How to Open DMG file on Mac and Windows

It can be helpful to know How to Open DMG file on Mac and Windows, whether you are a Mac programmer who uses a Windows computer or you just found one on your Windows machine. DMG files are macOS disc image files. They are a lot like ISO files, which are what they are for Windows. Most of the time, these disc images are used to install macOS apps, but they can also be used to store compressed files.

Obviously, you won’t be able to install and run an app made for macOS on Windows. Still, you can open them and look inside. So, a DMG file is always considered to be a virtual disc drive. When you open a DMG file, it will automatically mount and show up in the Finder under the Locations tab, just like a physical disc. It will also be visible in Disk Utility.

How to Open DMG file on Windows

Using PowerISO

PowerISO is a tool for managing ISO files that can turn Windows files and folders into ISO images. This tool can also be used in Windows to extract a DMG file. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Visit PowerISO’s official website and download it on your computer.
2. During installation, make sure to check the .dmg file format in the File Associations section.
3. Launch PowerISO and click the Open option at the top.
4. Navigate to the place where the DMG file is stored.
5. Select the DMG file and click the Open button.
6. If Select a partition prompt pops up, then click Open again.
7. Click the Extract button at the top.
8. Choose the location where you want to extract the file, and configure other options like Overwriting existing files and Open the folder after extraction.
9. Click OK to start the extraction process.

Using PeaZip

PeaZip is another tool for Windows that can be used to archive files. This tool makes it easy to extract almost any kind of archive file, and you can drag and drop files to extract them. Apple’s DMG files can also be opened and extracted with PeaZip on both Windows and Linux. Here’s how to use PeaZip on Windows to get the contents of a DMG file.

1. To begin with, download PeaZip on your computer.
2. Open PeaZip, and you will see all the available files on the computer.
3. Head towards the location where you have stored the DMG file.
4. Select and right-click on the DMG file. Choose Extract from the context menu.
5. Choose the output folder, and configure all the other extraction options. You can add a password to the extracted file by selecting the Set password / keylife option.
6. Click the OK button.

Using 7-Zip

7-Zip is a free third-party archiving tool that can be used to open RAR files on Windows. It is one of the best tools for doing this. It lets you split your archives, add password protection (for more information, see how to password protect a ZIP file), and do a lot more.

1. Install the 7-Zip app on your computer.
2. Launch the app, and your files will appear. This is 7-Zip’s very own file manager.
3. Use the file manager to access the folder where the DMG file is stored.
4. Select the DMG file you want to extract.
5. Click the Extract option at the top.
6. Specify the output folder, path mode, overwrite mode, and, optionally a password for your extracted file. Then, click the OK button at the bottom.

How to Open DMG file on MAC

Using Disk Image Mounter

If you tried to open the disc image on your Mac but got an error message like “No mountable file system,” the file may already be broken. It’s back on the list of things you can download. So you can try the methods with Disk Image Mounter, a tool that comes with every Mac.

• To open a DMG file, right-click or press Command + click on it.
• From the list of options under the Open With button, select “Disk Image Mounter“.
• The DMG file’s content will be directly visible for you to use once it has been mounted.

Mount the DMG File with Mac Terminal

If the right-click menu is greyed out or none of the Open With options work, try mounting the DMG files with Terminal. After you drag the file to your desktop, do these things:

• Go to Finder > Applications > Utilities and launch the Terminal application.
• Type the Command: “cd ~/Desktop” into the Terminal window and hit Enter.
•  Type the following Command: “hdiutil attach filename.dmg” and hit Enter. (Notice: Change filename.dmg to the name of the actual.dmg file).
• Your DMG files will now be mounted on your Mac after you have performed the two command lines.

Open Dmg Files When You See the Error Message

When you double-click the DMG files, you may encounter a notice that states, “[Name] can’t be opened since it was not downloaded through the App Store.” After that, you can do these things:

• In the top-left corner of the screen, click the Apple logo and then choose System Preferences.
• Select Security & Privacy under System Preferences.
• In the bottom-left corner of the window, click the lock icon.
• To update anything on this page, you must enter your password.
• Select “Anyway“, and then open the DMG files.

FAQ

What program opens DMG files on Mac?

By default, macOS opens DMG files well, and you don’t need any extra software to do so. All you have to do to open and mount the DMG file on your Mac is double-click it. Once you do this, the DMG file should show up as a mounted disc in the Finder sidebar.

Why can’t I open a DMG file on my Mac?

If you tried to open the disc image on your Mac but got an error message like “No mountable file system,” the file may already be broken. It’s back on the list of things you can download. So you can try the methods with Disk Image Mounter, a tool that comes with every Mac.