How To Download Windows Apps On A Mac

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By now, the practice is well-established and Windows can work on Mac well. In this article, we’ll have a deep look at installing Windows on Mac. Don’t worry, we’ll have your back the whole way through!

Boot Camp for Mac vs virtualization software

If you want to install Windows on your Mac, you have two options. You can either use Mac Boot Camp, a native feature of the macOS operating system, or you can use a third party virtualization program. Both methods have their own pros and cons, so let’s dive in.

Boot Camp is built into the operating system of all Macs. If you go to your Applications > Utilities folder, you’ll see the Boot Camp Assistant app. It makes the separate partition on your hard drive for installing and running Windows. Once Windows is installed in Boot Camp, every time you turn on your Mac, you will be asked to choose the operating system you want to run. This means that in order to switch from macOS to Windows, you need to reboot your computer.

Advantages

built into your operating system
easy to use — Boot Camp Assistant guides you through the installation process
puts less strain on your Mac’s memory and processing power
completely free (not Windows of course)
easy to update

Disadvantages

you need to reboot your computer to switch between the systems
transferring data between operating systems isn’t easy

Virtualization programs are third-party applications that allow to install a separate operating system on one machine. They run like any other app on your Mac, so you can see the entire Windows desktop within a window on your computer.

Among the most popular virtualization programs are VirtualBox, Parallels, and VMware. Each one has its peculiarities, but we’ll try to sum up what they have in common.

Advantages

you can run both operating systems at the same time
easy file integration between systems

Disadvantages

you need at least 8 GB of RAM for Mac to run smoothly
virtualization apps are not cheap
updates are not free

Depending on your specific needs, you can choose the option that works best for you. But we suggest using Boot Camp. It’s a free native feature of your operating system, running directly on your hardware. Therefore, it will be faster than any other method. And below, you’ll find all information on how to run Boot Camp on your Mac.

How to use Boot Camp: Preparing your Mac

1. Check the system requirements

Some versions of Windows require a certain processor and more hard drive space than the others. Therefore, you have to check the documentation that came with your copy of Windows to learn what you need.

You also need to make sure that your Mac is compatible with the version of Windows you want to install. For instance, Windows 10 is supported on these models:

MacBook (2015 and later)
MacBook Pro (2012 and later)
MacBook Air (2012 and later)
iMac (2012 and later)
Mac Mini (2012 and later)

2. Clean up your hard drive

You need to have at least 55 GB of free disk space on your startup drive for installing Windows on a Mac. And if you don’t feel like spending the next several hours cleaning your Mac manually, you can use a powerful utility CleanMyMac X to find and remove all the junk from your startup disk.

CleanMyMac has everything to finish the 3-hour task of cleaning your hard drive in less than 5 minutes. It will scan every inch of your system and remove gigabytes of junk in two clicks. By the way, CleanMyMac finds about 75 GB of junk on average — more than enough for a smooth Windows installation.

Here’s how to clean your Mac with CleanMyMac X:

Download CleanMyMac here.
Run the app and click Scan.
Click Run.

That’s it! Gigabytes of junk are gone from your computer forever.

How To Download Windows Apps On A Mac Download

3. Back up your Mac

Finally, you should also perform a backup of your Mac in case something goes wrong. Although, it happens very rarely, it’s always better to back up your important data. There are a few methods of backing up your Mac, so choose the most convenient one for you.

You can make automatic backups with Time Machine — software that comes with your Mac. It backs up all data, so you can recover individual files or your entire system from your backups. You may also store files in iCloud and access them whenever you need. iCloud comes with 5 GB of free storage but you can upgrade it any time. If you have an external storage device, you can copy some files and folders on it.

We do recommend you to back up your Mac before installing Windows as it minimizes the chance of losing important data.

How to Install Windows with Boot Camp

Here’s how to install Boot Camp. The installation can be a little time consuming, but it is by no means difficult. Check out the details below.

