Parallels Desktop
15.1.4
15.1.4
See all Versions

Naoh

21 March 2019

Version: 14.1.2

Parallels 14.1.3 is available.

(0)

07 February 2019

Version: 14.1.1

A comment of annoyance: If you check out the release notes for WINE v4.0 you'll find:
"What's new in Wine 4.0. . . . Initial support for Direct3D 12 is implemented. Direct3D 12 support requires the vkd3d library, and a Vulkan-capable graphics card."

Meanwhile, we've been making requests to Parallels, VMWare and Oracle for YEARS to implement DirectX 11 and 12 capability, with no likelihood of it ever happening. And yet, the WINE project figured out how to do it. Explain that to me. ?

(3)

stevend

04 January 2019

Version: 14.1.0

Strange to list 14.1.0 as a new update, because it is an update from months ago!

(1)

20 December 2018

Version: 14.0.1

Guys, The following article sheds light on why Virtualization systems have not been able to solve the Direct X 11 and higher problem. https://www.parallels.com/blogs/directx-and-parallels-desktop-13/ Now Apple has made no secret that it is deprecating support for OpenGL, that Metal is the future. But Metal would seem NOT to have the necessary APIs or mapping to solve the problem either, as Metal 1.0 has been around since 2014 and Metal 2.0 since mid-2017, plenty of time for Fusion, Parallels, etc, to figure out Direct X 11+ support, ASSUMING Metal 2.0 was capable of solving the issues. So, it would seem Metal 2.0 is still lacking something. I'm not a graphics expert, but my understanding is that Vulkan is possibly the answer to a lot of these cross platform graphics support issues. Metal and DX sitting on top of Vulkan would provide a bridge, across multiple OS platforms; the graphics version of the 'write once, run anywhere' idea.

(0)

B-Jefferson-Le-Blanc

15 October 2018

Version: 14.0.1

If you're wondering, Parallels Desktop 13.3.2 works fine in Mojave. You don't need to pay for an upgrade at this time if you don't want to. Both Parallels and VMWare Fusion are constantly bugging us for an upgrade even when the current version works OK.

(0)

Show comments (11)

15 October 2018

Version: 13.3.2

Parallels Desktop v14.0.1 is now available. It is compatible with macOS 10.14 Mojave and adds several new features.

(0)

[this review is for version 14]: switching back to Parallels 14 after moving to Fusion 8, 10 post Parallels 12.
This version is a big winner (vs. Fusion, including the current 2018 Tech preview). Coherence integration is so much superior to the shaky Fusion Unity view, it's not even funny. The entire experience is a lot smoother (on 2018 i9 MBP with 32GB RAM), more responsive, and has more integration options.
Network performance to local/Mac host folders is 100x faster, no delays (unlike Fusion).
Massive thumbs up for Parallels.
Only downside: More expensive for the Pro version on the annual subscription, and doesn't cover two machines like Fusion (but worth it).

(2)

13.3.2 is a rather important update. It implements 64bit parallels tools for OSX guest, improving the performance of osx guests.

(1)

When I bought my iMac back at the end of 2015, I bought the Parallels version of it. It slowed down my computer to the degree that everything crashed despite adjusting settings to make it fast. I quit using Parallels and decided to use my mac functionality of Bootcamp. I wish also that I could get a refund for my money. I'm tired of believing companies that software sometimes it works and sometimes it does not.

(1)

This is probably one of the easiest VM applications to use. Sadly, their pricing is absolutely terrible and greedy. If they don't take care of their pricing, they will probably lose in the long run. For now, I paid for this.

(0)

Jimw

26 October 2017

Version: 13.1.1

After a frustrating experience with VMWare after paying for and spending the best part of a weekend trying to get their their latest version upgrade installed on my MacPro Desktop, only to find out after installation it is incompatible with my processor, I emailed Parallels presages questions. That was 3 weeks ago and never got a reply. I switched from Parallels years ago due to poor support and customer service. Based on this experience that has not changed! So I will continue using Fusion until I get my new MacPro Desktop next year and then try Virtual Box. If I am not going to get decent support from either company, why should I pay for their software when open source is available?

(5)

26 October 2017

Version: 13.1.1

MU has a wrong, DEAD link for downloading Parallels 13.1.1:
http://www.jdoqocy.com/click-[blahblahblah]

Use this real instead:
https://download.parallels.com/desktop/v13/13.1.1-43120/ParallelsDesktop-13.1.1-43120.dmg

NOTES: I did research on the now DEAD http://www.jdoqocy.com website and discovered that it was a nuisance marketing website that forwarded victims to another nuisance marketing site formerly called Commission Junction (Junk-tion IMHO) now called Conversant. RipoffReport.com users have repeatedly reported this company as "an elaborate scam ripoff con!" Why MU has a link to them, I cannot imagine.

IOW: FIX THIS PLEASE MU!

(1)

Aw21

10 October 2017

Version: 13.1.0

With the 13.1 update all my Windows 10 VMs stall (hang) on boot and the Parallels application in the Application folder is invisible. Unusable. I had to revert to Parallels 13.0.1.

(1)

? no more mouse and keyboard input in Mac OS 10.8 VM after update to 13.1 Very funny, Parallels. That costs little, happy stars ;-)

(2)

An absolutely superb product on every level, with years of polish behind it. Best in class, and significantly better than its competitors in my experience.

