Everything you need to run Windows programs on your Mac: getting started, installing apps, environments, components and fixes for common problems.
Run CrossDriver from Applications, not from the DMG window. Your Windows environments link to files inside the app, and those links break when the DMG is ejected. If you start it from the DMG, CrossDriver says Please copy CrossDriver to "Applications" first and offers Open "Applications" Folder.
The first time you open CrossDriver it prepares the Windows runtime and creates your first environment, the Default Environment. You'll see Initializing components… and then Creating default container…. This only happens once and takes a moment.
A welcome card at the top of the window shows the three basic steps: add an app, let CrossDriver configure it, double-click to run. Click Get Started to dismiss it. You can bring it back any time with Help ▸ Getting Started.
CrossDriver has two interface styles. Pick one in Settings… ▸ Default interface; the change takes effect after Restart Now.
Keyboard shortcuts in the main window: ⌘F search, ⌘N new environment, ⌘R refresh.
There are several ways to bring a Windows program into CrossDriver:
.exe or .msi file (or an .iso/.img disc image or folder) onto the CrossDriver window..exe after turning on Open .exe files from Finder.If the file matches a Verified Setup, CrossDriver offers it first; you can always choose Install manually instead.
CrossDriver tells installers and portable programs apart on its own:
.exe that needs no setup) are added to the list and started right away.Add Existing Program… registers a program that is already inside the environment, without copying or installing anything.
Every environment also has Built-in Programs: File Explorer, Notepad, Command Prompt, Registry Editor, Control Panel and Task Manager.
Double-click an app's icon, or select it and click Run. Each Windows app gets its own icon in the Dock and in ⌘Tab, like a Mac app.
The first launch of an environment takes a little longer while Windows services start. Later launches are quicker.
If a program starts but nothing shows up within a minute, CrossDriver says Program started but no window appeared. Some programs are just slow to start; if it's stuck, click End Process.
Before adding or starting a program, CrossDriver checks which runtimes it needs (for example Visual C++, .NET Framework or Chinese fonts). If something is missing you'll see This app may need runtime components.
Click Install First to jump to Components with the item highlighted. Continue Anyway or Launch Anyway skips the check: some programs work fine without the extra component.
Right-click an app (or use the ⋯ button) for:
Advanced Settings opens Advanced App Settings. These apply to that app only:
Run with Options… (in the app's right-click menu) starts the app once with extra settings, without changing anything permanently:
Some Windows programs need specific components, settings and Windows versions before they install cleanly. A Verified Setup is a tested recipe that does that for you: it prepares the environment, installs the dependencies, runs the program's own installer and checks the result.
CrossDriver does not distribute third-party software. You bring your own installer and license; the Verified Setup only automates the configuration.
Each setup shows how far it has been tested: Verified, Installs, Known issues or Experimental. Setups are marked Free Verified Setup or Pro Verified Setup.
Nothing runs until you confirm. If the installer asks for a product key or for you to sign in, it waits for you: CrossDriver never activates software on your behalf. Prefer to do it yourself? Install normally instead skips the setup.
While a setup runs you can leave the page: the install continues and stays in the sidebar under MANAGE. If it stops, steps already done are kept, so retrying continues where it left off.
When it's finished, Install records keeps a record of what was installed and checked. From there you can open the app, use Check & repair (re-applies settings and components without running the installer again) or Disable this setup (restores the settings it changed; the program stays).
Setups marked Free Verified Setup work for everyone. Those marked Pro Verified Setup need CrossDriver Pro or the 15-day trial; the button then reads Try Pro free and install or Unlock with Pro. A Pro setup does not include a license for the program itself. You can always install manually for free.
An environment is a self-contained Windows installation: its own C: drive, registry, settings and installed programs. Programs in different environments don't affect each other, so you can keep, say, an accounting package and a game apart, or try something risky without touching your other apps.
Your first environment is the Default Environment. Most people never need another one. The Free plan includes one environment; more need Pro.
Click New Environment (or press ⌘N). In New Runtime Environment:
Right-click an environment (or use its ⋯ menu):
Reset Environment (default environment only) rebuilds it from scratch and deletes all programs and data inside.
Environment Settings change one environment and save immediately:
Many Windows programs need shared runtimes such as Visual C++, .NET Framework, the VB6 runtime or extra fonts. Components lists them for the current environment, shows which are installed and lets you install or remove them. Removing keeps the files, so reinstalling is quick.
When an environment has .NET installed, the .NET Runtime card lets you choose between Native .NET (Real CLR, best compatibility) and Open-source .NET Runtime.
