Archivo de la categoría: Parallels Desktop for Mac Business

Feature How To’s, Parallels Desktop for Mac, Parallels Desktop for Mac Business, Parallels Desktop for Mac Pro Edition

Automatically Reclaim Disk Space – a new feature in Parallels Desktop 16

This post is part of a series about new features in Parallels Desktop 16. 

Parallels Desktop is like having a Windows PC inside your Mac. In some ways, it’s better – after all, can you drag & drop a file from your Mac to a PC? Nope! In other ways, it’s just different, and the virtual hard drive component of a Parallels Desktop virtual machine (VM) is one of those differences. In this blog post, I will outline some of the differentiators between a hard drive and a virtual hard drive, and explain how the new feature, “Automatically Reclaim Disk Space”, assists in reducing wasted space on your Mac hard drive or SSD.

On a Mac, the “Macintosh HD” is the main storage. On a Parallels Desktop VM, the main storage is a file on your Mac where Windows, Windows apps, and your Windows documents (in some cases) are stored. Table 1 lists some of the characteristics of these two kinds of storage. 

  Mac  Windows VM 
Name  “Macintosh HD” (default)  Local Disk (C:) (in Windows)  (VM name)-0.hdd (on Mac) 
File type  Volume  .hdd file in the macOS 
Stores  – macOS  
– Mac applications  
– your documents  		 – Windows  
– Windows applications  
– your Windows documents (in some cases)  
Size Characteristics  Fixed  – Maximum size set at creation  
– Maximum size can be increased or decreased  
– Actual size increases or decreases, as needed  
   

The actual amount of space that the virtual hard drive occupies on your Mac main storage grows as you install Windows apps and Windows documents, and in many cases, shrinks as you delete apps or documents. The notable exception to this is a Windows Update. 

Windows Updates often require extra space for the download and for temporary files needed during the update, so the actual space needed by the virtual hard drive will often grow during the update process. While Windows removes the download and the temporary files at the conclusion of the update, the virtual hard drive doesn’t usually shrink after these are removed. This can lead to a situation in which there is unused space inside the virtual hard drive. Over time, with subsequent Windows Updates, this unused space can grow to many gigabytes. Figure 1 shows the result of one Windows 10 VM in Parallels Desktop 15.

Figure 1_Parallels Desktop 15 Reclaim Button

Now, the Parallels Desktop 15 user in the situation shown in Figure 1, could recover 23.52GB of empty space in the VM if they remember to open the configuration dialog and click on the “Reclaim” button. However, many people forget to do this. I like to think that I am an experienced Parallels Desktop user, but I often forgot to do this.

So, in Parallels Desktop 16, we added an option to do this automatically, as shown in Figure 2. After shutting down this VM, there will be approximately 24GB more space on the Mac main storage.

Figure 2_Parallels Desktop 16. Reclaim at Shutdown option

All that said, there is no free lunch. Reclaiming space takes some time, with the two most important variables being the overall size of the VM and the amount of space to be reclaimed. For the VM in Figures 1 and 2, this reclamation took about 17 minutes on my MacBook Pro. So, if you are the type of person who wants to shut down the VM, close the lid on your laptop, and run to your next meeting, you may not want to use this new option on a busy day filled with many meetings. On the other hand, if you are using a stationary iMac or a Mac Pro, then this option will help you avoid filling up your drive so quickly.

I hope this gives you a useful overview of this new feature in Parallels Desktop 16. Let us know in the comments how this feature is working for you. 

Feel free to test Parallels Desktop 16 for Mac for 14 days for free. 

The post Automatically Reclaim Disk Space – a new feature in Parallels Desktop 16 appeared first on Parallels Blog.

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New in Parallels Desktop 16 – “Prepare for Transfer”

This post is part of a series about new features in Parallels Desktop 16. 

