The term virtual machine describes an instance of an operating system running in an environment that it thinks is a PC. Normally, an operating system controls an entire PC. With virtual machine software, you can run several operating systems, such as Windows XP, Windows 7, and Linux, all at the same time, within Mac OS X. This means you can run Mac and Windows applications at the same time, and even copy and paste between them. You can run Windows in its own window, or in full-screen mode, or you can hide the Windows desktop so that only the Windows applications are displayed.
When you use a virtual machine application to run Windows in Mac OS X on an Intel-powered Mac, Windows run at near-native speeds, as opposed the native speeds of Boot Camp. The advantage of the virtual machine approach is that gives you the ability to switch between Windows and Mac OS X (or other OS's) without rebooting. You can move files between the different operating systems and even copy and paste between Windows and Macs applications.
Another advantage of virtualization is that it supports more versions of Windows, including those before Windows XP SP2, than does Boot Camp. Virtualization also support Linux and Unix operating systems. It's interersting to note that you can also run Mac OS X Server in a virtual machine on your Mac, a useful thing to do for testing. However, you cannot run the user version of Mac OS X inside a virtual Mac. Apple doesn't allow it, so the virtualization manufactures don't enable it.
Virtualization products let you take "snapshots" of a virtual machine, which saves the state of a operating, including which Windows applications are open, and including the current settings and configurations. One advantage to snapshots is that you don't have to boot Windows (or Linux) every time you want to fire up your virtualization software. Restoring a previously saved state only takes a few seconds. And, if you ever mess up the system in your virtual machine, or it gets infected with a virus, you can revert to a previously saved snapshot.
Currently, the best virtual machine software for running Windows on Intel-based Macs are Parallels Desktop and VMware Fusion. Parallels tends to run faster, but VMware Fusion is also a very good product with equivalent features. A third virtual machine product, VirtualBox, is free, but does not have the features of Parallels and VMware.
Below are descriptions of the current state of virtualization packages for Intel-based Macs.
(Note that CrossOver, described below, is not a virtualization application, but is something else entirely.)
Parallels Desktop
The day after Apple announced Boot Camp, Parallels, a builder of virtualization software for Linux, surprised Apple-watchers by releasing a beta of Parallels for Mac OS X, called Parallels Desktop. The company said that the software will run “nearly any x86-compatible OS,” including Windows 3.1-through Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows Server 2003, as well as Linux, FreeBSD, Solaris, OS/2, eComStation, and MS-DOS. Drag and drop files between Mac OS X and Windows.
Parallels Desktop includes a feature called Coherence Mode, which hides the Windows desktop while displaying Windows applications, much as Classic mode displayed OS 9 applications in Mac OS X on PowerPC Macs. Windows still runs in the background, but is hidden from view. Windows applications appear in the Dock, letting you switch between them without using the Windows interface.
Parallels Desktop supports Windows 7 and Vista Aero features, such as Aero Peak and Flip 3D. This is enabled with support for DirectX 9.0c/9Ex Shader Model 3 and OpenGL 2.1 Windows WWDM. Version 5 also added support for using Apple track pad gestures in Windows apps.
A feature called SmartSelect lets you set defaults so that a Mac program opens a type of file when you double-click a file in Windows. For instance, you could double-click .doc files in Windows and have Parallels Desktop launch Word for Mac. You can set another file type to launch a Windows application when double-click in the Mac Finder. You can also select a Mac or Windows application to open a file by right-clicking (or Control-clicking) that file.
When no Windows applications are open, Parallels Desktop will pause, thus taking up very little system resources. Parallels Compressor is a new feature that automatically compresses defragments the virtual disk while a user works for better performance.
Although Boot Camp is still the fastest way to run Windows on a Mac, Parallels Desktop 7 is the fastest of the virtualization product for the Mac. It also uses less of your Mac's processor than VMware Fusion, which means you run more applications at the same time without slowing down the whole Mac.
For more on Parallels, see our Parallels Desktop Tips and Reports page.
VMware Fusion
VMware Fusion is a close competitor to Parallels Desktop, and can run Windows, Linux, and other x86 operating systems while allowing access to Mac OS X. Like Parallels Desktop, Parallels Desktop lets users drag a file from the Mac Finder into Windows and vice versa, but VMware also lets you drag files in between guest operating systems, including Windows, Linux, and Solaris. VMware Fusion does run Mac OS X Server in a virtual machine better than Parallels Desktop does. If you want to run Lion as a guest OS, it is easier to install Lion in a virtual machine in VMware Fusion than in Parallels Desktop.
Also like Parallels Desktop, VMware Fusion 4 supports the 3D Aero features of Windows 7 and Vista, using support for DirectX 9 Shader Model 3.0 3D graphics and OpenGL 2.1.
VMware has a feature called Unity feature is similar to Parallels Desktop's Coherence feature, for hiding the Windows Desktop from view. VMware Fusion also has a feature called Virtual Battery, which passes along the state of a notebook’s remaining battery power to Windows native power display.
