Boot Camp lets Macs run Windows ... officially
By Marc Perton 
posted Apr 5th 2006 9:09AM
posted Apr 5th 2006 9:09AM
If you want to run Windows on your
Intel-based Mac but found narf and blanka's solution a little too
intimidating, you now have another option -- and this one's from Apple. The company has released a public beta of a
technology called Boot Camp, which will be included in the next version of OS X. As its name implies, Boot Camp is
essentially a boot manager, and allows Mac owners to install Windows XP and choose whether to run OS X or Windows at
startup. It also includes a selection of Windows drivers for common Mac hardware, along with a utility to let you burn
a CD to run the installation and partitioning tools. Yes, you still need your own copy of XP, but it looks like Apple's
taken most of the pain out of dual-booting. Great job Steve, but we're sorry to tell you that the $13K bounty's already been won. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Hey all, just bought a mac and reinstalled XP (complete install, no MacOSX running at all) but am having an issue with right clicking. Is there anyway that someone knows of that will allow me to right click? and no, holding down CTRL and clicking doesnt work with this config...look forward to hearing from someone on this.
Tx
G
And finally, i can ditch the HP, get a MacBook, and have only one computer.
LMAO. To everyone who scrambled, spent sleepless nights, donated to the bounty, punditized this NEVER happening, I have one thing to say:
Suckers!
It seems like Apple is now ready to mainstream their computer products. There are a lot of people who want to buy a Mac, but are not familiar with the OS, now if they can get a Mac and use XP on it and learn how to use the Mac OS over time, more people will deffinitely buy it.
Personally I think I may buy one as well, just because an XP Mac sounds like a fun toy.
This is great news! Now I don't have to buy that ugly bulky PC I was going to get this summer!
ROFLMAOMFGWTFBBQMACOSXP~!
Apple is gonna laugh in all ya faces, cos those hu didnt get the bounty would be pissing themselves for the sleepless nights they tried for the 13K!
hahaha
I'm quite amazed by this and VERY happy. Like the other guy said, this might take me to one laptop! F my Dell laptop!
Joe
You guys sure this isn't an april fool's joke? I know it's a little late but not impossible.
Wow. Talk about awesome.
This is a great surprise, and a good indication of where Apple is heading. A++ for Steve and company for listening to what their customers want, and letting them do it, even if it's unorthodox.
Woah! Apple's doing smart buisness! They are going to make out huuuuuge with this.
this is excellent I cant believe they did it surely apple would rather make its own os much better and make more money.
forgive me if i'm being naive
so....where can I download this? anyone has the link?
Sweet! Now I can finally make the switch and justify the price for one of these. Just in time too as we are in the market for a new computer and I've had this Apple in my eye for sometime now. Might hold off and get myself one of them fancy Core Duo iMacs and do it up. :D
What performance hit does it take, as I see that to switch between osx and xp you hit the Alt key, meaning that both os's will be running at the same time, and do you guys think wil be able to install only the xp version?
what about vista?
And the devil had to phone the heating company to ask "Can you fix my boiler? I know it must be out 'cause it's a bit nippy in here today!"
http://www.apple.com/macosx/bootcamp/
No link, Engadget?
Thanks Apple, I am going to work on talking my employer into letting me get a mac to replace my P4 when the time comes.
Has anyone tried this to see how the video drivers work under XP?
Does this mean that there's still hope that a MacBook Pro will one day sport TWO mouse buttons?
now if only apple would come out with a tablet i could have all my work & play in one computer
daniel, you hold down the alt key when you boot to select which operating system you want to use. They arent running at the same time
Vista? Apple can worry about that for version 3.0 of boot camp in 4Q '07.
They should have released this last Saturday. Everyone would have thought it was an April Fool's joke.
"What performance hit does it take, as I see that to switch between osx and xp you hit the Alt key, meaning that both os's will be running at the same time, and do you guys think wil be able to install only the xp version?"
They don't run concurrently- press alt at startup to choose which OS you want to boot. Hence the name BOOT Camp.
Also, they specify that it's XP only. No MCE or Vista (yet).
Perhaps Steve can use his Reality Distortion Field to convince the online community that he was the first to get dual-boot working and that narf and blanka don't exist.
Steve: "Score! $13,000!"
