Hi All, I noticed that when I run Parallels on my MacBook, it causes the fans to run at full speed constantly. Is there a patch for this issue? If not, what can I do to correct this? Please advise. Thanks, Tanya
This has come up a few times. Parallels itself isn't typically the cause. Please remember that when you are running Parallels you are, in most cases, running two modern operating systems at once. The strain can be reduced by turning off as many services as you can on the guest operating system. You can also suspend (or pause in the current pre-release version) virtual machines when not in use.
I usually have my virtual machine on suspend and rarely run Windows XP due to the fans running when I start it. Is what you are saying is that I can't run both OS and Windows XP without running into this problem?
Apple put out a firmware upgrade last year that helped the issue of fan speed. If you have not upgraded the firmware you might look into it. There are some after market software products that control fan speed, but only the minimum speed (SMCFanControl, ,for example). They tell you the rpm, though, which is a nice diagnostic. The max speed is somewhere around 6000 rpm and the steady state speed for typical usage is between 1000 and 2000 rpm. Mine are currently running at 3000 rpm and are barely audible. There have been lengthy discussions about the MB fans and battery problems here: http://discussions.apple.com/category.jspa?categoryID=190
No. What I intended to say was that the more you have running the more stress you put on your MacBook. If you reduce the stress, you reduce your problem. You can lessen the stress by turning off things you probably don't need, such as the Remote Registry service. This typically is only needed in corporate environments. Other services, like Uninterruptible Power Supply, Telnet, and Wireless Zero Configuration which you are very unlikley to use in a virtual machine. The link below should help you evaluate your needs and turn off services you don't need. http://www.jasonn.com/turning_off_unnecessary_services_on_windows_xp
