Running Windows 10 on Parallels Mac M1: What You Need to Know

Windows 10 and Parallels Desktop have long been a match made in heaven for Mac users who want to run Windows applications on their Apple devices. However, with the introduction of the M1 chip in Mac computers, things got a little more complicated. Microsoft's policy has been that it only licenses Windows 10 on ARM to OEMs, which means that you can't just download and install Windows 10 on your M1-based Mac.

But don't worry, there is still hope! While Microsoft won't sell you a version of Windows 11 to run on your M1-based Mac, you can use a Windows Insider ARM64 virtual hard disk image available for download. This will allow you to run Windows 11 on Parallels Desktop or VMware Fusion.

To get started, you'll need a few things:

* A Windows 11 ARM64 product key

* Parallels Desktop installed on your Mac

* The Windows Insider ARM64 virtual hard disk image downloaded and ready to go

Once you have all of these in place, follow these steps:

1. Run Parallels Desktop and click on the Parallels icon in the Mac menu bar > Control Center > + > Get Windows 11 from Microsoft > Continue > Install Windows.

2. Follow the prompts to download and install Windows 11.

Note that while this workaround may seem a bit complicated, it's actually quite easy to set up and use. Just be sure to follow the instructions carefully and you'll be running Windows 10 on your M1-based Mac in no time!

In terms of compatibility, Windows 11 should be fully compatible with all applications that Windows 10 is compatible with. However, if an application doesn't run in Windows 11, it may be due to some misconfiguration or because the application isn't compatible with ARM architecture.

It's worth noting that Microsoft no longer provides support for Windows 10 ARM, so if you have any issues with your installation, you may need to look elsewhere for help.

Windows 10 parallels mac m1