We are excited to announce the latest Orka Desktop 3.1.0 release, which includes the following new features and improvements: Support for MacOS 26 guest images, updated OCI image format compatibility, local storage mounting accessible from within the Orka Desktop UI, and shared clipboard functionality.
New Features
MacOS 26 Tahoe guest image support:
Key capabilities:
Orka Desktop 3.1.0 brings with it support for running MacOS 26 Tahoe guest VM images. This allows Orka Desktop users to start using Tahoe guest images for their VMs.
Getting started:
Users can get started with Tahoe by downloading the latest Tahoe image from OrkaHub, or our Tahoe package in the MacStadium orka-images repository on GitHub. Tahoe guest VMs can be run using the Orka CLI, or by using Orka Desktop.
Technical requirements:
A Sequoia 15.5+ host is required in order to run a MacOS Tahoe 26 guest image.
Orka does not currently officially support running Tahoe on a host machine. We will support MacOS 26 hosts in the upcoming Orka 3.6.0 release.
Improvements
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Clipboard sharing is now supported
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Clipboard sharing and host folder sharing features both require Orka VM tools v3.5.0 to be installed in the VM
Available via brew or direct download at: https://orka-tools.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/orka-vm-tools/official/3.5.0/orka-vm-tools.pkg
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Local storage mounting is available via the Orka Desktop UI
An updated OCI image format is now supported
Known issues
When running MacOS 15.6.1 and attempting to install a VM from the “latest” IPSW using Orka Desktop, the VZ API downloads the macOS 26 Tahoe IPSW. However, the installation fails with a popup message urging users to update the software.
Workarounds:
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MacOS 15.6.1 users can resolve this issue using any of the following workarounds:
Install XCode 26 - This enables Tahoe VM installation with Orka Desktop
Download a specific IPSW - Manually select an IPSW instead of using “latest”
Upgrade your host machine - Update your host machine to MacOS Tahoe
Bug fixes
VMs now duplicate correctly
Orka Desktop no longer sporadically crashes when pushing/pulling an image from an OCI repository
Dynamic resolution and DPI settings are now retained after pulling an image