new to Parallels, but have used VMWare Workstation and Server - architecture Q

[JohnHines]

Hello,

I am new to Parallels, but have used VMWare Workstation and VMWare Server, and
other virtualization software like Virtual Box. I am planning to acquire a Mac Pro workstation
(once they are released in December), and a Mac Book Pro. I want to standardize around
running 3 OS images - Mac OS X Mavaricks, Windows 7 64-bit, and Oracle Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.1.
My goals are simple: have a system that lets me seemlessly switch from these 3 OS images. I know
that BootCamp has some restrictions -- you need to reboot to switch between the 3 images.
What I want to do is start with Parallels Desktop 9 for Mac on both systems, and install the three OSs
in parallel. With all this said, I want to plan out my installation, and figure out what order to do my installs in.

QUESTION 1 - if my goals is Parallels + these three OS images running simultaneously, or switching between one
or the other without reboot, what is the best order to install the software in? e.g. Parallels as base image, and
then the other three? Mavaricks OS X as base image, and then Parellels, and then the other two? So, looking
for some guidance from a user of Parallels that has done something like this.

QUESTION 2 - I would like to acquire a license for my desktop and for my laptop, and replicate the same
setup as describe above on each. How does the license for Parallels work in this case? Can I buy a multi-seat
license key that lets me have 2 activations? What is the best pricing for buying up to 4 licenses for home and
mobile usage?

QUESTION 3 - I am used to using VMWare Workstation, and being able to pause and snapshot a virtual machine.
Assume I have 3 parallel OS images running. Can all 3 be running in parallel ? If not, what are the limitations to
running 3 images at once? Can I take snapshots of these 3 images using Parallels? Where do the snapshots
go on disk ? (the last question depends on the answer to QUESTION 1 - deployment order of the software?)
Can Parallels act as the hypervisor, and allow these 3 OS images to be run on top of it?

QUESTION 4 - if I want to play Halo on Windows 7, would it be perform well enough -- follow up question
to whatever answer I get for QUESTION 1.

Anyway, I think these four are enough questions. Hopefully someone out there has already deployed my grand
vision of 3 OSes running on Mac Pro (the new desktop) and MacBook Pro (the new laptops).

Thanks in advance for any pointers,

John Hines

 

[Parallels User]

There's no Parallels as base image, Parallels runs under OS X (Host). Currently there is no Parallels Bare-Metal for Macs.

You'll have Mavericks as Host and main OS, Parallels Desktop running inside it, and you can then add the other 2 OSs as Guest OSes in Parallels, you can even had a Mavericks Guest, but that might be redundant

 

[JohnHines]

Thanks!

There's no Parallels as base image, Parallels runs under OS X (Host). Currently there is no Parallels Bare-Metal for Macs.

You'll have Mavericks as Host and main OS, Parallels Desktop running inside it, and you can then add the other 2 OSs as Guest OSes in Parallels, you can even had a Mavericks Guest, but that might be redundant

Thanks for the fast response. I truly appreciate it. I came to the same conclusion later tonight doing more research. Since I will be running
the entire Adobe Creative Cloud suite, and want to get full performance out of it, it makes sense to do Mavericks as Host and main OS, and
then the other 2 operating systems running under Parallels. Windows 7 is only around for things like Office and legacy apps, and RHEL
for software development, and web application hosting.

I was reading over http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_VMware_Fusion_and_Parallels_Desktop -- and as having trouble deciding between
Parallels and VMware Fusion. I am a long time VMWare Workstation and Desktop user, so it is hard to choose between the two. The WIKIpedia
write-up I need to digest to figure out which is the right choice. If you are aware of a more recent side-by-side comparison of the two, it would
certainly help me complete my architecture definition for new desktop and laptop.

Again, thanks!