Parallels Workstation vs. BootCamp

Joined
Apr 28, 2006
Messages
43
Reaction score
0
Points
6
i need to be able to install PC programs on my Mac for work. what are the main differences between these two programs? and how easy are they to work. i am no computer guru and my tech guy here isnt too Mac profficient so i need something that doesnt give me too much grief.

also, with Parallels Workstation will i be able to run PC games just like if i was on a PC?

thank-you

-adam
 
Joined
Jul 23, 2004
Messages
3,169
Reaction score
164
Points
63
Location
North NJ
Your Mac's Specs
i dont have no mac's
parallel is an emulator so it is going to be relatively slow compared to anything else.

boot camp allows you to boot into windows or to os x. starting up in xp will be faster than emulating xp in os x, but if you need to do something like run a small math program or something like that parallel will be fine for you. if you want to play games, bootcamp is going to be a whole heck of a lot better
-chris
 

rman


Retired Staff
Joined
Dec 24, 2002
Messages
12,637
Reaction score
168
Points
63
Location
Los Angeles, California
Your Mac's Specs
14in MacBook Pro M1 Max 32GB 2TB
Joined
Oct 27, 2002
Messages
13,172
Reaction score
348
Points
83
Location
Cleveland, Ohio
Your Mac's Specs
MacBook Pro | LED Cinema Display | iPhone 4 | iPad 2
All Windows questions belong in the Windows forum.

I will move this there.
 
D

DeathToPCs

Guest
can I use Boot Camp and Parallels Workstation on the same HDD? I want to be able to run windows fast but at the same time I want to be able to switch back and forth when I need to without restarting. Is this possible to do? I know that if I run Parallels it will only have to be done on the Mac OSX partition and not the windows.
 
Joined
May 4, 2006
Messages
70
Reaction score
0
Points
6
Location
Sudbury, ON Canada
Your Mac's Specs
20" Intel iMac 2GHz 250 GB 2 GB RAM 256 MB VRAM, 80 GB 5.5G iPod, 8 GB iPhone
Running Parallels is just like any other app. It just saves the installed OS as just one big file. Partitioning within the virtual machine has no affect on your computer, just how big your virtual drives are.
 
Joined
Mar 20, 2006
Messages
573
Reaction score
46
Points
28
Location
Petaluma, CA
Your Mac's Specs
20" iMac 2.0 GHz Intel Core Duo, 12" iBook G4 1.07 GHz
DeathToPCs said:
I want to be able to run windows fast but at the same time I want to be able to switch back and forth when I need to without restarting. Is this possible to do?

no, you can't. you can run windows at full speed with boot camp or you can switch back and forth quickly with parallels. either way you go you have to compromise.
 
Joined
Feb 17, 2006
Messages
688
Reaction score
26
Points
28
Your Mac's Specs
iMac 17" Intel Core Duo 1.83GHz 512 MB Ram 128 vRAM 60GB HD
DeathToPCs said:
can I use Boot Camp and Parallels Workstation on the same HDD? I want to be able to run windows fast but at the same time I want to be able to switch back and forth when I need to without restarting.

Don't we all? That's part of the race. You won't be able to run Windows that fast unless you max out RAM, and even still it's not fast enough to game. Just use Boot Camp.
 
OP
I
Joined
Apr 28, 2006
Messages
43
Reaction score
0
Points
6
dohidied said:
no, you can't. you can run windows at full speed with boot camp or you can switch back and forth quickly with parallels. either way you go you have to compromise.

so your saying bootcamp has a 1:1 speed ratio to that of a PC. but you cant switch back and fourth between OS's. on the other hand with parallels you CAN switch back and fourth between OS's but it doesnt run as fast.

question: compared to your normal computer speed. what is the realistic speed when using parallels to run windows? (ex: 75% slower)
 
Joined
Feb 17, 2006
Messages
688
Reaction score
26
Points
28
Your Mac's Specs
iMac 17" Intel Core Duo 1.83GHz 512 MB Ram 128 vRAM 60GB HD
honestly, if you're not using any SUPER intensive programs, parallels is fine.

Or, you could go the FREE way and run more graphically challenging programs, while waiting a total of about two minutes for windows to load.

why do people care about switching between the OSes? neither take more than two minutes or so to load.
 
H

Harryc

Guest
BlindingLights said:
honestly, if you're not using any SUPER intensive
why do people care about switching between the OSes? neither take more than two minutes or so to load.
Convenience? I use Parallels extensively running SuSE Linux 10.0 and XP. I don't find it any slower for the Apps I use than normal windows or Linux running on a PC. I do have 2GB of RAM though and I do not game. If you are going to use Parallels alot max out your RAM.
 
Joined
Mar 1, 2007
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
Points
1
re: parallel vs boot camp

I already have parallel installed and it works fine with windows xp but can I install boot camp in addition and if so what will I see when I boot up and other operations I will have to do
 
Joined
Sep 24, 2006
Messages
2,766
Reaction score
232
Points
63
Location
Brooklyn, New York
Your Mac's Specs
15" 2014 MacBook Pro, i7 2.5Ghz, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD; iPad 3, iPhone 6
parallel is an emulator so it is going to be relatively slow compared to anything else.

I wish people would stop posting this as it is incorrect and perpetuates a pretty unfair myth. For most tasks, Parallels is almost as fast as a native PC with similar hardware - occasionally EVEN FASTER!

http://www.anandtech.com/mac/showdoc.aspx?i=2740&p=14

To be precise, Parallels can use one core of your CoreDuo, but for 99% of things, so so can Windows XP so little or no difference is seen. Please actually do some research before posting things like this that may affect someone's decision.


The only thing that is emulated is DirectDraw - so in theory graphics are slower and DX8 or DX9 games are not possible (or very slow). Spreadsheet work, browsing or even Photoshop work is just about as fast or even faster. CS2 under parallels will be quicker than under OS X, as Parallels beats Rosetta hands down and even beats some native PCs.

I use SuSE and XP under Parallels and both run quicker than under my previous hardware (AMD64 1.8ghz. so no slouch).
 
Joined
Mar 22, 2007
Messages
1,463
Reaction score
67
Points
48
Location
UK
Your Mac's Specs
Lenovo Z560 Hackintosh -:- '06 iMac -:- iPod Touch 2ndGen
Zoolook speaks the truth, Parallels is more than fast enough for non-graphics intensive applications and it is most definitely not an emulator. Another advantage is the ability to suspend the VM - I have my Win2K machine ready and waiting with virtually no startup-time, just a few seconds.

Unless you're gaming, and assuming you max out the RAM, BootCamp has no advantage over Parallels for day-to-day apps.
 
Joined
Sep 24, 2006
Messages
2,766
Reaction score
232
Points
63
Location
Brooklyn, New York
Your Mac's Specs
15" 2014 MacBook Pro, i7 2.5Ghz, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD; iPad 3, iPhone 6
Another advantage is the ability to suspend the VM - I have my Win2K machine ready and waiting with virtually no startup-time, just a few seconds.

That is a great feature yes!
 

Shop Amazon


Shop for your Apple, Mac, iPhone and other computer products on Amazon.
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites.
Top