If you run Windows via Boot Camp, then Windows takes over all of the hardware. As long as Windows has proper drivers installed, then it will get the full abilities of the hardware. Apple provides a set of drivers that supports the Mac hardware. Do not replace them with Windows supplied drivers as they may not work as expected.
Run Windows on Intel Macs
There are presently several alternatives for running Windows on Intel Macs. Here is a list of the primary options in the marketplace.
- Apple Boot Camp software. Boot Camp enables you to boot the computer into OS X or Windows. (Free because it comes with OS X. You must own a legitimate Windows Full Retail Installer.)
- Parallels Desktop for Mac. Parallels uses software virtualization to enable running Windows concurrently with OS X.
- VM Fusion. VM Fusion is software virtualization that enables running Windows concurrently with OS X.
- CrossOver. Enables running many Windows applications without having to install Windows. The Windows applications can run concurrently with OS X.
- VirtualBox. Open Source freeware virtual machine such as VM Fusion and Parallels that was developed by Solaris. (Free because it comes with OS X. You must own a legitimate Windows Full Retail Installer.)
Parallels, VM Fusion, and VirtualBox, can also run other operating systems such as Linux, Unix, OS/2, Solaris, etc. There are performance differences between dual-boot systems and virtualization. The latter tend to be a little slower (not much) and do not provide the video performance of the dual-boot system. A 2015 comparison of Parallels, VM Fusion, and Virtual Box is found at 2015 VM Benchmarks: Parallels 11 vs. Fusion 8 vs. VirtualBox 5. A review of these and other competitors is found in PCMag: The Best Virtualization Software of 2017. Boot Camp is available with Lion and later.
You may need an internal optical drive for installing Windows. Windows cannot be installed from an external drive. Windows must be installed on an internal drive, if you use Boot Camp. A license must be purchased for all commercial software and operating system products. Open Source software is free.
Some Boot Camp Articles from Apple Support.
- Boot Camp Support.
- How to Install Windows using Boot Camp.
- Boot Camp Control Panel Users Guide.
- Use Windows 10 on your Mac with Boot Camp.
- System Requirements to Install Windows on your Mac using Boot Camp.