Parallels Install Macos Catalina

Posted on by

How to Get Windows 10 on a macOS Catalina

If you want to install Windows on your Macbook, there are a few ways to do it: you may use Mac’s Boot Camp Assistant to install Windows as its own independent OS; then you will be able to startup either macOS or Windows depending on which one you need at the time. The other way is using a virtual machine: you may create a virtual Windows setup using Parallels Desktop, VMware Fusion or VirtualBox. Then at any time you may start that virtual machine and load Windows inside macOS. This article describes pros and cons of each method, so that you can decide which one is right for you.

Option 1: Download Windows 10 on a macOS Catalina With BootCamp

Parallels Desktop fully supports the direct installation of Mojave, relying on the Recovery partition that’s part of macOS. After installing Parallels Desktop, in the Installation Assistant, scroll to the right through the operating system choices and click the button that reads “Install macOS 10.14.6 Using the Recovery Partition.”. Mac OS version OS X El Capitan macOS Sierra macOS High Sierra macOS Mojave macOS Catalina. MacOS 11 Big Sur. Parallels Desktop version 10.11 or later 10.12 or later 10.13 or later 10.14 or later 10.15 or later 11.0 or later. Parallels Desktop 16 Parallels Desktop 15. Parallels Desktop 14. MacOS Catalina is the first version macOS to exclusively support 64-bit applications. This means any 32-bit applications will no longer be supported if your Mac is on macOS Catalina. With Parallels Desktop, users can run an older macOS as a virtual machine to support the 32-bit applications you need. Parallels Desktop 15 can currently utilize macOS Catalina as a VM, with support for Catalina as a host operating system (OS) following its public release (expected in early fall 2019). Parallels Desktop 15 for macOS Catalina makes the move to Metal. Users will be able to install Windows 10 via the Installation Assistant, and will be able to upgrade any Windows 7 or Windows 8.

Boot 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. Mac’s Boot Camp Assistant will help you install Windows, partition the startup drive and install necessary drivers.

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. That’s why dual-booting is ideal for running resource-intensive programs like video-editing software or high-end games.

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. 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. That is not a problem when using virtual machines.

Option 2: Run Windows 10 on a Macbook Without BootCamp, Using a Virtual Machine

Virtual machines allow you to install and open Windows 10 in a window on your Mac desktop. Windows will “think” it’s running on a real computer, when it is running inside an app. 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. 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.

Install Windows 10 on a Mac Catalina With Parallels Desktop

Parallels Desktop is very intuitive and easy-to-use for regular computer users. The app will configure everything for you, even download Windows 10 or utilize the one you already downloaded via Boot Camp. You can open Windows in a separate window (including a full screen mode), or you can turn on Coherence mode. In Coherence mode the virtual machine will run in the background, while Windows programs can run alongside your Mac apps. You can even put Windows programs on your macOS desktop or pin them to Dock. Parallels Desktop allows you to copy and paste or drag and drop between Windows and macOS without any problems.

Macos

Parallels Desktop prices start at $79.99, however there is a free trial period available.

Get Windows 10 on a Mac Catalina With VMware Fusion

VMware Fusion is another popular virtualization software for Macbooks. It is close to Parallels in terms of functionality and pricing, but VMware’s Fusion supports a larger number of operating systems than Parallels. On the other hand, Parallels is easier for beginners, and runs a little smoother. Otherwise, these two programs are approximately on the same level.

Install Windows 10 a Mac Via VirtualBox

If you don’t plan to spend extra money on virtualization software, there’s always VirtualBox by Oracle. VirtualBox is a pretty decent free alternative to paid software if not slower, less polished and missing some handy functions. If you need to run some resource intensive Windows programs, VirtualBox might not be the best choice for you. VirtualBox also requires more technical knowledge than, for example, Parallels, as users need to tune some settings themselves when installing it. However, if you are a power user already or don’t mind doing a little more work, and you are not going to run latest Windows games or video-editing software, VirtualBox is a good (and free!) alternative.

Parallels Install Macos Catalina Download

Can you install macOS Catalina on an external SSD connected to your Mac? Yes, it's definitely possible. However, since Apple initiated a relatively new partition scheme (APFS) with macOS High Sierra, the process is slightly different than with older versions of macOS. This article shows you how to set up a new SSD with macOS Catalina that you can boot from.

Why Installing macOS Catalina on External SSD?

macOS can be installed on an external storage device by default, such as HDD, SSD or USB flash drive. And this priciple also applies to macOS Catalina. For permance consideration, external SSD is much better becaus of faster reading and writing speed. The good news is that external SSD is much cheaper than before and the price gap is much smaller.

Now, the big question is why you don't want to install macOS Catalina on your main hard drive. After all, if you're upgrading to macOS Catalina, you want your Mac to boot to it all the time, don't you? Not necessarily. There are several reasons why you might not want to disturb your current installation, whether it's Catalina or an older version of macOS. Here are some possible reasons.

● You might want to try macOS Catalina without having to uninstall and roll back to Mojave or High Sierra if you change your mind. Uninstalling and rolling back to an older version of macOS is time-consuming and a tedious process that is prone to errors, so you may not want the hassles that come with it.

● Your Mac (Mostly Mac Mini or iMac) is built upon on a HDD and it runs slowly. You are looking for a way to boost the performance without untouching the internal drive.

● Since there are bound to be bugs in early versions of any new OS, you might want to avoid the hassle of having it as your default OS. This way, you can update it as new versions are released, then install it as your main OS when you're happy with the stability of the software.

