The options you should choose on this page are: Select Windows 10. Select language. Select 64-bit download. This will download a 4.4 GB file, Win10_1607_English_x64.iso, which you can use in the Parallels Desktop trial to create a Windows 10 virtual machine on your Mac. I am having problems installing Windows 10 Technical Preview on my Mac. I have upgraded from Windows 7 Ultimate x86 SP1 to Windows 10 TP x32 successfully, but now I need to re-install Windows 10 to get to x64.
One of the selling points of a Mac these days is the ability to run Windows software on it, via virtualization or Apple’s own Boot Camp. Running Windows lets you play PC games that haven’t been ported to the Mac, or stay completely compatible with your documents from a PC-centric workplace.
Virtualization software like Parallels or VMWare Fusion (two of the best apps to run Windows software on your Mac without partitioning your hard drive for Boot Camp) isn’t free, though these applications do allow you to try before you buy. Windows 8.1, the current version of Microsoft’s operating system, will run you about $120 for a plain-jane version.
You can run the next-gen OS from Microsoft (Windows 10) on your Mac using virtualization for free, however. We took a quick run at doing just that, as originally sussed out by the fantastic folks over at iMore.
Grab that virtual box
We’re going to use a free, open source bit of emulation software called VirtualBox, from Oracle. It’s pretty robust and works almost as well as the more costly solutions like Parallels or VMWare Fusion, so you can get a taste of things without having to bust out the credit card.
Head on over to the VirtualBox webpage, and click on the Download link over to the left. You’ll want to choose the latest VirtualBox version (4.3.20 as of this writing) for OS X hosts x86/amd64. Once downloaded, you can launch and install the app, which will get you ready to roll with Windows 10.
Get Windows 10 for free
To get a free, legal copy of Windows 10 Technical Preview, you’ll need to sign up with your Microsoft account (or create one in the process) for the Windows Insider Program. The process takes a couple of minutes, and it’s free as well.
Once you’ve signed up, you’ll be able to download an ISO file that acts just like an inserted install disk. You’ll want to download the 64 bit version of file in the language you want Windows to run in. The instructions at the Technical Preview page tell you to move the file to a USB drive and then install from there, but you don’t need to–I installed it just fine from the file on my Mac’s hard drive.
Now you’ll want to launch VirtualBox. Click on the blue New star button at the top, and click through the default settings. You’ll first give the newly created virtual environment a name and choose the Windows Type and then Windows 8.1 (64 bit) from the two drop-down menus. Name it something clever, like “Windows 10” if you like.
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Install the virtual disk on the virtual hard drive
Next you’ll need to choose the size of your virtual hard drive. I left this at the default 2 GB setting, but you can increase it by moving the little slider to the right. Avoid a size that hits in the yellow or red zone, or you may have issues with running both OS X and Windows at the same time.
Allow VirtualBox to create a virtual hard drive using the default setting. Simply click on Create, then let it make a VirtualBox Disk Image, or VDI, on the next screen. I let it create a dynamically allocated hard drive, since that was the default option, as well. Give your new hard drive image a name (VirtualBox will choose the name you gave the environment in the first place – it’s ok to let this stand), and then find a size that fits well on your hard drive. I left it at the default 25 GB setting, and then clicked on Create.
You’ll now have a virtual environment to install Windows onto. Click the green Start arrow, and then click on the little folder icon to choose the ISO you downloaded from Microsoft above. You’ll have an option to Capture your mouse within the environment, and then you’ll find out that your host OS (OS X) allows for mouse pointer integration. Just click on the Continue buttons here.
Rock the Windows install
After you click Next on the Windows Setup window, you’ll need to click Install Now and then accept the license terms. If you didn’t move the ISO to a USB drive, choose the second option when asked what kind of installation you want: Custom Install. Click Next when you see the Disk 0 Unallocated Space screen, and then click through the rest of the Windows installation prompts.