Components such as .NET Framework and Visual C++ are Microsoft software. CrossDriver does not ship them: it downloads the original packages from Microsoft and installs them on your Mac.
If the download keeps failing (for example on a restricted network), download the file elsewhere and use Use Local File…. CrossDriver accepts it only if its size and SHA-256 match the official file.
D3DMetal (DirectX 11/12 acceleration) uses Apple's Game Porting Toolkit to speed up DirectX 11 and 12. It is not included with CrossDriver; you download it from Apple. It needs a Mac with Apple silicon and works in Rosetta environments only.
In Components, open the D3DMetal card and follow the steps: open Apple's download page, choose the downloaded DMG or folder, then set D3D Backend to d3dmetal for the environment or the game.
The Windows Desktop gives an environment a familiar desktop with a Start menu, taskbar and file manager. Open it from Windows Desktop in the sidebar, or with Open Windows Desktop on an environment page.
In the Multi-environment interface it is shown inside the window, with Open in Separate Window, Full Screen and Stop Desktop. Programs you start from it open as their own Mac windows.
Want it every time? Turn on Open Windows Desktop at launch in Environment Settings.
The file manager has tabs, back/forward, an address bar, quick access, a preview pane and search. Useful shortcuts:
| Ctrl+L / Alt+D | Type a path |
| Ctrl+F | Search |
| Ctrl+T / Ctrl+W | New tab / close tab |
| Ctrl+C X V Z | Copy, cut, paste, undo |
| F2 | Rename |
| Ctrl+Shift+N | New folder |
| Shift+Delete | Delete permanently |
| Alt+← / Alt+↑ | Back / up one folder |
| Alt+Enter | Properties |
Turn on Settings… ▸ Default Open Method ▸ Open .exe files with CrossDriver on double-click. Double-clicking an .exe in Finder then runs it in CrossDriver. If the program is known in more than one environment, CrossDriver asks which one to use and remembers your choice.
To undo it for a file type, select an .exe in Finder, choose File ▸ Get Info and change Open with.
Right-click an app and choose Add to Applications. CrossDriver creates a small Mac app in ~/Applications/CrossDriver. You can then start the Windows program from Launchpad or Spotlight, or keep it in the Dock, without opening CrossDriver first.
Links you click in a Windows program open in your Mac's default browser. Programs that sign you in through the browser (for example Autodesk products) get the sign-in result back automatically once you finish in the browser.
A license covers up to 3 Macs. Updates are free for everyone.
Try every Pro feature free for 15 days, once per Mac, no key needed: Activate CrossDriver… ▸ Start 15-day full-feature trial, or the trial button in Setup Center. When the trial ends CrossDriver returns to Free and your data is untouched.
After buying, open Activate CrossDriver… from the CrossDriver menu, enter the key from your confirmation email (format CD-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX) and click Activate. Without an Internet connection, use Import License File… with the .cdlicense file you received.
You can ask for a refund within 14 days: email your order number to feedback@crossdriver.com.
The Preview edition is free with all Pro features until December 31, 2026. After that, programs no longer start and CrossDriver asks you to download the release version. Your environments and data are kept, and the release version can import them.
When a program can't start, CrossDriver shows Application failed to start with the likely cause and a suggested fix, for example:
Use Copy Error Info and include it when you contact us.
Older programs that aren't Unicode show garbage when the environment's language doesn't match theirs. Set Container region in Environment Settings to the program's language and start it again.
Some older installers check the Windows version and quietly refuse newer ones. Set Windows Version to Windows 7 in Environment Settings, run the installer, then switch back if the program prefers a newer version.
Open Task Manager from the Window menu, select the process and click End Process. To close everything in one environment, use Stop Container Processes. Unsaved work in those programs is lost.
If an environment keeps misbehaving, try Reinitialize; it doesn't delete anything.
Help ▸ Send Feedback… lets you describe the problem, attach a screenshot and Include run logs (personal paths are removed). Send it with Submit Online or Send Email Feedback. Logs are kept for at most 6 months.
For a program that fails to start, the most helpful thing is a log from Run with Options… (see Run with options). Logs are stored in ~/Library/Logs/CrossDriver/.
CrossDriver checks for updates when it starts (at most once a day; you can turn this off in Settings… ▸ General). To check now, choose Check for Updates… from the CrossDriver menu. Download & Install downloads the new version in your browser.
Write to us and tell us which program you're trying to run, what you did and what happened. A log of the failed run helps a lot.