Step-by-Step Guide: Developing OBS Background Removal on macOS

Welcome! This guide will walk you through setting up your development environment for OBS Background Removal on macOS.


1. Install Xcode 16.4

You must use Xcode 16.4 (the App Store version will not work).
Download it from Apple Developer Downloads (Apple ID required, Developer Program not needed):

export DEVELOPER_DIR=/Applications/Xcode_16.4.0.app

2. Install System Dependencies

Install Homebrew if you haven’t already.
Then, install CMake:

brew install cmake

3. Clone the Source Code

Get the latest code from GitHub:

git clone https://github.com/royshil/obs-backgroundremoval.git
cd obs-backgroundremoval

4. Set Up vcpkg

Install vcpkg to manage dependencies:

git clone https://github.com/microsoft/vcpkg.git ~/vcpkg
~/vcpkg/bootstrap-vcpkg.sh
export VCPKG_ROOT=~/vcpkg

5. Install Build Dependencies

This step may take 10–20 minutes:

./.github/scripts/install-vcpkg-macos.bash

6. Download ONNX Runtime

Use CMake to download ONNX Runtime:

cmake -P cmake/DownloadOnnxruntime.cmake

7. Configure and Build the Project

Configure using the CI preset:

cmake --preset macos-ci

Build using the CI preset:

cmake --build --preset macos-ci

8. Test the Plugin with System OBS

Install the plugin locally:

cp -r build_macos/RelWithDebInfo/obs-backgroundremoval.plugin ~/Library/Application\ Support/obs-studio/plugins

9. Lint Your Code

Install the required tools and run linters:

brew install obsproject/tools/clang-format@19 obsproject/tools/gersemi
./build-aux/run-clang-format
./build-aux/run-gersemi

You’re all set! Happy coding!

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