Should I convert my Bootcamp Partition to Virtual

[Macloven]

I've read many threads about how to do this (though still nervous) but wondering if there's any practical benefit to it? I'm running xp pro sp3, VMWare 3.x and Snow Leopard. If it runs faster, uses less memory, runs cooler etc etc.

Over the last year, I've not had to boot straight to boot camp once, so figure getting rid of that partition might be a good thing?

No gaming on the machine, just running many windows accounting and tax app's through VmWare.

Thanks,

Mark

 

[balamw]

If it runs faster, uses less memory, runs cooler etc etc.

The only advantage you will get is a marginal performance improvement from not booting off of the physical HDD partition (i.e. using VMWare's native disk format instead of Boot Camp.) You'll also be able to more effectively use the HDD space instead of dedicating a fixed partition size to Windows.

A more interesting side effect is that you will gain more control over your VM, in that you can properly suspend/sleep/hibernate your VM and take snapshots of working configurations. This alone could be more worth it.

B

 

[Macloven]

The only advantage you will get is a marginal performance improvement from not booting off of the physical HDD partition (i.e. using VMWare's native disk format instead of Boot Camp.) You'll also be able to more effectively use the HDD space instead of dedicating a fixed partition size to Windows.

A more interesting side effect is that you will gain more control over your VM, in that you can properly suspend/sleep/hibernate your VM and take snapshots of working configurations. This alone could be more worth it.

B

Thanks for the info. Decided to try it, and even running off an external USB drive it's faster than through bootcamp. So it's now on the local drive and running even better.

Question about the sleep/hibernate question...windows still doesn't properly sleep or hibernate on its' own with VMWare 3. What are the best settings to get the VM to sleep automatically so I don't come back to a dead battery?

Thanks for any and all tips on getting the most out of this setup,

Mark