Lume – OS lightweight CLI for MacOS and Linux VMs on Apple Silicon

In plain words

Lume is a lightweight command-line tool for spinning up macOS and Linux virtual machines on Apple Silicon Macs and Linux VMs. It uses Apple's Virtualization Framework to launch native macOS instances with a single command, offering prebuilt images and an API server for programmatic VM management. Developers can use it directly via CLI or through a Python SDK, making it an alternative to more complex virtualization solutions.

written from the facts on this page · September 2026

From the sources

In the maker’s words, at launch

We just open-sourced Lume - a tool we built after hitting walls with existing virtualization options on Apple Silicon. No GUI, no complex stacks - just a single binary that lets you spin up macOS or Linux VMs via CLI or API. Why we built Lume: - Run native macOS VMs in 1 command, using Apple Virtualization.Framework: `lume run macos-sequoia-vanilla:latest` - Prebuilt images on https://ghcr.io/trycua (macOS, Ubuntu on ARM) - API server to manage VMs programmatically `POST /lume/vms` - A python SDK on github.com/trycua/pylume Run prebuilt macOS images in just 1 step: lume run macos-sequoia-vanilla:latest How to Install: brew tap trycua/lume brew install lume You can also download the `lume.pkg.tar.gz` archive from the latest release https://github.com/trycua/lume/releases, extract it, and install the package manually. Local API Server: `lume` exposes a local HTTP API server that listens on `http://localhost:3000/lume`, enabling automated management of VMs. lume serve For detailed API documentation, please refer to API Reference(https://github.com/trycua/lume/blob/main/docs/API-Reference....). HN devs - would love raw feedback on the API design and whether this solves your Apple Silicon VM pain points. What would make you replace UTM/Multipass/Docker Desktop with this? Repo: https://github.com/trycua/lume Python SDK: github.com/trycua/pylume Discord for direct feedback: https://discord.gg/8p56E2KJ

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