(0)

Parallels does no longer support Apple Bootcamp (since Parallels 13) sorry without that function this Software is nearly worthless to me!!!!

(3)

I have purchased Parallels Desktop 12.x on June 22, 2017. I contacted Parallels Customer support yesterday after having received an email announcing the availability of version 13. Since I had just purchased, I thought they would help me out to get version 13 with paying the full price again. I was WRONG to trust them. They said that only people who've purchased on August 1st and later will get upgraded free of charge. The rest of their customers must pay again no matter what. Word of advice, buy VMware. They have been there forever. Parallels are just a greedy bunch who don't care about loyal customers even if you've been purchasing their software since their early years. Once again, stay far from Parallels!

(19)

22 August 2017

Version: 12.2.1

Parallels 13 was released today. Information @ http://www.parallels.com/upgradepd13

(0)

dabcca

15 August 2017

Version: 12.2.1

Parallels V13 should be out any day soon.....

(1)

Love Parallels a must for any Mac power user or professional who uses different apps in their day some of which are only available for Windows. Let's face it there are some apps on Windows with no Mac equivalent. Parallels let's me run those special Windows apps I need without having to go to another computer or reboot my Mac into Windows. It's so convenient and powerful and saves me a ton of time and allows me to use all the tools I need.

(2)

09 May 2017

Version: 12.2.0

FYI for version 11 users. Parallels just updated to v11.2.3. It is a compatibility fix for running the latest Windows 10 update on macOS 10.12.x.

(2)

ylluminate

18 April 2017

Version: 12.2.0

Breaks my heart, but 12.x is less problematic than VMware 8.5.x has been. Having said that, I've had to completely uninstall and reinstall Parallels after the 10.12.4 update for some reason due to an odd startup delay issue, but overall it has been a lot more functional overall with some of the bugs that seem to be creeping into VMware after the enormous layoff...

(0)

Alvin-H

10 March 2017

Version: 12.1.3

If you feel enought paying 80$US every year to paralles (to 1 mac, i have 2 macs) you can try other option: cost looks like same 80$US but it's not yearly fee, and it's not per mac, you can use on multiple mac. Or can try free one virtualbox or Veertu desktop (free too) but no Mac OS guest yet

(1)

Show comments (4)

Aw21

29 January 2017

Version: 12.0.2

Running the "Reclaim Disk Space" action on all my Windows VMs (Windows 10, 8.1, 7, Vista, XP) corrupted their disks. When trying to launch the VMs some of them start with "Preparing Automatic Repair" and other just present a black screen. Trying to repair the disks was not successful. I had to restore the VMs from backups. Using the "Reclaim Disk Space" action on macOS or linux VMs seems to work fine. I'm using Parallels Desktop 12 Version for Mac Pro Edition (Version 12.1.2 (41525)) on a MacBook Pro (late 2016) running macOS Sierra 10.12.2 (16C67). This looks like a fatal bug to me as it results in data loss. I've posted this on the Parallels forum but got not response.

(2)

ylluminate

27 January 2017

Version: 12.0.2

12.1.3 (41532) is out: http://kb.parallels.com/en/123948 This update for Parallels Desktop 12 for Mac 12.1.3 (41532) for Parallels Desktop Standard and Pro Edition addresses overall stability and performance issues, and includes the following fixes and improvements: • Resolves an issue with request to enter Mac administrator password on every Parallels Desktop start. • Resolves an issue with Problem ID 15380 on Parallels Desktop start. • Resolves and issue with mouse not working on external display after it has been reconnected • Resolves an issue with Parallels Desktop crashes when trying to print to PDF

(1)

ylluminate

28 December 2016

Version: 12.0.2

Any reason we're not seeing current updates here anymore?

(2)

!!!! PARALLELS USERS : CAUTION !!!! DO NOT UPGRADE TO VERSION 12.1 IF YOU HAVE A "NON RECURRING" VERSION (that is not Pro version and not Business Edition). IF YOU UPGRADE YOU WILL ONLY BE ABLE TO ASSIGN 8GB OF RAM TO YOUR VM's !!!! IF YOU UPGRADE YOU WILL ONLY BE ABLE TO ALLOCATE 4CORES TO YOUR VM !!!! This is simply the most outrageous update EVER ! They already showed their greed when MacOsX 10.11 came out, claiming that Parallels 10 would not be compatible... when it was perfectly. So they scared people urging them to upgrade when there was ABSOLUTELY no need to do so ! But this is simply going much to far... and this is a simple way to tell : "Give me 80€ each year". I will NOT do that... I would urge people to try the competitors... One is even FREE !

(4)

Macbookpro

13 November 2016

Version: 12.0.2

Version 12.1.0 is out... Info about it is here http://kb.parallels.com/en/123948

(2)

I have Parallels Desktop Pro 12, which was won in a prize draw. I thought that I'd be getting a standard non-Pro version, and I was disappointed that I got a professional version instead. Why would I be frustrated in getting a more advanced edition, you might ask, it is because the app will stop to function within a year, as I discovered when I registered serial number on Parallels website. I want to upgrade apps at a pace of my own choosing and as such, I will not even install the app, as to not to get locked out when the time is up. Technically it is a great peace of software, it's a pity that stance on customers blows it all away, for me at least.

