Limitation of macOS copies.

Hello. Is it possible to buy license to increase number of macOS installed within virtual operating system environments?

Posted on Sep 23, 2021 5:09 AM

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Posted on Sep 25, 2021 10:24 PM

Sadly no. I have read that even VMware runs a maximum of 3 VM's per Mac mini as a result when they could be using rack mounted Mac Pro's and run hundreds of VM's the licensing prevents anymore than two VM's and one macOS host operating system. VMware installed ESXi on the Mac mini's and run 3 VM's all macOS to keep it within the license terms.


You could try having your company legal team make an official inquiry with Apple Legal but it is unlikely to be properly addressed. Apple really doesn't want 3rd parties to start hosting thousands of VM's in a cloud. One of the largest buyers of Mac Mini's is macstadium.com. You could consider using their PaaS (Platform as a Service) solutions instead of doing it yourself.

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Sep 25, 2021 10:24 PM in response to Stasokoleso

Sadly no. I have read that even VMware runs a maximum of 3 VM's per Mac mini as a result when they could be using rack mounted Mac Pro's and run hundreds of VM's the licensing prevents anymore than two VM's and one macOS host operating system. VMware installed ESXi on the Mac mini's and run 3 VM's all macOS to keep it within the license terms.


You could try having your company legal team make an official inquiry with Apple Legal but it is unlikely to be properly addressed. Apple really doesn't want 3rd parties to start hosting thousands of VM's in a cloud. One of the largest buyers of Mac Mini's is macstadium.com. You could consider using their PaaS (Platform as a Service) solutions instead of doing it yourself.

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Limitation of macOS copies.

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