The Windows 11 hype is still going strong after Microsoft confirmed its existence. The tech giant filed a DMCA complaint against an Indian technology blog asking Google to remove an article that contained the download link to Windows 11 ISO. The company stated: “It is a leaked copy of unreleased Windows 11.”
It is easy to install Windows 11 on Windows, Linux, and Intel MacBooks using VirtualBox, but what if you’re using Apple’s latest M1 Macs or MacBooks? In this article, let’s look at the two ways you can install Windows 11 on M1 Macs.
Install Windows 11 On M1 Macs
1. Using the UTM app
1. Head over to the official UTM for Macs website and click on the Download button to download the .dmg file
2. Double-click on the downloaded dmg file, and you’ll see a Finder window appear. You’ll see two things in it – The icon of the app that you’re about to install and an Applications folder.
3. You need to drag the app icon and drop it in the Applications folder. UTM is now installed on your Mac/MacBook.
4. Now, open the app menu and click on the UTM app icon to open it
5. In the app, click on Create a New Virtual Machine option.
6. Enter a name for the VM and click on save.
7. Next, in the System tab, make sure to select the x86_64 Architecture.
8. Allocate at least 4GB of RAM. Then, click on Show Advanced Settings and allocate 4 CPU Cores, as shown in the image below.
9. Leave the settings in the QEMU tab untouched. In the Drives tab, click on the New Drive button.
10. Select the interface as IDE and allocate 40GB of size.
11. Click on Import Drive, select the Windows 11 ISO you downloaded, and click Save.
12. Save everything and from the main menu, start the Virtual Machine we just created.
13. Go through the Windows 11 installation set up, and voila! That’s how to install Windows 11 on M1 Macs.
Mind you. The installation process could take longer because the emulation of x86 OS is very slow. So the overall experience will also be prolonged and sluggish. Also, UTM doesn’t support GPU emulation/ virtualization hence the lack of 3D acceleration.
Are you excited about Windows 11? Let us know your thoughts and opinions about it in the comments section below. Screenshots credits: Andrew Tsai on Youtube
2. Using Parallels Desktop 17
Parallels Desktop is a paid tool to natively run Windows on both M1 and Intel MacBooks and Macs. The latest version, i.e., Parallels Desktop 17, adds support for Windows 11.
It’s a paid app, but if you want to use Windows or even Linux on your M1 MacBook, this tool might be worth investing in. Parallels Desktop also offers a 14-day free trial.
1. Head over to the official Parallels Desktop website.
2. Click on the Download Free Trial button and click on the Download Now button.
3. The Parallels desktop .dmg will start downloading.
4. Double-click on the downloaded dmg file, and you’ll see a Finder window appear. You’ll see two things in it – The icon of the app that you’re about to install and an Applications folder.
5. You need to drag the app icon and drop it in the Applications folder. Parallels Desktop is now installed on your Mac/MacBook.
6. Download the Windows 11 ARM ISO. For that, you’ll need to become a member of the Windows Insider program.
7. After the ISO’s downloaded, open the Parallels Desktop app and drag the ISO to the application.
8. Steps after this are pretty self-explanatory. Once everything’s set up, the app will create a Windows VM, and you’ll be able to use Windows 11.
9to5mac has a great YouTube video on installing Windows 10 using Parallels Desktop. It’s for Windows 10, but the steps for installing Windows 11 will be the same.
UTM and Parallels are the only two easy ways to run Windows 11 on M1 MacBook.
Were you able to run Windows 11 by following this tutorial? Let us know in the comments section below.
