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Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mintlify.com/mihaip/infinite-mac/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

Infinite Mac is a browser-based classic Macintosh emulator built with React and WebAssembly. The development environment relies on Node.js for the frontend toolchain and Python (via uv) for the disk and library import scripts. Before you can run the dev server, you need to generate a set of supporting data files — disk images, CD-ROM stubs, and a software library — from the import scripts.

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Prerequisites

Make sure the following are installed before you begin:
  • Node.js ≥ 22 and npm — required by the project (engines.node >= 22.0.0 in package.json)
  • git — needed to clone the repository with its submodules
  • Python via uv — the import scripts (import-disks, import-cd-roms, import-library) are Python programs invoked through uv run
  • Docker — only required if you intend to rebuild emulator WASM binaries from source; not needed for normal development

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Setup Steps

1

Clone with submodules

Infinite Mac keeps all emulator cores (Basilisk II, SheepShaver, Mini vMac, etc.) as Git submodules. You must clone recursively to fetch them:
git clone --recursive https://github.com/mihaip/infinite-mac.git
cd infinite-mac
If you already have a checkout and are missing the submodule contents, initialise them now:
git submodule update --init --recursive
2

Install Node.js dependencies

Install all npm packages declared in package.json, including Vite, wrangler, and the ESLint/Prettier toolchain:
npm install
3

Build native tools

The project ships helper programs that must be compiled before the import scripts can run. This step builds them:
npm run build-tools
4

Import minimal disk images

Three import commands generate the data files the app needs at runtime. Pass the flags shown below for a fast, development-only setup:
npm run import-disks minimal
npm run import-cd-roms placeholder
npm run import-library placeholder
What each flag does:
CommandFlagEffect
import-disksminimalBuilds System 1 through System 7.5.5 only; skips populating the “Infinite HD” disk image with the full software library
import-cd-romsplaceholderCreates an empty CD-ROM library stub so the app loads without errors
import-libraryplaceholderGenerates a minimal downloads library that does not require a Macintosh Garden data dump
During import-disks, the native macOS versions of Mini vMac and Basilisk II are invoked as a final step to ensure the generated disk has a valid desktop database. If they are not installed on your machine, a warning is logged and the generated disk may take longer to mount inside the emulator. Once each emulator appears to have finished booting and you can see the Infinite HD volume, use the Shut Down command to cleanly power off the emulated machine, then quit the emulator so the import task can continue.
The Mini vMac desktop-database step can be slow at the emulator’s default speed. To speed it up, press Control-S inside the Mini vMac window to open the speed menu, then press A to select All Out.
5

Start the development server

Launch the Vite dev server:
npm run start
The app is served at http://localhost:3127. The server is configured with the Cross-Origin-Opener-Policy and Cross-Origin-Embedder-Policy headers required for SharedArrayBuffer, which the emulator workers depend on.

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