Deploying a virtual machine (VM) can be cumbersome for two reasons:  

  1. It can be pretty large—sometimes 100s of gigabytes.  
  1. It is in a Macintosh-only file format.  

The new feature, “Prepare for Transfer”, addresses both of these concerns, and it is a feature in the Parallels Desktop Pro Edition and Parallels Desktop Business Edition. 

First, let’s talk about size. Even if there is room, most VMs can’t be copied to USB thumb drives because the size of the VM is too large for the way in which most thumb drives are formatted. In the case of the thumb drive in Figure 1, it was formatted in FAT32 (MS-DOS) so that it could be used with both a Mac and a PC.

Transfer VM
Figure 1_Even if there is room, most VMs can’t be copied to a USB Thumb Drive

The maximum file size for FAT32 is 4GB, and the VM I attempted to move is more than 9GB in size. 

I did I quick survey of the VM sizes on my Macs. The smallest is 9.39GB; the largest is 262GB; and the average seems to be around 30-40GB. Moving a 90GB VM from one hard drive to another takes about 130 minutes; moving to an SSD takes about 50 minutes; and I don’t even want to think about moving a 90GB VM to Dropbox or OneDrive, but I suspect it would take more than 20 hours. 

And, there is the issue of file format. Parallels Desktop VMs are stored as Mac packages. A package is basically a folder masquerading as a single file. You can force the Finder to show you the inside of a package, and Figure 2 shows the inside of one of my VMs.

Transfer VM
Figure 2_Inside the VM package

Packages are only supported on the Mac or an iOS device, so cloud storage systems aren’t really equipped to deal with packages, but they do the best they can. 

A Parallels Desktop power user, and especially an IT Admin who manages the Parallels Desktop deployments inside a company, often need to move VMs around and generally use non-Apple file servers and other devices. For this reason, IT Admins told us that help in moving/deploying VMs is high on the list of requested improvements for Parallels Desktop. This was the motivation behind the new “Prepare for Transfer” feature in Parallels Desktop 16, which compresses the VM and converts it to a single zip file that any system can handle. 

A Pro or Business Edition user just has to right-click on a VM in the Control Center to access this new feature, as seen in Figure 3. Choosing this menu command presents the dialog also shown in Figure 3.

Transfer VM
Figure 3_Preparing a VM for transfer

When the compression and conversion is finished, the VM appears in the Control Center as a “package”, as shown in Figure 4.

Transfer VM
Figure 4_The compressed VM in the Control Center

A single menu command will decompress this package into an ordinary VM, as shown in Figure 5. 

Transfer VM
Figure 5_Decompressing a VM is a single menu command

So, how long does it take to compress and decompress a VM, and what compression savings does it achieve? While the CPU speed on the Mac and the speed of the disk drive or SSD are factors, the only remaining important variable is the size of the VM. I took some quick measurements on my MacBook Pro to give you some idea of the time involved, and they are shown in Table 1. 

OS  VM size (GBs)  Compressed size (GB)  Compression Time  Decompression Time 
Windows 10  10 GB  5 GB  1 minutes, 
5 seconds 		 21 seconds 
Ubuntu  11 GB  5 GB  1 minute, 
26 seconds 		 24 seconds 
macOS Big Sur  31 GB  23 GB  4 minutes,  
15 seconds 		 1 minute, 
19 seconds 
Windows 10 Insider Preview  262 GB  200 GB  38 minutes, 
31 Seconds 		 11 minutes, 
52 seconds 

I hope this gives you a useful overview of this new feature in Parallels Desktop 16. Let us know in the comments how this feature is working for you. 

Feel free to test Parallels Desktop 16 for Mac for 14 days for free. 

The post New in Parallels Desktop 16 – “Prepare for Transfer” appeared first on Parallels Blog.

Parallels Business Solutions, Parallels Desktop for Mac Business

Introducing the newest Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition

When business users require a dual operating system, it’s no wonder so many organizations worldwide turn to Parallels® Desktop for Mac Business Edition. Why? Because Parallels is the easiest, fastest, and most powerful solution for running Windows on a Mac, without rebooting. Our latest release makes it even better.  