VMware can use both CPUs in a dual-core processor, and can even support both 32-bit and 64-bit applications simultaneously. VMware supports up to 3.6 MB of RAM for each virtual machine (up to 8 GB total). Parallels Desktop supports 1.5 GB per machine. Fusion supports isochronous USB, including USB cameras.
VMware Fusion 4 may have the edge over Parallels Desktop in terms of some useful interface features not found in Parallels Desktop. In full screen mode, Fusion presents a small bar when you mouse over the center of the top edge of the screen. This bar presents options that let you do anything Fusion allows, including change to single window or Unity modes, suspend the virtual machine, take a snapshot, or a number of other tasks. In Parallels Desktop, you only have one choice when in full screen mode: to exit the mode into single mode.
Fusion does a better job with its virtual machine library, a window listing all the installed virtual machines. Fusion’s library lets you turn on and suspend multiple virtual machines and access their settings, all in one spot. In Parallels Desktop, clicking on a virtual machine in the list opens its window, covering the library window.
However, it does run slower than Parallels Desktop at this point, particularly with graphics. With graphics-heavy 3D Windows games, it often cannot keep up.
In addition to the standalone version, VMware offers a bundle of VMware Fusion with a 12 Month Upgrade Subscription (US $99.99).
For more on the Fusion, see our VMware Fusion Tips and Reports page.
VirtualBox
Oracle's VirtualBox for Mac OS X is free software based on GPL open-source code. Sun purchased VirtualBox from a German company called Innotek. Virtual Box is available a free, open source application. Like Parallels Desktop and VMware Fusion, VirtualBox can run Windows 7, supports USB, and can be scripted from the command line. VirtualBox also supports VMDK virtual disk format used by VMware, although importing a virtual machine can be challenging.
VirtualBox provides solid virtualization without compatibility problems, but lags behind Parallels Desktop and VMware Fusion in several ways. In VirtualBox, it is not as easy to install and set up virtual machines as in the other two. The interface isn't as polished as VMware and Parallels, and is not as integrated with Mac OS X. "Seamless" mode, which hides the Windows (or Linux) desktop, is not as seemless -- it retains the Windows (or Linux) taskbar at the bottom of the screen. Windows applications don’t get individual icons in the Dock or in the Application Switcher, as they do with Parallels and VMware.
For more on VirtualBox, see our VirtualBox Tips and Reports page.
CodeWeavers CrossOver enables users to run Windows XP applications in Mac OS X, but without running Windows itself. Crossover is not a virtualization environment or a dual boot enabler. Instead, it adds code to Mac OS X that certain Windows applications need to run. Document files created by Windows applications are stored in Mac folders, not in a virtual disk image or a separate partition.
CrossOver runs each Windows application in a Mac OS X window. There is no Windows desktop or start menu; Windows programs can minimize in the Mac OS X Dock. Users can launch Windows applications installed with CrossOver from the Finder or from a Dock menu or a Programs menu in the Mac OS X menu bar that that lists Windows applications. CrossOver also provides a Windows Run Command window for running Windows command-lines.
Because CrossOver doesn't require the user to own a copy of Windows, the total cost of ownership is lower than any virtualization solution and lower than Apple’s Boot Camp solution. CrossOver also doesn't use the CPU bandwidth and doesn't require the large amount of RAM that virtual machine software such Parallels or VMware require.
CodeWeavers also says that without the overhead of Windows, CrossOver runs PC games on a Mac faster than Parallels and VMware. (CrossOver has support for the Intel Mac’s native graphics.) CodeWeavers offers a version called CrossOver Games, which is optimized for games and supports more game titles that the standard CrossOver.
The tradeoff to CrossOver is that it only supports a selected Windows applications, including Outlook and some games. The company said that it would be adding support for more applications as time goes on. Some readers report that a few non-supported do run, but most do not. The CodeWeavers web site has a list of supported applications.
With Version 10, it became easier to install Windows applications. In many cases, users can install a Windows application with a single click. It also improved support for Microsoft Office for Windows and Outlook, among others. It improves in running Internet Explorer, particularly Internet Explorer 7. The company said that improvements to Microsoft Office for Windows were "major," adding support for Excel Macros, which are not current supported in Office 2008 for Mac. Word for Windows clipart now works, and Outlook is more stable. Supported apps include Quicken 2010 as well as Outlook 2007 group calendaring and other interactions with Microsoft Exchange Server, Adobe CS for Windows applications, and ActiveX controls, all running in Mac OS X.
An feature is "recipes," (also called "C4 Profiles"), which are XML files that simplify the installation of Windows applications. Users can download recipes for certain Windows applications from the CodeWeavers Compatibility Database at codeweavers.com. Users can also upload installation recipes for applications that weren't previously supported. CodeWeavers believes this will accelerate the number compatible Windows applications.
CrossOver is a solid commercial product based on the Open Source WINE project. See our CrossOver Reports page for more on CrossOver.
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