate, MacOSVirtualMachineDelegate.
• Protocols: no local protocol declaration in the scanned source.
• Methods: createMacPlaform, createVirtualMachine, startVirtualMachine, resumeVirtualMachine, restoreVirtualMachine, applicationDidFinishLaunching, applicationShouldTerminateAfterLastWindowClosed, saveVirtualMachine.
• Files: Swift/macOSVirtualMachineSampleApp/AppDelegate.swift, Objective-C/macOSVirtualMachineSampleApp/AppDelegate.h, Objective-C/macOSVirtualMachineSampleApp/AppDelegate.m, Objective-C/Common/MacOSVirtualMachineDelegate.h, Objective-C/Common/MacOSVirtualMachineDelegate.m, Swift/Common/MacOSVirtualMachineDelegate.swift.

Architecture takeaways

• AppDelegate is the main source-visible entry or composition anchor for this sample.
• Framework work reaches Virtualization, Cocoa, AppKit, sys through a deliberately small high-level chain; the detailed API graph remains inside the cited implementation files.
• Stored-property evidence identifies lifecycle collaboration; it does not by itself prove exclusive object ownership.
• Access-control conclusions separate verified language visibility from the likely design rationale.
• The source does not justify labeling the design protocol-oriented.

Source map

• Official Apple documentation