Fusion Pro 13 - Parallels v18 VM Import

[Ratfink_]

Hello All

I am confused a a Long time VMware Fusion ( and ESXi ) user as I have been waiting for a long time for Fusion v13.0

As I needed to continue to work , I was forced to pay for a Parallels v18 License to run my Windows11 Arm VM on my M1 MacBook

Now all I want to do is import the VM I have been using for then past 12+ Months into VMware Fusion v13 Pro so I can continue Working.

This seems to no longer function as the conversion process assumes you are importing an x86 VM ( instead of checking first )

So , I thought , Simple , I will build a new Windows11_Arm VM in Fusion v13 Pro , but this does not work either.  Networking does not function and the Hardware support id Buggy at Best ( and non-existent at worst )

Please VMware , If you are going to release TP 22H2 as a 'Finished Product' , make sure it actually works before charging me US$ 199.00 for the License !!

Tony 

[ddeacon22]

I have been able to get my Win11 Parallells VM imported. I can get it to boot to Bitlocker recovery where I enter the recovery key but once it gets to the Windows login screen, neither the keyboard or mouse work so I can't login.

To get to the Bitlocker screen I needed to do some edit in the vmx file within the VM to address errors and then remove / re-add some devices as well. Just haven't been able to figure out the mouse and keyboard.

[Technogeezer]

---

@Ratfink_ wrote:

Now all I want to do is import the VM I have been using for then past 12+ Months into VMware Fusion v13 Pro so I can continnue

So , I thought , Simple , I will build a new Windows11_Arm VM in Fusion v13 Pro , but this does not work either.  Networking does not function and the Hardware support id Buggy at Best ( and non-existent at worst 

---

Can you elaborate on what “networking does  not function”?A lot of people here have been able to get it to work. 

Also, what hardware support are you finding “buggy”. Specifics can be relayed back to VMware so they can be fixed. There are issues around host/guest integration (copy/paste, drag/drop, and shared folders) due to a lack of full VMware tools support that make Windows 11 ARM not useful for some users. 

[ColoradoMarmot]

Follow the specific steps in the unofficial guide to get networking working.  It's not a one-click install.

[ColoradoMarmot]

Are you importing on intel or arm?  On arm, it's not supported.

[jamesdboz]

Hi Guys, trying to import Parallels 18 into the fusion 13 trial. no option to import and would like to see link to unofficial guide if that is ok.

Cheers,

James

[Technogeezer]

If you're on an Apple Silicon Mac (M1/M2), import from a Parallels VM is not supported. 

The Unofficial Fusion 13 for Apple Silicon Companion guide can be found here: https://communities.vmware.com/t5/VMware-Fusion-Documents/The-Unofficial-Fusion-13-for-Apple-Silicon...

Searching the forum using the terms "Companion" or "unofficial" from the magnifying glass at the top of the page will also result on a hit on the document.

[Blenheimpalace]

I have spent upwards of 8 hours now to trying to build this blasted iso file.

Have watched numerous youtube vids about it, read all kinds of articles, and installed all kinds of extraneous junk on my M2 mac pro and to NO AVAIL! I am an engineer who has been using computers for over 45 years.  I not exactly a newbie but this is just plain awful.

Can some one who has already been successful, jut post the bloody file on a link where the rest of the us in the VM fusion world can download?

If it is so difficult, WHY can't someone, including MS just publish the file?

[RDPetruska]

Have you read Technogeezer's unofficial guide (linked in the reply JUST ABOVE yours)?  Along with the utility referenced in the guide, it's quite simple process now.

[Technogeezer]

Almost all of the videos out there that are touting how to install Windows 11 ARM on Fusion 13 are sorely outdated. And until recently the tools that had to be used to get that Windows installation ISO were brittle and required a steady hand to make sure you got something that works.

This is no longer the case. Read and follow the instructions in the Unofficial Companion guide (posted here: https://communities.vmware.com/t5/VMware-Fusion-Documents/The-Unofficial-Fusion-13-for-Apple-Silicon... ). This has helped a number of community members navigate the rocky road that Microsoft has put in front of us to get something as simple as a Windows 11 ARM installation ISO.

