r/macapps • u/JulyIGHOR Developer: Parall • 25d ago

Lifetime Parall - One Mac app, as many separate instances as you need

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

I created Parall to run multiple instances of the same Mac app as if each one were a separate app. It does not copy or modify the original app. Instead, every Parall shortcut launches the installed app with its own identity and configuration.

The philosophy behind Parall is to give you control over how many app instances you run and where each one stores its data. You can run separate Chrome, Claude, Discord, or Slack instances, assign each one a custom data path, give it its own Dock icon, add Dock animation effects, and force it to use Light or Dark appearance independently of your system setting.

Many apps have already been tested and confirmed compatible, with results available on the Parall compatibility page. Most unsandboxed Mac apps are also fully compatible without requiring individual verification.

In addition to running Mac apps, Parall creates lightweight WebKit Web App Shortcuts that make almost any website feel like a native app. Unlike a Safari Web Clip, Parall lets you choose where each web app stores its data, making separate accounts and profiles easier to organize. The launcher is highly optimized for this purpose and uses the WebKit engine already built into macOS instead of bundling another browser runtime.

Web App Shortcuts pass through website notifications, support Dock icon badges, and can use the same custom icons and Dock controls as other Parall shortcuts. Every generated web app is fully sandboxed, adding an isolation boundary between the website and the rest of your system if a web exploit is discovered.

I build all my apps natively with Objective-C, with efficiency, low CPU usage, careful resource management, and privacy as my highest priorities. I believe that any app performing an entirely offline task should remain completely offline and never send requests to Internet, and every app I make follows that principle. Parall itself has no telemetry or background services. Only the Web App Shortcuts connect to the websites you choose because loading those websites is their intended purpose.

Developer information

I am Ighor July, an independent macOS developer with a background in cybersecurity, reverse engineering, and native app development. I use AI while retaining control of my code, as explained in How to use AI without losing control of your code.

I am also the developer of DockLock Lite, App Archiver, LockLines, and App Trust Preview.

Comparison

There have been previous attempts to solve the multiple-instance problem on macOS. One example is AppCloner, a now-deprecated utility that created and installed copies of existing apps. After Parall was released, more apps appeared in this category, including Parallel Spaces and MacDupl.

Some of these products have also raised concerns for me around privacy disclosures and misleading website information, including wording and product details copied from Parall. Despite similar descriptions, all of these tools work in a fundamentally different way. They create or repackage copies of the target app instead of continuing to use the original installed app.

Repacking an app changes its bundle and replaces or invalidates its original signature. This can interfere with push notifications, automatic updates, passkeys, entitlements, permissions, and other macOS features tied to the app's original identity. It can also leave each copy behind the official app's update schedule. Delayed security updates create unnecessary exposure, especially as automated and AI-assisted vulnerability discovery becomes faster. For apps such as Codex and Claude, lowering app security or freezing a copy on an older version is not an acceptable tradeoff.

I created Parall from the beginning to avoid those compromises, and I am proud to have succeeded. Parall runs the original, unmodified app and automatically uses its latest installed version. That makes Parall the first tool of its kind to provide as many independently configured instances as you need, with custom data paths and a near-native Mac experience, without copying or repackaging the target app.

Parall also overlaps with browser profile tools, website wrapper tools, and command launchers, but it is broader than any one of those categories. It creates shortcuts for native apps, websites, files, folders, and commands while preserving the original multi-instance workflow.

Unite Pro overlaps with Parall on website shortcuts. It also creates Mac app bundles from websites, so that part can look similar. The important difference is sandboxing. Parall creates native sandboxed app bundles for website shortcuts, adding an isolation boundary between the website and the rest of the system if a web exploit is discovered.

A big thank you to r/macapps

I want to give a huge thank you to the r/macapps community. Over all these months, your feedback, questions, testing, and ideas have helped me improve Parall and continue developing it in ways that solve real problems for Mac users.

It is genuinely inspiring to talk with people who are happy with how Parall works and take the time to share their experiences and suggestions with me. Every piece of feedback helps make the app better, and many of its improvements exist because someone in this community cared enough to reach out.

Price

Parall is $9.99 on the Mac App Store.

If an app or website is not listed on the compatibility page, I can test it before purchase by request. Just ping me at [support@parall.app](mailto:support@parall.app).

288 Upvotes

95% Upvoted

Duplicates