R – What software to use for virtual machine for Windows development

It's certainly possible to develop on a Windows machine, in fact, my first application was exclusively developed on the old Dell Precision I had at the time :)

There are three routes;

1. Install OSx86 (aka iATKOS / Kalyway) on a second partition/disk and dual boot.
2. Run Mac OS X Server under VMWare (Mac OS X 10.7 (Lion) onwards, read the update below).
3. Use Delphi XE4 and the macincloud service. This is a commercial toolset, but the component and lib support is growing.

The first route requires modifying (or using a pre-modified) image of Leopard that can be installed on a regular PC. This is not as hard as you would think, although your success/effort ratio will depend upon how closely the hardware in your PC matches that in Mac hardware - e.g. if you're running a Core 2 Duo on an Intel Motherboard, with an NVidia graphics card you are laughing. If you're running an AMD machine or something without SSE3 it gets a little more involved.

If you purchase (or already own) a version of Leopard then this is a gray area since the Leopard EULA states you may only run it on an "Apple Labeled" machine. As many point out if you stick an Apple sticker on your PC you're probably covered.

The second option is more costly. The EULA for the workstation version of Leopard prevents it from being run under emulation and as a result, there's no support in VMWare for this. Leopard server, however, CAN be run under emulation and can be used for desktop purposes. Leopard server and VMWare are expensive, however.

If you're interested in option 1) I would suggest starting at Insanelymac and reading the OSx86 sections.

I do think you should consider whether the time you will invest is going to be worth the money you will save though. It was for me because I enjoy tinkering with this type of stuff and I started during the early iPhone betas, months before their App Store became available.

Alternatively, you could pick up a low-spec Mac Mini from eBay. You don't need much horsepower to run the SDK and you can always sell it on later if you decide to stop development or buy a better Mac.

Update: You cannot create a Mac OS X Client virtual machine for OS X 10.6 and earlier. Apple does not allow these Client OSes to be virtualized. With Mac OS X 10.7 (Lion) onwards, Apple has changed its licensing agreement in regards to virtualization. Source: VMWare KnowledgeBase

@Andrew - I'm exactly in your situation. I use a MBP while my company work is purely Microsoft based: i.e., .NET, COM etc. While nothing can beat running Vista natively in Boot Camp (I've never seen Vista run so fast), the niceties of having your Mac OS be the "main" OS, for internet, mail etc. has gotten me to the following configuration. Works like a charm:

Hardware

• Load up your MBP with the max possible - 4GB. It's really worth every $.
• Upgrade your hard drive (if not already) to 7200RPM. Major performance boost here.

Software

• Parallels Desktop for Mac for virtualization. You can either have multiple VM, or use a boot camp partition. The latter is supposed to be faster, but I haven't really measured it (I use it for having the option to boot natively if I really need speed). The former allows you to have multiple OS. I gave my VM 1GB memory. I can do more if you want it more snappy.
• Micorsoft Visual Studio 2005/8 for .NET and C++. I have yet to see any IDE for .NET which beats this one. The intellisense is really amazing.
• Code Gear (yes we have some Delphi)

For non development occasional need I also keep Microsoft Office 2007 installed. They do have MAC ports, but those don't always cut it.