(3)

pettifogger0712

26 August 2016

Version: 12.0.0

I've used Parallels since Version 6 and it has always worked pretty well for me BUT the yearly upgrade price of $49 is becoming pretty onerous. I now wait until it is bundled with a few other apps or offered as a special on MU before buying it. Not sure if I'll be upgrading to v12, however, as v11 in conjunction with Windows 10 is working well on my mid-2011 iMac :-)

(1)

OhEssex

26 August 2016

Version: 12.0.0

When I see Parallels appear in the daily MacUpdate listings it shows as 3.5 stars. When I click on it in the listings I go to the Parallels page, where it shows at the top as half a star. If I scroll down past the ads to where the comments/reviews start I now see that the overall rating is 4 stars. Can we have a little more consistency here. What do the 3 different star ratings mean? I went back through all the comments/reviews for about 4 years and even 3.5 stars looks very generous indeed. I know that for many years now Parallels have been hosing their customers and I think the reviews that imply a rating over lifetime need to culled down to something like maybe 3 years. Just because every man and his dog thought Parallels was awesome back when it first came out and there wasn't really anything like it at the time bears no reflection at all on what seasoned users think of it today (after how they've been treated by Parallels).

(2)

26 August 2016

Version: 12.0.0

No DirectX 10 support in sight. Same old 'wait and see' response from Parallels when asked about this now ancient holdup. Can't play modern 3D games. *Discontented* :-( :-P

(1)

Caution!!! I'm a long time user and tried going to 12 but had to quickly revert to 11. I'm sure it will get resolved in a while but at the moment v12 is unusably buggy in many ways. Go read the Parallels forums and you'll get an idea. Fiver starts when it's good but right now... not usable for V12

(0)

BUYER BEWARE. As at 7/30/16, there is a big problem with Windows 10 activation recognizing the Virtual Machine if you're switching from using BootCamp to Parallels, and Parallels 11 blows away your Windows license in both Parallels AND on BootCamp if you try to point Parallels at Win 10 on BootCamp. If you're running Win 8.1 on BootCamp, installing Parallels 11 will kill the Win 8.1 license in Parallels, but it leaves it OK on BootCamp, so if you're dead with Win 10 in Parallels you can downgrade back to 8.1 in BootCamp and your license will still be there. I've been told by Parallels support today that they're working on a workaround, but be sure they've fixed it before you kill your Win 10 license. They said "We apologize for the inconvenience, but this issue is caused by Windows 10 activation policies: the activation key is bounded to the hardware and as the virtual machine emulates hardware it differs from the real one reasonably enough. You're not the only one facing this issue and our Development team already works upon a workaround for this issue, but you should understand that it is a Windows licensing issue, not the Parallels one." Er, not really. It's a Parallels issue because they claim you can run Windows in their Virtual Machine, and now you can't! Personally, I'm leaving them completely after it took me 48 hours of support calls before they 'fessed up that that they knew they had a problem. I'll try something else.

(3)

Rikyman

12 July 2016

Version: 11.2.0

I was a parallels suporter, but the new licencing is no go, it's not an upgrade but a big downgrade, there are better less ripping user software, I have moved do VMWare, after this.

By the price of this software you can buy an infocus kangaroo and have a Windows machine allways with you.

(2)

Version 11 is a rip off because it's basically version 10 minus version 11's pro features. Why on earth would I buy a downgraded version or pay an annual subscription to get same old features!? I will be using my old version 10 which is great!

(3)

I am still using v8 with OSX10.11.5 and working fine. As long it does, I will not update for sure. The license scheme is just plain -How to ripping off people every year-.

(4)

Akwarner

10 May 2016

Version: 11.1.3

Version 11.2.0 is out

(0)

It's expensive crap. No apology for language - that's 100% truth. I've nothing to apologize for. Parallels is expensive crap. Every OSX they're releasing SW, which differs only in one parameter: "allowed-version-osx". No way Parallels there is replacement and I am happily using it!
If you'd provide your piece of SW for reasonable price - I'd maybe consider. But you f* with me once I nought in past & you're simply pricey - for NO additional value - maybe some poor other users need to use your solution, but if they'd try to search a bit - you're gonna die by hunger!
That half star as rating is more than generous. And yes, you're too greedy.

(10)

iamdavid

31 March 2016

Version: 11.1.3

So when I criticized MacUpdate for this update to Parallels being f ive weeks late in being posted here they deleted my post within a coupe of hours. Says a lot about them... Wonder how soon this will be removed...

(3)

Mastcell

31 March 2016

Version: 11.1.2

I got an email from MacUpdate that goes like this:

......We've partnered with MacUpdate Community favorite Parallels to offer you 2 exclusive discounts:
Parallels Desktop 11 for only $59.99 - 25% off the normal price of $79.99......

Parallels Desktop 11 is ideal for home and student use, and of course, this PERPETUAL license of Parallels allows you to run Windows and Mac applications side by side......

What is the meaning of the word 'Perpetual'. Does this means there is no need to fork out for future upgrades ever? Or is this a misprint?

(1)

Donmontalvo

24 March 2016

Version: 11.1.2

11.1.3 (32521) has been out a while now, might want to bookmark: http://kb.parallels.com/en/123410

(0)

20 January 2016

Version: 11.1.1

The current version is 11.1.2 (not 11.1.1 as listed today).

I've had minimal problems with Parallels 11 for my purposes. It is an improvement over v10 IMHO.

