The Macs supported Windows before Apple switched to in-house silicon for the Macs. Nevertheless, Apple phased out Bootcamp after the M-series chip-powered Macs, leaving customers with a few alternatives, one of which being Parallels. That workaround has now received Microsoft’s approval. So, yes, you can now officially run Windows 11 on Macs with M1 and M2 series CPUs using Parallels.
Microsoft claims that Parallels 18 is the “authorized” way to run Windows 11 on Macs with ARM processors on a help website. On Macs with M1 and M2 series CPUs, users can run Windows 11 Pro and Windows 11 Enterprise in ARM mode.
Windows on M1 chips support was introduced with Parallels Desktop 16.5; nonetheless, the procedure was not simple. With the most recent version of Parallels Desktop, downloading and installing Windows 11 is now a simple one-click process. The implementation of a virtual TPM that is compatible with Apple silicon by Parallels has further facilitated the process of adhering to Windows 11’s TPM and Secure Boot standards.
While consumers can purchase a Windows 11 Pro license directly from Microsoft for $199, Parallels claims that businesses can purchase a Windows 11 license “using their typical Windows procurement procedure.”
Only hardware drivers created specifically for Windows 11-powered Arm-based Computers will work. Certain games that require anti-cheat drivers or use OpenGL 3.3 or above might not function. Certain applications, such those that attempt to interface with the Windows shell or provide assistive technology, might not function as intended. Moreover, some antivirus programs from third parties might not be installable.
Virtualization-based Security (VBS), DirectX 12, and other layered virtualization experiences like Windows Subsystem for Android, Windows Subsystem for Linux, and Windows Sandbox are not supported. Moreover, Macs powered by M1 and M2 CPUs cannot run 32-bit Arm programs from the Windows Store.
Yet because Windows on Arm now supports x64 app emulation, the majority of applications ought to function properly.
Another option is to use Windows 365 Cloud PCs to run Windows 11 on M1 and M2 Macs. This virtual machine, as opposed to Windows 11 using Parallels, runs the full version of Windows 11 online.