With greater productivity, seamless setup, unparalleled graphic support, complete compatibility, and the option to leverage your preferred appearance, users are set up for success. 

For IT and anyone serving in an admin capacity, we’ve introduced new features that will make your job easier, from downloading a virtual machine (VM) from a corporate web source, to enabling upgrades from “My Account”, to renaming custom networks. Let’s start at the top! 

IT may now enable users to download a corporate Windows VM, quickly and easily. Once you’ve configured a Windows image with all of your corporate applications and policies installed, you may securely provide a link for users to download the Windows image—and you can do it all through the Parallels “My Account” portal. This enables Parallels Desktop users within your organization to access the required Windows applications with ease and shortens the implementation process dramatically. 

You also have easier control over upgrades. Parallels Desktop version 16 delivers flexible control over both updates and upgrades, along with centralized administration. Your options now include:    

  • Enabling automatic access to new Parallels updates, new macOS releases, and the latest Parallels feature releases. 
  • Disabling automatic upgrades and updates to minimize distractions. ​
  • Setting up an on-site updates server that releases updates and upgrades only after internal QA. ​
  • Disabling updates completely and only redeploying new versions after internal QA. 

The best part is that Parallels Desktop updates no longer require administrator credentials, so regular users may keep Parallels Desktop up to date without having to involve IT for every transaction.  

Plus, Parallels Desktop is now easier to install than in previous versions because Parallels Desktop installation on macOS 11 Big Sur  does  not  require  approval of System Extensions. This makes product installation quick and seamless and IT doesn’t need to oversee the approval process. One less item on the ever-growing to-do list! 

For users, we’ve truly elevated the Windows experience on Mac with: 

  • Improved graphic support – Run graphic-heavy Windows apps with ease thanks to DirectX and OpenGL improvements. 
  • Incredible speed – Parallels Desktop launches 2X faster and Windows resumes 17% faster. 
  • Support for macOS 11 Big Sur – The new Parallels Desktop is optimized for macOS Big Sur 11.0. 
  • Greater support for Trackpad gestures – Easily zoom and rotate content in Windows 10. 
  • Fewer distractions – Windows will not send notifications when “Do Not Disturb” is enabled on the Mac. 
  • And many more… 

Learn more about our new Parallels Desktop user features. 

Simply put, users and administrators alike won’t find better virtualization software anywhere. With near native performance, speed and efficiency borne from not having to reboot the system when toggling between OSes, you’ll find yourself wondering if you’ll ever need to purchase a PC again. But, it’s ultimately our ease of use and integration that truly set us apart and has for 14 years running. 

Get your free trial of the Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition today and check out our admin videos! 

The post Introducing the newest Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition appeared first on Parallels Blog.

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Can you install the macOS Big Sur public beta in a VM?

Can you install the macOS Big Sur public beta in a VM?

Quick answer: Yes 

The details: Now that Parallels Desktop 16 has been released, I am able to talk about this new version of Parallels Desktop that I have been using for about the last six months. 

I was able to install the macOS Big Sur public beta in a VM. In fact, this is my preferred way to test out a new OS that is under development, and I have been doing so for years. OSes under development can have significant issues, and if you test them out in a VM there is no risk to your Mac. 

Can macOS Big Sur be installed in a Parallels Desktop 16 VM? 

Yes, it can, but an additional variable to consider is the host OS. 

On a Catalina host 

I encountered no issues at all, but it did take a while. A large portion of this time was downloading the “Install macOS Big Sur public beta” app—a 12.3GB download! 

Normally, installing the Parallels Tools in a new OS under development is a mistake. The Parallels Tools are individually designed for each guest OS. While it is possible, having the Tools for an older OS work in a newer OS is unusual. Installing older versions of Tools can sometimes cause an OS to “lock up”. So, what I usually do is not install the Tools by default, make a copy of the Tool-less VM, and then see what happens when I install the Tools. 