DirectX Problem:
I continue to be dismayed that NO virtualization system, including Parallels, VMWare and VirtualBox, supports anything beyond DirectX v10. Note that WINE is no better. That knocks them all out as able to play the most recent 3D games. And no, the problem is NOT (necessarily) the GPU hardware of the Mac. The problem is bothering to code the translators to allow use of the GPU hardware on the Mac. I consider this a dead end issue. Sad.

(1)

I finally had enough with Parallels version 11. I´m one of those who didn´t read the licensing terms good enough. I thought Great, I can activate and deactivate some Parallels with my Parallels account (As Microsoft beautifully do it with Office 365). But you are forced to BOTH log in to the account AND enter a serial number (Oh why?) AND you are only allowed to have ONE installation?? If something fails you have to call them to reset you install counter one ONE!! In addition Parallels 11 fails to update Windows 10 when there is a new release. It freezes my computer and I have to force KILL my mac and reboot. Then it rolls back the failed Win 10 installation. So today I used the cross grade offer from a competitor, even if it has slightly lower 3D performance it is allowed to have it installed on my iMac, Mac Pro and Mac Book in addition to it being more stable. Version 10 of Parallels was beautiful, so I´m a little sad to say goodbye. But I cannot support these practices. So goodbye Parallels, hope to see you again when you clean up your business practices and fix your instability.

(3)

I decided to abandon Parallels now after being told I should be able use the PD11 trial side by side with my older PD8 installation. At no point during installation am I Informed that the PD11 Trial will delete my older installation, but that is of course the end result. The sales support were nice and helpful, but I got enough of such schemes. I don't fully understand the crticism of the yearly fees as that is optional. Cross-grading to Fusion is my next step.

(3)

12 November 2015

Version: 11.0.2

A comparison review of Fusion 8, Parallels 11 (and VirtualBox 5) http://www.tekrevue.com/2015-vm-benchmarks-parallels-11-vs-fusion-8/ Very interesting...for many years most reviews gave PD the speed edge (especially with Windows guests), and Fusion a slight stability edge. Fusion v 7 closed the speed gap, and now Fusion 8 and PD 11 are for the most part neck and neck. With the new licensing policy of PD, it just makes it easier to switch to Fusion knowing that you are also no longer sacrificing functionality or performance in doing so. I used PD and Fusion both from their inception. Mainly PD for Windows guests, and Fusion for OSX guests and cross compatiblity with VMWare Workstation. After PD 11 was released and the new licensing, I migrated all my PD images to Fusion and now using Fusion exclusively.

(6)

higherterrain-com

12 October 2015

Version: 11.0.0

This app has been updated

(0)

So, in addition to my work laptop, I go to install Parallels on my home machine (something previously allowable given that nobody has figured out how to be in two places at the same time yet). The installation process first deletes the old version, and after you enter your license number it reports back to say it's already in use on a different computer and you're prompted to cough up another $50 or bail out and spend the time finding your old version and reinstalling that all over again. I was in a hurry preparing for something and I just had to bite the bullet and buy another (my very last) copy. I despise this company. The software they have may be good, but I'm certain their CEO is both an analyst and a therapist!

(4)

Just as I was getting used to Parallells, this crazy they come up with this new licensing s**t. I can't afford it. So I am forced to look for a better option. Not wise, Parallells. Good bye!

(1)

Just as I was getting used to Parallells, this crazy they come up with this new licensing s**t. I can't afford it. So I am forced to look for a better option. Not wise, Parallells. Good bye!

(5)

Just as I was getting used to Parallells, this crazy they come up with this new licensing s**t. I can't afford it. So I am forced to look for a better option. Not wise, Parallells. Good bye!

(0)

Well after using Parallels from version ONE, I now find I am unable to use/support this product. Parallels has forced a change in licensing, our University can not buy a perpetual licence, we must now pay a 12 month "rent" for it. We are NOT going to do this, we will be shifting all of our business to VMWare instead. None of the "Pro" features are worth the extra costs, and obviously having a customer with tens/hundreds of units is of no interest to Parallels. Its incredibly easy to loose a customer, and once they have shifted, its incredibly difficult to ever get them back.

(4)

28 September 2015

Version: 11.0.0

So I've been playing with PD 11 and Fusion 8 for the last month now (i've been a long time user of both products for many years, and use both professionally and personally). I have a number of Macs running multiple boot partitions from Mavericks, to Yosemite and El Capitan. My observations (your mileage may vary, this is just me) is that on older hardware, PD 11 is slower than PD 10 on the same setup, where as Fusion 8 is faster than Fusion 7 on the same older hardware (old in this case is Core2 Duo macs, not Macs with i series CPUs). On newer hardware (i5's and i7's), I don't notice a difference between Fusion 8 and PD 11 (I don't use for gaming, so not commenting on graphics, just business apps performance). From a licensing perspective, it's getting harder to justify to myself, personally and professionally, to stick with PD, which is one license, one CPU, whereas Fusion is one license/three CPUs. That plus VM compatibility with VMWare Workstation for Windows, I have to give the nod to Fusion. Note this is coming from someone who has used PD primarily for his personally work the last several years, mainly just out of laziness and not wanting to spend time migrating all my VMs fusion. But now I'm switching over (for personal stuff, professionally, still using both, as clients and co-workers have a vested interest in sticking with what they have).

(2)

04 September 2015

Version: 11.0.0

For those concerned (IE gamers): Parallels 11 does NOT (again) support DirectX 11.

