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donawalt

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Original poster
Sep 10, 2015
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Effective February 16, 2023, Microsoft has authorized the Parallels Desktop solution for using Arm versions of Windows 11 on Mac with Apple Silicon.

IT leaders can now enable their users to run Windows 11 on Arm with Parallels Desktop for Mac, with support from Alludo and the assurance that Microsoft has authorized this solution.

Whether user devices are owned by the employee/contractor or IT, Parallels Desktop bridges the technology gap between the two operating systems by enabling a virtualized environment capable of running Windows 11 Pro and Enterprise editions as a guest operating system on Mac with Apple silicon.

With Microsoft’s listing of Parallels Desktop as an authorized solution, IT leaders can now say yes and provide support for users that have the need to host Arm versions of Windows 11 applications in a virtualized environment on Mac with Apple silicon.

User Perspective

Mac users are quite passionate about their devices, but they become frustrated when they need to access applications that are only available on Windows operating systems. For example, how can a field engineer that prefers a Mac access a Windows-based application such as Matlab or VTScada?

In many environments, this means that a Windows device is required as the primary device, regardless of the user preference. Another option is toting around a second laptop. Even though laptops are small and lightweight, carrying two laptops and synchronizing files is no joy. Either way, the user is not content with the forced overhead just so that niche applications can be accessed.

Similarly, how can application developers utilize their Mac devices to access a locally installed Windows 11 guest operating system for development work? Whether the developer is a contractor or an employee, there is the need to install tools such as Notepad++, as well as to create and test Windows code in a segregated environment. Especially within small enterprises, a centralized virtual machine or device may add complexity to development efforts.

A much better alternative is to allow the user to choose the favored device type, such as a Mac, and enable Windows-based applications to run in a virtualized environment by means of Parallels Desktop. After installation, the Windows 11 operating system can be run in a virtualized environment by the user on a dedicated resource. This way both the host and guest can function independently without relying on each other, and files and system resources can be shared between macOS and Windows. Then, the needed Windows application(s) and tools can be installed on Windows 11, providing the best of both worlds for the end user.

Windows 11 Licensing

Licensing the Windows 11 operating system that runs on the Mac device is straightforward. The same volume licensing system that addresses enterprise licensing, such as Key Management Services (KMS), can be used to provide Pro or Enterprise licenses to the Windows 11 guest operating system.

For those IT leaders that were awaiting confirmation of Microsoft’s authorization of
Windows 11 with Parallels Desktop running on Mac with Apple Silicon,
the wait is over!


For more information, please see:

Press Release: https://www.alludo.com/en/newsroom/...16-parallels-desktop-windows-11-apple-silicon

Web landing page: https://www.parallels.com/windows-11-arm-apple-m-series/
 

haralds

macrumors 68030
Jan 3, 2014
2,990
1,252
Silicon Valley, CA
This is not a surprise. Parallels Desktop has been pulling from a Microsoft location for their one-button install of Windows 11 for a while now.
I have been using it and it is awesome except for their stricter license policy over VMware. But that has been left in the dust on both Intel and M1/M2. Parallels Desktop is a great way to run Windows on your Mac.
 
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leman

macrumors Core
Oct 14, 2008
19,521
19,673
I expected this to happen for some time now. Wouldn’t be surprised if MS a füllt supports Apples proprietary memory order settings to enable better emulation of x86 environment.
 

donawalt

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Original poster
Sep 10, 2015
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I find Windows 11/Parallels 18 runs really well on both an M1 and M2 Mac. For me it's really fast. On the M2 MacBook Pro I give it 4 processors and 24GB memory for my apps, and it flies. Office apps as a common example come up just as fast as native on the Mac; Word comes up in under 2 seconds (I just tried to time it lol). I couldn't be more pleased with it.
 

Jack Neill

macrumors 68020
Sep 13, 2015
2,272
2,308
San Antonio Texas
I find Windows 11/Parallels 18 runs really well on both an M1 and M2 Mac. For me it's really fast. On the M2 MacBook Pro I give it 4 processors and 24GB memory for my apps, and it flies. Office apps as a common example come up just as fast as native on the Mac; Word comes up in under 2 seconds (I just tried to time it lol). I couldn't be more pleased with it.
I agree, I have W11 running with 4 cores and 8GB on my M1/16/1TB Air and it feels like it's native. Very smooth and useful.
 
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imdropbear

macrumors regular
Sep 12, 2019
108
213
I find Windows 11/Parallels 18 runs really well on both an M1 and M2 Mac. For me it's really fast. On the M2 MacBook Pro I give it 4 processors and 24GB memory for my apps, and it flies. Office apps as a common example come up just as fast as native on the Mac; Word comes up in under 2 seconds (I just tried to time it lol). I couldn't be more pleased with it.
Yup, initially I was a bit bummed about the loss of the possibility to install Windows natively due to the x86 architecture but it works really well on my M1 Pro with Parallels so for me personally there isn't any need to install it natively anymore. In fact, I'm only using it for one application anyway and that is running well enough so don't even realize it's not running natively.

