Parallels 3 Narrows the Gap Between Virtual Windows and Booting
into Boot Camp
The first week of June was a busy one in Mac2Windows land. In one week:
- Parallels
released a major upgrade of their virtualization software, allowing
owners of Intel-powered Macs to run Windows and other PC operating
systems on top of (alongside?) Mac OS X.
- A day later, VMware released
a new pre-release public beta of their virtualization
software.
- Apple released Boot Camp 1.3, the
latest beta of their software to set up Intel Macs to dual-boot
between Mac OS X and Windows XP or Vista.
And at the beginning of the following week, Apple released more
information about the role of Boot Camp in the upcoming "Leopard"
OS X 10.5 release, followed by VMware finally announcing
pricing for their Fusion virtualizer and aiming for official
release this August.
All this action is aimed at Intel-powered Macs; older PowerPC
Macs need not apply. Moving to the Intel processors allowed Macs to
run PC-style operating systems and software - Windows, Linux, and
more - by either booting directly to them (a la Boot Camp) or in a
high-performance virtual session using software like Parallels
Desktop or VMware Fusion. (Past articles in this series have
detailed all of these options).
Parallels Desktop 3.0
Parallels Desktop has gotten the bulk of the mindshare for this,
as a small company that was first off the mark, producing an
affordable virtualization product for the Intel Macs at a time when
larger, more established developers in the field, including VMware
and Microsoft, seemed to be ignoring the Mac market. And while
VMware's product is still in beta and Microsoft, owners of
emulation software Virtual PC, seems to be indifferent to revising
their product for the new Macs, Parallels Desktop has been updated
to version 3.0.
With this new version, the clever software wizards at Parallels
have reduced much of the gap between running Windows in a virtual
session on top of OS X and booting to it directly (via Boot
Camp or running it on a second computer).
Running Windows in a virtual session (in a window, that is) on
top of OS X ought to be more convenient - at least in theory.
That way, virtualization-using Mac owners could do whatever needed
doing in Windows without having to stop using their Mac and restart
to boot into Windows. They could run some software in Windows while
still running all their favourite Mac software on OS X at the
same time (RAM permitting, of course).
Older emulation software, like Microsoft's Virtual PC, designed
for PowerPC Macs could do this, but in a sort of slow motion.
Virtualization software on the Intel Macs is able to run Windows or
other PC operating systems at something approaching the hardware's
full potential speed.
Up until now, the virtualized PCs lacked 3D graphics support, so
many PC games - an area with lots more software for Windows than
for Mac - weren't usable. Gamers wanting to run 3D Windows games on
their Mac had, until recently, only one choice: use Boot Camp and
boot directly to Windows.
Parallels 3.0 promises "support for a wide range of DirectX and
OpenGL games and applications". The company notes that users can
now play formerly unplayable Windows-only games like World of
Warcraft, Half-Life 2, and Unreal Tournament, as well as make use
of 3D CAD programs like 3DMark.
Not being a gamer, I haven't put these claims to the test, but
potential users need to know that DirectX support isn't enabled
by default in virtualized Windows sessions. After creating a
Windows session and installing XP or Vista, a user needs to click
on the menu item to Edit the Virtual Machine (with the session not
running), click on the Video item, and check the option to Enable
DirectX support.
Let me know how it works out for you!
Graphics performance generally felt quicker and smoother than in
previous versions; I installed and ran Google Earth in Direct X
mode, and it looked very good.
Parallels 2.5 first offered support for USB 2.0-level
performance; the new version improves on that, supporting more USB
devices, including current model PDAs and Smartphones. If you
connect a USB device while a virtual session is running, a new
connection assistant asks whether you want to use the device in Mac
OS X or your virtualized PC. Nice.
Also new - Parallels Explorer is a disk management utility
(think the Mac Finder or Windows Explorer) to view the contents of
virtual hard drives, at least while the virtual session isn't
running. That lets a user access files stored on the Windows
system's virtual hard drive without having to first start up
Windows.
