- #Parallels create os x vm software#
- #Parallels create os x vm windows 8#
- #Parallels create os x vm windows#
Extras like Notification Center and Dictation support are completely out of the question, as is the ability to change the language of the guest OS as the host OS's language changes.
#Parallels create os x vm windows#
If you rely heavily on Spotlight or Alfred to launch applications and would like to work your Windows apps into the same workflows you use for your OS X apps, VirtualBox won't let you do it. Both VMware and Parallels allow you to drag and drop files from the host OS to the guest OS and vice versa, which is a simple and intuitive feature I'd like to see implemented in VirtualBox.īoth VMware Fusion and Parallels also add many other operating system integration features-VirtualBox lacks the ability to launch Windows apps from the Finder or the Dock, for example, and Windows guests likewise can't launch OS X applications. These sorts of decisions are probably good from a security standpoint, since they limit the amount of damage a compromised guest OS could do to the host, but they do reduce out-of-the-box usability. Sharing the clipboard between the host and guest operating systems for the purposes of copying and pasting is also possible if it's enabled, though it's disabled by default. VirtualBox includes a few basic features to enable communication with the host OS: the host's filesystem can be made available to the VM using VirtualBox's "shared folders" feature-add a folder from the host operating system here, and it will appear to the guest system as a networked drive. The VirtualBox Guest Additions add mouse pointer integration, rudimentary 3D support, and other features to your guest operating system.
#Parallels create os x vm windows 8#
I used a 2011 iMac with OS X 10.8.2 installed, and tested 64-bit versions of both Windows 7 and Windows 8 running in VirtualBox 4.2.1. One of the only differences is that OS X virtual machines, which are still labeled as an experimental feature in the current version of the software, are officially supported only within OS X hosts, both because of Apple's licensing stipulations and because OS X won't run on all of the CPUs that Windows and Linux can use.įor this article, I have attempted to evaluate VirtualBox both on its own merits and based on the criteria we laid out in our Parallels Desktop and VMware Fusion shootout. The focus of this article, as it was in our VMware and Parallels comparison, will be on running Windows 7 and Windows 8 guests on an OS X host, but VirtualBox's cross-platform nature means that many of the observations made in this article will also apply to VirtualBox running on Windows and Linux hosts. Both Parallels and VMware offer plenty of features for home and business users, but is VirtualBox an acceptable alternative for the cash-strapped?
#Parallels create os x vm software#
Our Parallels Desktop and VMware Fusion shootout took a deep dive into the two most successful commercial virtualization products for the Mac, but many of you had questions about VirtualBox, the free and open source desktop virtualization software currently offered by Oracle.
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