*sigh* This has been an issue for years, since DirectX 11 was released. At least Parallels now says they are 'going' to support DirectX11 in Parallels Desktop 11. They suggest signing up and watching their email list for notification of when they finally catch up. I'm waiting on updating to version 11 until they, at last, get this together.

BTW: VMware lags even further behind with DirectX support. They JUST started supporting DirectX 10, which Parallels started supporting back in Parallels 10. There is no sign of VMware supporting DirectX 11. Sheesh!

(0)

86fredhoo

31 August 2015

Version: 11.0.0

Take a look on our desktop service, available foc Macs and other OS: https://www.apponfly.com/en?KAI

(0)

24 August 2015

Version: 11.0.0

For those considering switching over to Fusion, and have Windows 7 images, note that Fusion does not support USB 3.0 with Windows 7 VMs.. this is true of the VMWare Workstation for Windows product as well (no support for USB 3 in virtualized Windows 7 images). Windows 8 and higher, no issues. There was no built in USB 3 drivers in Windows 7. Parallels found a way around that; and wrote virtualized drivers. VMWare has taken the high road and taken the position if USB 3 isn't supported in Windows 7 (ie NATIVE OS DRIVERS, not talking about 3rd party add on drivers from device makers, OEM's, motherboard makers, etc), then it's not supported in VWWare.

Bottom line, do your research. Grass is not necessarily greener on the other side. For the record, I use Fusion and Parallels, so I feel I'm rather unbiased. From a feature/ functionality perspective, I find Fusion MUCH better at OS X virtualization, and Parallels better at Windows virtualization, mainly speeed, but just marginally. YMMV.

From a licensing perspective, i had no issues with PD through version 10, but the new PD 11 user license does have me thinking if the slightly faster speed of running Windows over Fusion is worth all the new limitations in the PD 11 user license.

(0)

Bad faith: Moving Basic features to the Pro edition because "Parallel found out that basic features were well enough for users". What a f*** joke! Previous versions of Parallels allowed virtual machines with up to 16 virtual CPUs and 64GB of RAM. Now only the Pro edition can make virtual machines that big; the non-Pro edition goes up to 4 CPUs and 8GB of RAM. Virtualization for Linux guests, both available in the basic Parallels last year, are now restricted to Pro version only. Support s**ks: It's either, "well you should upgrade to the last version $$$" or simply poor recommendations. Tired of being milked away...

(2)

Awful license scheme is holding me back buying. Although VMware Fusion has the same yearly update, it is much faster when you need OS X VM.

(2)

Although I've been a loyal Parallels customer since version 5 and find the software actually quite good, I can no longer recommend it. Why? Starting with version 11, Parallels is enforcing the single-seat license in their EULA. Whereas I was always able to activate my office computer + my laptop on a single license, I will now have to pay 100% more for my upgrade to Parallels 11 Pro. There is no option for reduced-price extra seats for the Pro version. These abhorrent and customer-hostile license terms are so restrictive, and the lack of any understanding or flexibility on the part of their support team, mean that I have begun the process of moving everything over to VMWare, with excellent performance, unlimited multi-seat licenses for individuals and a crossgrade offer for Parallels customers. I'll vote with my wallet, and with this well-deserve half-star for a product-destroying licensing policy. Goodbye Parallels.

(3)

Just bought version 10 and received it about two months ago, and now there's a $50 upgrade. Not at all impressed. A while ago, VMware offered a sidegrade for users of Parallels Desktop to get the latest version of Fusion for about ten bucks; hopefully they'll offer something similar in the future. After having versions 4, 6, and 7 (and having them all stop working on me after a few OS X updates), I'm done with Parallels.

(7)

SegN3rd

21 August 2015

Version: 11.0.0

Besides my feelings about Parallels' business practices, the fact is that the cost of Parallels plus a license of Windows 10 now costs as much as just buying an HP Stream (or a similar competing product). I know these low-end netbooks aren't as powerful as your Mac, but they also allow you to run Windows without affecting your Mac in any way or using any of its resources, plus they are quite portable. If you find a good enough sale, you can buy Windows-running hardware for less than the cost of Windows-running software.

(2)

OhEssex

19 August 2015

Version: 10.2.2

Seems like only yesterday I finished pulling out my wallet for a YAPU (Yet Another Parallels Upgrade) and now I see Parallels 11 is out and it's another fifty bucks to upgrade. This reminds me of the origin of the expression "daylight robbery" where property taxes were assessed by the number of windows a house had. Parallels (to me) has really just become a Windows tax :-/.

(6)

08 August 2015

Version: 10.2.2

There are many posts on the Net about how to install El Capitan beta into Parallels (v 10). I've tried most of them, the only one I've been successful with is here:
http://www.lostentropy.com/2015/06/10/installing-os-x-10-11-el-capitan-inside-parallels-desktop/

It's involved, but if you follow carefully, don't try to outsmart the instructions and take shortcuts because you think "you know better", then the instructions work. And bear in mind the following, you've been told:
1) the method only works with the Developer Preview of 10.11, not the Public Beta (as of the date of the article, later PUblic Beta after that may work, i don't know).
2) to successfully install Parallels Tools afterwards, you MUST disable SIP/rootless first. You can leave it off or turn it back after PT is installed, but it must be off to install PT.

