Installing Windows 7 on a macbook 13"

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kiwi4ever

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I have a 13" macbook (not Pro). I currently have Parallels 4.0 and planning to upgrade to 5.0. I have Windows XP Pro 64 bit running on it. My macbook also has 4G's of Ram and a 500 GB HD on it. I want to know if it will be able to run both the XP I currently have on it and Windows 7 Pro as well, once I have the 5.0 upgrade.
 
Parallels Desktop 6 is the latest version. It will be available in 3 days but you can use a trial version now. You can run Windows XP and Windows 7 on Parallels Desktop 5 and 6 but I wouldn't recommend running two virtual machines at the same time with only 4 GB of RAM unless both virtual machines are assigned 1 GB of RAM or less.
 
I am a newbie.

I want to install Windows 7 under Boot Camp and use it independently.

I also want to install Parallels?

How do I create a Virtual Machine running Windows 7 without ever getting Boot Camp involved?

The reason is because I want to maintain Boot Camp in a pure and pristine Windows environment and I do not want to mess it up by creating a Virtual Machine from the Boot Camp partition.

Can somebody guide me along?
 
Installing Windows 7 on a MacBook

Thank You, joevt.

Apple says it doesn't recommend OEM version of Windows 7 yet I read from a third party book that says it is OK and my Mac friend says it is OK too.

What is your recommendation?

After installing Win 7 on Boot Camp partition, I will be installing additional applications/programs into it and also update Windows like on any normal Windows notebook.

Can you tell me whether Parallels VM (if using BootCamp) would constantly "update" itself with the latest changes made to Win 7 partition whenever I open this VM under Mac?

Do I have problem with Windows activation under Parallels if I had activated it under Boot Camp?

Do I update Windows and Anti-Virus under Parallels VM or BootCamp?

I read somewhere in Parallels manual that I shouldn't load the Win drivers for printers under Win 7 on BootCamp. If I don't, how am I to print under Boot Camp? If I do, will it conflict with the Mac printer drivers instead under Mac OS?

I am new - I want to do things right from the beginning. I hope to have your advice.

Thank You
 
You'll probably have activation problems with Parallels if you use an OEM version for the Boot Camp version since Parallels uses different hardware than Boot Camp. Buy a retail version to be safe.
http://kb.parallels.com/5129

You'll create a virtual machine in Parallels Desktop that uses the Boot Camp partition for it's virtual hard disk. Whatever you put on the disk in Boot Camp will be there when you use the partition for Parallels and vice-versa.

You'll active Windows once while using Boot Camp, then when you create a virtual machine in Parallels and boot the virtual machine, and install Parallels Tools, and restart, then you might need to activate it again in Parallels. After that, you shouldn't need to activate it again in either Boot Camp or Parallels.

You can update Windows and Anti-Virus in either Parallels or Boot Camp.

Go ahead and load the Windows drivers for printers under Win 7 in either Boot Camp or Parallels. It won't conflict with the Mac printer drivers. Parallels Tools will install it's own printer driver called "Use Mac Printer" which is connected to the virtual printer port LPT1 which you can use to print to a Mac printer. You can also print to the printer driver you installed if the printer is a network printer, or if the printer is a USB printer and you attached it to Parallels.
 
Installing Windows 7

Going by your advice, shouldn't I have the same activation problem for all other applications that I would install under Win 7, eg. Anti-virus, Paperport, Adobe Arobat since the Boot Camp and VM are considered as two separate machines?

By the way, I understand that OEM version may mean System Builder version, i.e. a copy of Win 7 that is intended for DIY computer, not a copy that had been used on another computer. The OEM version I intend to buy has never been installed on any computer and never been activated before.

So will I have activation problem after creating VM in Parallels?

In pages 71-72 of Parallels Desktop User's Guide, it says I can creating a Boot Camp Virtual Machine OR Import Data from Boot Camp to a New Virtual Machine. The first method tie the VM to Boot Camp; the second option is not connected to the Boot Camp partition at all.

Which method is better?

Thank you Joevt for being my guru!
 