I did this for the Big Sur VM on my Catalina host, and the Parallels Tools did not cause any issues. Not everything worked perfectly, but it is quite usable. 

On a Big Sur host 

This went perfectly and everything I have tested works fine. However, I am not a professional tester, so I will wait to hear the experience of the engineers in the Parallels QA team. 

Can macOS Big Sur be installed in a Parallels Desktop 15 VM? 

On a Catalina host 

The answer is “yes” this can be done, but there are several gotchas to worry about. My first three attempts did not succeed, but on the fourth try I did get it to work. 

I will wait until macOS Big Sur is released to share images and videos of the installation and use of a macOS Big Sur VM in both Parallels Desktop 15 and Parallels Desktop 16. Perhaps some of the issues I encountered will be gone in the actual customer release of Big Sur. 

If you have also started using macOS Big Sur with Parallels Desktop, please let us know about your experiences in the comments or on Facebook or Twitter.  

Please also refer to this knowledge base article for further information.

Feel free to test Parallels Desktop 16 for Mac for 14 days for free. 

The post Can you install the macOS Big Sur public beta in a VM? appeared first on Parallels Blog.

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Just Released! Parallels Desktop 16 for Mac

It’s finally here! We’re so excited to introduce a new version of Parallels® Desktop: Parallels Desktop 16 for Mac.  

With Parallels Desktop, you can run Windows, Linux and other popular operating systems on your Mac without rebooting. For 14 years, we’ve been the #1 solution for over 7 million users worldwide. 

Learn more about the hottest new features in Parallels Desktop 16—and stay tuned for more blog posts coming this week detailing everything you need to know about Parallels Desktop 16. 

What are the top new features in Parallels Desktop 16? 

Incredibly fast  

This version of Parallels Desktop is THE fastest version ever released. It starts up twice as fast as previous versions. Plus, Windows resumes and quits up to 20% faster.  

Improved graphics 

Parallels Desktop 16 users can now run even more graphic-heavy, resource-hungry Windows apps with ease. Version 16 delivers up to 20% faster DirectX 11 and improved OpenGL graphics support for both Windows and Linux so you can run more Windows applications and games, including DIALux evo 9, ProPresenter 6, Samson Connect and more. Plus, the new version includes the world’s first support for applications with 3D capabilities running in a macOS Big Sur VM. 

Parallels Desktop users collectively run more than 200,000 Windows applications and with Parallels Desktop 16 can run even more applications.  

Ready for macOS Big Sur and other OSes 

Parallels invested more than 25-person-years of engineer programming to take full advantage of the new architecture in macOS Big Sur. We also revamped kernel extensions to deliver our best Windows-on-Mac performance ever. That’s why we’re proud to say that version 16 is optimized for macOS Big Sur 11.0 (when released) with a refreshed design, easier setup, and much more. Plus, our developers continue to update Parallels Desktop for future releases of Windows, macOS and Linux. 

Better productivity 

  • Wouldn’t it be nice to get extra screen time while traveling? Windows in Travel Mode now uses less energy and extends battery life by up to 15%. 
  • 10% of Parallels Desktop users are short on available disk space. We’ve included a feature that will help you better manage disk space, with the option to reclaim available disk space to Mac automatically. 
Reclaim space Parallels Desktop
  • Set “Do Not Disturb” on your Mac and Parallels Desktop will make sure that Windows 10 doesn’t disturb you either. This is especially useful when you’re in an important presentation. 
  • Do you usually work with a Trackpad instead of a mouse? Now you can zoom and rotate objects smoothly in Windows applications with Trackpad gesture support.  

Enhanced integration 

Every year we develop new features to perfectly integrate Mac and Windows with each other. In Parallels Desktop 16, we’ve added some powerful new features that make it even smoother to run Windows apps as if they were native on the Mac. 

  • Do you want to use duplex printing from Windows applications, with paper sizes ranging from A0 to envelope? Good news—you now can with new print options. 
Printing Parallels Desktop
  • Now you can confidently work on Mac files in Windows by engaging the “safe removal check” to ensure files in shared folders aren’t accidentally deleted.  