At least that's the theory. When I tried it, Parallels Explorer
did not work with the Parallels virtual drives on my system.
Ironically, it did allow me to view the contents of virtual drives
created for competitor VMware Fusion.
Another Parallels add-on, Transporter also didn't work for me.
Transporter promises to allow Parallels users to migrate the
contents of real PCs to a Parallels virtual machine and to convert
existing virtual drive images from Microsoft Virtual PC and VMware
to Parallels virtual machines.
I tried it out on several different VMware drive images; it
chugged away and appeared to be working, but I was unable to get
the resulting drive images to load with Parallels. Too bad - VMware
in particular has an extensive library of free (mostly Linux-based)
virtual "appliances"; it would be nice to be able to make them work
with Parallels.
Despite those disappointments, there's a lot to like in the new
version. Parallels promises over 50 new features and improvements.
Among them:
- Coherence debuted in version 2.5 and is improved in the new
version; when a user switches to Coherence mode, the Windows
desktop disappears, leaving the Windows application running,
apparently on its own on the Mac desktop. Users can add the Windows
application icon to the Mac Dock and appear to start it up
directly. As a result, Mac users can feel like they're going
directly to, say, Microsoft Access (a database application with no
Mac equivalent) without having to start up Windows and then start
up Access.
- A new SmartSelect feature allows users to right-click a data
file icon (in either the Mac Finder or in Windows), choose Open
With, and pick their preferred application - whether it's a Mac or
a Windows program.
These two features combine to make it easier for users to
seamlessly work with both their Mac and Windows applications. A
"Shared Applications" menu appears in the Windows Start Menu,
listing installed Mac applications; clicking on one starts it up on
the Mac.
- Snapshots is a security and backup tool saving the state of a
virtual machine's memory, settings and hard disk. This allows users
to experiment, knowing that they can easily revert to a
previously-saved state of their virtual machine (or recover if
their Windows system is done in by virus or spyware
infestation).
- Parallels' Shared Folders feature is improved, allowing users
to create shared folders that can be accessed from both the Windows
and Mac sessions. Various levels of Drag and Drop can be enabled,
allowing files to be dragged from one desktop to the other, or
directly between any Windows and OS X folder. When my virtual
Windows XP session was running, a Windows XP drive icon appeared on
my Mac desktop, giving me direct access to that virtual hard drive
in the Finder.
- A new Security Manager offers pre-configured security levels
which determine the amount of interconnection between the host Mac
OS and the virtual Windows session. (Remember, a virtualized
Windows session is just as vulnerable to Windows viruses and
spyware as a real Windows computer). The Security Manager
centralizes multiple options and makes it easier for users to
easily find a security comfort zone.
- Version 2.5 let Parallels users work with a Boot Camp Windows
XP installation within a virtual session. Version 3 adds similar
support for Boot Camp Vista installations. I like this feature a
lot - if you've got a Boot Camp installation, this lets you load it
at the same time Mac OS X is running, without needing to set
aside a big block of your hard drive for yet another Windows
installation; a single Windows installation can work with both Boot
Camp and Parallels.
- The Parallels Tools have been improved. These tools (similar to
tools included with earlier Microsoft Virtual PC and Guest PC
emulator) allow users to seamlessly move the mouse between the Mac
desktop and the virtualized desktop, among other things. New Linux
Tools now offer some support for Linux virtual machines.
- An Express Installation Assistant simplifies Windows XP and
Vista installation. Enter user name and Windows serial number, and
the Installation Assistant does all the rest of the button pressing
- and then starts up Windows and automatically installs the
Parallels Tools. It's easier than installing Windows on a real
PC!
- A new networking option, shared networking, is selected by
default for virtual machines. This lets the Windows (or other
virtual machine) make use of the Mac's existing IP address,
effectively hiding it from outside hackers - or Internet service
providers who may limit the number of available IP addresses.
