can i use an external hard drive for parallels on mac

Hi,

I have already used and installed parallels on my mac for an year now, but i have run out of space on my mac hard drive to keep it there and i rang apple care and they said i can install/move my parallels pvm onto an external hard drive.
So id like to ask if thats possible and then i can delete it to elevate space. And does the hard drive have to be a specific one for mac e.g (My passport for mac) or a specific one for windows or does it not matter? because i have the my passport for mac.
Also, i'd like to confirm that after i do this, once i plug my external HD in, windows will work just as well, like it does normally?

Thank you!! Please help me out!

 

Hi VictoriaH1,
Yes, you can run Windows from external hard drive. Once you move your .pvm file to external hard drive, it would work normally but you will have to always shut down Windows before you can unplug your external drive as it would corrupt virtual hard disk and result in loss of data. Please check this link for more information.
Thanks.

 

thanks!
I've moved the parallel pvm onto my HD now. So shall i delete the parallel on my mac now?
so from now on the only way i can access windows is when i plug my external HD into my mac?
And nothing is lost? everything works normally?

 

Hi VictoriaH1,

I understand that you have moved the pvm file to your external drive, but if you delete Parallels Desktop from the Mac you cannot run the virtual machine. [Example: You have used Microsoft Office to create a document and saved the document on an external drive then you have uninstalled Microsoft Office from your PC. Now you have the document file on an external drive will you be able to open the document without Microsoft Office Word on the PC ? this will also suit Parallels Desktop and its virtual machine]

Thanks,
Ajith M.

 

Ok I understand, I meant delete pvm file and not uninstall parallel, and I've already done that, is that a problem now? I'm really confused as to how to convert it into my hard drive now

 

And if i don't delete the pvm file or any file how am i going to lose the space on my mac hard drive?
Also, even though i've deleted the pvm file already (it was under other in mac storage section) now it is still there for some reason, but under (backups).
And i can't access parallels/windows on my mac if i don't plug in my HD now. So I'm really confused. it only works if my HD is plugged in

 

Yes VictoriaH1, if you had copied your .pvm file to external drive, you can delete the .pvm from your actual Mac hard to save space. Just connect your external drive to Mac and double click on the .pvm to start your Windows. Once you are done working with Windows, shut it down either Actions ( Top menu bar ) > Shut down or Windows start menu > Shut down and then you can disconnect your external drive from Mac. This would work as normal and no files will be lost.
Thanks.

 

I'm excited to read that its possible to move the parallel over to a desktop drive (external hard drive).
Is there a link to a site with step by step instructions?

 

Hi HoaT,
You cannot transfer Parallels Desktop to an external drive but can run the virtual machine from the external drive.