Linux and Mac VMs 

Everyone who is passionate about using Linux virtual machines (VMs) has reason to cheer. With version 16, you can be more productive when working with Git repositories in Linux Shared Folders with up to 75% faster “git status” execution. In just one click, you can use and download the latest Linux distributions including Ubuntu 20.04, CentOS 8, Fedora 32 and Debian 10. Plus, Linux OpenGL improvements now let you run Steam.  

Do you want to achieve picture-perfect quality and performance using macOS Big Sur in a VM? You can now, thanks to the first-in-the-world Metal graphics acceleration in a VM with macOS Big Sur. 

Parallels Desktop and Apple Silicon 

We’re all very excited about this demo shown at Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), which depicts a prototype of a forthcoming version of Parallels Desktop running on Mac with Apple Silicon. Parallels and Apple work closely to bring virtualization capabilities to Mac with Apple Silicon. Learn more.

New features in Pro Edition and Business Edition 

For our professional and business customers, we recommend Parallels Desktop for Mac Pro Edition and Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition. Of course, all new features of Parallels Desktop 16 are included in these editions. Pro Edition and Business Edition now offer improved virtual machine deployment, including export capabilities to reduce the network load when deploying to many Mac devices on a corporate network. For developers, Parallels Desktop 16 enables users to name their custom networks for more organized testing.  

Check out all new features that are exclusive to Pro Edition and Business Edition.  

Special gift for Parallels Desktop users 

In all subscriptions of Parallels Desktop 16, users get more than 30+ single-click utilities from Parallels Toolbox for Windows and Mac, plus Parallels Access to remotely access your PC or Mac from your iOS or Android device or any web browser.  

Check out all the recently released features in Parallels Toolbox and Parallels Access. 

There are lots more new features to discover! Check it out yourself and let us know which feature you like most in the comments, or on Facebook or Twitter.  

How to get your copy of Parallels Desktop 16  

 If you… 

…are an existing customer, upgrade now. 
…are a new customer, purchase your copy here—or test it for 14 days for free. 
…have just recently purchased Parallels Desktop 15, check out our Tech Guarantee to see if you get a free upgrade. 

The post Just Released! Parallels Desktop 16 for Mac appeared first on Parallels Blog.

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Parallels Desktop 16 System Requirements and Supported Guest Operating Systems

The system requirements and supported guest operation systems (OSes) for Parallels Desktop 16 for Mac are fully detailed below. We encourage every potential or existing user to explore the requirements prior to downloading or purchasing Parallels® Desktop. Users may be pleasantly surprised at the incredible performance of Windows, Linux, and other popular OSes on their Mac with Parallels Desktop. 

Supported Apple Mac hardware configurations:

Check your Mac hardware to ensure you can run Parallels Desktop without experiencing compatibility issues. Our team would love to make sure every user gets the most out of Parallels Desktop and the virtual machines (VMs) they create. 

Minimum Requirements Recommended for Best Performance 
Processor Intel Core 2 Duo, Core i3, Core i5, Core i7, Core i9, Intel Core M or Xeon processor Intel Core i5, Core i7, Core i9 or Xeon processor
 
Memory 4 GB of RAM 16 GB of RAM or more
Storage 500 MB for Parallels Desktop application installation Additional disk space for the guest operating system (at least 16 GB is required for Windows 10) Solid-state drive (SSD)
Graphics Intel, AMD Radeon or NVIDIA AMD Radeon Pro graphics card
Operating System macOS Big Sur 11.0 (when released) macOS Catalina 10.15.3 or newer
macOS Mojave 10.14.6 or newer
macOS High Sierra 10.13.6 or newer		 macOS Big Sur 11.0 (when released) DirectX 11 requires at least macOS Mojave 10.14, but works best on macOS 10.15.3 Catalina or newer

Important Note: Internet connection is required for product activation, updates and select future features.