It is very clear after all my experimenting with the various methods to install 10.11 in Parallels, that the bootloader, install mechanism and creation of a bootable image is different in 10.11 from 10.10, which was also slightly different from 10.9. Heck , even between the Developer Preview and Public Beta of 10.11, there is apparently a difference in the booting and install mechanism, as evidenced by the fact the method referenced above only seems to work with the DP.

Parallels is going to need to make some major adjustments to support painless install of 10.11, which likely means a new Parallels v.11 after El Cap ships.

In anticipation of all the bemoaning about another Parallels 'forced' upgrade to support El Capitan, just keep that in mind that the devs are simply having to keep up with Apple, which continues its history of making MAJOR system level and core changes in OS X with every release since Lion, Not just the boot and installing functions, but the graphics engines, audio, video, hardware abstraction and so on. Parallels is not TextEdit, it's very sophisticated software engineering, that takes development resources to maintain and test, every time Apple makes sweeping changes across the board, all of which comes with a cost. It is not as simple as just changing the 'supported version of OS X' from 10.10 to 10.11 in a some little plist file, and shipping an update to Parallels.

Even the video subsystem in El Cap seems to have been reworked again by Apple. Screen drawing with Yosemite virtual machine in PD, is slower than in Mavericks, but had improved in the latest PD 10.2.2. With El Cap, using the same video driver in Parallels Tools for Yosemite, the screen drawing is very glitchy, and slow, like it was with early Yosemite betas.

Regardless, testing El Cap in a VM is nice. I have El Cap installed natively as well on a partition, but this saves from rebooting between El Cap and my every day configuration.

(0)

Parallels drives me crazy. On the one hand, it is stable, feature rich, and fast. On the other hand, its licensing as absolutely abhorrent. Basically a forced $40 upgrade every year. While previous versions do tend to continue to work on newer OS (v.9 does work on Yosemite, etc.), when a problem arises Parallels basically tells you you need to pay to upgrade for the latest OS support. Add to the fact that it's nearly impossible to deactivate a computer once activate (installed Parallels on a MacBook Air, activated, a few months later sold the Air and bought a Pro, couldn't get Parallels to activate since it claimed the code was already in use - took days with Parallels support to get the issue resolved), the licensing system is just terrible. With that being said, Parallels is the only VM software for Macs that supports USB 3.0 on Windows 7 (or Server 2008) - and this is an invaluable feature. For some asinine reason, VMWare refuses to create USB 3.0 drivers for Windows 7, essentially forcing me to keep using Parallels for my VM needs. Now that Windows 10 is out, and it seems to not completely suck, I am hopeful that I can now ditch Parallels and it's absurd licensing practices for a more sane company in VMWare (well, licensing sane, lack of USB 3 support is pretty insane...)

(14)

Ai! Will NOT allow the update to Windows 10! The Parallels video driver is not signed so Windows 10 refuses to install/update today. See also: http://kb.parallels.com/en/123053 This is known for 2 months still not solved at final release date for Windows 10...

(0)

26 July 2015

Version: 10.2.1

v10.2.2 update is out. Again, it's a messy update. If you run into a failed Parallels Tools installation, the secret is to let the virtual system reboot, then FORCE install Parallels Tools AGAIN. (o_0) You have to reboot your virtual drive a second time. This is not good. Icons on your desktop will be a mess. You may get a screwy screen resolution, although mine reset itself back to normal. IOW: Updates like this are geek worthy. We're used to stuff going wrong all the time. But granny will have a FIT. They have to do better.

(1)

I have been a paid user since version 3 through version 6, Now I can't even use the software, MAC isolated the software as a "Problem Child" now I just have to wonder, what value is this product when every time you turn around you have to pay an "upgrade" fee ? I see this as a seriously flawed and destructive business model that will certainly come back around, (Karma is a female dog) I am sick and tired of the nickel and dime (failed business model) I am moving to another platform that performs better and actually works when my operating system updates. Were mainly talking about 32 bit versus 64 bit here, so really this is a failure on the part of this product and while you may have my money you will never have me as a customer again.

(0)

