Question on Windows XP and Parallels

[dakota]

I have not used Windows often on my iMac, but I know that when I bought it, it came with Parallels and Windows XP installed.  There has always been an alias of XP on my desktop.  I assumed that Windows itself was installed, but I never looked for the app itself.  I just downloaded and installed the new version of Parallels Desktop and while it does bring up Windows, there does not seem to be a Windows app on my computer.  The old alias for Windows XP     tells me there is no original for Windows XP, and what I have instead is a Parallels Desktop icon.  Where on earth is Windows?

[krissel]

When you day "it does bring up Windows", what do you mean?  Can you take a screenshot and post it here?

And when you bought the computer, who said XP was installed? Was this from a previous owner? XP would be in its own folder somewhere on your drive.

[Paddy]

Dakota, you should be able to find it here:

User->Documents->Parallels->Windows XP. Inside that folder should be a bunch of folders and files, including WinXP.hdd, which is the disk image (mine is about 12GB), Windows Applications (mine is about 14.5 GB, but I've installed things like Office '07 etc., so there's a fair bit there). You should also have a Windows XP disk in your possession, as you have to install AND activate Windows initially just like you would on a PC. Yours may have come pre-installed, but you should have the disk, since reinstalls can be necessary, as can reactivations. (Where did you buy the iMac?)

Generally, in reading user experiences, upgrades take a long time and one person noted they had to add the ACPI driver from the Windows disk in order to get everything to work. It's a driver that acts as the interface between the operating system and the BIOS - clearly things don't work if you don't have it. However, others did not comment on this problem, so I'm not sure how common it is.

http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/21252/parallels-desktop

But if you go to the Parallels forum, there is a very long thread there with a LOT of people having major problems with this upgrade. I think I'm going to wait a bit before I try this upgrade!!

http://forum.parallels.com/showthread.php?t=31138

One question - did you backup your VM before doing this? I'm guessing not, since you didn't seem to know where it actually lives?

[dakota]

There seems to have been an automatic backup for the virtual machine.  I watched its progress.  There was a message, which I, unfortunately, did not pay much attention to about having something checked for automatic, otherwise you had to back up manually.

Windows-XP and Parallels were installed for my by Small Dog when I bought the computer.  I have the CDs for Windows, but not for Parallels.  They gave me the serial numbers for both on the invoice.

When I say that Windows comes up - it means that if I click on what is now called Parallels Desktop, it brings up my Windows environment. What is now in my Parallels folder is an icon named Microsoft Windows XP.pvm - my Parallels Virtual Machine.  I still want to know where the Windows Xp app is - a search does not find it.

[Paddy]

Dakota, the files I have in my Parallels->Windows XP folder are:

Microsoft Windows XP.mem (Parallels VM Memory Dump)
Microsoft Windows XP.pvs (Parallels VM configuration)
Microsoft Windows XP.sav (Parallels VM Saved State)
unattended.fdd (Parallels VM floppy drive image)
Windows Applications
Windows Disks (C drive)
winxp.hdd (Parallels VM hard disk image)

My assumption is that it's somewhere in that hard disk image - since everything else but the Applications folder is pretty small. I have not updated to Parallels 4 yet and given the issues some have had, I think I'll hold off! I'll have quite enough to do next week with the set up of my new Mac Pro.

Do you have the rest of those files?

Is Windows working ok then? I don't have and never have had an alias for Windows on my desktop/dock etc, BTW - just a Parallels one. May have been some custom thing that SmallDog did.

[dakota]

Okay - right now what I have is a Parallels folder in Applications which has Explorer, Image Tool, and Transporter.  In users- documents -Parallels, all I have is an icon which reads Windows XP.pvm.  That is it!

I went back one month on Time Machine, and what I had then was a Parallels folder in Applications with eleven items. In Users - documents, I had a Parallels folder which had a folder called Microsoft Windows Xp. In that folder were files ending in .mpm, .pvs., .sav., unattended, a folder with Windows Applications, windows disks, and winxp.hdd.

The icon previously on the desktop which read Microsoft Windows Xp had the Parallels logo.

[Paddy]

But does Windows work or not?

I think they've put everything in the .pvm file. (See contents of the pvm for a single user in the last couple of posts here: http://forum.parallels.com/showthread.php?t=31218) BTW - how big is the pvm file?

[dakota]

pvm file is 1.94 GB.    I was able to make an alias of it for the desktop since without it, you have to bring up Parallels Desktop, and then start Windows from that.  Windows is operating - no question.  I just can't figure out why there is no longer a Windows folder. I will check that link.  Thanks.

[Paddy]

Glad to hear that it's working!

Once I get the new Mac I'll think about the upgrade - and may install BootCamp as well.