Supported guest operating systems that can be created as Parallels Desktop virtual machines:

  • Windows 10
  • Windows 8.1
  • Windows 8
  • Windows Server 2019
  • Windows Server 2016
  • Windows Server 2012 R2
  • Windows 7 (SP0-SP1)
  • Windows Server 2008 R2 (SP0-SP2)
  • Windows Vista Home, Business, Ultimate and Enterprise (SP0-SP2)
  • Windows Server 2003 R2 (SP0-SP2)
  • Windows XP (SP0-SP3)
  • Windows 2000 Professional SP4
  • Windows 2000 Server SP4
  • Boot2Docker
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 8, 7 and 6
  • CentOS Linux 8, 7 and 6
  • Fedora Linux 32, 31, 30 and 29
  • Ubuntu 20.04, 19.04, 18.04 LTS and 16.04 LTS
  • Debian GNU/Linux 9 and 8
  • Debian GNU/Linux 19
  • SUSE Linux Enterprise 15
  • openSUSE Linux 15.1 and 15
  • Linux Mint 20, 19 and 18
  • Kali 2019 and 2018
  • Elementary OS 5.0
  • Manjaro 18
  • Mageia 7 and 6
  • Gentoo Linux **
  • Solaris 11 and 10 **
  • openBSD 6 **
  • FreeBSD 12 and 11 **
  • openVZ 7
  • eComStation 2 and 1.2 **
  • ReactOS 0.4 **
  • Android OS*
  • macOS Big Sur 11.0 (when released)
  • macOS Catalina 10.15
  • macOS Mojave 10.14.x
  • macOS High Sierra 10.13.x
  • macOS Sierra 10.12.x
  • OS X El Capitan 10.11.x
  • OS X Yosemite 10.10.x
  • OS X Mavericks 10.9.x
  • OS X Mountain Lion 10.8.x
  • OS X Lion 10.7.x
  • OS X Lion Server 10.7.x
  • Mac OS X Snow Leopard Server 10.6.x
  • Mac OS X Leopard Server 10.5.x
  • and many more…***

*Only the version downloaded with the Parallels Desktop Installation Assistant

**Parallels Tools are not available for this operating system

Note: Parallels Desktop emulates PC hardware, so operating systems that are not present in this list can work as well. We encourage users to download a free 14-day trial of Parallels Desktop first to install the OS of your choice. If it doesn’t work and you believe it should be supported, let us know at Parallels Forum.

Parallels Tools for Linux requires X Window System version 1.15-1.20 and Linux Kernel version 2.6.29-5.1.

Moving your PC?

Below are the Windows PC system requirements to move a PC to your Mac and use it as a Parallels Desktop VM (using Parallels Transporter Agent):

  • 700 MHz (or higher) x86 or x64 processor (Intel or AMD)
  • 256 MB of RAM
  • 50 MB of available hard disk space for installation of Parallels Transporter Agent
  • Ethernet or WiFi network adapter for migrating over network
  • External USB drive for migrating via external disk
  • Supported Windows: Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP, Windows Server 2003 and Windows 2000*

*To migrate Windows Vista or older, Transporter Agent from Parallels Desktop 13 should be used.

We sincerely hope this resource helps you navigate your experience with Parallels Desktop. Since 2006, Parallels has delivered excellence by being the #1 choice of Mac users to run Windows on Mac without rebooting. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you need help. The Parallels support team can be contacted on Facebook or Twitter, 24/7. 

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Parallels Desktop 16 Tech Guarantee

The Parallels team is excited to bring our users Parallels® Desktop 16 for Mac, which is packed with new features. Qualifying users who recently purchased a license to Parallels Desktop can upgrade to version 16 for free. 

With the Parallels Desktop Tech Guarantee, users who purchased and registered a copy of Parallels Desktop 15 from the Parallels online store (parallels.com) or an authorized reseller between August 1 and September 30 are eligible to upgrade to Parallels Desktop 16 at no additional charge, subject to certain conditions.