I wonder how many people will buy a Mac because of this new feature and then never get around to installing Windows because they like OSX so much?
I really like the wording on the website:
"Windows running on a Mac is like Windows running on a PC. That means it'll be subject to the same attacks that plague the Windows world. So be sure to keep it updated with the latest Microsoft Windows security fixes."
"Macs use an ultra-modern industry standard technology called EFI to handle booting. Sadly, Windows XP, and even the upcoming Vista, are stuck in the 1980s with old-fashioned BIOS. But with Boot Camp, the Mac can operate smoothly in both centuries."
Wouldn't it be great if all manufacturers were this bashful and humo(u)rous about each others products
#17. You may plug any two mouse button and it will work in OSX. I have a logitech MX Laser and the shipped driver lets me use all buttons.
As I predicted, Apple is supporting XP on Macs. What I would like to know is, did they plan on doing this, were they triggered by the success of the contest winner, did Apple do this in their company lab several months ago or what?
Love the disclaimer/warning:
Word to the Wise
Windows running on a Mac is like Windows running on a PC. That means itll be subject to the same attacks that plague the Windows world. So be sure to keep it updated with the latest Microsoft Windows security fixes.
This is GREAT and the stocks went up 10% in just after hours! To bad I didn't get in last week when it was 58 :S
"EFI and BIOS
Macs use an ultra-modern industry standard technology called EFI to handle booting. Sadly, Windows XP, and even the upcoming Vista, are stuck in the 1980s with old-fashioned BIOS. But with Boot Camp, the Mac can operate smoothly in both centuries."
HAHAHA, man there are some cocky folks working down at Camp Apple...
Bravo though, great solution.
Can people please offer up suggestions on how i can justify a new laptop purchase to my wife !!!!
I wonder if Leopard will require dual booting or allow Virtualization? Also... Not to start a flame-fest, BUT... I really hope Apple sticks to the Single button trackpads, they feel SO much better! Ctrl-Click in great!
This is a beautiful thing. It really is.
[quote]I cant believe they did it surely apple would rather make its own os much better and make more money.[/quote]
this doesn't impact OSX in the least. they're not SWITCHING to Windows (thank you very much Dvorak), just allowing people to boot Windows easily.
The apple mighty mouse has two buttons doesn't it?? That should work with XP on a mac
Now if only Apple will make Ipods and Itunes compatible with WMA and WMV formats...
I can see how this is really cool and all, but what is the point?
People buy macs not for the hardware, but for the OS. If I buy a MBP and throw windows on it, there is no difference now then if I went out and bought a dual-core Toshiba or Sony. Wouldn't it be more effcient for Apple simply to create a Virtualization environment for software rather then create a whole new dual booting system?
For me I just can't seem to understand why people would buy a mac simply to put XP on it. Why waste your time, when you could just buy a perfectly capable PC laptop?
I'm just wondering who is going to be the first to install Windows XP Media Center Edition on a Mac Mini and create the media center experience we've always wanted!
Well, this is very good. I would imagine sales will go up :)
Though, will peopel really dual boot? Sure, two OS's can exist, but will people really go back and forth?
Maybe thats a good Engadget poll to have! Might show some interesting results.
I can finally plunk down a whole lot of money on a couple macs.
YEE!
The Macbook does support multiple mouse buttons via the trackpad. There are several ways to go about this - holding down the "control" key during a left-click results in a right-click. You can set up the trackpad tap to act as a right-click. Or you can set up the track pad to be context aware-ie., one finger on the trackpad invokes a left-click when the button is clicked, two fingers on the trackpad invokes a right-click. Or you can reverse the previous option and do a left-click via trackpad tap and right-click via the button. It's up to you. There's no reason to necessarily have a physical second button other than the fact that it isn't blatantly obvious that there is a right click available. But when taken into the context of the user, it simplifies the process by providing a simple one-click solution for less tech savvy folks and multiple methods of customization for those who will actually use a right click. You can also customize the trackpad for scrolling horizontally or vertically.
I want to see this in action. Someone with an Intel Mac try this out. Oh my GOD!!!!!!! Apple you rule. I would not be surpriseed to see a boost in Apple shares today, along with a drop in HP, Dell, and Sony shares. Please please please hurry and post a video. You're falling behind the curve peep's let go!!!!!! :)
I'm installing XP using this on my MacBook Pro right now.
