I want to use Windows on my MacBook Pro.

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I want to use Windows on my MacBook Pro.

Hello? This is a MacBook Pro 14-inch 2021 M1 model. The basic RAM is 16GB! However, I recently had to collaborate with Windows users for various complex reasons. However, it is very heavy and inefficient to carry a MacBook and a Windows laptop separately. Especially when I have to collaborate with Windows users outside the home! In that regard, the MacBook Pro I use has 16GB of RAM. Can I run a virtual machine Windows? I don't think Windows 11 will work! I would like to run Windows 10. I don't want to buy something too expensive from the beginning, so I'm asking! Which one is better among Parallels, Virtual Box, and Vmware Fusion? Can you tell me the differences? I have 16GB of RAM, and the resource capacity increases considerably with each MacOS update. Let me tell you about the RAM capacity when the Mac is booted up for the first time with nothing! Monterey 3.9GB, 4GB, Ventura 4.5GB, 5.3GB, Sonoma 5.5GB, 6GB, Sequoia 6.5GB, 7.4GB in that order.

In that situation, if I use the MacBook as it was when it was first released without updating, is it possible to run a virtual Windows with 16GB of RAM? Is it impossible to run a virtual machine Windows with the latest operating system updated as it is now? Is there no way to upgrade the RAM? In fact, I asked because most computer assembly videos on YouTube show users unscrewing screws, removing and inserting the motherboard, resetting the BIOS, separating and replacing/reinserting the RAM, etc. on their own. How much would it cost to get a paid repair at the Apple Store, and if you use the self-repair service, you can open the case freely just by unscrewing the screws like in the computer assembly videos?

Could you please explain the overall differences in performance and application execution range between running Windows virtually on a Mac, using Boot Camp, and installing Windows on an actual IBM PC?

MacBook Pro 14″, macOS 15.3

Posted on Mar 8, 2025 4:49 AM

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Answer 1

VikingOSX

Level 10

124,784 points

Mar 8, 2025 6:30 AM in response to jungmin224

Because you have an Apple Silicon Mac (ARM CPU) you will need an ARM version of a Virtual Machine and an ARM version of the Windows guest. I am uncertain how compatible an ARM version of Windows 10 is with the newer VM releases, or if you can even get an ARM version of Windows 10 now. You will certainly need a Windows license and you can get one of those for around $20 at StackSocial. Windows licenses are platform agnostic meaning you can use it for Intel or ARM.

There is no Apple Boot Camp support on Apple Silicon Macs.

Microsoft has indicated that the subscription-only Parallels Desktop VM 20.2.2 is their choice for Windows 11 guests. VMware now offers a free application (with some effort to obtain) and you may be able to run a Windows 11 guest in it too. Uncertain of Qualcomm's update or compatibility frequency with that free VM. Although the free Oracle VirtualBox 7.* is now finally supporting Apple Silicon Macs, it is years behind the other two VMs and you may have issues with it running any ARM Windows guest.

I recommend Parallels Desktop as that is what I use, though on an Intel iMac running Sequoia v15.3.1. It runs Windows 11 Pro quite well and I keep all of my Parallel's guests on an external (Crucial X8 1050 MB/s USB-C 3.2 Gen 2) drive. That not only frees up space on the Mac but also keeps the VM guest I/O speedy. You want to omit that guest from Time Machine or Spotlight indexing.

Your MacBook Pro M1 with 16 GB RAM will be borderline on guest RAM and I would start with 4 GB of guest RAM so you don't starve macOS Sequoia. I have assigned 8 processors and 8 GB RAM to Windows 11 Pro on my iMac, but I also have a Core i7 iMac with 8 CPUs and 16 threads. You have 6 performance and 2 efficiency cores, so maybe 4 CPUs assigned to your guest. All a matter of tweaking… You are under-RAM'd to use any Windows applications in that VM guest on a 16 GB Ram M1 Mac.

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Answer 2

Mar 8, 2025 6:05 AM in response to jungmin224

NOTHING about doing this is as simple as you are assuming, and most is impossible.

What Windows apps do you need to run?

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I want to use Windows on my MacBook Pro.

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