Parallel and Bootcamp

J

JulienP

Bit poster
Hi,

There is something I didn't understand with Parallel Desktop.
I have a working bootcamp partition, I mean windows is installed on it, and activated.

When I installed PD it asked me where to store the VM. I choose the bootcamp partition. But now it asks me for the windows DVD. Why? I don't want to reinstall windows, I would like to use my existing bootcamp one.

Thanks
 
JulienP said:
Hi,

There is something I didn't understand with Parallel Desktop.
I have a working bootcamp partition, I mean windows is installed on it, and activated.

When I installed PD it asked me where to store the VM. I choose the bootcamp partition. But now it asks me for the windows DVD. Why? I don't want to reinstall windows, I would like to use my existing bootcamp one.

Thanks
Click to expand...

Looks like you started to create new VM with fresh windows installation. If you want to use you BootCamp in Parallels Desktop you need to create VM BASED on BootCamp patition and store this VM on you Mac partition.

Try this steps:
0. You need to have valid windows installation on BootCamp partition
1. Make sure that BootCamp partition is mounted (you can access it from Finder). If not - run Disk Utility and mount BootCamp partition.
2. Start Parallels Desktop
3. Go to File -> New
4. Chose "Boot Camp partition" in drop down list as installation source and follow the wizard steps.
 
This sounds exactly like what happened with my installation.
If you insert the Windows disk you will loose all the windows stuff already on your boot camp (and boot camp will become un-bootable.

This seems very counterintuitive and I'm surprised that the default installation method worked that way.
I'm not at all familiar with any of the Windows terminology though so it's all greek to me.

I will say that Parallels seems to work wonderfully, never should have even bothered to set up a Boot Camp, just can not believe that it would let me copy over everything already in my windows.
 
Now it will not "copy over everything already in my windows", it will create new windows installation not related to BootCamp.
 
Nono, I'm sorry, I was not referring to what your solution, just the situation that was originally referenced.

I'm sure the steps in your post would work if I could,
(a) understand what the steps were. :-b
(b) Had done them before I messed everything up!

I just wanted to warn Julien that proceeding along the original course would not be good.
I should just stay off the computer..... :-b
 
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