I just bought Parallels Desktop for Mac and was wondering if I need to get rid of the partitions that were created when I used Bootcamp before installing? Also I assume that I need to back up all my files before I attempt installing, good hunch? Will I also need to reinstall Windows? Delete Bootcamp? Thanks in advance for any advice for installing Parallels with Bootcamp Beta and Windows already installed on my Mac. JT
I don't have Bootcamp but I think the answer to your first question is an emphatic No! Parallels just creates a normal file for your VM (ie it contains all that is needed) - that is one of its beauties. It can be anywhere basically - on your main disk, on a connected disk etc. So, you can keep your partition(s). By all means do a back up before installing new stuff - just a common sense safety precaution really. Chris
Don't forget to upgrade, too. Chris is right; unless you want to reclaim the space from the Boot Camp partition for some reason, you don't need to delete it. Note, too, that because you're creating a fresh installation of Windows onto the virtual disk, you'll also need to reinstall your Windows apps in the new VM once you've set it up. One other comment is that if you bought Parallels from a retail store rather than via electronic download, be sure to update to the latest version (Build 1970 as of this moment) from this link.
