You can open Windows in a separate window (including a full screen mode), or you can turn on Coherence mode. The app will configure everything for you, even download Windows or utilize the one you already downloaded via Boot Camp. Parallels Desktop is very intuitive and easy-to-use for regular computer users. Install Windows on a Macbook Air With Parallels Desktop However, when you run a virtual machine, your computer’s resources are split between the two operating systems, so everything may run slower than usual. With virtual machines you run both macOS and Windows at the same time, which is handy if you want to open a single Windows program alongside your Mac applications. Windows will “think” it’s running on a real computer, when it is running inside an app. Virtual machines allow you to install and open Windows in a window on your Mac desktop. Option 2: Run Windows on a Macbook Air Using a Virtual Machine That is not a problem when using virtual machines. Another possible drawback is fact that Windows and macOS use different file systems, and you will not be able to open Mac files on Windows or vice versa unless you install specific third-party drives for it. On the other hand, only one operating system will be able to run at the same time, so you will have to reboot between them depending on which apps you need to run at the moment. That’s why dual-booting is ideal for running resource-intensive programs like video-editing software or high-end games. If you install Windows via Boot Camp, Windows will have all of your Macbook’s resources and can run programs with the maximum possible performance. Mac’s Boot Camp Assistant will help you install Windows, partition the startup drive and install necessary drivers. Option 1: Install Windows on a Macbook Air With BootCampīoot Camp comes with your Macbook for free, and it allows you to install Windows alongside macOS, so you can choose which of them to boot on startup.

In this article I’ll give a quick overview of each method, so you can decide which one is more suitable in your situation. Regardless of which method you select, you will also need an unused Windows license key to activate Windows. When it comes to running Windows on a Macbook, you have two main options: install Widows on a Macbook as a secondary OS via Boot Camp or use virtualization software like Parallels Desktop, VMware Fusion or VirtualBox.

How to use virtualbox on macbook air