Step 1: Get a Windows disk image

First of all, you need to get the Windows disk image (ISO file) from the Microsoft website. Here’s how to download it:

Visit the Windows 10 disk image download website.
Go to the Select edition menu and choose Windows 10.
Click Confirm.
Choose the language of installation and click Confirm.
Click 64-bit Download and then click Save.

The ISO file now will be downloaded to your Mac.

Step 2: Open Boot Camp Assistant

Boot Camp Assistant guides you through installing Windows on your Mac. You just have to follow the onscreen instructions. To launch the Boot Camp Assistant, go to Applications > Utilities folder. Click continue and Boot Camp for Mac will automatically locate the ISO file on your system.

Step 3: Create a partition for Windows

How To Download Windows Apps On A Mac Computer

When you are done with the Assistant, your Mac restarts to the Windows installer. When you are asked where you want to install Windows, choose the BOOTCAMP partition and click Format.

*Note that this step is only required if you’re using a flash drive or optical drive to install Windows. In other cases, the right partition will be selected and formatted for you automatically.

Step 4: Install Windows

To finish the installation, you have to follow the onscreen instructions. Take a long breath — the next 12 steps may seem like climbing Everest, but it’s much easier than you think. Here’s how to install Windows on a Mac:

Choose your ISO file and click the Install button.
Type your Password and click OK. You will see the Windows Setup screen.
Select your language.
Click Install Now.
Type your product key if you have it. Otherwise, click 'I don’t have a product key'.
Select Windows 10 Pro or Windows Home and then click Next.
Click Drive 0 Partition X: BOOTCAMP.
Click Next. Windows 10 will be installed.
When the Setup screen appears, click either Use Express Settings or Customize Your Installation. We recommend you to choose the Customize button and disable most, if not all of the switches.
Then you’ll be asked to create an account. Type a username. You can also add a password if you want.
Click Next.
Choose whether you want to use the Cortana personal assistant or not. You can disable it by clicking Not Now button.

Windows will boot fully so you can use it normally.

On the Welcome to Boot Camp Installer box, click Next and accept the terms in the license agreement. Then click Install to proceed. When the installer completes, click Finish to reboot your machine.

Step 5: Restart your Mac

By default, your Mac will still boot to macOS. To access Windows, you have to turn your Mac off and then turn it on while holding the Option (Alt) key. You will be asked from which drive you’d like to boot.

Note that while in Windows, the Mac’s Command key functions as the Windows key, while the Option key functions as the Alt key. If you have a Touch Bar, you’ll see a complete set of buttons, similar to the Control Strip in macOS.

How to remove Windows from your Mac

If for some reasons you don’t need Windows anymore, you can permanently remove it from your Mac. Follow these steps:

Boot into macOS, launch Boot Camp Assistant and click Continue.
Choose 'Remove Windows 7 or later version' or 'Remove Windows 10 or later version'.
Click Restore when you see the Restore Disk to a Single Volume option.

The Boot Camp Assistant will automatically remove Windows from your Mac.

Warning: All data, including software and files, stored on the Windows partition will be deleted, so make the backup copies first.

That may seem like a lot of steps, but it doesn’t take all that long to install Windows on a Mac. Now you can enjoy two operating systems and switch between them right when you need. Cheers!

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Have you ever found a piece of amazing software, only to realize it is Mac-only? With such a vast range of software available for Windows machines, it is a rarity. But, at times, there are just some apps that are better on macOS.

If you have a Windows 10 system, there are very few ways you can run Mac apps on your device. However, it isn’t impossible.

Here’s how you run Mac apps on your Windows 10 machine, for free.

Step 1: Create a macOS Virtual Machine

The easiest way to run Mac apps on your Windows 10 machine is with a virtual machine. While it is the easiest method, it is also a lengthy process. Don’t worry!

Follow my tutorial on How to Run macOS on Windows in a Virtual Machine.

The tutorial will guide you through the virtual machine download and installation process, how to download the macOS operating system, and how to install it in the virtual machine.

Once your macOS virtual machine is up and running, return to this tutorial to find out how to install your Mac apps.

