Windows 11 ARM on M1/M2 Macs with Parallels Desktop 18 is now available
Apple M1 and M2 Mac users can now （ 02/18/2023 ） officially download Windows 11 on ARM via Parallels Desktop 18. Windows 11 on ARM does come with limitations when virtualized via Parallels, but most users will be able to game and even run x86 apps with decent performance. Parallels Desktop 18 also several enhancements including the ability to assign up to 18 CPU cores and 62 GB of RAM to the Windows VM in Mac Studios with Apple M1 Ultra SoCs.
You can now get the Windows 11 Pro Product key and Windows 11 Enterprise Product Key from the legit reseller Keyingo.com
IT administrators can now easily enable their users to run Windows 11 on ARM on the Parallels platform and ensure that Microsoft has licensed the solution from a licensing standpoint. Parallels and Microsoft Collaboration Allows Mac Users to Access Windows Applications on the Platform of Their Choice, Giving More Flexibility and Choice to the Way They Work
Since Apple transitioned to custom ARM-based chips, Mac users who want to run Windows for the odd app or two have been left in a bind as the company dropped support for Boot Camp. Now, with Parallels Desktop 18, users of Macs on Apple chips will be able to download the version of Windows 11 on ARM and run it in a virtual machine (VM).
Parallels Desktop has offered support for Windows on Macs equipped with the Apple M1 SoC since version 16.5, but there is one major problem. Windows on ARM is not available for public download, and Microsoft licenses it directly to OEMs and partners. So while you could theoretically get the ARM version of Windows to run in earlier Parallels versions, there's no way to properly license them.
However, things have changed now. Microsoft has officially designated Parallels Desktop 18 as the "licensed solution for running the ARM editions of Windows 11 Pro and Windows 11 Enterprise in a virtual environment on Apple M1 and M2 computers on its platform."
This means you can now download Windows 11 on ARM directly from within Parallels Desktop 18 and activate it with your Windows key. However, keep a few caveats in mind.
Windows 11 on ARM does not support games that rely on DirectX 12 or OpenGL 3.3 or higher. DirectX 11 games should theoretically work, since many of these calls translate to Apple's own Metal API. But unless Metal
brings DirectX 12-like features, you won't be able to run such games through Parallels.
The same is true for hardware that doesn't have ARM drivers in the Windows DriverStore or as a separate download. Games that rely on anti-cheat drivers without the ARM version will also not work.
Beyond that, nested virtualization or various "VM-ceptions" are not possible. Windows on ARM supports Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL), Windows Subsystem for Android (WSA), Windows Sandbox, and Virtualization Based Security (VBS). But since these rely on virtualization in Windows, they won't work in already virtualized environments like Parallels.
When using the OS via Parallels Desktop on M1 and M2 Macs, it should be possible to run x64 and x86 apps in emulated Windows on ARM, but users won't be able to download 32-bit apps from the Microsoft Store, which are no longer available anyway. Deprecated process.
Apple didn't seem interested in offering Boot Camp just yet, but the company's software chief, Craig Federighi, handed the ball directly to Microsoft. Federighi said in an interview with Ars Technica that day,
As for Windows running natively on the machine, that's entirely up to Microsoft. We have the core technology that allows them to do that, to run their ARM version of Windows, which of course in turn enables x86 user-mode applications. But that's a decision Microsoft will have to make to license the technology to run on those Macs. But the Mac is certainly very capable of doing this. "
If you really need nested virtualization capabilities, Microsoft wants you to subscribe to its Windows 365 Cloud PC service, where you can configure and stream fully-setup Windows instances directly in your browser.
Interestingly, Microsoft doesn't mind supporting Apple chips through Parallels Desktop, even if it uses security as an excuse to drop Windows 11 support for some powerful Intel and AMD CPUs.
Speaking of new features in Parallels Desktop 18 itself, users can now set the Apple ProMotion refresh rate in macOS and Windows will run it automatically. It is now possible to connect USB 3.0 devices and Bluetooth controllers, such as Xbox gamepads or PlayStation DualShock gamepads.
Users can now also allocate up to 18 CPU cores and 62 GB of RAM to Windows 11 (Parallels Desktop Pro Edition) if they use Mac Studio with the Apple M1
Ultra chip. Previously, a VM could only be assigned up to 8 CPU cores and 32 GB of RAM, and users who already subscribed can upgrade to Parallels Desktop 18.