The idea that running something that even needs to be emulated in a VM is fast enough to feel like it's running natively seemed crazy a decade ago but here we are.
 
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dmccloud

macrumors 68040
Sep 7, 2009
3,142
1,899
Anchorage, AK
Yup, initially I was a bit bummed about the loss of the possibility to install Windows natively due to the x86 architecture but it works really well on my M1 Pro with Parallels so for me personally there isn't any need to install it natively anymore. In fact, I'm only using it for one application anyway and that is running well enough so don't even realize it's not running natively.

The idea that running something that even needs to be emulated in a VM is fast enough to feel like it's running natively seemed crazy a decade ago but here we are.

If you think running W11 in its own window is fast, try Coherence Mode. That experience can be a jaw dropper...
 

PauloSera

Suspended
Oct 12, 2022
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Unfortunately, Windows ARM has limitations, Not all apps work, is slower than x86 and x86 emulation is not nearly as good as Rosetta 2 is on a Mac. Native ARM apps for Windows are in short supply.
Yep. I tried it for 5 minutes to see if any of the handful of apps I rely on from Windows worked. They didn't. Deleted.
 

PauloSera

Suspended
Oct 12, 2022
908
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I find Windows 11/Parallels 18 runs really well on both an M1 and M2 Mac. For me it's really fast. On the M2 MacBook Pro I give it 4 processors and 24GB memory for my apps, and it flies. Office apps as a common example come up just as fast as native on the Mac; Word comes up in under 2 seconds (I just tried to time it lol). I couldn't be more pleased with it.
Yeah well, that's great for you. Now imagine your exact same scenario, and the "one app" you care about doesn't work at all on Windows ARM. That's where a lot of people are left.
 

donawalt

Contributor
Original poster
Sep 10, 2015
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Yeah well, that's great for you. Now imagine your exact same scenario, and the "one app" you care about doesn't work at all on Windows ARM. That's where a lot of people are left.
Then you are obviously right to run your stuff on a Windows computer.
 

imdropbear

macrumors regular
Sep 12, 2019
108
213
If you think running W11 in its own window is fast, try Coherence Mode. That experience can be a jaw dropper...
Already doing that. You don't notice the VM anymore which makes it feel even more native.

That being said, this obviously depends on the software. There's a lot of x86 software that will just not work properly on Windows 11 ARM or only run with terrible performance so I understand the frustration of people who don't have the same experience with Parallels/Windows 11 ARM as well.
 
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xraydoc

Contributor
Oct 9, 2005
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Obviously not popular apps. You wouldn't even know the names of them. Heck some are private and only used by a handful of people in the world.
Gotcha. I was just curious, as I'd expect most popular commercial app developers would be motivated to make their apps work on ARM machines like the Surface X and such. I suspect our hospital's PACS application wouldn't work on Win for ARM, either, though there's no way they would allow me to install it on a personal machine.
 

donawalt

Contributor
Original poster
Sep 10, 2015
1,284
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Obviously not popular apps. You wouldn't even know the names of them. Heck some are private and only used by a handful of people in the world.
Makes sense, it's hard to imagine that uniquely specialized needs would work with a generalized solution. Microsoft and Parallels aren't likely to provide a solution for the 1% use case scenarios unfortunately.
 
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Schnort

macrumors regular
Oct 24, 2013
204
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Just curious as to what those apps are...?
Not the original poster, but I develop software for ASICs, and most of the commercial cross compiler tools are x86 windows (or getting more common linux) and require licensing via FlexLM or dongles. It's fairly niche, but when Mac was x86, most of these tools would run in parallels or you could VMware or at last resort bootcamp.
 

xraydoc

Contributor
Oct 9, 2005
11,019
5,484
192.168.1.1
Not the original poster, but I develop software for ASICs, and most of the commercial cross compiler tools are x86 windows (or getting more common linux) and require licensing via FlexLM or dongles. It's fairly niche, but when Mac was x86, most of these tools would run in parallels or you could VMware or at last resort bootcamp.
Yeah, we used to have a few machines with applications that required a USB dongle for licensing/activation. If the apps wouldn't launch, first thing we did was to make sure the little light was on the dongle on the back of the machine...! Those have pretty much been replaced with thin clients now and a dedicated server in the server room.
 

PauloSera

Suspended
Oct 12, 2022
908
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Gotcha. I was just curious, as I'd expect most popular commercial app developers would be motivated to make their apps work on ARM machines like the Surface X and such. I suspect our hospital's PACS application wouldn't work on Win for ARM, either, though there's no way they would allow me to install it on a personal machine.
Of course popular commercial apps will. But this is Windows. There are literally millions of abandoned apps that people use every day.
 
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hans1972

macrumors 68040
Apr 5, 2010
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I'm also a happy user.

Even with just 2Gb of RAM and 2 vCPU Windows 11 is fast and the application I run is also very fast.
 
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