questions.....

[WindowsMan95]

hello fellow mac forum people ive been looking for a while now at small form factor pc's, and the mac mini is the best one i can find at those sort of specs, but my main question is more about software, i dont think i'll get on with OS X mavericks (user name suggests my preference).

so basically im asking if there is a way to switch the mac mini to windows 8.1 without the use of parallels and other software, like for example can i get an ssd pre-loaded with 8.1 and swap the standard hdd in the mac mini with it? theoretically that would mean there was only windows and no remnants of OS X in it? a true windows pc in an apple casing.

ive heard a few people mention about apple bios being different, and that all seems like ancient Egyptian to me, but is my plan plausible? and if not, is there another way around it?

 

[dudedude]

hello fellow mac forum people ive been looking for a while now at small form factor pc's, and the mac mini is the best one i can find at those sort of specs, but my main question is more about software, i dont think i'll get on with OS X mavericks (user name suggests my preference).

so basically im asking if there is a way to switch the mac mini to windows 8.1 without the use of parallels and other software, like for example can i get an ssd pre-loaded with 8.1 and swap the standard hdd in the mac mini with it? theoretically that would mean there was only windows and no remnants of OS X in it? a true windows pc in an apple casing.

ive heard a few people mention about apple bios being different, and that all seems like ancient Egyptian to me, but is my plan plausible? and if not, is there another way around it?

You can just use bootcamp which is built into MAC OS X or install a different drive like you suggested. Boot Camp will give you the windows drivers for the hardware.

 

[old-wiz]

It's not a big deal to switch mini to Windows 8.1..

Only drawback is getting firmware updates from Apple, so it's a good idea to keep a minimal osx available. If it was me I'd install win 8.1 via bootcamp and get the best if both worlds.

 

[WindowsMan95]

It's not a big deal to switch mini to Windows 8.1..

Only drawback is getting firmware updates from Apple, so it's a good idea to keep a minimal osx available. If it was me I'd install win 8.1 via bootcamp and get the best if both worlds.

you say minimal os x? what do you mean by that? can i have the hard drive run off windows, but keep the os x there purely for the firmware updates? would that mean it would function as if i bought a normal windows desktop?

 

[MagicBoy]

Just leave the factory OS X install on it, and shrink the partition down to the minimum when Boot Camping it.

 

[WindowsMan95]

Just leave the factory OS X install on it, and shrink the partition down to the minimum when Boot Camping it.

thats all it takes? seriously?

 

[DeltaMac]

The mini has another great feature for you…
You can add a second hard drive/SSD.
Leave the original hard drive with OS X in place, and add a second drive for the purpose of installing Windows.

 

[WindowsMan95]

The mini has another great feature for you…
You can add a second hard drive/SSD.
Leave the original hard drive with OS X in place, and add a second drive for the purpose of installing Windows.

i thought that was only for the mac mini server thing, not the normal one

 

[MagicBoy]

Yeah.

OS X isn't so bad.

----------

i thought that was only for the mac mini server thing, not the normal one

It's the same Mac, just a different spec.

 

[WindowsMan95]

Yeah.

OS X isn't so bad.

----------



It's the same Mac, just a different spec.

hmm so all i need is the mac mini / copy of windows 8.1 /boot camp and im sorted? and here i was thinking i needed to do some complex **** like replace the hdd and update the firmware or something through un-legit means

 

[MagicBoy]

Apple have been perfectly happy to help customers dual boot Windows since 2007.

 

[WindowsMan95]

Apple have been perfectly happy to help customers dual boot Windows since 2007.

see there you say dual boot? so even by making the os x the smallest partition possible, it will try boot both OS in parallel? obviously it will predominantly run windows 8.1 but wont it be taxing on the overall system, affecting speed/performance etc.?

 

[MagicBoy]

so even by making the os x the smallest partition possible, it will try boot both OS in parallel?

No.

You can set the Mac to boot either Windows or OS X at startup. It can't run both at the same time with Boot Camp.

 

[WindowsMan95]

No.

You can set the Mac to boot either Windows or OS X at startup. It can't run both at the same time with Boot Camp.

oh thats fine then

as long as i can use the complete features of windows 8.1 on the mac mini its all fine and dandy, space isnt an issue, i can get external drives for that, no biggie

 

[scottsjack]

oh thats fine then

as long as i can use the complete features of windows 8.1 on the mac mini its all fine and dandy, space isnt an issue, i can get external drives for that, no biggie

I installed a 960GB SSD in the lower bay for OSX. The OEM 1TB slooooow HDD is in the upper bay. I've got Windows 8.1 with PS CS6 and Office 2010 Home & Business installed.

Sure Windows would be faster on an SSD but it's working just fine on the 5400 rpm HDD. I like keeping each OS on a separate drive so if one fails or needs to be removed the other one is not affected.