The utility that the Companion guide recommends builds the ISO from Microsoft ESD files - it's the real, released code, not a hacked together, brittle, uupdump procedure or pre-release/beta/"Preview" files. The process used to build this ISO is the same process used by Parallels.  The latest version of this utility (posted here https://communities.vmware.com/t5/VMware-Fusion-Documents/w11arm-esd2iso-a-utility-to-create-Windows... ) does not require any extra software installation from Homebrew or Macports. Everything it needs is bundled with the utility. It greatly simplifies the build process.

Trust me, if you follow the guide, you will have an ISO that you can use for Windows 11 ARM installation in under 15 minutes - not much longer than it would take to download an ISO over the network. 

It should be something that with your experience you should have no problem with.

[Blenheimpalace]

SO I gave up on the M2 MacBook and am now just trying to just upgrade win10 to win 11 on my 2019 intel i9 macbook pro, with VM Fusion 13.

windows is telling me I can't do it.

doesnt sound right. As I have pletny of resources on the VM to do so

Any help out there?

[Technogeezer]

You need to be a bit more specific on where Windows is telling you that it can't do the upgrade.Did you run PC Health Check (https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/how-to-check-if-your-device-meets-windows-11-system-requ...) in the VM before trying the upgrade? It'll tell you what's not meeting Windows 11 pre-requisites.

In general, the Windows 11 upgrader will fail if:

• You do not have UEFI secure boot enabled. Make sure that's enabled for the VM.
• You do not have the VM configured with a TPM device. You need to turn on VM encryption (choose only to encrypt the files needed to support TPM, not complete encryption), then make sure the TPM device is added to the VM.
• You do not have the VM configured  with at least a 64GB virtual hard drive
• You do not have 2 vCPUs and 4GB of memory for the VM.
• the Intel CPU is not on Microsoft's list of compatible chips. From what I can tell, the Intel CPUs in that generation of MacBook Pro should be OK

If you've met all of these, check resources on the web about how to force Windows to install on unsupported configurations. 

[Technogeezer]

Also, you say you've given up on the M2 Mac. If you followed the instructions to the letter in the unofficial guide we've referenced here (and ignored all those videos you've seen out there), you should have easily been able to install Windows 11 ARM in a Fusion 13 VM. If you had problems with that, I'd be interested in knowing simply so that we can figure out what's wrong and amend any instructions to make it go easier for the community.

[Blenheimpalace]

I gave up becaue my IT guy told me that the programs that i wanted to continue t o use, Autocad 2022, Enercalc, Bluebeam, and other engineering programs wouldn't work with the ARM architecture.

So, i went back to my 2019 intel machine.

thanks for your help.

[Technogeezer]

Ah yes now that makes sense.

Anything that relies on 3d acceleration is suspect on Windows 11 ARM:

1. Microsoft acknowledges that not all of the DX12 and OpenGL 3.3+ functionality is ported to ARM that would allow those types of applications to work.
2. The vendors of those applications haven't ported them to native ARM code and they may rely on things that Microsoft's x86_64 emulator don't support well if at all.
3. Both 1 and 2 may be true...

[ColoradoMarmot]

Some of those apps may work inside Windows 11, with their built in 'rosetta' like tech - your IT guy may not know that exists.  But they probably won't work on Fusion (yet) because of the rudimentary vmware tools and drivers.  Once the new tech preview comes out, it'd be worth giving it a try.

Unfortunately though, if they don't, the option is going to be to run old Mac hardware (which becomes untenable in 2-4 years when MacOS stops being supported on intel machines), or buying a PC.

[Blenheimpalace]

so I've gone throught all the settings, and the UEFI one WON'T boot up my VM.

So the next question is shoudl I just clean install Windows 11 pro and try to migrate over all my programs from mystic windows 10 machine?

[ColoradoMarmot]

Are you on ARM?  If so, import isn't supported yet.

[Blenheimpalace]

no. Not on a m1 or m2 chip.

if you read the thread above, i am trying to install windoes 11 pro on a 2019 macbook pro with an intel i9 chip, 32 g ram and 1 tb hd,

[Technogeezer]

If your existing Windows 10 VM is set up for BIOS firmware and a MBR formatted disk, it’s understandable that your VM may not boot. There are things you have to do to to your VMs Windows installation (not Fusion related)  to change it over to UEFI and GPT disks in preparation for a Windows 11 upgrade. Web search for instructions on converting a Windows 10 system to UEFI firmware and GPT formatting.

If you’re not up to that, clean install a new Windows 11 VM and migrate your data. .