How to open a Mac DMG file in Windows - AppleInsider

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Although .dmg is simply a macOS disk format, determination are a fig reasons of wherefore you'd privation unfastened them connected Windows computers. Here's however to get started.

The .dmg (Disk Image) suffix is associated with Apple's Disk Utility archive record format. Disk Image files files let you to store files and marque implicit disk volumes to stock with others.

Apple's .dmg tin incorporate APFS oregon macOS Extended (HFS ) volumes, CD, DVD, oregon Blu-Ray volumes, ISO9660 (optical disks), oregon Microsoft FAT32 oregon extFAT volumes.

When creating disk images utilizing macOS's included Disk Utility app successful /Applications/Utilities you besides person the enactment of password-protecting oregon encrypting representation files.

You tin besides make bare .dmg files, double-click them successful Finder to equine them connected your desktop, past transcript files to them by dragging them to the disk icon.

One drawback to .dmg files is that they are a proprietary Apple format. Most different operating systems, including Windows don't natively cognize however to work and constitute .dmg files.

Thanks to third-party bundle and immoderate freeware, you tin bash conscionable that connected Windows.

Free options to unfastened Mac DMG files successful Windows

There are a fig of escaped options for opening .dmg files connected Windows 11, 10, 8, oregon 7. By far, the simplest app to usage connected Windows to work .dmg files is the fantabulous and escaped compression inferior 7-Zip.

The 7-Zip inferior works successful the Windows File Explorer. After installation, each you request to bash to entree a .dmg successful Windows is to instal 7-Zip, past double-click a .dmg representation successful File Explorer to unfastened it. A caller model volition unfastened with the .dmg's contents.

Alternatively, you tin right-click a .dmg successful Windows, past connected 7-Zip's submenu prime immoderate 1 of the 3 "Extract" options to extract and transcript the contents of a .dmg to a determination you specify successful Windows File Explorer.

Working precise overmuch similar 7-Zip, different app for Windows capable to extract files from .dmg's is PeaZip. Once installed connected Windows, the extraction process is overmuch the aforesaid arsenic 7-Zip: simply close click a .dmg record successful File Explorer, and prime 1 of the "Extract" options from the popup menu. Select a destination connected your PC to store the files.

Another escaped alternate to 7-Zip connected Windows is DMG Extractor (with a paid $10 version). The escaped mentation is constricted to 4GB files, cannot extract from encrypted files, and tin lone extract 5 files astatine a time. The paid mentation removes these limits, and lets you browse the contents of .dmg files directly.

Another escaped enactment is UltraDMG (paid mentation $40). While designed chiefly arsenic a macOS bootable disk representation creator, the Windows mentation of UltraDMG besides allows you to extract the contents of .dmg files directly.

There are besides the escaped DMGExtractor and HFSExplorer from Erik Larson (who besides works connected the Tuxera merchandise mentioned below). They necessitate a Java installation connected Windows to work.

One different escaped option, if you're somewhat much technically inclined is to usage the forensic bundle SleuthKit and its GUI frontend, Autopsy.

All of the supra apps are escaped oregon person a constricted escaped downloadable mentation on with paid versions.

How to person .dmg files to .iso and .rar files

Established decades ago, .iso files are an industry-standard representation format usually utilized for optical disks specified arsenic CDs and DVDs, but tin beryllium utilized arsenic a cosmopolitan representation format arsenic well. Most modern operating systems including macOS and Windows tin unfastened .iso images natively, depending connected the existent filesystem utilized successful the .iso image.

Once you person a .dmg record to .iso you tin unfastened the .iso record natively successful Windows, assuming the .dmg's underlying filesystem is 1 Windows knows however to read.

Apple's Disk Utility has the quality to person astir .dmg files to .iso straight successful macOS. To bash so:

Disk Utility volition show a advancement model showing what it is doing successful item during the conversion, and if the conversion was palmy oregon not:

If successful, you'll present person a .cdr record astatine the destination you selected. Simply rename the .cdr record hold to .iso and conversion is complete. You tin present transcript the .iso record to your Windows computer.

You tin besides usage the command-line instrumentality hdiutil successful Terminal pursuing the instructions connected this page. To larn much astir hdiutil, successful Terminal type:

man hdiutil and property Return.

How to person DMG files successful Windows

If you privation to execute the .dmg conversion connected your Windows PC, you'll request to usage third-party tools. Most of the third-party Windows tools are paid, with escaped constricted downloadable demos. The starring tools are:

There is besides a escaped online .dmg converter called CloudConvert, but it requires signup with email, Google, Twitter, oregon Facebook first. If you don't person a accelerated net transportation it whitethorn instrumentality immoderate clip to upload your .dmg images depending connected their record size.

As an example, immoderate DVD images tin beryllium adjacent to 8GB successful size, immoderate Blu-Ray images up to 50GB.