As soon as all the Windows installation fooferah finishes up, you’ll be running Windows 10 on your Mac. You can hit Command-F to go full screen and trick anyone into thinking you’re running a Windows machine (except your Macbook looks way better than most PCs). You can now install Steam or other PC games, or just mess around with the new OS. Enjoy!
Via: iMore
Maybe you have to do it for work. Maybe you’re just curious. Maybe you’re a glutton for punishment who lives on the bleeding edge. Maybe you lost a bet. Whatever the reason, you want to run the Windows 8 Preview Release.
I’m not here to judge you. I’m just here to help you get Windows 8 running on your Mac.
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There are several ways to accomplish this, but I’m going to look at four options—Boot Camp, Parallels, VMware Fusion and VirtualBox.
Boot Camp
The first requires items that you probably have around the house—a recent Mac and OS X, which ships with Boot Camp, Apple’s dual boot manager.
You might want to run Windows on an older machine, as Windows 8 actually has much less stringent hardware requirements than Mac OS X Lion, but the problem is that only Macs since about 2008 have firmware that can boot from disks with the modified boot sectors Microsoft started using in Vista. I was actually able to install an earlier preview release on a 2006 Core Solo Mac mini, but not the latest release, which is unfortunate. It is possible to extract the install into a new disk image with a normal boot sector, but it’s complicated, and you’d need an existing Windows install to attempt it.
So, assuming you have a relatively recent Mac, the first thing you’ll need to install Windows 8 Preview Release via Boot Camp is, not surprisingly, a copy of Windows 8 Preview Release, which Microsoft is providing for download at the cost of only a valid email address and your immortal soul. Since we’ve already determined that you’re using a recent Mac, you’ll want the 64-bit release. Remember to make note of the activation code. Yes, I said “activation code.”
Hey, whoa, whoa. You’re the one who wanted to use Windows, remember? Don’t shoot the messenger.
Once you’ve downloaded the disk image, open Disk Utility on a Mac with an optical drive and mount the image in the sidebar. Click on the disk image and burn it to a blank disk. It’s possible to use a USB disk image, but that also requires an existing Windows install as well as Microsoft’s USB/DVD download tool.
Now get ready to lose some hard drive space! The 64-bit version of WIndows 8 requires at least 20GB of disk space; the 32-bit version 18GB. Launch Boot Camp Assistant. On the first screen, uncheck the option to download the latest Windows support software from Apple, and check the option to install Windows 7. (Yes, Windows 7—as of this writing, Apple has not yet updated Boot Camp for Windows 8.)
Then select how much disk space you want to allocate to the Windows drive. Unlike partitioning a drive using Disk Utility, this process won’t wipe your existing data; it’ll just allocate a section of your free space for Windows. (If you want to reclaim it later, you can run Boot Camp Assistant again to remove it.) Put your burned Windows 8 install disk in the drive and click Install.
Your Mac will restart, and you should see the dreadful… uh, I mean happy Windows installation dialog. You can take it from there. I don’t support Windows unless you’re family.
Parallels
While Boot Camp will let you run Windows natively, Parallels almost makes installing Windows 8 a pleasure by comparison. Well, OK, you’re still installing Windows, so maybe that’s stretching things a bit, but it takes care of a lot of the process for you.
First download and install Parallels from that company’s website. Parallels kindly offers a two-week trial period; after that the software costs $80 for a license.
Once you’ve installed the software, launch Parallels. Downloading Windows 8 is an option on the main screen. Select it and click Continue. Select a language, and Parallels will then even provide the activation code for you. It’s almost like OS X, which has no activation codes! Except with activation codes!
If you uncheck the 64-bit Windows version box at the bottom, Parallels will download the 32-bit version instead. The only reason to do so might be if you have a Mac with less than 4GB of RAM. The 32-bit version of Windows 8 only requires 1GB of RAM versus the 2GB required for the 64-bit version.
