Himanshu Singla asks:
Which is the best freeware to run Windows on MacBook Pro? Apart from VMWare Fusion, which is paid. I want any free full version and also don’t want dual booting.
Browser: Chrome 20
System: Windows
Tagged: best software, free alternative, mac tips, virtual machine, virtualization, windows tips
System: Windows
Tagged: best software, free alternative, mac tips, virtual machine, virtualization, windows tips
11 Answers -
ha14
July 11, 2012Not many free options are there but for reliability here are some suggestions.
Virtualbox
http://mac.appstorm.net/how-to/virtualization/running-windows-on-your-mac-with-virtualbox/
Parallels: Shareware
http://kb.parallels.com/4729
Codeweavers CrossOver: Shareware
http://www.codeweavers.com/
Mike
July 11, 2012I think the two best free options are
(1) Bootcamp which is already on your system but requires you choice between OSX and Windows on (re)boot. It resides within “Applications/Utilities/Boot Camp Assistant”
http://www.apple.com/support/bootcamp/
(2) VirtualBox
https://www.virtualbox.org/
Vipul Jain
July 11, 2012VMWare fusion is though quite the best for Macs, you can try Virtualbox
Ben
July 12, 2012You need to have a virtual environment in which to run Windows for your Mac. Check out Oracle’s VirtualBox which is free for personal use.
Paul McCulloch
July 13, 2012Have you tried Wine (open source solution)?
Tim
July 15, 2012I have found that the best way to run Windows on a Mac without slowing it to a crawl it to connect to an actual Windows machine using the Mac remote desktop app. Completely free.
http://www.microsoft.com/mac/remote-desktop-client
Of course you need a machine to connect to. You can use your own or pay a monthly fee to “rent” one.
Jon Cook
July 17, 2012Another vote for Parallels, but if you don’t need the Mac side when you are in Windows Bootcamp allows you to play Windows games on your Mac
Charles Zwicker
July 27, 2012If you don’t mind the price, I highly recommend Parallels Desktop 7.
David Barrett
July 31, 2012I’ve tried Crossover in earlier incarnations. OK, but not the most intuitive. If you want to pay money, I’d recommend Parallels Desktop, which I’ve used since version 4, and which seems to be getting better and better.
Before committing, though, it’d pay you to check out the competition – and the main opponent at that level is VMware Fusion. A quick Google of “Parallels vs Fusion” will bring up a number of comparative reviews. I’ll leave it to you to work out which works best for you. Whichever way you go, good luck!
Ben Mordecai
August 25, 2012Virtualbox with Guest Additions is the way to go. It works great for me
Theo Reisinger
October 8, 2012I know you said you want free stuff, but i’d take a good look at Parallels because it has a lot great functions