And it's freaking sweet as hell. It's flawless.
不错哦，但是很多的时候我是想 os x 和 win xp 一起用，我想 在os x 上运行 xp 的程序应该是 另一个 很好的选择哦。再说 os x 也是苹果电脑吸引人的一部分。
Is a two button mouse going to be offered as well with the new OS/BootCamp?
For some reason im thinking this is a bad move by apple. There was nothing wrong with OS/X besides that there was no apps for it. But it was a good base for Unix applications. Now apple is going to be selling ipods and white boxes with windows on them.
Once again prop's to Bill Gates for being a smart business man.
Windows running on Intel Macs?! That sucks!!! I don't like that.
@ # 24, Leon.
"Wouldn't it be great if all manufacturers were this bashful and humo(u)rous about each others products"
Yes it would :D
Glad to see this happening. I'm not a fan of OSX and like the setup of Windows more.
The hard drive partitioning confuses me. Are both drives at least mounted in each OS? Can I see my JPG files sitting on my Mac portion from XP when I boot into it?
Someone find these things out. I'm at work!
For all of you laughing at the volunteers who came up with the dual-boot hack... Their efforts may have been essential in pressuring Apple to release an "official" version. The bounty also served to demonstrate a strong amount of consumer demand for this feature. If the blogosphere hadn't been clamoring for dual-booting, do you really thing it would have happened so soon?
Um, WMA and WMV sucks. iTunes doesn't need it.
So how long before Apple drop OSX ? Its FAR superior, but it had lost the race before it started.
But dear lord, can we have two built-in buttons on the MacBook Pro yet? I don't *want* to have to cross my eyes, hold down the Control key, and tap dance my big toe on the trackpad just to freakin' right-click in Windows. Nor am I going to hook up an external mouse and try to use it while sitting on the couch.
I mean, geez, look at the length of #35's post. In a perfect world, it would simply say: "To right-click, press the right mouse button, dummy."
mavrick (#38), what do you mean that OSX has no applications? What applications is it lacking?
The only thing that I have found to be missing is a POI editor for TomTom GPS navigators. Pretty esoteric requirement, and it's worth noting that there's only one of these available for Windows and it isn't that great anyway.
So, what applications does OSX not have, other than a POI editor?
Wow. I just didn't think Apple would embrace running Windows on a Mac so....publicly. Interesting to say the least.
The only two apps I've come across, that mean using a Windows box, instead of a Mac, is Visio and Project. Both built by the evil empire, who restrict their use to being PC only for a reason.
Oh and AutoCad, so some designers and architects can use a Mac now, as many I know have wanted to do.
Hmm, I might actually buy a Macbook Pro now... ok maybe the next version.
lol these commments on the apple site made me laugh...
"EFI and BIOS
Macs use an ultra-modern industry standard technology called EFI to handle booting. Sadly, Windows XP, and even the upcoming Vista, are stuck in the 1980s with old-fashioned BIOS. But with Boot Camp, the Mac can operate smoothly in both centuries."
"Word to the Wise
Windows running on a Mac is like Windows running on a PC. That means itll be subject to the same attacks that plague the Windows world. So be sure to keep it updated with the latest Microsoft Windows security fixes."
both true, but its funny when apple just comes out and bashes windows.
46. I completely disagree. With the ability to run Windows and OS X side by side on the same hardware and the ability to use legacy software while still being able to migrate to OS X overtime, Apple may have the long term win moving now. Apple's fault for switchers has always been the ability to run software the user already has. Most people can afford a legit copy of Office about once.
Apple. Simple thing to get me to switch. I'm addicted to the ultra-portable tablet pc. Get your tablet out and Dell, Acer and the rest of them can kiss my a*&
I don't get why anyone would want to do this.
You use macs because they have such a great interface that is easy to use, but they hardware has always been way to expensive for so little mileage.
You use windows to do more advanced work (excluding graphics, I extend that back to Apple), and while the system is far less stable, it is more functional has a much larger array of applications.
My question is why in the world would you stick windows on such a generally far less capable system? Why go through the pains of windows without the benefit of functionality?
