A native TN3270 emulator for Mac
WND Terminal runs natively on Apple Silicon and Intel Macs with macOS 11 or later. Mac users get the same sessions and keys as Windows users, and they reach the mainframe without a Windows emulator in Citrix.
WND Terminal is a native TN3270E (3270) and TN5250 terminal emulator for Mac, one app for Apple Silicon and Intel Macs with macOS 11 or later. IT deploys it with a configuration profile through Jamf, Intune, Kandji or Mosyle, under the same license and policy as the Windows version.
WND Terminal on a Mac
The facts IT asks for first. Everything in this table is in the Desktop plan.
| Item | WND Terminal for Mac |
|---|---|
| Macs | Apple Silicon and Intel, one universal app |
| macOS | macOS 11 or later |
| Hosts | IBM Z mainframes over TN3270E (RFC 2355) and IBM i over TN5250, with 3287 and IBM i printer sessions |
| Screens | Models 2 to 5, from 24×80 to 27×132 |
| Keyboard | PF1–PF24, PA keys, Clear and Reset mapped to a Mac keyboard. MacBook key combinations for Field Exit, Roll Up and Down and Attention. App shortcuts use ⌘ |
| Encryption | TLS 1.2 or later through Apple’s Security framework, which is FIPS 140 validated. Client certificates and smart cards from the macOS Keychain |
| Deployment | A configuration profile through Jamf, Intune, Kandji or Mosyle |
| Policy | The same settings Windows gets through Group Policy, enforced by the engine |
| License | The same license as Windows, checked on the Mac with no phone-home |
| Imports | Session and keyboard files from PCOMM, Reflection, BlueZone, IBM i Access Client Solutions and tn5250 |
| AI | Explain this screen with ⌘E, using a model on the Mac (Ollama) or a server inside your network |
| Price | In the Desktop plan at $99 per user per year, the same as Windows. Minimum 100 users |
What Mac users notice
- One app for both kinds of Mac.The same universal app runs on Apple Silicon and Intel Macs. It’s built for macOS, with no Java runtime or Windows wrapper behind it.
- Mainframe keys on a MacBook.A MacBook has no keypad, Insert, Pause or Page keys. PF1 to PF24, the PA keys, Clear and Reset are mapped out of the box. Field Exit, Roll Up and Down and Attention get their own key combinations, and every host key is in the command palette (⌘K).
- Old keyboard maps come along.Keymaps imported from the previous emulator carry over, so people who moved from Windows keep the keys they know.
- Mac habits work.App shortcuts use ⌘. There are tabs and side-by-side sessions, and dark mode follows macOS. Copy as table pastes a screen region into Numbers or Excel with the columns and leading zeros intact.
- Sessions survive a closed lid.Keep-alive holds long sessions open. If a connection drops, WND Terminal reconnects by itself and tries the backup hosts when the main address doesn’t answer. Open the MacBook after a meeting and the session has reconnected by itself.
- Nothing is Windows-only.Fill from Excel, Capture all pages, Modern view, Guided training, Send to help desk and Ask WND all work on the Mac. Explain this screen is ⌘E.
Deploy it like any other managed Mac app
Use the Mac management tool you already run. WND Terminal reads its settings from a standard configuration profile.
Add the app
Upload WND Terminal to Jamf, Intune, Kandji or Mosyle and scope it to the people who use the mainframe.
Write the profile
Set connections, backup hosts, keyboard maps and security options in a configuration profile. They are the same settings Windows PCs get from Group Policy.
Lock the settings
The engine enforces locked settings however a session starts. People see a “Managed” badge on anything IT has fixed.
Pilot, then widen
Give one team the app for two weeks next to the current emulator. Then move everyone else.
Settings IT usually locks first
- Require encryption (
RequireEncryption) - Approved connections only (
AllowOtherHosts= false) - No self-trusted certificates (
AllowUserTrust= false), or pinned fingerprints - Card-number masking people can’t turn off (
MaskCardNumbers) - AI on or off for everyone (
AllowAI)
Start from the files you have
You don’t have to write the profile by hand. The Migration readiness report reads your current PCOMM, Reflection, BlueZone and ACS files and writes the connections as a policy. You can deploy it with a Mac configuration profile, Group Policy or Intune.
The Home Depot built its Jamf policy and configuration profile in a day.
The Home Depot moved 2,800 Mac users off Citrix
Merchants and planners at The Home Depot work on MacBooks. Their old emulator had no Mac version, so IT published the Windows emulator through Citrix. Sessions dropped when a laptop went to sleep. Function keys worked only when Citrix passed the Fn key through.
IT deployed WND Terminal’s Mac app through Jamf. A two-week pilot with 150 merchants came first, and the rest of the Mac users moved over three weeks. The Citrix servers that hosted the emulator were then retired.
