Developer runs Googlebook OS on Apple Silicon Macs with GPU acceleration

Googlebook OS, the new operating system for Dell Chromebooks, now runs on Apple Silicon Macs thanks to an open-source virtualization project. This development matters because it lets users test the latest ChromeOS features on hardware they already own, bypassing the need to buy a new device. A developer has released gbos-vm, a tool that packages the official recovery image into a virtual machine format for Apple chips.

Open-source gbos-vm enables ChromeOS testing on M1 through M5 Macs

The project targets Macs equipped with M1 Pro, M2 Max, M4, and M5 processors. It relies on QEMU to handle the virtualization layer, allowing the ARM-based Googlebook OS to operate within the macOS environment. Graphics acceleration works through a chain of components including Vulkan, Venus, MoltenVK, and Apple's native Metal API. This setup ensures that the virtual machine can render the desktop interface smoothly without relying solely on software emulation.

• Host Hardware: Apple Silicon Macs (M1 Pro, M2 Max, M4, M5)
• Virtualization Engine: QEMU
• Graphics Acceleration: Vulkan through Venus, MoltenVK and Apple's Metal API
• OS Base: Android 17
• Minimum RAM: 16GB

Users need an Apple Silicon Mac with approximately 16GB of RAM to run the virtual machine effectively. The system also requires 60GB of available storage to accommodate the virtual disk and associated files. The project involves downloading approximately 9GB of data to set up the environment. Googlebook OS boots successfully with Chrome and hardware-accelerated graphics inside the VM, providing a functional testing ground for the new software.

Intel-based Macs are currently unsupported, although the developer has experimented with x86 recovery images and is exploring ways to make them work. The project is based on an official ARM64 recovery image from a Dell XPS Googlebook. Googlebook OS has only been available on commercial laptops since October 4, but developers have already found ways to run it on unsupported hardware. This open-source effort highlights the growing community interest in running ChromeOS on non-standard devices.