What is this?
v86 is an x86 PC emulator that runs entirely in the browser. It emulates a Pentium-4-class CPU and classic PC hardware, translating guest machine code to WebAssembly at runtime for decent speed.
v86 is an x86 PC emulator that runs entirely in the browser. It emulates a Pentium-4-class CPU and classic PC hardware, translating guest machine code to WebAssembly at runtime for decent speed.Is this something I install like VirtualBox, or does it just run in a web page?There is nothing to install — it runs in a web page. You can try the hosted demos, embed it in your own site via libv86.js, or pull in the official npm package for bundler-based projects.
There is nothing to install — it runs in a web page. You can try the hosted demos, embed it in your own site via libv86.js, or pull in the official npm package for bundler-based projects.How do I add it to my own project, then?For Vite, React, Next or Webpack setups run 'npm install v86'. Otherwise take libv86.js from the release section and follow the bundled examples; building from source means 'make' for a debug build or 'make all' for the optimized one.
For Vite, React, Next or Webpack setups run 'npm install v86'. Otherwise take libv86.js from the release section and follow the bundled examples; building from source means 'make' for a debug build or 'make all' for the optimized one.How capable is the emulated machine?The CPU is only around Pentium 4 level with full SSE3. There are no 64-bit extensions and no multicore, so 64-bit kernels will not run — you are limited to 32-bit guests.
The CPU is only around Pentium 4 level with full SSE3. There are no 64-bit extensions and no multicore, so 64-bit kernels will not run — you are limited to 32-bit guests.Does it matter which OS or browser I am on?Not really — everything runs client-side, so any modern browser works. If you would rather serve the emulator yourself, the repo ships a Dockerfile and a single docker run command starts a server.
Not really — everything runs client-side, so any modern browser works. If you would rather serve the emulator yourself, the repo ships a Dockerfile and a single docker run command starts a server.Can I embed it in my own site without license headaches?Yes — it uses the permissive Simplified BSD License (BSD-2-Clause). A few bundled third-party parts such as SoftFloat and zstd keep their own licenses.
Yes — it uses the permissive Simplified BSD License (BSD-2-Clause). A few bundled third-party parts such as SoftFloat and zstd keep their own licenses.Which operating systems actually run well on it?Linux works well (32-bit only), as do FreeDOS, MS-DOS, Windows 1.01 through 2000, ReactOS, Haiku, KolibriOS, QNX and FreeBSD. Plan 9 and OS/2 do not work, and Windows XP or newer runs only under certain conditions.
Linux works well (32-bit only), as do FreeDOS, MS-DOS, Windows 1.01 through 2000, ReactOS, Haiku, KolibriOS, QNX and FreeBSD. Plan 9 and OS/2 do not work, and Windows XP or newer runs only under certain conditions.What hardware does the emulated PC have?Classic PC parts: PS/2 keyboard and mouse, floppy and IDE disk controllers, VGA with SVGA and Bochs VBE extensions, a SoundBlaster 16, virtio devices and even a Hayes-compatible dial-up modem.
Classic PC parts: PS/2 keyboard and mouse, floppy and IDE disk controllers, VGA with SVGA and Bochs VBE extensions, a SoundBlaster 16, virtio devices and even a Hayes-compatible dial-up modem.Can the emulated machine go online?Yes — you get an NE2000 PCI network card plus virtio networking, and the docs cover both regular and dial-up modem networking. One example even networks two emulator instances via the Broadcast Channel API.
Yes — you get an NE2000 PCI network card plus virtio networking, and the docs cover both regular and dial-up modem networking. One example even networks two emulator instances via the Broadcast Channel API.Can I save a running machine and resume it later?Yes — the API lets you save and restore emulator state, and zstd compression keeps the saved state images small.
Yes — the API lets you save and restore emulator state, and zstd compression keeps the saved state images small.