Read The Home Depot story →- 2,800 Mac usersmoved off Citrix to the native Mac app
- 38 Citrix serversretired
- 90 seconds to 5from login to the first mainframe screen
Free 3270 emulators for Mac, and where they fit
There are capable free tools for the Mac. This is what they are, and why IT teams rolling out to a whole department usually choose a managed product.
x3270 and c3270
x3270 is a long-running open-source family of 3270 emulators under a BSD license. On a Mac, brew install x3270 installs c3270, which runs inside the Terminal app. It also installs s3270 for scripts and pr3287 for printing. The x3270 program itself is the X Window System version. c3270 suits developers and systems programmers who already work in a terminal.
DX3270
In May 2026, Swen Kalski announced a free, MIT-licensed native macOS emulator on the IBM Community site. It was first posted as X3270 and later renamed DX3270. It is built with Cocoa and supports TN3270E and TN5250 with TLS 1.2 or later. It runs on Apple Silicon and Intel Macs with macOS 12 or later.
Why large IT teams usually don’t roll them out
No central policy
DX3270 keeps preferences and connection history for each user on that Mac. c3270 reads its settings from files and command-line options. We couldn’t find a documented way, in either project, to push connections through an MDM and stop people changing them.
No support contract
Both are maintained by their authors and contributors. Neither comes with a support contract, so no vendor is committed to a response time when a session breaks during month-end close. There’s also no security pack to hand to your vendor risk review.
Traces, not audit logs
c3270 can trace the data stream, and DX3270 has a traffic monitor. Both are debugging tools, and a raw trace can include screen data. Security teams usually want connections, copies, file transfers and blocked attempts in Splunk or Sentinel, with card numbers masked.
The Windows half
Mac users are usually a minority. A separate free tool shares no keyboard maps, policy or license count with the emulator on the Windows PCs, so IT ends up running two products.
For one developer who needs a TSO session on a personal MacBook, c3270 or DX3270 is a sensible place to start. A department of merchants, underwriters or caseworkers usually needs the controls above.
Checked in October 2026 against the Homebrew x3270 formula, x3270 on GitHub, the IBM Community announcement and DX3270 on GitHub. Free projects change often, so check each one for its current features. IBM is a trademark of IBM. WND Software is not affiliated with these projects.
Same license and policy as Windows
One price on every platform
Mac is in the Desktop plan at $99 per user per year, the same as Windows, Citrix and Azure Virtual Desktop. Enterprise, at $159, adds the browser version, session recording and response-time monitoring. The minimum is 100 users. See pricing.
One policy
A Mac configuration profile carries the same settings as Group Policy on Windows. IT writes the rules once, and Macs and PCs follow them.
One license, checked locally
The license is checked on the Mac, with no phone-home. The license usage dashboard counts Mac users with everyone else, by person and department, over 30, 60 and 90 days.
One set of imports
Session and keyboard files from PCOMM, Reflection, BlueZone, ACS and tn5250 import the same way on a Mac as on Windows.
Related
3270 terminal emulators, explained
What TN3270E adds, and a buyer’s checklist for any emulator.
Read the guide →Citrix and Azure Virtual Desktop
When to keep VDI for the emulator, and when a native install costs less.
Learn more →WND Terminal in a browser
For people without a managed Mac or PC, through a gateway you host.
See the browser version →IBM i (5250) on a Mac
The full 5250 key table for a MacBook keyboard, plus printers and automatic sign-on.
See IBM i →Security
Policy, masking, the audit log, session recording and AI controls.
See security →Switching guide
What WND Terminal imports from each emulator, and how a move is planned.
Read the guide →Questions
Does WND Terminal run natively on Apple Silicon Macs?
Yes. It is one universal app that runs natively on Apple Silicon and Intel Macs with macOS 11 or later. There’s no Java runtime or Windows wrapper behind it.
How do we deploy WND Terminal to Macs?
Add the app in Jamf, Intune, Kandji or Mosyle and set connections, keyboard maps and security options in a configuration profile. These are the same settings Windows PCs get through Group Policy, and the app enforces the locked ones.
How do PF keys work on a MacBook keyboard?
PF1 to PF24, the PA keys, Clear and Reset are mapped out of the box. Keys a MacBook doesn't have, such as Field Exit, Roll Up and Down and Attention, get their own key combinations, and every host key is in the command palette (Command+K). Keyboard maps imported from your old emulator carry over too.
Does the Mac version cost more than Windows?
No. Mac is in the Desktop plan at $99 per user per year, the same price as Windows, Citrix and Azure Virtual Desktop. The license and the policy are the same on both.
Can we use free x3270 or DX3270 instead?
For one developer on their own Mac, yes. They are capable free tools. Large IT teams usually need settings pushed and locked through an MDM. They also want a vendor to call and security events in their SIEM. We couldn't find those documented for either project.
Does the Mac app support IBM i (5250)?
Yes. It runs IBM i sessions with MacBook key combinations for Field Exit, Field+ and Field-, Roll Up and Down and Attention, plus IBM i printers and automatic sign-on.
Try it on a few Macs first.
Push WND Terminal to a pilot group through your MDM and import their sessions and keymaps. They use it next to the emulator they run today. The proof of value is free and takes two to four weeks.