Posted about this on reddit (https://www.reddit.com/r/86box/comments/1uq8jf7/was_able_to_get_openstep_nextstep_x86_up_running/) a while back, haven't tried other versions yet, but this was roughly the setup i had to run NeXTSTEP in a PC-emulator called "86box" (While following the guide as presented (https://betawiki.net/wiki/Guide:Recommended_VM_configurations/Other) on betawiki, i had some alterations to fit what current versions of 86box have...):
◊ NeXTSTEP 3.3:
- Motherboard = Socket 4 Intel Premiere/PCI ED
- Processor = Pentium Overdrive
- RAM = The maximum offered RAM as by what the choosen motherboard can provide
- Mouse = PS/2
- Network = None unfortunately due to 86box not including what NeXTSTEP 3.3 can support
- CD Drive = the default as 86box provides
◊ OpenSTEP 4.2:
- CPU = Intel Pentium Overdrive II
- RAM = The maximum offered RAM as by what the chosen motherboard can provide
- Network = [PCI] DECchip 21140 "Tulip FasterNet" (Unfortunately never was truly able to test it)
I do have the disk & machine images up on my mac and i can compress and send those over to anybody who asks.
Oh yeah, 86box is great. I am doubling down on it for the moment, trying to bring in some NeXT-specific hardware support and out-of-the-box configurations for NeXTStep, Openstep and Rhapsody DR2 (Darwin, even?)
Quote from: itomato on Sep 02, 2026, 06:50 PMOh yeah, 86box is great. I am doubling down on it for the moment, trying to bring in some NeXT-specific hardware support and out-of-the-box configurations for NeXTStep, Openstep and Rhapsody DR2 (Darwin, even?)
Oh shit, you're here! That saves me
so much time trying to track down contact info. We've all been watching your Github commits. 👀
Welcome home!
I've been running OPENSTEP in 86box for some time - my config's as follows (I run the nightly builds - you'll need to for some of this hardware):
Motherboard: Any Slot 1 with the 440BX chipset. (EDIT: I'm using the Asus P3B-F)
CPU: Intel Pentium II Deschutes/400 MHz (this is heavy - I'm running it on a Mac Mini M4 Pro, if you have less grunt you'll have to turn down the clock speed)
RAM: 512MB
Graphics: Matrox Millennium 8MB
Sound: Sound Blaster 16 non-PnP
Storage: Adaptec 2940UW SCSI controller; 2GB SCSI HDD, SCSI DVD-ROM (you can't usefully play DVD movies, but data DVDs work just fine). Just avoid IDE, even though it works.
Network: Intel EtherExpress/100. I use PCAP but SLiRP is fine too. You'll have to set your IP address manually.
EDIT: IDE works well with the BusMaster-IDE driver, but the Adaptec SCSI controller is still marginally faster (on the PIIX4/440BX), and is supported out of the box.
You can add additional SCSI disks if you want. You could add IDE hard disks too, but I'd max out SCSI first. It's a wide SCSI controller so you can have 14 disks in addition to your CD or DVD drive.
For floppies, a single 1.44MB floppy drive is generally what you want, but you can use a 2.88MB drive too - OPENSTEP groks those since the NeXTStation had a 2.88MB drive.
For NeXTSTEP 3.3, the video card of choice in 86box is the S3 Vision 864 (not the 964, though that works in OPENSTEP). In OPENSTEP 4.2, choose the Matrox Millennium 8MB for the widest range of modes.
The VBE 2.0 driver will work with the 3dfx Voodoo3, but with a limited range of modes, all in 8-bit color - stick with the Matrox Millennium.
I'll have to test network again, but I think 86box does now support a working card under NS 3.3.