Parallels

● You may want to have the SSD run macOS Catalina on more than one machine. Since your SSD is essentially an external drive that is portable, you may want to switch it between one Mac and the other. Instead of installing Catalina on both, you have the flexibility of simply connecting the SSD to one of the Macs when you want to boot from it.

● It's also possible that you want to run a different set of apps and, therefore, need more memory. If you use a larger-capacity SSD, this will allow you to load a ton of heavy apps like Photoshop and so on, which might not be possible with your current hard drive because it is already full of data.

How to Pick up the Right External SSD for Catalina

Mac computers are made different from PCs. It has its own hardware port and unique standards. So not all external SSDs are suitable for Macs. To maximize the performance of SSD, it should be USB 3.0 compatible, if you have enough budget, ThunderBolt port is more welcome as it has much faster reading and writing speed. Besides, the volume should be 128 GB or larger. Below is a list of best external SSDs for Mac:

Further reading: How to check hardware port on your Mac

  • Adata SD600Q External SSD 240GB (USB 3.2, $39.16)
  • SanDisk 500GB Extreme Portable External SSD (USB-C, $84.99)
  • Samsung X5 Portable SSD 500GB (Thunderbolt 3, $199.99)
  • LaCie Portable SSD STHK1000800 1TB (USB-C, $178.31 )
  • G-Technology 0G06053 Portable External SSD 1TB (USB 3.0, $189.95)
  • WD 500GB My Passport Go SSD (USB 3.0, $69.99)
  • Seagate One Touch SSD External 1TB (USB 3.0, $144.99)
Parallels Install Macos Catalina

Notice: The SSD you are going to use or purchase should be compatible with your Mac.

Preparation before Getting Started

To instal Catalina on external SSD, there are quite a few things you should set up previously. The preparatory steps are very important because if you don't get them right, the time spent on the rest of the process will be completely wasted and you'll have to do it all over again. For that reason, make sure you follow the steps exactly as outlined. macOS Catalina is built on a different drive partition scheme, the APFS file system. This was introduced in Catalina for Mac but it's been in iOS for quite some time. In an effort to unify its desktop and mobile operating systems, Apple has now rolled out the new system to both branches of its core OS.

1. Download Catalina DMG File: For macOS installation, you have to create a bootable Catalina USB first. To do this, you need to get a copy of the Catalina dmg file.

Download link: http://www.mediafire.com/file/ /macOS_Catalina_DMG.rar

2. Format External SSD to APFS: APFS is the file system that holds macOS Catalina installation. The SSD is formatted to exFAT when it is shipped. You can format the external drive to APFS with Disk Utility app.

Connect the SSD to your Mac and launch Disk Utility. Select the external drive in the left-side panel and click Erase. In the pop-up, name your drive, select APFS, and GUID Partition Map.

3. Backup important data on your Mac: To avid data loss, it is highly recommended backing up your important data on internal SSD with Time Machine or Cloud Drive.

How to Create macOS Catalina Bootable USB Installer

Parallels Install Macos Catalina 2019

After completing the above preparation, it is time to get into the part for creating a bootable Catalina USB installer. This can be done easily with the help of UUByte DMG Editor, a cross-platform program for making bootable USB drive from macOS dmg file.

Step 1: Please download UUByte DMG Editor on a PC or Mac and follow the on-screen tips to install this utility on your computer..

Step 2: Plug in an external USB flash drive and eject other USB devices at the same time. Now, open UUByte DMG Editor and click Burn tab.

Step 3: In Burn page, click Browse button to add macOS dmg file you downloaded to the program. After a few seconds, you can see the USB drive in secord field.

Parallels Install Macos Catalina Free

Step 4: Set a name for the new volume and click Burn button to start writing Catalina DMG file to USB drive. The file is around 8GB so it takes about 10 minutes to finish the task. Please be patient!

Creating macOS Big Sur install USB on Windows 10 is simple with the help of UUByte DMG Editor. It is one of the best tools for managing DMG file on a Windows PC.

How to Install Catalina on External SSD

You have done all the crucial steps in above part and the final step is how to install macOS Catalina on External SSD. This process is quite simple.

First, connect the SSD to your Mac. Then restart your Mac and hold the Option key until you see the Apple logo. In the Startup Disk, click the external drive name.

When the boot resumes, you should boot into macOS Catalina installation wizard. At this stage, you should pick up the external SSD to install Catalina.

Another way to boot Catalina is from System Preferences. Here, go to the Startup Disk section, select your external SSD, and then hit Restart. Do not hold the Option or Alt key down if you're using this method.

Troubleshooting If Catalina Installation Failed

USB not bootable: If the USB drive is not showing up in Startup Manager, this means the USB drive is not recognized as a bootable device. Please download Catalina DMG file from another source and burn it again with UUByte DMG Editor. Sometimes, the partition table is missing in corrupted or damaged dmg file.

Can not boot into Catalina partition after installation: On latest T2 chip, Mac does not allow booting from external storage device by default. You have to enable 'Allow booting from external media' in Startup Security Utility, where you can launch it in macOS Recovery by pressing and holding Command + R immediately at startup.

Parallels Install Macos Catalina Island

Conclusion

Parallels Install Macos Catalina Update

Once you have macOS Big Sur installer USB ready, you can insert it into any Mac and run the program to install Apple's latest desktop operating system. Big Sur is officially coming in the fall and has a ton of updated features on nearly all fronts, including the OS interface, Safari, Siri, Messages for desktop, etc. But you should also know that since the currently available DMG is only a public beta tester version, it is bound to have bugs and other issues. If you're on the beta program, you can use the feedback app to let Apple know what the issue is. Unfortunately, that also means that there's nothing you can do about it if you're not on the beta program.