The conditions covering eligibility for an upgrade include:

  • Upgrade to the next version of Parallels Desktop at no additional cost if you purchased and registered Parallels Desktop 15 for Mac between August 1, 2020, and September 30, 2020.
  • Product must be a qualifying product, as mentioned in #1 below. Non-qualifying Parallels Desktop products are explained in #3 below.
  • Must be purchased from an authorized retailer. Non-authorized retailers are detailed in #4 below.

1. The following Parallels Desktop 15 for Mac products qualify for the Tech Guarantee:

  • Parallels Desktop 15 for Mac Full Version (New Licenses)
  • Parallels Desktop 15 for Mac Upgrade (Upgrade Licenses)
  • Parallels Desktop 15 for Mac Student License
  • Parallels Desktop 15 for Mac Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) Version when purchased together with hardware or other approved software products (OEM License)

Additionally, your product must be registered on or after August 1, 2020, and before or on September 30, 2020.

2. How do I receive my upgrade key?

Eligible Parallels Desktop users who purchased and registered their product after August 1, 2020, and before September 30, 2020, will have upgrade keys automatically added to their Parallels MyAccount. The upgrade license key will be sent to the email used to register your license for Parallels Desktop 15. You should receive the Parallels Desktop upgrade key within seven (7) days after the new version of Parallels Desktop becomes available. 

3. The following Parallels Desktop for Mac products do not qualify for the Tech Guarantee:

  • Trial versions of Parallels Desktop for Mac
  • Licenses sold under the Volume License Program, including PIK/PIKA, Parallels Desktop for Mac Pro Edition licenses and Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition licenses
  • Not-for-resale (NFR) versions
  • OEM versions that are purchased unlawfully without hardware or qualifying software
  • Parallels Desktop for Mac versions purchased and registered before August 1, 2020, or after September 30, 2020

4. Non-authorized retailers and resellers include but are not limited to: 

Due to the sheer volume of global Parallels Desktop users, please follow the steps above before contacting the Parallels Support team. Key(s) will be automatically sent to your email address, so check the spam/junk folder. Again, we ask for users to please allow up to seven (7) business days for your key to be delivered. 

Parallels Desktop subscription users: Don’t worry, if you have an active annual subscription of Parallels Desktop, Parallels Desktop Pro Edition or Parallels Desktop Business Edition, you’re already eligible for an upgrade to the latest version. Parallels Desktop subscription users automatically get access to the newest version at no additional cost. 

If you’ve read the above but still have questions about the Parallels Desktop 16 tech guarantee, please don’t hesitate to reach out to our teams. We’re here to help with your questions or concerns via our social support on Facebook or Twitter, 24/7. 

– The Parallels Team

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How to Create a Parallels Account Using Your Apple ID

Creating a Parallels user account, managing it and logging into applications has never been easier for Apple users. They can now use their Apple ID to create a new Parallels account in a simple, fast and safe way. Using “Sign in with Apple,” you can log into your Parallels account from any device. You don’t even need to memorize a separate password for this procedure. Your Apple password is enough.

Register with your Apple ID and save yourself from a separate password

Since 2019, Apple has allowed users to register with sites and apps using their existing Apple ID. This comes with two benefits:

  • There is no additional password to remember
  • The sign-in procedure is especially safe

What you need is an Apple ID, your Apple password and a two-factor authentication resource, such as a smartphone.

A further benefit for users is that “Sign-in with Apple” helps obscure their email addresses. They are automatically assigned “proxy” addresses, or Relay Addresses as Apple calls them. Announcements and messages coming from Parallels are forwarded to your real inbox automatically. Parallels is only provided with this alias address on your sign-in, so you’ll continue to receive important messages but your real email address remains concealed to us. Basically, this sign-in method is tantamount to an authentication by Apple.

