Can You Still Run Safari On Windows? Here’s What You Need To Know

Heard about Safari? Yes? This is probably because it is the most prominent browser in the Apple ecosystem. Can you believe that once Apple provided an official version of this Safari for Windows? Surprising right? Safari for Windows was officially available until version 5.1.7. After that, it was discontinued. However, if you are a software tester, you might still need access to this browser on your Windows machine.

This brings us to the question- Can you still run Safari on windows? The answer is far from straightforward, as although it is not officially possible, there are multiple workarounds that you can implement in this process. Still struggling with the answer? Don’t worry! We are here for you.

Our article will help you understand everything that you need to know about running Safari on Windows. We will not only provide answers about the incompatibility but will also help you with certain workarounds that can help you test your web apps on the Safari browser while still running on the Windows ecosystem.

Table of Contents

Why Was Safari Pulled From Windows

Now that we know that Safari is no longer available on Windows, let us divert our attention to some of the major factors that justify the decision of Apple to discontinue its support on this operating system:

Many testers wrongly believe that Safari must have been popular on Windows. But in reality, Safari did not gain much popularity in this ecosystem. Why? It faced tough competition from other popular browsers like Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox. These options offered better flexibility and customization options.

Apple has a negative reputation for tightly controlling every aspect of its ecosystem and providing smooth integration options for only macOS, iPad OS, and iOS. So, maintaining Safari on other operating systems will completely divert the attention of Apple from its principal goal.

We all know that maintaining a browser comes with many security updates and patches. In the early 2000s, the browser market was heavily competitive, with all large players significantly investing in their browsers. Therefore, the choice of investing so much time and resources to maintain Safari on Windows for such a small user base wouldn’t be wise.

Over time, Apple’s focus shifted more into hardware and service space. This became even more critical after Apple started releasing its own silicon for Mac. So, using its original idea of portraying Safari as a gateway to Apple services wasn’t viable anymore. Therefore, it lost its priority from a strategic point of view.

Can You Still Install Safari on Windows?

Now, we come to the primary question of our article, i.e., can you still run Safari for Windows. Although you can technically run Safari on Windows, there are certain drawbacks of this process that you must be aware of. To shed more light over this segment, we have mentioned some of the major ones below:

As we mentioned in the introduction, the last official version of Safari for Windows was Safari 5.1.7 which came to the market in 2012. It is true that you can still download this version through various third-party software repositories. But you should not! Why? The first reason is that this version was never tested for modern Windows versions like Windows 11, 10, or even 7.

Since the version of Safari is no longer supported for Windows, it hasn’t received any security patch for over a decade. Therefore, if you are running this version and using your sensitive information, you are leaving yourself vulnerable to severe security risks.

Modern web standards have come a long way since 2012. In modern web applications, you will find various new and complex structures to improve the end-user experience. So, if you are using the old version of Safari for the testing process, it can never portray the real-world scenario in terms of your application’s functioning.

Finally, as Apple doesn’t officially host Safari for Windows, you will have to rely on third-party websites for the download process. This can be an extremely risky process as your downloads can come with additional malware or pampered files. So, you will have to find a very trusted source for the download process. Although, even then there is no absolute guarantee for data security.

Potential Ways to “Access” Safari on Windows

Let us now divert our attention towards some of the potential ways in which you can access Safari on Windows for executing your testing processes.

● Installing Safari 5.1.7 Directly

Although we do not support this step, if you decide to do so, you can install Safari 5.1.7 installer from any software archive. After the download process, you can install it on your Windows system.

During the installation process, you must be aware that you will face certain compatibility issues on modern Windows versions. Security will also be one of the major concerns in this process while there will be rendering issues as well.

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Installing Safari 5.1.7 on Windows (If You Must)

If you choose to install the last official version of Safari on your Windows system, you simply have to follow a series of steps in the correct order. To shed more light over this segment, we have mentioned all the required steps in the correct order:

The installation process begins by choosing your trusted software repository that can provide you with the downloadable file for the Safari browser. We would caution the testers to verify the downloader before. It must say that it is for “Safari 5.1.7.”