I have to give Parallels high marks this time around. I had been putting off upgrading because, frankly, I don't need it yet. But I got an e-mail offer for $10 off the usual upgrade price of $49.99; so I paid only $39.99. What's more, they had a companion offer for Toast 12 Titanium for $29.99, which is half the standard upgrade price for Toast. I couldn't pass that up either. I hadn't upgraded Toast since version 8. While 8 still works in Mavericks, I thought this was the best price I'd ever be likely to find on a Toast upgrade. As it turns out, the one I got, version 12, isn't the latest – version 14 was just released – but it's still four versions newer than the one I was using. What really got me posting here was the ease with which I was able to create a Windows 7 virtual machine in Parallels 10 by converting my VMWare Fusion Windows 7 virtual machine; the process left the Fusion virtual machine undisturbed. It went as smooth as you-know-what through a goose. I didn't even know it would be possible. I had been worried about installing Windows 7 in Parallels given that I am already using my Windows 7 license in Fusion – Microsoft licensing policies set the standard for being difficult to deal with (I have been running Windows XP in Parallels. That, too, was not disturbed). But there were no issues when I started up Windows 7 in Parallels 10 - though it took me awhile to get the settings where I want them. And Parallels started up in Coherence mode by default, which was a nuisance till I figured out what was going on and turned Coherence off. The only other issue I had was getting the USB 3 drivers for Windows, but Parallels had a link for that in the USB settings. Very thoughtful. I'm running OS X Mavericks on a 27" iMac with a 1TB Fusion drive, so there's plenty of room for the extra VM. Eventually I plan to upgrade to Windows 10 in VMWare Fusion since Microsoft will be offering it for free for a year. And yes, I have the requisite Windows 7 license to qualify for the free Windows 10 offer. In the meantime, I've skipped Windows 8 altogether because, in my opinion, it's more trouble than it's worth. Windows 10 should be a lot easier to deal with. You may be asking, why am I using both Parallels and Fusion? Well, I bought Parallels at an introductory discount when it first came out. But a version or two on it became unreliable so I decided to give VMWare Fusion a try, also at an introductory discount. I had XP in Parallels and originally put Vista in Fusion – though I had to install XP there because my copy of Vista was an upgrade, not a standalone. I moved that to Windows 7 because Win 7 couldn't easily be installed over XP. Now, of course, I could put Win 10 in either program. Maybe I'll toss a coin. ;-) But I'll continue my policy of running two versions of Windows. Nowadays I could run all my VMs in either app, but they keep leapfrogging one another in feature development so I've never been able to decide to stick with one or the other. And my early experience with Parallels made me wary of putting all my eggs in one basket. They've both gone haywire at one time or another. So, for now, I'll give Parallels 10 five stars. YMMV

(0)

Cowicide

02 June 2015

Version: 10.2.0

MacUpdate, this is up to version 10.2.1 (10.2.1.29006) now

(0)

03 April 2015

Version: 10.2.0

YMMV, but I've seen a noticeable improvement in speed and 'snappiness' with the 10.2.0 upgrade from the previous 10.1, across all VMs (Windows 10, 8, 7, XP; OS X Yosemite, Mavericks). With the Windows 7 VM, which is also installed on Bootcamp on the same machine, it feels virtually native in terms of response. The VM is allocated 2GB RAM on and 1 CPU, on a quad core iMac with 8 GB of RAM, so saying it runs basically as good as the native Windows in Bootcamp which has access to all 8GB and all cores, is saying something. Again, YMMV, I don't run games, so can't speak for raw graphics or 3D acceleration speed, but things like Word and Excel 2013 load and respond quicker in the VM now.

(0)

BEWARE updating to 10.2.0 -> DON'T DO IT!!! Stick with the previous version until Parallels get their act together. Using the update feature in Parallels 10, I updated to 10.2.0 and all hell broke loose. I ended up with a barely working, messed up Windows XP Pro. Among the problems inflicted by this poorly planned update: 1) Windows freaked out that Parallels Tools had installed a bad disk driver. 2) This caused the Parallels Tools installation to FAIL. 3) Upon forced reboot, the Windows XP display settings were ruined. Windows warned me of the problem and tried to help me get a better picture. I tried and found the desktop image resolution was still awful. 4) Then Window freaked again, telling me: "A problem occurred during hardware installation. Your new hardware might not work properly." And it didn't. So I wrote Parallels support in detail about the mess they had inflicted. They never wrote back to me. Gee thanks! I wrote to them further about my solution, which was to: 1) Manually download the full installer for 10.2.0. 2) Run the installer. 3) Watch the Parallels Tools installer mess up AGAIN. 4) Reboot Windows XP and run Parallels Tools installer a SECOND time. 5) Manually adjust the ruined display settings. This time the resolution problem cleared up and all looks fine. For putting me through this abysmal update and wasting my time, Parallels earns 2 stars in this review. Well earned. VMWare is calling...

(1)

Prologos

31 March 2015

Version: 10.1.4

Parallels Desktop 10 Upgrade: Dream Exchange (or Fraud/Ripp off ???) In US$ = 49.99 In Euro = 68.50 In CHF = 66.99 Actual Exchange is 1 CHF = US$ 0.9730 / Euro 1.0732

(3)

27 February 2015

Version: 10.1.4

Just learned some interesting trivia and computing history. Those old enough, you remember IBM OS/2 operating system from the late 80's to mid 90's? OS/2 was meant to replace DOS, and jointly developed by IBM and Microsoft. It was supposed to be Windows before Windows existed. Microsoft got tired of waiting on IBM, in the meantime they came out with Windows 3 which was supposed to be a stop gap until OS/2 with a GUI was ready. But Windows 3 sold like crazy MS continued developing Windows. Windows 3.1 and 95 were hugely successful and the rest is history. Meanwhile OS/2 was deployed heavily in the banking and financial sector, because they ran big IBM mainframes. Many ATM machines ran OS/2 because it was (for its time) very stable, capable of 24/7 operation, compared to DOS and Windows 3.x. When IBM stopped development of OS/2, companies heavily invested in it either migrated to Windows NT / XP or tried to limp along. A bank in Moscow which used OS/2 heavily, hired a group of developers (Russian) to solve their OS/2 problem and find ways to keep OS/2 running on the newer and newer hardware coming out. The developers determined the best solution was not to try to continue development of OS/2 but find a way to run OS/2 virtualized. That product became Parallels Workstation and that company became Parallels. With their knowledge and experience gained of how to virtualize Intel x86 hardware, the company saw a market opportunity with the Mac, to run Windows and PC software. And viola, Parallels Desktop for Mac was born. The irony is so wonderful and sweet!!! Microsoft told IBM to bug off and jumped ship on OS/2. But OS/2 wouldn't die, and people trying to continue using OS/2 spawned the birth of Parallels, which now allows Mac users (hardware made by Apple, Microsoft's main competitor) to run their competitors flagship product Microsoft Windows, without having to buy additional x86 PC hardware. And where did the x86 PC hardware start? With the IBM PC!! OMG! The absolute twisted-ness of this story is precious. Add to that the fact that it took the Russians to develop it, just to keep running IBM OS/2 on a PC, which--extra irony-- IBM no longer makes PCs anyways, because they sold their PC division to guess who? A Chinese company, Lenovo. So the story starts back at a time when the Russians and Chinese were our adversaries, and ends up today where we owe one country for developing Parallels to let us run Windows on Macs, and the other we buy PCs from by the hundred of thousands that bought the PC division from the company that started it all in the first place. Gotta love it!! And yes, you can run OS/2 in Parallels, I've done it (supposedly you can also run OS/2 in VFusion and VirtualBox, but I've never tried it).

