Technical notes
Apple-focused fork of Xenia, based on Xenia Edge, published from the xenios
branch as xenios_macos_apple_silicon.dmg, xenios_macos_intel.dmg,
xenios_macos_universal.dmg and xenios_ios_iphone_ipad.ipa. The macOS build
names its bundle and executable Xenia-edge, the iOS build XeniOS
(src/xenia/app/CMakeLists.txt:11-13, 175, 339-341). ES-DE runs it through the
XENIOS rule with the ROM and an optional .commands file of extra arguments.
The 2.0.1 disk image holds one bundle: beside its code signature it carries
Info.plist, MacOS/Xenia-edge, Resources/AppIcon.icns, Resources/Assets.car
and two dylibs under Contents/Frameworks. Rendering runs on Metal. Guest DXBC
is converted to DXIL through libdxilconv.dylib, built from the fork's own
DirectX Shader Compiler branch, then to Metal IR through Apple's Metal Shader
Converter (libmetalirconverter.dylib). Both are imported shared libraries
copied into Frameworks and reached by @rpath
(third_party/CMakeLists.txt:432-456, src/xenia/app/CMakeLists.txt:348-360),
so the code calls IRCompilerCreate and DxcCreateInstance as ordinary symbols
and never names either file
(src/xenia/gpu/metal/metal_shader_converter.cc:83,
src/xenia/gpu/metal/dxbc_to_dxil_converter.cc:103). MoltenVK is statically
linked and its entry points resolve as real symbols, so the Vulkan backend
loads no loader library (src/xenia/ui/vulkan/vulkan_instance.cc:30-39,
81-83).
No Xbox 360 system file is read. xboxkrnl, xam and xbdm are C++ HLE modules
registered at startup (src/xenia/emulator.cc:425-427), the XEX1 and XEX2
retail keys and the zeroed devkit key are constexpr arrays tried in turn
(src/xenia/cpu/xex_module.cc:55-63, used at 344, 503 and 925-935), and every
XConfig setting is assembled from cvars and constants by BuildSetting, in a
file that makes no filesystem call at all
(src/xenia/kernel/xconfig.cc:87-246). Launching a system title symlinks
\SystemRoot to that title's own mount and resolves xam.xex, then
$flash_xam.xex, through the guest filesystem
(src/xenia/emulator.cc:744-759); spa.bin is resolved the same way inside an
installed DLC package (src/xenia/kernel/xam/content_manager.cc:31, 425-426).
The fork's data ships inside the executable. The UI font and the app icon are
linked in by xe_embed_binary_assets, and the 33 locale catalogues are
compiled from .po to .mo at configure time and packed into one compressed
bundle (src/xenia/ui/CMakeLists.txt:55-58, 60-82), which wx_locale.cc serves
through a loader that replaces the wxWidgets file-based one
(src/xenia/ui/wx_locale.cc:43-111, 139-140). The font is read from that
buffer with AddFontFromMemoryTTF (src/xenia/ui/imgui_drawer.cc:367-377), and
xe::EmbeddedBundle decodes the SDL controller mappings
(src/xenia/hid/sdl/sdl_input_driver.cc:148-166), the canary game patches
(src/xenia/patcher/patch_db.cc:304-318) and the canary.json and stable.json
compatibility lists (src/xenia/app/game_compat_db.cc:65-78).
Three cvars accept a file and name none by default, so nothing is expected at
a fixed path: custom_font_path falls back to the embedded font
(src/xenia/ui/imgui_drawer.cc:39-42, 353-377), mappings_file to the embedded
controller database (src/xenia/hid/sdl/sdl_input_driver.cc:35-38, 148-166),
achievement_sound_path leaves the achievement sound silent
(src/xenia/ui/audio_helper.cc:21-24, 44-53). The first two carry an
UPDATE_from_path rule that clears the earlier default out of an existing
config (src/xenia/ui/imgui_drawer.cc:43-44,
src/xenia/hid/sdl/sdl_input_driver.cc:39).
Everything under the storage root is written by the emulator or dropped in by
the user: xenia-edge.config.toml and per-title config/
.config.toml
(src/xenia/config.cc:44-52), patches/*.patch.toml read on top of the embedded
set (src/xenia/patcher/patch_db.cc:29-59), plugins/<title id>/plugins.toml
behind allow_plugins, which defaults false
(src/xenia/patcher/plugin_loader.cc:16-21, 32-34, 58-62), content, cache_host
and the per-module executable_addr_flags.bin analysis cache
(src/xenia/app/xenia_main.cc:588-613, src/xenia/cpu/xex_module.cc:1336-1343).
portable.txt next to the executable keeps the storage root there instead of
the user folder (src/xenia/app/xenia_main.cc:556-570). On iOS the embedded
patches are written out to Documents/patches on first run
(src/xenia/app/xenia_main_ios.mm:226-253) and touch layouts live as
Documents/touch-layouts/<id>.toml, written by the layout editor
(src/xenia/ui/ios/touch/touch_layout_store_ios.mm:133-140). The only bundle
file the code opens by name is embedded.mobileprovision, absent from the
published .ipa and present only once the user has signed it, read for a
single log line reporting its size and two entitlements
(src/xenia/app/xenia_main_ios.mm:170-193).</p>
</details>
<p>No BIOS or firmware files required.</p>
<div class="admonition info">
<p class="admonition-title">Why no files</p>
<p>XeniOS emulates the Xbox 360 by high-level emulation and reads no BIOS, firmware, NAND image, flash dump or keyvault at any point: the kernel, XAM and XBDM are compiled-in modules, the XEX AES keys are constant arrays and XConfig is synthesised. Its own data (UI font, icons, locale catalogues, SDL controller mappings, game patches, compatibility lists) is compressed into the executable through xe_embed_binary_assets and xe_embed_compressed_bundle, so none of it exists as a file beside the binary; the shipped bundle carries only the executable, its property list, an icon, a compiled asset catalog and the two shader translation dylibs. The three cvars that accept a path default to empty and fall back to those embedded copies. libmetalirconverter.dylib and libdxilconv.dylib are linked at build time and resolved by the loader through @rpath, no code path names them, and they are obtained by the same download that provides the executable.</p>
</div>
<p><em>Generated on 2026-08-23T16:12:06Z</em></p>
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