Boot Camp is the free utility included with Lion that allows you to install and run Windows on your MacBook’s hard drive. This gives you the freedom (and convenience) of having both Windows applications and Mac applications available.
How To Boot Camp My Macbook Pro
In years past, you may have heard that a Mac computer couldn’t run Windows out of the box (without expensive hardware or software) and that Mac software was off-limits to PCs. Well, you’d have been correct, at least for all but the recent history of the Macintosh computer.
Boot Camp is a native macOS utility mainly used for running multiple operating systems. Despite the regular application status, removing a Boot Camp partition is nothing similar to deleting a regular Mac app. You can erase unwanted partition with the help of Boot Camp Assistant or Mac. Feb 15, 2014 Boot Camp creates a Windows partition on your hard drive, along with the Mac OS partition. This means that none of your Mac content is touched at all, and Boot Camp has no effect on the operation. Set the default operating system. In Windows on your Mac, click in the right side of the taskbar, click the Boot Camp icon, then choose Boot Camp Control Panel. If a User Account Control dialog appears, click Yes. Select the startup disk that has the default operating system you want to use. Install Windows on your Mac Boot Camp is a utility that comes with your Mac and lets you switch between macOS and Windows. Download your copy of Windows 10, then let Boot Camp Assistant walk you through the installation steps. Get started with Boot Camp.
Feb 01, 2019 Note you can install Windows with Boot Camp on earlier Macs too, but to do so you will need to first make a Windows 10 install drive from MacOS, whereas 2015 and newer models running Mac OS X 10.11 or later do not require the Windows boot drive.
Why the incompatibility? It was because Apple used a series of Motorola processors (or CPUs) that didn’t “talk the same language” as the Intel CPUs used in PCs. Consider a person speaking Korean trying to read a book in Arabic and you get the general idea.
Then Apple began using Intel processors in Macs, and the ground rules changed. Now Apple hardware was suddenly compatible with Windows. All that was needed was a “bridge” to help keep both operating systems separate on the same hard drive — and Apple developed Boot Camp. Of course, that bridge works in only one direction because you still can’t run Macintosh software on a PC. (Go figure.)
Boot Camp accomplishes this magic by creating a separate Windows partition on your laptop’s hard drive. The partition holds all your Windows data, including the operating system, your program files, and the documents you create while running Windows. Consider this partition as completely separate from your Mac OS X data, even though both partitions exist on the same physical hard drive.
When you reboot your MacBook using Boot Camp, it’s similar to changing the station on your FM radio: the hardware is the same, but you’ve switched to a different DJ (Windows instead of Mac OS X) and you’re listening to different music (country instead of rock). How’s that for a comparison, Dr. Science?
Naturally, you’ll need free space on your Mac’s hard drive to install Boot Camp. Apple recommends 10GB of free space for a Windows 7 installation, but bump that up to 40GB. Both the 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Vista and Windows 7 are compatible with most Macs capable of running Mac OS X Lion, and any Intel-based Mac can run 32-bit Windows XP or Vista.
When your MacBook is running Windows, it’s as susceptible to virus and spyware attack as any other Windows PC. Make sure that you invest in quality anti-virus and anti-spyware protection for your Windows side!
By AppleInsider Staff
Monday, February 05, 2018, 03:09 pm PT (06:09 pm ET)
Why would you want to run Windows on an Apple machine in the first place? First of all, there's quite a large number of programs and apps that only work on Windows, especially professional software. If you're a gamer, you can't go without Windows as the selection of games on macOS is extremely limited.
So why not just buy a Windows computer? Well Apple computers are known for their reliability and they hold their value very well compared to PCs. Some people still buy used Apple laptops that are a few years old, something almost unheard of for Windows laptops.
Mac owners can use Apple's built-in Boot Camp Assistant to install Windows for free. The first-party assistant makes installation easy, but be forewarned that you will need to restart your Mac whenever you want to access the Windows provision.
Another option is Parallels Desktop, a third-party service that allows you to switch back and forth between macOS and Windows without having to reboot, but that product requires an annual subscription.
Before we begin installing Windows using Boot Camp, make sure you're on an Intel-based Mac, have at least 55GB of free disk space on your startup drive, and have backed up all of your data.
The first thing we need is a Windows disc image file, or ISO. Use Google to search and find the 'Download Windows 10 ISO' file page on Microsoft's website. Once there, select 'Windows 10,' and hit 'Confirm.' Choose your language and select '64 bit' unless you're running an older Mac that only supports 32 bit programs.
If you're not sure, click the Apple logo at the upper-left hand corner of your Mac's home screen and select 'About this Mac.' If it says 'Core Duo' in the processor section, then your Mac is 32-bit.
If you're running OS X El Capitan 10.11 or later on a Mac, Windows installation is going to be a breeze since those models use the computer's internal drive to temporarily store Windows installation files. If not, you'll need to insert a blank 16GB or larger USB flash drive or external SSD to complete the installation.
Once your ISO file is done downloading, open Spotlight Search or Launchpad and search for 'Boot Camp Assistant.'
Click continue, then click choose and select your newly downloaded ISO file. Next, Boot Camp will ask you to adjust the size of your Windows partition. You should make it larger if you plan on downloading and playing games or using professional software.
If you're on an older Mac operating system, you'll see some options to create an install disk and download the latest Windows support software. Make sure all of them are checked, then click continue.
Now choose your ISO image file, and the destination disk, which is your USB Flash drive. Then click continue, choose the partition size for Windows 10, and click install.
If the installation is successful, the system will ask for your Mac's password. Make sure to save any important documents or files, as your Mac will instantly restart into Windows once you enter your password.
After the reboot, you'll be greeted with the windows setup menu. If your mouse isn't working, click a couple of times and the mouse pointer should show up.
Click Next, then enter your Windows 10 activation key if you have it. If you don't have one yet, click 'I don't have a product key.' In that case, choose which version of Windows 10 you want to install. We chose Windows 10 Home. Accept the terms and click next on the next page to begin the installation.
How Do I Get Boot Camp For My Mac 10
When it's finished, Windows will automatically restart and bring you through the rest of the installation. Once at the Windows desktop, the boot camp installation program will show up. This will install all the necessary drivers for Windows to run properly.
Your system will restart one more time and then Windows is ready for use!
To get back to macOS, find boot camp at the bottom right hand corner of the screen, right click on it? And click 'Restart in MacOS'
If you get an error message, don't worry. Just restart your system while holding down the option key to choose which operating system to start up in.
To get back to Windows from macOS, you can either use the restart while holding the option key method, or you can use Spotlight search to open the Startup Disk settings. Click the lock and authenticate to unlock the settings, then click on Bootcamp, and click restart.
If you want to completely remove the Boot Camp partition, open Boot Camp Assistant again and click Restore. Just remember that this operation will delete all data and contents on the Windows partition.