Memory Allocation with Parallels

[cinger0439]

I'm new to using Mac computers and I just purchased a new 15 inch 2.3 GHz, i7 Quad core Macbook Pro with 4 GB RAM.

I write online training courses and I use two authoring tools - Articulate and Adobe Captivate. I have to run Articulate on Windows - no mac version.

My question - if I understand correctly, Parallels creates a virtual system within the Mac OS X, right. Therefore, both OS's need memory, right? That is why memory needs to be allocated?

How much memory should I allocate and will this impact performance when I am using Mac software on the Mac OS?

 

[itickings]

I don't know about the system requirements for the software you mention, you might be better off running Windows through Boot Camp if they are hardware intense.

As for the virtual machine approach, yes, both operating systems will need memory. Memory used by one system can be considered unavailable to the other. If either system gets less memory than it uses, it will try to use the hard drive instead and that will cause everything to slow down.

In short, allocate enough memory but not too much. Exactly how much that is depends on your usage, your applications and your data. Try experimenting a bit!

Additionally, you can configure Parallel's to optimize performance for either OS X or the virtual machine.

 

[balamw]

Both OS X 10.6 and Windows 7 run OK with "light" apps in 2 GB so dedicating 2GB to the VM is usually alright, but more is better.

RAM is relatively cheap right now. If you add 4 GB of RAM to your iMac for ($50-$100 depending if you add or replace) you won't have to worry about it. (give the VM 3 GB and it'll be quite comfortable.)

B

 

[cinger0439]

Thanks, guys, this is exactly what I needed to know. And I even understood it!

Is is easy to upgrade memory? Can I do it myself?

 

[itickings]

Is is easy to upgrade memory? Can I do it myself?

Well, it was easier on older MacBooks, but it isn't very hard. There are some Youtube videos available if you want to know what to expect.

You should give the setting of 2GiB for Parallel's a try before you decide to upgrade (but more memory surely won't hurt).

 

[cinger0439]

Thanks again, you have been so helpful.