- Parallels includes a disk compacting utility to reduce the
hefty size of virtual hard drives. A default installation of
Windows XP creates a 32 GB virtual drive, which after XP
installation has 29 GB free. After running the Disk Compacter, it
only took up only 2.5 GB of hard drive space. (As I install more
software, it will require more space).
- Kaspersky Internet Security suite is included, offering Windows
users much needed antivirus and antispyware protection at no
additional cost.
While Boot Camp only allows users to install Windows XP or
Vista, Parallels supports a wide range of PC operating systems,
including the whole range of Windows versions back to 3.1, MS-DOS,
OS/2, and most popular Linux distributions. I've used it with
Windows XP and Vista, and also Fedora, Xandros, and Ubuntu Linux.
The new version works better than ever with all of them. Cost is
US$80 - US$50 to upgrade from an earlier version. A 15-day free
trial version is available for
download.
VMWare Fusion, Beta 4
The day after Parallels released version 3.0, competitor VMware
announced Beta 4 of its Mac virtualization product, Fusion. It's
available as a free download.
The fine print of the license does not allow review, and it
wouldn't be fair to compare a shipping product like Parallels
Desktop with a pre-release beta, but I can get away with mentioning
some of its features.
New features in Fusion Beta 4 include Snapshot, promising the
same functionality as the new Parallels feature of the same name
(interesting coincidence). "Unity" sounds similar to Parallels'
Coherence, letting Windows applications appear directly on the Mac
desktop. A Launch Palette allows Mac users to go straight to
individual Windows applications.
Unlike Parallels, Fusion offers 64-bit and multiprocessor (and
multi-core) support, and can be used with 64-bit Windows versions.
It promises support for 3D games built for Direct X 8.1 and full
USB 2.0 support.
VMware Tools offer drag and drop and copy/paste support between
Linux and Solaris virtual sessions and the Mac, which is not
currently available in Parallels.
VMware recently announced pricing; at its release (expected in
August), Fusion will be priced at US$80; customers can pre-order it
for US$40. The pricing (matching Parallel Desktop) is good news -
VMware Workstation product for Windows and Linux, for example, is
much more expensive.
Even before VMware Fusion's release, the competition between
Parallels and VMware seems to be spurring both companies to improve
their products; we've seen Parallels improving its USB support to
match Fusion and Fusion offering features similar to Parallels'
Coherence mode. Both products have improved their 3D performance
and their compatibility with Boot Camp installations. The big
winner is the Mac2Windows user.
Boot Camp 1.3
Finally, there's Boot Camp, Apple's public beta allowing Intel
Mac users to non-destructively partition their hard drives, install
Windows XP or Vista, and boot to either Mac OS X or their
Windows installation.
Last week, the company released Boot Camp 1.3 beta for download.
The new version offers updated graphics drivers, an improved driver
installer, and support for MacBook Pro keyboard backlighting. If
you have a Boot Camp Windows installation created with an earlier
version, you should download the latest version, use it to create a
new drivers disc, boot to Windows, and install these latest driver
versions. You don't need to repartition your hard drive or make any
heavy-duty changes, but it's worthwhile.
Tough Choices
Trying to choose between Boot Camp and one of these
virtualization products? If you've got a limited amount of RAM,
you're best off with Boot Camp. To make good use of either
Parallels Desktop or VMware Fusion, you'll need enough memory to
keep Windows (or other PC operating system) happy while still
leaving enough for OS X's needs. (A default Parallels installation
of Windows XP, for instance, gives Windows 512 MB of your Mac's
RAM.) Using Boot Camp, only one or the other is running at a time,
letting you get by with less memory.
And at his June 11 keynote for Apple's World Wide Developer's
Conference (WWDC), Steve Jobs reiterated that Boot Camp will be
included as a feature in the upcoming OS X 10.5 "Leopard"
release and put to rest rumors that Leopard would include a
virtualization feature - much to the relief of Parallels and
VMware. Jobs said that Boot Camp is "a great complement" to
Parallels or VMware, naming both of the virtualization companies,
and said that Apple was supporting them both "as much as we can".