UltraISO is elemental and direct: instal it, spell to Tools->Convert and person your .dmg record connected Windows. It tin besides edit and extract from disk images directly.

UltraISO supports each versions of Windows backmost to Windows 2000 - respective decades worthy of Windows. It besides has minuscule strategy requirements: A Pentium 166MHz oregon aboriginal (yes, MHz), a specified 64MB of RAM, and 10MB escaped disk space.

PowerISO is besides elemental and casual to usage and offers nonstop .dmg record conversion arsenic good arsenic a big of different disk-related options. It besides has enactment for older Windows versions backmost to Windows 98.

PowerISO offers a big of options akin to UltraISO including nonstop representation editing, password protection, compression, nonstop mounting of images, and Compact Disc audio format enactment and burning. Both products besides diagnostic creating bootable USB drives.

PowerISO besides has the aforesaid tiny strategy requirements arsenic UltraISO.

AnyBurn besides offers casual push-button .dmg record conversion arsenic good arsenic a big of different disk-related features. It besides supports a 32-bit mentation and Windows backmost to Windows 2000 and has the aforesaid minimum requirements arsenic UltraISO and PowerISO.

TransMac is different akin .dmg disk inferior for Windows and supports Windows backmost to Windows Vista. TransMac besides offers a fewer unsocial features specified arsenic HFS+ formatting, splitting and compressing .dmg files, nonstop .dmg burning to CD/DVD/Blu-Ray and speechmaking Mac multisession CDs (CDs with mixed measurement formats oregon aggregate volumes connected 1 disc).

SysTools Disk Image Viewer Pro is the last introduction successful our database of full-featured .dmg entree apps for Windows, but with a steep terms tag of $199 for a azygous idiosyncratic license, it whitethorn beryllium retired of scope for immoderate users. Nonetheless, SysTools Disk Image Viewer Pro has features connected par with the others.

Another enactment is to usage the .rar record format arsenic an intermediate format betwixt .dmg and a format Windows tin recognize (such arsenic .iso).

Two paid utilities with escaped proceedings versions that bash that are WinRAR ($30), and WinZip ($35).

Both products cognize however to person .dmg files to .rar files - which tin past beryllium decompressed to Windows oregon exported to .iso format. There are 3 tiers of WinZip ranging from $30-$100, and each WinZip versions see a Mac version.

macOS, of course, besides knows however to work and constitute the .zip format with its built-in Archive Utility.

Reading overseas record strategy disks directly

Two companies marque foreign record system drivers for Mac and Windows which let you to unfastened and entree the different OS'es disk formats connected each other's operating systems: Paragon Software and Tuxera.

HFS for Windows ($19.95) and APFS for Windows ($49.95) are record strategy products for Windows which cognize however to equine and entree Apple's HFS+ and APFS measurement formats connected Windows computers, respectively.

Paragon besides has a akin merchandise for macOS (Microsoft NTFS for Mac - $54.99), which does the opposite: it allows you to equine and entree Microsoft Windows NTFS disks connected your Mac desktop.

For location usage only, Paragon offers each three products and a 4th merchandise - Paragon CampTune - for the aforesaid $54.99 - an implicit steal. Paragon besides offers APFS versions for Linux and Android.

Using some the Paragon and Tuxera products, it's casual to image your .dmg files down onto carnal media specified arsenic a USB thumb drive, and past simply insert the thumb thrust connected your Windows machine - and vice-versa from Windows to Mac (assuming you person purchased the third-party Mac products).

This whitethorn necessitate an other step, but it makes accessing overseas record systems connected different computers a breeze since determination is nary conversion to beryllium done.

Legacy notes

There are a fewer different escaped Windows apps retired determination that either let your to entree oregon person your .dmg's to formats Windows tin understand, but they haven't been updated successful years and immoderate are hence lone for 32-bit operating systems oregon older versions of macOS.

Two specified utilities are dmg2img by Peter Wu and dmg2iso.

There's a existent GitHub leafage for dmg2iso, but you'll person to physique it yourself utilizing the instructions listed. The leafage doesn't marque it wide if the app itself has been updated for modern versions of macOS.

Also support successful caput that if you are trying to unfastened past .dmg, .smi, oregon .img files from Mac OS 9 oregon earlier from decades ago, those disk images whitethorn incorporate older Mac files which incorporate resource forks. If you effort to transcript those files connected a Windows PC without third-party HFS+ enactment installed, it whitethorn destruct the files' assets forks, which could render the files unusable connected older versions of macOS oregon Mac OS 9.

A guaranteed mode to sphere assets forks successful older Mac files is to representation them from a Mac disk to a macOS Extended (HFS+) .dmg and past lone unfastened the .dmg arsenic a read-only volume.

When you privation to entree your .dmg files connected your Windows computers, you person a batch of options - some escaped and paid. In a aboriginal nonfiction we'll research however to make carnal media to transport your files crossed platforms careless of disk format.