// HACKER NEWS — CYBERSECURITY
Boot a Virtual iPhone via Apple's Virtualization.framework
Boot a virtual iPhone via Apple's Virtualization.framework using PCC research VM infrastructure.
One command creates a VM end-to-end (download → patch → DFU restore → CFW install → first boot):
vphone-cli vm create runs the whole pipeline; the individual steps below let you drive it manually or re-run one stage.
Update to a newer iOS by pointing fw prepare at an IPSW: --iphone-source /path/to.ipsw --cloudos-source /path/to.ipsw.
Five patch variants with increasing security bypass — pass one to --variant:
See research/0_binary_patch_comparison.md for the per-component breakdown.
Everything vphone-cli creates lives under ~/.vphone/ — kept outside the repo and the .app so the signed bundle stays portable. Redirect the whole tree with $VPHONE_ROOT:
Precedence: the per-item overrides ($VPHONE_LIBRARY_ROOT, $VPHONE_VENV_DIR) win over $VPHONE_ROOT, which wins over the ~/.vphone default. The ipsws/, tools/, and debs/ caches always sit directly under whichever root is active.
Option A — fully disable SIP, then disable AMFI via boot-arg (most permissive).
Then reboot into macOS and set the AMFI boot-arg (needs SIP fully off to take effect):