Most applications don't use the hardware dependant activation that Windows does. I think Microsoft Office does. The rest might complain if you try to run the same app on more than one computer at the same time but you can't run a Parallels computer and Boot Camp computer at the same time unless they are actually different computers.

OEM will work with Parallels. The question is, will it work with both Parallels and Boot Camp? The answer is probably not since they present different hardware to Windows.

You create a Boot Camp virtual machine if you want to boot your Mac into Boot Camp, and also use the same installation in Parallels.

You import from a Boot Camp virtual machine if you already have a Boot Camp installation and you want to move it to a virtual hard disk and get rid of the Boot Camp installation.
 
Hi, if BootCamp and Parallels are structured as if each is a separate computer, then shouldn't I have the same problem with activation of Win7 whether it is an OEM or a retail version?

First, I activate under BootCamp.

Later I switch to running Windows under Parallels. Will I be asked to activate again in Parallels VM?

Will I be asked to activate again in BootCamp?

I am told that once I activate under BootCamp, the Parallels VM will continue to run as "it is" since it is emulating the WIndows installation under BootCamp?
 
The "Using Boot Camp Partition in Virtual Machine" section of the Parallels Desktop Help says that after you create the Boot Camp virtual machine and install Parallels Tools to it, "you will be able to boot into your Boot Camp partition from Parallels virtual machine or use it as usual by booting into the Windows partition." Maybe this means you only need to activate in Boot Camp.

They don't say anything about OEM or Windows activation issues so I'm not 100% sure that it won't work.
 
Hi all,

I have been running a trial version of 5 with windows 7 and my virtual is asking to be activated but when i boot into boot camp all is ok again. i hope there is a fix as i bought version 6 hoping it would fix this problem of being asked to activate eveytime i use paralles. i try and ativate it in windows and says i have to buy a new license.... help!
 
I think it doesn't matter if it is OEM (correctly should be call System Builder) or retail IF both version has never been installed in any other computers.

Once it is activated under Boot Camp, I would assume that it doesn't need re-activation when running under Parallels BECAUSE it is "created" from the partition which would make the VM an image, an exact replica.

I am afraid too many activiations and re-activations would render Windows unworkable and I would have a hard time fixing it even by calling Microsoft because I believe the problem would recur.

If WIndows recognise BootCamp as one computer and as another new computer under Parallels, technically we have violated the "one-computer" license. Which I think shouldn't be the case as Parallels is supposed to work Windows under Mac OS X.
 
It is not explicitly stated anywhere that Parallels' hack to enable Windows to be run from Boot Camp and Parallels works with OEM versions or even that such a hack exists or how exactly it works in relation to Windows activation.

The last kb article on the issue was for Parallels Desktop 3:
http://kb.parallels.com/en/4672

There's a kb item about "preserving" MS Office 2010 activation in Parallels Desktop 5. Perhaps a similar technique is used to preserve Windows activation.
http://kb.parallels.com/en/8706

Quainy has installed Windows 7 to a Boot Camp partition. The product key was for OEM. He activated it in Boot Camp. He can't activate it in Parallels. Therefore, the problem is one of the following:
a) There's a bug in Parallels.
b) Parallels' hack does not support using OEM version of Windows in Boot Camp and Parallels.
c) There is a hack but it requires a version of Windows that allows more than one activation.
d) There is no hack and OEM version of Windows can't be activated in both Boot Camp and Parallels.
 
As long as the OEM is full version, I think it doesn't matter. There are professional books on Mac that recommend OEM as it is much cheaper. The only catch for OEM, I believe, is that it has never ever been activated before in a Windows machine.

Technically, an OEM or Retail version allows only ONE installation on ONE computer.

As you said, BootCamp and Parallels are treated as two separate computers, so we will have the activation problem.

So it boils down to Parallels - if the software is sold as being able to boot into BootCamp and run under Parallels in Mac OS X, I would expect that activation is a non-issue. As end-users, we don't care how it works behind the scene....running Windows in Parallels shouldn't behave differently from running Windows directly in BootCamp.
 
Hey Joevt,

STrange thing is although in Parallels it is constantly complaining about re-activation when booting into boot camp all is ok and license is fine..... what a disappointment!
 
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