ContextQMD
Back to Openvino

Install OpenVINO™ Runtime on macOS from an Archive File

docs/articles_en/get-started/install-openvino/install-openvino-archive-macos.rst

2026.1.27.8 KB
Original Source

Install OpenVINO™ Runtime on macOS from an Archive File

.. meta:: :description: Learn how to install OpenVINO™ Runtime on macOS operating system, using an archive file.

.. note::

Note that the Archive distribution:

  • offers both C/C++ and Python APIs
  • additionally includes code samples
  • is dedicated to macOS users (archives for other systems are also available)
  • is only supported for CPU Plugin

Before installing OpenVINO, see the :doc:System Requirements page <../../../about-openvino/release-notes-openvino/system-requirements>.

Installing OpenVINO Runtime ###########################

Step 1: Install OpenVINO Core Components ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

  1. Open a command prompt terminal window.

  2. Create the /opt/intel folder for OpenVINO by using the following command. If the folder already exists, skip this command.

    .. code-block:: sh

    sudo mkdir /opt/intel

    .. note::

    The /opt/intel path is the recommended folder path for installing OpenVINO. You may use a different path if desired.

  3. Browse to the current user's Downloads folder:

    .. code-block:: sh

    cd <user_home>/Downloads

  4. Download the OpenVINO Runtime archive file for macOS <https://storage.openvinotoolkit.org/repositories/openvino/packages/2026.1/macos/>__, extract the files, rename the extracted folder and move it to the desired path:

    .. tab-set::

    .. tab-item:: ARM, 64-bit :sync: arm-64

      .. code-block:: sh

     curl -L https://storage.openvinotoolkit.org/repositories/openvino/packages/2026.1/macos/openvino_toolkit_macos_12_6_2026.1.0.21367.63e31528c62_arm64.tgz --output openvino_2026.1.0.tgz
     tar -xf openvino_2026.1.0.tgz
     sudo mv openvino_toolkit_macos_12_6_2026.1.0.21367.63e31528c62_arm64 /opt/intel/openvino_2026.1.0

  5. (Optional) Install numpy Python Library:

    .. note::

    This step is required only when you decide to use Python API.

    You can use the requirements.txt file from the /opt/intel/openvino_2026.1.0/python folder:

    .. code-block:: sh

    cd /opt/intel/openvino_2026.1.0 python3 -m pip install -r ./python/requirements.txt

  6. For simplicity, it is useful to create a symbolic link as below:

    .. code-block:: sh

    sudo ln -s /opt/intel/openvino_2026.1.0 /opt/intel/openvino_2026

    .. note::

    If you have already installed a previous release of OpenVINO 2026, a symbolic link to the openvino_2026 folder may already exist. Unlink the previous link with sudo unlink openvino_2026, and then re-run the command above.

Congratulations, you have finished the installation! For some use cases you may still need to install additional components. Check the description below, as well as the :doc:list of additional configurations <./configurations> to see if your case needs any of them.

The /opt/intel/openvino_2026 folder now contains the core components for OpenVINO. If you used a different path in Step 2, for example, /home/<USER>/intel/, OpenVINO is now in /home/<USER>/intel/openvino_2026. The path to the openvino_2026 directory is also referred as <INSTALL_DIR> throughout the OpenVINO documentation.

Step 2: Configure the Environment +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

You must update several environment variables before you can compile and run OpenVINO applications. Open a terminal window and run the setupvars.sh script as shown below to temporarily set your environment variables. If your <INSTALL_DIR> (the folder you used to install OpenVINO) is not the default /opt/intel/openvino_2026, use the correct one instead.

.. code-block:: sh

cd /opt/intel/openvino_2026 source /opt/intel/openvino_2026/setupvars.sh

If you have more than one OpenVINO™ version on your machine, you can easily switch its version by sourcing the setupvars.sh of your choice.

.. note::

The above command must be re-run every time you start a new terminal session. To set up macOS to automatically run the command every time a new terminal is opened, open ~/.zshrc in your favorite editor and add source /opt/intel/openvino_2026/setupvars.sh after the last line. Next time when you open a terminal, you will see [setupvars.sh] OpenVINO™ environment initialized. Changing ~/.zshrc is not recommended when you have multiple OpenVINO versions on your machine and want to switch among them.

What's Next? ####################

Now that you've installed OpenVINO Runtime, you're ready to run your own machine learning applications! Learn more about how to integrate a model in OpenVINO applications by trying out the following tutorials.

.. tab-set::

.. tab-item:: Get started with Python :sync: get-started-py

  Try the `Python Quick Start Example <https://github.com/openvinotoolkit/openvino_notebooks/tree/latest/notebooks/vision-monodepth>`__ to estimate depth in a scene using an OpenVINO monodepth model in a Jupyter Notebook inside your web browser.

  .. image:: https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/15709723/127752390-f6aa371f-31b5-4846-84b9-18dd4f662406.gif
     :width: 400

  Visit the :doc:`Tutorials <../../../get-started/learn-openvino/interactive-tutorials-python>` page for more Jupyter Notebooks to get you started with OpenVINO, such as:

  * `OpenVINO Python API Tutorial <https://github.com/openvinotoolkit/openvino_notebooks/tree/latest/notebooks/openvino-api>`__
  * `Basic image classification program with Hello Image Classification <https://github.com/openvinotoolkit/openvino_notebooks/tree/latest/notebooks/hello-world>`__
  * `Convert a PyTorch model and use it for image background removal <https://github.com/openvinotoolkit/openvino_notebooks/tree/latest/notebooks/vision-background-removal>`__

.. tab-item:: Get started with C++ :sync: get-started-cpp

  Try the :doc:`C++ Quick Start Example <../../../get-started/learn-openvino/openvino-samples/get-started-demos>` for step-by-step instructions on building and running a basic image classification C++ application.

  .. image:: https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/36741649/127170593-86976dc3-e5e4-40be-b0a6-206379cd7df5.jpg
     :width: 400

  Visit the :ref:`Samples <code samples>` page for other C++ example applications to get you started with OpenVINO, such as:

  * :doc:`Basic object detection with the Hello Reshape SSD C++ sample <../../../get-started/learn-openvino/openvino-samples/hello-reshape-ssd>`
  * :doc:`Object classification sample <../../../get-started/learn-openvino/openvino-samples/hello-classification>`

Uninstalling Intel® Distribution of OpenVINO™ Toolkit #####################################################

If you have installed OpenVINO Runtime from archive files, you can uninstall it by deleting the archive files and the extracted folders. Uninstallation removes all Intel® Distribution of OpenVINO™ Toolkit component files but does not affect user files in the installation directory.

If you have created the symbolic link, remove the link first:

.. code-block:: sh

sudo rm /opt/intel/openvino_2026

To delete the files:

.. code-block:: sh

rm -r <extracted_folder> && rm <path_to_archive>

Additional Resources ####################

  • :doc:Troubleshooting Guide for OpenVINO Installation & Configuration <../install-openvino>
  • :doc:Convert models for use with OpenVINO™ <../../../openvino-workflow/model-preparation/convert-model-to-ir>
  • :doc:Write your own OpenVINO™ applications <../../../openvino-workflow/running-inference>
  • Sample applications: :doc:OpenVINO™ Toolkit Samples Overview <../../../get-started/learn-openvino/openvino-samples>
  • Pre-trained deep learning models on Hugging Face <https://huggingface.co/OpenVINO>__