You may not have Siri in OS X yet, but the new Parallels Desktop 11 release allows you to make use of Microsoft's Cortana virtual assistant.
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Of all the ways to run Windows on a Mac, Parallels Desktop is my favorite because it just works. It's fast, it's reliable, and there's no need to futz about with confusing setting or convoluted setup processes.
Along with your Mac and a copy of Parallels Desktop 11 you will also need an installation of Windows 10. Installation of Parallels Desktop 11 is a breeze (and it's even simpler if you are upgrading from a previous version), and even installing Windows 10 onto your Mac is a breeze.
You're then ready to use Windows 10 on your Mac.
When you start an app in Parallels/Windows, it appears in the Dock. Drag it to the left (so it stays in the Dock), and clicking it will open the app in Windows. I'm not sure what happens if you do that while Parallels ain't running, though.
I get the Parallels nags on my mac to upgrade regularly.get P11 now for 50% off. My problem is simple, I use P10 to run a Windows 10 virtual machine on my MacPro for finite element analysis. I give the VM 16GB of ram and 8 of my 12 vCores. I never did get Parallels to recognize the reader correctly. If you want to run Ubuntu in a VM, Parallels is a much nicer experience than Fusion (or VirtualBox for that matter). Parallels supports the full range of Compiz UI features. If you keep your Mac and PC Virtual machines completely separate and never access the internet on your PC side (turn off all networking access to Windows through Parallels), and never update your PC software, you can avoid running PC protection software (or only run it when you update the software running on the PC side). If you want to run Windows 10 on a Mac there are really only two options worth considering: a native install using Boot Camp or virtualisation through Parallels.
When it comes to Cortana, Parallels Desktop 11 allows you to interact with the virtual assistant in three ways:
But what makes Parallels Desktop 10 for Mac special, is the way it incorporates Mac OS X Yosemite and iOS 8 features. Some of the new features give you more interactivity between operating systems. Parallels Toolbox for Mac and Windows 30+ tools in a lightweight, powerful, all-in-one application for Mac ® and PC. Easy to use and economical—a whole suite of tools for a fraction of the cost of individual apps, packaged in one simple interface.
- From the Windows 10 desktop
- From Windows 10 with voice control
- From an OS X application
If there's a Windows 10 killer feature, Cortana is it, and with Parallels Desktop 11 you have direct access to it from the OS X desktop.
Along with tight integration of Cortana into OS X, Parallels Desktop 11 brings with it the following features:
- Quick Look viewer for Windows docs
- Travel Mode battery extender
- Use OS X Location Services in Windows apps
- Easy Windows 10 upgrade
- OS X 10.11 El Capitan ready
There's also numerous performance improvements:
- Boot up and shut down times in Windows 8.1 and Windows 10 up to 50 percent faster
- 15 percent increase in battery life
- Windows performance up by up to 20 percent (based on PassMark performance tests)
- Moving files between OS X and Windows is 5 percent faster
- Virtual machines suspend up to 20 percent faster
For developers who need access to Windows within OS X comes the new Parallels Desktop for Mac Pro Edition. In addition to all the tools already built into Parallels Desktop 11, the Pro Edition adds:
- Support for popular developer and testing tools
- Advanced debugging and network tools
- Business cloud support sharing
- More powerful virtual machines (up to 16 vCPUs and 64 vGB of RAM)
Foe those wanting more support, centralized management, and unified volume licensing keys there's also a Business Edition available.
Parallels Desktop 11 costs $79.99 (an upgrade from a previous version is $49.99) while the Pro Edition and Business Edition cost $99.99 per seat per year.
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Apple Microsoft Enterprise Software Windows PCs ReviewsI’ve been running with Parallels for a while on my new Mac Intel system, and am really happy with it. But I really wish I could cut and paste between the Windows apps and the Mac apps, wish it would sync to the correct time, and so on. Is there some sort of Parallels equivalent to the old VMware “helper apps” that you’d install within the guest operating system? I’m running Windows XP.
There is indeed a helper application that you really do need to install if you’re running Parallels Desktop on your Intel Mac system, called, ingeniously enough, Parallels Tools.
To install it, start up Parallels Desktop on your Mac OS X system (if you don’t yet have this Intel Mac only tool, you can get a working demo copy of Parallels online: download the Parallels demo). You’ll need to have configured your virtual OS to include support for a CD/DVD drive, then log in to Windows XP as an administrator. If you don’t know what I mean, you probably are the admin for the WinXP system!
Now you’ll want to select “Install Parallels Tools…” from the VM toolbar that’s part of the Mac side of Parallels Desktop (that is, it’s not part of your guest OS):
Running Parallels On A Mac
As I indicated, you definitely need to be logged in to your guest OS. Parallels reaffirms that with its warning message:
Just “OK” past that — since you are already logged in to WinXP, aren’t you? — and the next thing you’ll see is the Installer running within Windows for this particular application:
At this point you’ll be clicking Next a few times to let it tell you about the installation options, etc. The first time you click it’ll warn you that they haven’t gone through the Microsoft verification process for the extensions so you’ll possibly see some warnings, but they’re safely ignored:
I didn’t find that anything needed to be changed along the way. You’ll be asked if you want to install “complete” or “custom”: I recommend you install the complete Parallels Tools package.
Finally, installation complete, you’ll want to restart your guest operating system (e.g., Windows XP, not your Mac):
Once it starts up again, you’ll have a new icon in the clock tray, right next to the time display itself:
That’s the shortcut for Parallels Tools. Click on it and you’ll be able to configure and modify all of the many utilities included in this useful package:
Without a doubt, if you’re running Parallels Desktop you want to also install Parallels Tools too!
Note: If you haven’t yet delved into the world of virtualization on Intel-based Macs, please read How to install Parallels Desktop and Windows XP on your Intel Mac OS X System.