Installation

Install Lume with a single command:

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/trycua/cua/main/libs/lume/scripts/install.sh)"

This installs Lume with a background service (starts on login) and auto-updater (checks every 24 hours).

First-time install? If ~/.local/bin isn't in your PATH (common on fresh macOS), add it:

echo 'export PATH="$PATH:$HOME/.local/bin"' >> ~/.zshrc
source ~/.zshrc

Or restart your terminal after the first command.

Verify it worked

lume --version
# Lume 0.2.27

lume --help
# OVERVIEW: Lume - CLI and framework for macOS VMs...

If you see version output, you're ready to create your first VM.

Requirements

Apple Silicon Mac (M1/M2/M3/M4)
macOS 13.0 or later
8GB RAM minimum (16GB recommended)
30GB free disk space

Installation options

The default install includes a background service and auto-updater. You can disable either:

Option	Command
No background service	`install.sh -- --no-background-service`
No auto-updates	`install.sh -- --no-auto-updater`
Neither	`install.sh -- --no-background-service --no-auto-updater`

Full command with options:

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/trycua/cua/main/libs/lume/scripts/install.sh)" -- --no-background-service

Without the background service, you'll need to run lume serve manually when using tools that rely on the Lume API (like the Computer Use Agent).

Manual installation

Download lume.pkg.tar.gz from the latest release, extract it, and install the package.

Managing services

Background service

# Check if running
launchctl list | grep com.trycua.lume_daemon

# View logs
tail -f /tmp/lume_daemon.log

# Start manually (if service disabled)
lume serve

Auto-updater

# Check if running
launchctl list | grep com.trycua.lume_updater

# View logs
tail -f /tmp/lume_updater.log

# Manual update check
~/.local/bin/lume-update

To disable auto-updates after installation:

launchctl unload ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.trycua.lume_updater.plist
rm ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.trycua.lume_updater.plist

Uninstall

Remove Lume completely:

# Stop and remove background service
launchctl unload ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.trycua.lume_daemon.plist 2>/dev/null
rm -f ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.trycua.lume_daemon.plist

# Stop and remove auto-updater
launchctl unload ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.trycua.lume_updater.plist 2>/dev/null
rm -f ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.trycua.lume_updater.plist
rm -f ~/.local/bin/lume-update

# Optional: Remove cached images (run before removing binary)
lume prune

# Remove Lume binary
rm -f $(which lume)

# Optional: Remove VMs and config
rm -rf ~/.lume
rm -rf ~/.config/lume

Troubleshooting

lume: command not found — The install location (~/.local/bin) isn't in your PATH. Add it and reload:

echo 'export PATH="$PATH:$HOME/.local/bin"' >> ~/.zshrc
source ~/.zshrc

Or restart your terminal after the first command.

Background service not starting — Check the daemon logs:

tail -50 /tmp/lume_daemon.log

Permission errors — The installer needs to create files in ~/.local/bin and ~/Library/LaunchAgents. Ensure you have write access to these directories.

Intel Mac or Linux — Lume requires Apple Silicon. It won't work on Intel Macs or other platforms.

Ready to create a VM? Head to the Quickstart.

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