If you are a Mac user who occasionally needs to use Windows or a Windows user who has just upgraded to a Mac, it will be useful for you to learn how to install Windows on a Mac without having to set up completely different computers.
This means that if your Mac PC has an Intel Inside processor, you can run Windows on it.
All you need is a copy of Windows, some virtualization software and minimum system requirements.
Regardless of whether your Mac computer has several hard disks or only one, the principle is the same: you need to create a compatible partition for Windows or a separate disk on which to install Windows on a Mac.
To complete the first method of this procedure, run the Windows Setup program in Boot Camp.
One of the easiest and cheapest ways to install Windows on a Mac is to use the Boot Camp Assistant software that comes with every copy of Mac OS X. You will find it in applications by going to utilities.
Boot Camp allows you to choose where you want to create a compatible partition and adjust its size. In addition, the program allows you to install all the necessary drivers for Windows in order to subsequently use the functions of your Mac - from the keyboard and trackpad to the video card and Wi-Fi.
One significant drawback of Boot Camp is that the program allows you to run only one operating system at a time.
To use Windows and its standard applications (such as Internet Explorer), you need to restart your Mac. This can take quite a while, especially if a large number of files are being exchanged.
You can choose which operating system you want to load at the moment by holding the Alt key while starting the Mac.
An alternative is to use targeted virtualization programs, such as Parallels Desktop 6 or VMware Fusion 3, but all of them are paid.
With their help, you can start both operating systems at the same time - either start Windows in a separate window (as a guest OS) in Mac OS X, or switch to full virtualization mode. In the second case, all applications for Windows (for example, Internet Explorer or Windows Media Player) will become available for use in Mac OS X.
In addition, Parallels Desktop 6 for Mac allows you to create a virtual server for Windows on your Mac. You can even use this software to transfer all files, settings and preferences from your PC. Speaking about how to install Windows on a Mac, we can say that this is the most versatile way.
The main advantage of these approaches is that you will more easily access files between Mac and Windows, and you won’t have to reboot every time you want to use specific applications.
However, if you use Windows only occasionally on your Mac, the cost of Parallels or VMware Fusion may not be worth it.
In this case, how to install Windows on Mac for free?
Fortunately, there is an alternative for such users in the form of Oracle VirtualBox. Of course, it is obsolete and inferior to Parallels and VMware Fusion in functionality, but at the same time it is open source and is completely free.
Speaking about how to install Windows on a Mac, you should take into account all the above circumstances and decide how often you need to run both OS simultaneously.