# Apple Virtualization Framework Hacker Approved page: https://hackerapproved.com/p/apple-virtualization-framework/ 9 people recommended Apple Virtualization Framework in Hacker News comments, 1 had mixed feelings and 5 criticized it, November 2025 to October 2026. It was recommended in 6 of 12 months, in 10 threads. It does not meet the Hacker Approved badge rule. **Verdict:** Apple's built-in framework for running Linux and macOS virtual machines at near-native speed, officially supporting macOS guests. Critics note limited virtio device support and no USB passthrough. Summary written by Claude from 21 comments. It was written before the November 2026 recount, and 20 of those comments still count. ## Why people recommend it - Near-native speed in virtual machines (4 comments in the sample): "macOS virtualization is as fast as native due to hypervisor support, with free but limited driver support thanks to virtio" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47953110)) "Anyone can run any compatible Linux now in a VM, with bare-metal speed but limited to virtio devices." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48749505)) "You can virtualize macOS in macOS with (nearly) native speed and this is officially supported." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48904074)) - Works well out of the box (3 comments in the sample): "seems to do the trick pretty well out of the box" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46799258)) "Apple Virtualization framework is fantastic" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47230658)) "osx has a fantastic virtualization story" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49076560)) - Good way to run Linux VMs (2 comments in the sample): "Which is why WSL and Virtualiztion Framework have become the best way to have the Year of Desktop Linux" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47397183)) "the Year of Linux Desktop is better as a UNIX like headless system running on Apple Virtualization" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46897412)) - Base for lightweight containers and sandboxes (2 comments in the sample): "Using Apple virtualization framework (which natively supports lightweight containers) on macOS" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46934573)) "shuru was (still) a wrapper over the Virtualization.framework" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47809597)) ## What people warn about - Limited device and USB support (2 comments in the sample): "Apple Virtualisation does not offer USB passthrough for connecting to iPhones for iOS development." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47305245)) "it's not supported by Virtualization Framework's built-in virtiofs "folder sharing". (sad face" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48485941)) - Lag in UI and file system (2 comments in the sample): "A primary source of UI lag is how Apple's native virtualization framework processes multitouch trackpad events" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48968759)) "file system latency on mac os when virtualizing that kills me" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47308414)) - Messy, hard to use API (2 comments in the sample): "Hyper-V and Virtualization Framework wish they were so user friendly" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46479206)) "Virtualization.framework is a remarkable spaghetti in this regard" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48148774)) ## The badge A product earns the Hacker Approved badge when at least 10 people recommend it, recommenders outnumber critics at least 2 to 1 (mixed feelings count toward neither side), it was recommended in at least 4 of the 12 months and in at least 5 different threads, and no single thread supplies more than half of the people who recommend it. Health and money products are never badged. ## Cite as Hacker Approved, "Apple Virtualization Framework", https://hackerapproved.com/p/apple-virtualization-framework/ (9 recommend, 1 mixed, 5 criticize; Hacker News comments, November 2025 to October 2026). Counts updated 2 Nov 2026, with data through October 31, 2026.