How to build Virtual Machines on Mac computers with the Apple M1 Chip or similar
A few months ago I attended a pen testing all day training and I brought my MacBook Pro with the Apple M1 Max Chip. Little did I know that after driving two hours I was going to leave. I left within the first hour of arrival. I was embarrassed I did not have a Windows or Linux computer with a chip compatible with the requirements of the pen testing training.
The instructors told me that Virtual Box was not compatible with the M1 chip. I also tried it and it didn’t work. Everyone in the class was using Virtual Box. So I went home and while driving I kept thinking there has to be a better way... After all, at the time of this writing the M1 chip is one of the latest most advanced chips from Apple.
Unlike the Intel chips, the M1 uses an ARM based architecture which Apple has been utilizing for its mobile devices. This enables a more seamless integration across Apple’s product ecosystem, from iPhones to Macs. It also has better performance, power and efficiency while maintaining user experience.
However, after attempting several hypervisors and different brands I found that the one that worked flawlessly with the M1 chip was Parallels Desktop. Which is a virtualization software or hypervisor for Mac that allows you to run Windows and other operating systems without rebooting! Note, there is a subscription fee. The price is fair. You can get it at Amazon and download the software by purchasing the subscription key.
Also, for your information, I am not getting paid to mention any of these companies. I just happened to really like that this hypervisor resolved the issue for me. Now I can go anywhere to take pen testing training with my Mac and don’t have to buy another computer! Ha ha!
It was super easy to install, follow the prompts, select your preferences and boom! Done. It was so easy! Way ahead of Virtual Box and very user friendly.
I did some research when that happened about Virtual Box and found out that the company who builds it has not made the update to be used on the M1 chip and similar ones, yet. But they plan to have it ready sometime in 2024. Well, it’s a free hypervisor, so you get what you pay for in this case.
After I installed what I wanted, Kali Linux and Ubuntu, I had fun ethically with my home lab using Terminal, Metasploit, Wireshark, Firefox, Nmap, and Aircrack-ng. I had both Ubuntu and Kali Linux opened at the same time and testing the network traffic between those two virtual machines I built using Wireshark.
And if you value the look and feel of things, wait for it… These VM’s have high quality graphic and the window and inside screen adapts when you resize it. I tried that when I had a different computer using Virtual Box and it wasn’t fun. Can you resize it on Virtual Box? Sure you can. Do you have to trouble shoot for that? You can almost bet. I am referring to resizing and having the inside screen also match the size of the window. Using Virtual Box the screen lost quality. It seemed sort of blurry. At least that was my experience with a different computer compatible with Virtual Box. In this case, using Parallels Desktop was like using any other application, browser or window on Mac. You still have the feel of the Mac. And that’s what you want after all if you are using this brand.
Again, none of these brands paid me to write this. This is just my experience and taste. Others may have different opinions on what’s best for what they do. And that’s fine.
This article was written to help those who have Mac computers with the M1 chip or similar who are interested in using it to create their home labs for pen testing or for general security training using virtual machines.
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