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You can then select to run Windows applications as if they are Mac applications, without having to view the Windows desktop, or to run Windows as an independent environment—“Like a PC,” is how Parallels puts it. Then you’ll be asked where you want to store the virtual drive file, which is the Windows data drive. Parallels also handles the Windows installation process for you, using your OS X user information to set up a Windows user.
VMware Fusion
The first thing you’ll need if you opt for this approach is an online account with VMware to download the software. The account setup asks for your name and address as well as a phone number. (No, the company will not call you up and ask “Is your virtual machine running?” before shouting, “You better run and catch it, then” and hanging up. I mean, I would do that, but VMware is more professional about these sorts of things.)
Once you sign up for an account, you’ll need to activate it through an email VMware sends you; then you can download a free 30-day trial. (A full version of VMware Fusion is a reasonable $50.) Open the disk image and do the old drag to install.
Launch the application, and you’ll be asked if you want to submit anonymous data and statistics. Your online VMware account will include a trial license key which you’ll need to supply; then, click OK and you’ll be taken to the application’s Virtual Machine Library. Click Create New. VMware will ask you what kind of disk you’ll be installing from. In my instance, I was using Remote Disk from a MacBook Air, so I clicked “Continue without disc” and then navigated to the disc, which was being shared from an iMac eight feet away.
VMware will recognize your operating system as Windows but suggest that it’s XP; you’ll want to change that option to the closest available, which Windows 7 as of this writing. Also, as VMware defaults to allocating 1GB of RAM to the VM, I changed that to 2GB, the Windows 8 recommended minimum. Select Customize Settings, and WMware will prompt you first to save the file. Then click on Processors and Memory and increase the amount of RAM to 2GB.
Close the Settings window and your virtual machine shows a movie-like start arrow. Click it and you’re in business. Unlike with Parallels, you’ll need to supply the Windows activation code when prompted, as with a standard Windows installation process.
VirtualBox
If you don’t want to pay to try Windows 8 and, for whatever reason, you don’t want to use Boot Camp, you can use VirtualBox, Oracle’s free virtualization software. Parallels for mac clayton state athletics.
Download and install VirtualBox from its website. Once that’s done, launch VirtualBox and click New to make a new virtual machine. Provide a name for the environment and select Microsoft Windows as the operating system and “Windows 8 (64 bit)” (or just “Windows 8” if you downloaded the 32-bit version) as the version. Then select the base amount of RAM to allocate, I’d say at least 1GB if you’re running the 32-bit version and 2GB if you’re running the 64-bit version.
Next, you need to create a virtual hard disk. Using the defaults of “Start-up Disk” and “create new hard disk,” click Continue and select the format of the disk. I chose a VirtualBox disk, but there are several other formats including Parallels. Click Continue and select whether you want the space to be dynamically allocated or static. Click Continue again and give the disk a name and a maximum size. Click Continue to review your disk settings and click Create. Finally, click Create one more time to tie it all together.
You’re almost kinda sorta there! Now you have the environment, you just need to install Windows 8. Click Start and VirtualBox will initiate the First Run Wizard which, and I hate to disappoint you, isn’t that magical. Click the folder icon next to the popup menu and select the ISO disk image of Windows 8 you want to use. Click Continue to review again and then Start.
VirtualBox will start the environment using the Windows install disk image. From there, you’ll need to run through the standard Windows setup providing the activation key.
Which to choose?
Of the four options I explored, I found that Parallels is far and away the most painless to configure, even if it does require you to shell out more of your hard-earned cash. VMware Fusion is a bit less and slightly less slick, but still a solid option. VirtualBox is slower and much less elegant than the other virtualization options, but it is free. Boot Camp will be the fastest of the options listed here since it’s not running Windows in a virtual environment, but it requires you have a Mac with an optical drive.
Whatever you choose, here’s hoping your Windows experience is short and relatively painless. That should be possible, right?
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[John Moltz recently gave up the glamour of working in corporate IT to write online at his Very Nice Web Site. He does not respond to questions about whether he used to write what amounts to Apple fan fiction.] Free download parallels desktop 9 for mac.