Download Windows 8.1 for Mac Bootcamp Updated

April 20, 2022 Post a Comment

Download Windows 8.1 for Mac Bootcamp

Thank you to the switch from PowerPC to Intel many years ago, a Mac is merely some other PC. Sure, Macs come with macOS, only you tin hands install Windows alongside macOS using Apple's built-in Boot Army camp characteristic.

Kick Camp installs Windows in a dual-kicking configuration, which means both operating systems will be installed separately. You tin can but use one at a time, but you lot get the computer's total power in each.

Practise You Actually Need to Use Kick Military camp?

Earlier you install Windows, stop and call up about whether or not Boot Military camp is the best choice for your needs. At that place are a couple of drawbacks to consider.

When you lot utilise Boot Camp to install Windows on your Mac, you'll need to re-partition your drive, which is going to accept upwards quite a scrap of your available drive space. Since storage on a Mac is fairly expensive, it'due south something you should really think about. In addition, you'll need to reboot every time you desire to utilise Windows, and reboot again when you desire to switch back to macOS. The benefit of Boot Camp, of course, is that you lot're running Windows directly on the hardware, so it'll exist a lot faster than a virtual machine.

If all you need to do is run a few Windows applications on your Mac, and those applications don't a lot of resources (like 3D games), you might consider using a virtual machine similarParallels (there's a free trial),VMware Fusion, orVirtualBox to run that software instead. The vast majority of the time you don't actually demand to utilise Boot Camp, and y'all'd be better off using a virtual car. If, yet, you're looking to play Windows games on your Mac, Kicking Camp might be a good choice.

For most people, though,Parallels makes running Windows on your Mac dead uncomplicated. It'southward something we employ at How-To Geek every single mean solar day for testing software and running Windows. The integration with macOS amazingly well done, and the speed blows away Virtualbox. In the long run, the price is well worth it. You tin even utilise Parallels to load your Kick Camp partition as a virtual automobile while you lot are in macOS, giving you the all-time of both worlds.

What Version of Windows Can I Run?

Which version of Windows you can run depends on your Mac: recent models support only Windows 10, while some older Macs only work with older versions of Windows. Here'south a quick outline, along with links to Apple's official lists of supported models.

Windows 10is supported onnigh Macs made in 2012 and afterward.
Windows eight.oneis supported on mostMacs made between 2010 and 2016, with some exceptions.
Windows 7is supported, for the most part,simply on Macs made in 2014 and earlier, and you'll need an even older Mac to run Windows Vista or XP.

Note that Macs can only run 64-scrap, non-Enterprise versions of Windows.

To install Windows, you'll need an ISO file of the installer. You candownload Windows installation media for free if y'all already have a product cardinal, thoughyou don't really need a production central to run Windows 10. If y'all're installing Windows 7, you'll also need a USB bulldoze at least 16GB in size for the installer and drivers. Windows 8.1 and Windows 10 exercise not any external drive for installation.

How to Install Windows on Your Mac

Ready to install Windows? Information technology's probably a practiced idea toback up your Mac before getting started, just in example. Odds are nothing will go wrong, merely any fourth dimension yous're partitioning things there's ever a run a risk. Washed? Allow's get started.

Y'all'll use the Boot Camp Assistant application that comes on your Mac. Open it by pressing Command+Space, typingKicking Military camp, and pressing Enter.

The Boot Camp Assistant will walk you through partitioning, downloading drivers, and starting the installer for you. Click "Continue" and yous'll be asked which ISO file you'd like to apply and how big you'd like your Windows division to exist.

How you should allocate the infinite depends on how much infinite y'all want for your Windows system and how much infinite y'all desire for your macOS organisation. If you want to resize your partitions afterwards this process, you lot'll need to utilize a 3rd-party tool, so cull advisedly now.

Note that, if you're installing Windows 7, the lodge hither is slightly different: Boot Camp will first guide you through setting up your installer USB deejay, and so ask you near partition.

When you're ready, click "Install" and Boot Military camp will start downloading drivers, which it calls "Windows support software."

The installer will also partitioning your disk, re-create the installer to that sectionalization, and place the drivers so they'll run after installation. You can keep using your Mac while all this is running, though things will slow downwardly a lot during the partitioning phase.

Eventually, your Mac will reboot and you'll come across the standard Windows installer.

Select the partition labeled BOOTCAMP if asked—exercise non install to any other partition, or you might end up removing macOS and losing all your information. (You lot did support, right?) Windows will at present cease installing ordinarily.

The Windows on-boarding process might ask you to connect to the Internet, but you won't exist able to do this without drivers: merely skip these steps until you get to your desktop, at which bespeak the Boot Camp installer volition appear.

Proceed with the installer to set your drivers, and yous should be all set!

How to Kick Into Windows On Your Mac

Past default, your Mac volition yet boot to macOS. To access Windows, you need to turn off your Mac, and then plough it on while holding the Choice key. You'll exist asked which drive you'd similar to boot from.

If you'd like to boot to Windows past default, y'all set up thisin recovery mode, or using the Boot Military camp Command Panel in Windows. Yous'll find this in your organisation tray after installing Windows, though you may take to click the Up arrow to notice information technology.

This control panel allows y'all to cull the default operating system your Mac boots to, as well as tweak keyboard and trackpad settings.

While in Windows, theMac's Command central functions as the Windows key, while the Option key functions as the Alt key. If you have a Touch on Bar, yous'll see a complete gear up of buttons, similar to the Extended Control Strip in macOS.

To come across the function keys (F1, F2, etc.) simply hold downwardly the Fn key. There's no way to make this the default in Windows.

How to Remove Windows From Your Mac

If you lot want to remove Windows from your Mac and costless up space, reboot into macOS and open the Kicking Camp Assistant over again. You lot'll run across the Restore Deejay to a Single Volume choice.

Kicking Camp Assistant will automatically remove Windows and expand the macOS division for y'all, reclaiming all of that space.Warning: This will delete all the files on your Windows partition, so be sure you have fill-in copies offset!