(2)

It's hard to review something that runs Windows fairly as it is, after all, Windows. That anything should do such a good job of running Windows in emulation is amazing. I have to set up a lot of DSP hardware using device-specific Windows applications and Parallels has no problem communicating with any of the external hardware I've come across, whether it be a serial or network connection. Superb. Ten stars if it could run Windows without actually having to run Windows! Sigh.

(0)

29 January 2015

Version: 10.1.2

What a bunch of cr*p. For two afternoons I've tried to find a way to request the FREE UPDAGE from 9 to 10 as I have recently purchased 9. All I can find is the $49.99 paid upgrade. I believe if they really have a commitment to a free upgrade path that option should be on the same url as the paid upgrade. Arrrrgggg.

(4)

For years now I have not be able to create or resize a disk to larger than 64GB. Website says this is a know problem with GUID partitions, which all modern Macs use. I am very unhappy with this lack of support and am ready to switch back to Fusion because of this. Very frustrating.

(3)

Verne-Arase

08 January 2015

Version: 10.1.2

Everyone's so cheesed off about the price that it's hard to find a product review. I think in 10.8 Parallels was more stable and responsive, and in 10.9 it was VMWare Fusion. Anyone tried both the new Parallels and VMWare Fusisons in 10.10? Any recommendations?

(1)

Don't have a problem, they don't answer e-mails or try to help fix a problem, and $50 a year makes this software not worth the price

(4)

Macinman

20 December 2014

Version: 10.1.1

Hey all, Got a couple questions. I keep tabs on what people are saying about virtualization software for the mac. I was curious about paralells at this point. I have for the most part been a vmware fusion, and virtualbox user. When i tried paralells as a trial a couple years back, i found things that I found made it not suitable for me. for example, when I tried it, it didn't play nice with mac os x accessibility unless paralles tools were installed, cohearence or unity mode didn't work with anything but windows. some other operating systems such as linux didn't work well at the time. Also I like having cross platform compatible products and virtualbox and vmware both meet those requirements. vb and VF also dont conflect with zoom when on like PD did. With all this said my main reason for a VM would be for Linux or older versions of os x. When it comes to windows, most of my needs would be met with wine, or an xp VM because it's mostly a bridge for me for the unique time when an app won't run on the mac, or i need windows to bridge a format gap so it can be converted to something the mac understands. Those needs have gone down though. I would say the most critical need i've had for windows lately was to run a bios flasher for the HP desktop or firmware that doesn't have a dos or linux, or os x flasher. With all the above said is going to offer me anything my other two solutions arent ? The only thing mac related that might be worth it is if Quartz extreme works in a VM, i know by nature, that tends to only work as host on a mac. I've watched a few videos on youtube, and i've come to the conclusion people aren't happy with the PD company and i wouldn't gain anything, but i still thought i'd ask for some feedback. Thanks :)

(0)

I used Parallels 10 to import my son's college PC into his Mac. The Parallels Transporter software started out really fast (had turned off WiFi and there was just a gigabit ethernet cable between the two machines), and then it got slower and slower and eventually it slowed to crawl and the whole process too over 15 hours. Awful. BTW - my son's Mac had over 100GB free space to start with. Then, when it was all finally done, after he logged into his virtual machine he had a black desktop background and all the desktop icons were those of his Mac desktop - NOT the desktop picture and icons he had on his PC. Why on earth wouldn't you just end up with something that looked EXACTLY like his PC setup?? Now we have to get figure all that out... Seriously, how do you get that wrong at version 10! What a piece of crud...

(4)

Not again! I paid for 4,5,6,7,8,9, the update price is unbelievable! Every major version of OS X updates comes with the expensive update of PD. Is it really worth that much for an update?

(5)

I have no complaints whatsoever about the software but the insistent "encouragements" to upgrade and the advertisements are repulsive.

(5)

Alvin-H

14 November 2014

Version: 10.1.1

still amaze how much the cost to keep up to date... it will cost about 100 for me (i have macbook and iMac), yes it might fast ... but not worth those price... Better use virtual box... i'm sure it will enough for most of us. if you need more you can have VMware, 1 licence for 3 mac your own. those are better the choice

(3)

I paid for parallels 6, 7 and 8. But now that I upgraded to Yosemite and they don't support it, I think I'll go with the torrent. I paid enough! and what they are doing is not ethical.

(3)