After you have installed the file, we highly recommend verifying the integrity of the download file by using a robust antivirus. During the verification process, you should also check the digital signature and read any user reviews on a hosting site. This approach will help you verify the integrity of the files and also your data security.

Installing Safari on your main Windows system? Use a virtual environment so that you can roll back to the previous changes if anything goes wrong. Already running a virtual machine? Take a snapshot so that you can roll back to the previous version.

Now, you can begin the installation process by double-clicking on the installer. After this, you will simply have to follow the onscreen instructions until you finish the process and you are ready to run Safari on your Windows machine. We also recommend double-checking the installed Safari file again with your antivirus software.

You must be very cautious with this version and should not begin the testing process right away. Instead you must access the basic websites and see how it is rendering all the elements and also handling the modern components of websites.

The final step in this process is to remember that this version of Safari is not at all suited for everyday testing operations. So, you must use it for the purpose for which it was installed. This will mainly involve verifying the functioning of Safari-specific components that you have implemented on your web application.

● Using Cross-Browser Testing Tools

Are you a software tester? For you, the most effective way of accessing Safari on Windows is using cross-browser testing tools like LambdaTest. To further understand the influence of these tools in this process, let us use LambdaTest as our reference point:

LambdaTest is an AI-powered test orchestration and execution platform that lets you perform manual and automation testing at scale with over 3000+ real devices, browsers, and OS combinations. While using LambdaTest, you can also implement advanced features like automated QA testing, comprehensive test reporting, and live test activity tracking.

The benefits of using these platforms for executing Safari testing include access to the latest Safari versions, better security, and accurate rendering through real devices on the cloud platforms.

● Virtual Machines with macOS

You can also consider using MacOS virtual machines on your Windows system to access the latest version of Safari on your system. However, the major concern in this process will be that Safari is only legally supported if you are running it on Apple hardware. Therefore, it will be complex to set up this entire process on a non-Apple system.

● Remote Desktop to a Mac

The final way is if you own a Mac or have remote access to a Mac device, you can consider using a remote desktop solution to access Safari. This implementation will allow you to run the test or do your Safari-based activity in that remote environment. This can be the simplest option if you already have an existing Apple system.

Testing Safari-Specific Features Without Safari on Windows

If the only goal of accessing Safari for Windows is to test Safari-specific features of your web app, you can consider the following alternatives to achieve this process without actually going through the Safari installation process:

The native developer tools in Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge will allow you to temporarily switch the user agent string to impersonate a Safari environment. Although this process will not replicate Safari’s rendering engine, it can help you see if certain website logic triggers for Safari-only user agents.

If you have access to an iPhone or an iPad, you can at least test the mobile version of Safari to see the responsive design layout functioning on these environments. This implementation will also help you get a generic idea about how these applications will perform when they’re accessed on their desktop counterpart. Although this isn’t a perfect substitute for desktop Safari, it still uses the same WebKit engine of Apple.

Ultimately, we can say that if you still require the authentic Apple experience, your only solution will be using Apple hardware or a cloud-based service that provides access to this hardware.

The Bottom Line

Based on all the factors that we have put forward in this article, we can easily say that it is not worth natively downloading and installing Safari For Windows. So, if you’re interested in accessing this browser through your Windows system for testing purposes, we suggest using alternatives that we have mentioned in this article.

Using cross-browser testing platforms like LambdaTest is the most effective alternative from a tester’s point of view. This is because this method is not only safer and more accurate, it is also convenient compared to installing a primitive software on your testing environment.

Finally, as a last resort, if you still decide to natively run Safari on your Windows environment, you must conduct the execution process in a very tightly controlled environment like a virtual machine or a natively hosted platform, which will eliminate any form of data security concerns.