Step 2: Log Into Your Apple Account

From here, downloading and using an Apple app is very similar to the regular macOS experience. You still need to log in to your Apple account to download and use apps from the App Store.

Step 3: Download Your First macOS App

Once you sign into your account, you have the run of the App Store. You can install almost any macOS software you want in your virtual machine.

Select the App Store from the Dock at the bottom of the screen. You may well have to enter your Apple ID credentials again.

Browse to the macOS app you want to download. Hit Get, then Install. After installation completes, select Open, and you’re good to go. For instance, here’s an example where I am using Downlink to put an automatically update my background with satellite images.

Step 4: Save Your macOS Virtual Machine Session

Saving the state of your macOS virtual machine session is easy. Why? Well, you’re using a virtual hard disk. The changes you make to the virtual machine save in the virtual hard drive, ready for the next time you want to open the macOS virtual machine and continue using the Apple Apps on your Windows machine.

The best way to shut down the macOS virtual machine is from within macOS itself. Both VirtualBox and VMware have an option to power down on command, but as with physical hardware, this can cause an issue. In fact, a sudden shutdown on your virtual machine can corrupt the virtual drive.

Select the Apple logo in the top-right corner, then Shut Down. The operating system will close in the correct sequence, then the virtual machine will close.

Snapshot or Power Off?

VirtualBox users also have the option to take a snapshot. A snapshot saves the current state of the virtual machine, allowing you to create a string of snapshots as you use Apple apps and the macOS operating system.

Snapshots are handy if you are about to attempt something that might damage your virtual machine. A snapshot allows you to restore the virtual machine to the previous state, picking up where you left off.

The free version of VMware doesn’t have the same functionality, unfortunately.

Still, you shouldn’t rely on a snapshot to back up your virtual machine activities, nor are snapshots suitable as an alternative to shutting down your virtual machine using the macOS Shut Down option.

The Apple Apps Aren’t Very Fast

Your macOS virtual machine isn’t working well? Or are the macOS apps you’re downloading not running as you expect?

The thing to remember is that your virtual machine doesn’t have the same processing power as your host machine. That is because your virtual machine is sharing the system resources of the host. You may well have a very powerful host machine, with incredible amounts of RAM and multi-core Intel i9 processor. But the vast majority don’t.

What I’m saying is, don’t expect too much from the software you install. It isn’t the same as installing and testing on a dedicated Mac.

Updating Your macOS Virtual Machine

In a word, don’t.

If you update your macOS virtual machine on either VirtualBox or VMware, there is a very strong chance your macOS virtual machine will stop working.

Due to the nature of the configuration of the virtual machines, the update process is not the same as a regular macOS installation on proper hardware. The patches and workarounds that make the macOS virtual machine work with a particular version may not work with the update.

Of course, you are welcome to try, but know that you could lose everything in the virtual machine in the process.

MacinCloud: A Cloud-Based Alternative?

Running a macOS virtual machine to use Apple apps isn’t an option for everyone. While you can get away with running your macOS virtual machine with 4GB RAM, your experience will suffer. Older machines certainly won’t handle the requirements.

One alternative is to use a cloud-based macOS environment. macOS cloud environments are predominantly for Apple app and macOS development, but you can still run an app if you wish. The downside is the cost of the cloud service and the latency between your system and the cloud server.

Windows App For Mac

Using Apple Apps on Windows 10

The vast majority of Apple apps now also have Windows equivalents or alternatives. Many have a Linux equivalent, too. All it takes is a quick internet search, and you will find the equivalent app, perhaps saving you a heap of time in the process.

Do also note that using macOS on non-Apple hardware is against Apple’s End User License Agreement (EULA).

How To Download Windows Apps On A Macbook Air

Running a macOS virtual machine to test an app is handy, but only if you have the correct hardware and a little time to get it all set up. Of course, you can use a virtual machine to test other operating systems, too. Here’s a guide on how to install Linux in Windows with a virtual machine.

How To Download Windows Apps On A Mac

Read the full article: How to Run Mac Apps on Windows 10