'C:\> FORMAT C:' – relax, it's just a screen saver
FakeDOS 2.0 · Screen saver for macOS
The most realistic DOS since DOS.
Leave your Mac alone for a few minutes and it becomes a 1990s PC: an AWARD BIOS counts through 32 MB of RAM, a VGA prompt starts blinking, and then a ghost begins to type. It boots. It crashes. It dials. It lies convincingly.
v2.0 · macOS 13+ · Universal Binary · free
C:\> TYPE README.TXT
What is this?
Welcome, traveller. You have just discovered FakeDOS, a macOS screen saver that simulates a pixel-perfect DOS machine. And more.
Leave your Mac alone for a few minutes and something beautiful is going to happen: the screen fills with the warm 80×25 glow of a VGA text mode, an AWARD BIOS POST clicks through memory, and a friendly blinking C:\> prompt appears.
Perfect for
- A conference room that does not need Slack popping up
- Pretending to be a 12-year-old running Landmark Test
- Tricking a co-worker into thinking you have lost it
- Actually getting people to leave you alone
Features
Five boot modes
The Ghost Writer
Leave the prompt idle and a ghost starts typing commands by itself. It alternates between operating systems in an endless loop of simulated productivity.
- Many DOS commands, boot linux, some Linux commands, boot dos, repeat
- Realistic typing speed with human-like typos
- Press any key to take over and the ghost vanishes
Speeds up everything, not just the ghost. 1 is slow, 9 skips all delays.
Landmark speed test
Type FDOS or LANDMARK at the prompt to see how fast your imaginary Pentium thinks it is.
IBM PC/XT4.77 MHz
IBM AT8 MHz
486DX33 MHz
Your Pentium166 MHz
Pure nostalgia, zero benchmarking.
Pentagon mode
Type PENTAGON at the prompt. We cannot tell you what happens.
ACCESS DENIED. CLASSIFIED.
This is not a real DOS.
- OKYour files are safe.
- OKYour disk is safe.
- OKYour Mac is safe.
- OKYour network is safe.
Absolutely nothing useful happens here.
FakeDOS is a pure simulation. Every single command you type produces carefully crafted fake output. No files are read, written, moved or deleted. No network connections are made. No processes are started. No disks are formatted.
When you type FORMAT C:, FakeDOS shows a terrifyingly realistic format sequence, complete with percentage counter and head/cylinder display, but your actual drive is perfectly untouched. When you type DEL *.*, nothing gets deleted. Ever.
It simulates. It pretends. It lies convincingly.
But it never, ever touches your real system.
Not a terminal. Not an emulator. Not connected to the Pentagon. Probably.
C:\> HELP
Commands
- DIR
- List files in current directory
- CD
- Change directory
- TYPE
- Display file contents
- COPY
- Copy files
- MOVE
- Move files
- DEL
- Delete files (fake!)
- REN
- Rename files
- MKDIR
- Create directory
- TREE
- Show directory tree
- CLS
- Clear screen
- CHKDSK
- Check disk
- FORMAT
- Fake format (scary!)
- MEM
- Show memory map
- VER
- MS-DOS version
- DATE / TIME
- Current date and time
- BOOT
- Switch to DOS / Linux / C64
- LM
- Landmark speed test
- PENTAGON
- CLASSIFIED
- ???
- CLASSIFIED
- EXIT
- Quit FakeDOS
Arrow keys scroll through the command history.
Download FakeDOS
FakeDOS.dmg v2.0 · macOS 13+ · Universal Binary · 4.2 MB
Downloads since launch 0000000
Psst... the boss thinks C:\ is empty. Type DIR anyway. Some files in the root directory were never meant for office hours.
Installation
- Drag FakeDOS.app into /Applications.
- Double-click to launch. It installs itself as a menu-bar icon.
- Click the menu-bar icon to configure or start manually.
- After the configured idle time (default: 5 min), FakeDOS takes over fullscreen.
- Type EXIT to return to your real desktop.
Cmd + , opens six pages of pure control: idle time, warp speed, the ghost writer, sound and more. The PC speaker can be silenced. Your co-workers cannot.
Version 2.0 for macOS
FakeDOS started in 1991 as a Turbo Pascal prank on a FidoNet BBS and lived its first life as a screen saver for Microsoft Windows.
Three decades later, it was ported to Swift/macOS so it can terrorize modern office workers who have never heard of AUTOEXEC.BAT.
Klaus Rössler & Roger Kirchhoff
Copyright (c) 1991 - 2026
C:\> DIAL DISCORD
Found a bug, have an idea for a new fake command, or just want to say hello? Join the FakeDOS community on our Discord server.
» May the FAKE be with you. «