Once you have created your account via your Apple ID, you can sign in to your browser or your Parallels applications using this Apple ID. Just select “Sign in with Apple.” If you have purchased a Parallels license any time earlier, you can easily import it into your (new) user account. You can enter your license key(s) or your previous Parallels address by selecting the “Restore Purchases” option, which will transfer your previous licenses into your new account.

This safe and consistent sign-in experience is another example of the enhanced usability of Parallels Desktop™ 15 for Mac running on macOS Catalina, which also helps users handle Parallels software with simplified security and privacy dialogs and optimized iCloud support.

Why not try and sign in to Parallels with Apple now and download a Parallels Desktop 15 trial version?

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Most Businesses Use Desktop Virtualization for Mac – Parallels Survey Part 3

Concerns regarding lack of software compatibility are the main factor preventing businesses from using Mac devices. This was revealed by a recent study conducted by Parallels. (We showcased other results in previous blog posts: Part 1 and Part 2) At the same time, this survey reveals a serious interest of IT departments and users in switching to Mac clients. However, those in charge were said to be concerned about not being able to continue running previously used software on Mac. Nearly 25% of respondents stated lack of software compatibility as the reason for not using a Mac. This concern regarding not being able to continue using essential applications surpasses both the issue of the higher cost of Mac usage and the challenge of being forced to manage multiple platforms.

These reservations are groundless in most cases, however. These days, a great many applications are web-based and platform independent. This means that upgrading existing licenses of the required software to cloud versions or to more current releases could help resolve compatibility issues. A second approach would involve virtualizing systems to run the required software.

Ways businesses run Windows software on Mac

Roughly 33% of businesses surveyed use remote access solutions to run unsupported software on their Mac clients. On the other hand, applications with high demands on hardware performance, or ones that are predominantly used on the road, are always better off on local clients. Media production and software development programs are good examples of applications with high hardware performance requirements. Desktop virtualization turns out to be the solution of choice for application cases of this kind. More than 42% of those surveyed use virtualization programs such as Parallels Desktop™ for Mac, enabling them to run their Windows software locally on their corporate Mac devices.

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How and Why Mac Devices Are Used in Companies – Parallels Survey Part 2

Mac can now be found in more than 50% of all companies, showing an upward trend. How did this proliferation come about and why do companies and their employees prefer Mac in growing numbers? Some 1,000 IT professionals, mainly from small and mid-sized enterprises (SMEs), participated in a survey about their company’s usage of Mac.

Software developers love Mac

The main reason quoted by respondents is Mac performance. This is not so much an opinion about the Mac hardware, which equals many other machines in good part. Most Mac models aren’t performance behemoths when compared to powerful workstations. The Apple computer’s strength often lies in their efficiency and perceived speed in getting work done. It is not least the software’s architecture and optimization that can make a difference in productivity.

Web and software developers benefit from the Unix foundation and built-in tools of macOS. Furthermore, Mac computers are the only ones available on the market that can run macOS, Windows and Linux—and with a solution such as Parallels Desktop™ for Mac, even multiple operating systems of this kind at the same time. This is another reason for the disproportionally high market share of Mac devices with developers. On the other hand, creative professionals for decades have used the software that has made Mac so significant for publishing and visual media, being highly optimized and running exceptionally well on macOS.

Mac is regarded to be safer

Safety comes in second place among the main reasons for using Mac. This is a classic part of the macOS image; there is less malware around for this operating system and it is less easily foisted on unsuspecting users. The strict separation of system data from user data really helps. Add to that useful tools such as the hard drive encryption program FileVault and the iCloud Keychain password manager. IT administrators may be interested in the fact that these onboard safety nets can be enabled and configured via a device management solution, relieving users from the effort of taking care of them.

Other major reasons quoted for employees using Mac were:

  • Easy connectivity with other Apple devices such as iPhone and iPad (32% of those surveyed)
  • General user-friendliness (30%)

Businesses running Parallels Desktop on their Mac devices can add further use options and features to this already broad range of benefits. We have outlined them here for you.

The next article of this series will be covering reservations and challenges within businesses that keep them from using Mac.

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