#HOW TO SETUP PARALLELS FOR WINDOWS 10 FOR FREE#
#HOW TO SETUP PARALLELS FOR WINDOWS 10 INSTALL#
#HOW TO SETUP PARALLELS FOR WINDOWS 10 SOFTWARE#
#HOW TO SETUP PARALLELS FOR WINDOWS 10 TRIAL#
#HOW TO SETUP PARALLELS FOR WINDOWS 10 ISO#

If you selected the Express installation, you won’t need to do anything: just watch as Windows installs. You can also configure the settings before installation-don’t worry, you can tweak any of those later if you’d rather not dive in right now. You can change these settings later, but I recommend going with “Productivity” in almost all cases.įinally, you’ll be asked for a few details: what the machine should be named, where it should be located, and whether you want a shortcut to the machine on your desktop. Also make sure your Mac even has enough resources to dedicate-if you spread your computer’s resources too thin, your virtual machine will be very slow. If you select Games only, the virtual machine will be set to use a lot more resources, so only click that if you intend to do serious gaming in the virtual machine (which is probably not a great idea).

#HOW TO SETUP PARALLELS FOR WINDOWS 10 SOFTWARE#

Next you’ll be asked what you plan on using this virtual machine for: work-related software or gaming. You’ll be asked whether you want an Express installation, which automates the installation process so that you don’t need to enter the product key or click “Next” during the installation process.Ĭhoose this option if you want, otherwise plan on babysitting the installation a little bit.

#HOW TO SETUP PARALLELS FOR WINDOWS 10 ISO#

The ISO or DVD should be found automatically otherwise, click the “Locate Manually” button. The new virtual machine wizard, which launches the first time you open Parallels, makes the process simple.Īssuming you already have a Windows CD or ISO, click the “Install Windows or another OS from a DVD or image file” button. Legally speaking, however, you still need a product key to use Windows, even in a virtual machine.

#HOW TO SETUP PARALLELS FOR WINDOWS 10 INSTALL#

We’ll point out that you don’t technically need a product key to install and use Windows 10-Microsoft basically gave up enforcing their license requirements with Windows 10, and you can download Windows 10 right from Microsoft at no cost (you’ll probably want it in the form of an ISO file). RELATED: You Don't Need a Product Key to Install and Use Windows 10 If you have a Windows installation CD or USB key handy with a valid license you can use that, otherwise you will need to purchase Windows 10 from Microsoft to create a Windows 10 virtual machine. One more note: purchasing Parallels does not give you a Windows license, or a Windows product key. Parallels Desktop Lite can only run Windows virtual machines if you pay for a subscription, however. There’s also Parallels Desktop Lite, which is free on the Mac App Store and lets you create both Linux and macOS virtual machines.

#HOW TO SETUP PARALLELS FOR WINDOWS 10 TRIAL#

If you just want to try out Parallels and see if it works for you, you can: there’s a 14 day trial of the software, which you can access without providing a credit card number.

#HOW TO SETUP PARALLELS FOR WINDOWS 10 FOR FREE#

RELATED: How to Make Linux and macOS Virtual Machines for Free with Parallels Lite

A $70 annual subscription gives you access to all updates “for free,” according to the Parallels website.

Upgrading from one version of Parallels to another generally costs $50, and will probably be necessary every couple of years if you keep installing the latest versions of macOS.

This lets you run Parallels on a single Mac.

Purchasing the latest home version of Parallels Desktop costs $80 as of this writing.

How Much Does Parallels Cost?īrowsing the Parallels website, it can be a little tricky to find out what the product actually costs. Parallels costs more (since VirtualBox is free and Parallels is not), but there are hundreds of little design touches that help make running Windows within macOS as painless as possible, and that make setting everything up quick and easy. There are other virtual machine options available to Mac users, including the open source VirtualBox, but Parallels is different in that it’s designed exclusively with Mac users in mind. Virtual machines are complicated, but Parallels makes it reasonably simple to set one up and use it. You can even combine the two desktops, if you want, and run Windows software right on your Mac desktop from your Mac’s dock.

This allows you to quickly switch between the Mac and Windows desktops. Parallels runs Windows within macOS, using what’s called a Virtual Machine. Sure, you could set up your Mac to run Windows with Boot Camp, but that means restarting your computer every time you need to use Windows. RELATED: How to Install Windows on a Mac With Boot Camp Why Use Parallels Instead of Boot Camp or VirtualBox?

How to setup parallels for windows 10