No.48:
to those of us who are REAL designers (as in non-2D, e.g. product designers, engineers, u know..the guys who actually decide the shape of things as opposed to just the 2D decoration :P)
things missing on OSX are:
-Pro/Engineer
-Solidworks
-Alias (Studio, not Maya)
-any other kind of REAL 3D software e.g. Catia, UG etc.
-AutoCAD
-3DS
I could go on and on...
Hope their graphics drivers are up to spec, even cuurently only crap ATI is supported as opposed to proper Nividia Types like Quadro FX series...
Flame all you want, Mac was shite before..I just use it for safer net access;)
BTW..hope they will get rif of the Fisher-Price style Stoplight buttons on the freaking window bars and let me choose proper colors like I could in XP pro!
To the Billy G fanboy saying mac will just sell ipods and white boxes running windows, I think you missed the short bus and now Mom is going to have to give you a ride to special school... Please don't talk trash unless you know what you're talking about.
XP (or Vista) will never be more than an added feature to the Mac. The power of the mac is that they control (and optimize) the hardware and the software -- they don't need to manage a million driver / hardware solutions, and they're not afraid to give up backward compatability. You'll never see a mac sold without MacOS bundled -- and even if they come with a dual boot pre-installed offering, they'll still be able to optimize a much smaller set of drivers. Microsoft is a great company and Gates is no idiot, but give credit where credit is due -- this is a righteous shot across the bow of Microsoft.
I'm curious.. if I authorize itunes on the mac partition to decrypt files purchased on iTMS will that authorization be valid for the windows partition as well? Or will I be stuck wasting another of my increasingly limited authorizations to listen to music I purchased on the same computer?
oh, FYI..all MAcs are designed on PC, just remember THAT!
Sooo they only thing apple does (so far) around the time of their 30th anniversary is to release some software that lets you run windows? Yay! Apple pride! Still glad they did it though.
It's a great day for Apple and for Us, I'm a switcher, I bought a MAC MINI last year and this year replaced it with a iMac CODE DUO. I still own a ugly HP laptop, I was planning to replace it with a more powerful and ugly PC laptop this year, since Apple was not offering dual boot. This great news change my plans, my next laptop will be a MAC BOOK PRO!!! :-)
58
That's a DAMN good question, my bet is that that if it isn't supported, someone will tie the partition in a sophisticated hack
authorizations? das ist verboten
This is awesome, now we just need the 12 inch MacBook Pro... but a 10 inch model would be so wonderful.
Linux? Then my life would truly be complete.
I love my powerbook because it just works. I love Linux because it is open source and use it in my job (but on laptops I have found it too much work to get all the laptop features configured. And Windows because the company has too much institutional inertia to adopt anything else for some of their tools.
If I could triple boot I would be in heaven.
So does this mean that an official Boot Camp-style program that will install OS X on a windows box is around the corner or is that still an 'impossible' ?
It's a little ironic (in that now we've come full circle), but this means that my next computer purchase is going to be between a MacBook Pro and a ThinkPad. If only IBM hadn't sold out to Lenovo, it'd be 1984 all over again!
I really don't have a specific need to run the Mac OS, but it'd be nice to tinker, and I do like the look and feel of Mac hardware (though I do think its reputation for reliability is undeserved - almost every new Apple product has serious problems that eventually need fixing, including the MacBook line). The ThinkPad and MacBook lines are really not much different, price-wise, and if they can both run Windows, that's gonna be a tough choice.
can we get a Windows key on the keyboard :)
To the guy that talked about installing MCE on a Mini, looks like Boot Camp doesn't support that.
Under "What you'll need": "A bona fide installation disc for Microsoft Windows XP, Service Pack 2, Home or Professional (No multi-disc, upgrade or Media Center versions.)"
Anyway, go Apple. Very smart move.
This is great for Apple... AND Mircosoft!!
Ok, so I've got Windows up and running - here's a stupid question - is there a way to right click without an external mouse?
I have one, and it works great with it, but it'd be nice if, when I'm on the run and I have no mouse, I could use te trackpad. I went into the mouse options and could find nothing on how to configure this.
Anyone smarter than me do it yet?
69
You've hit a major flaw in apple, the right click.
In mac I think you can ctrl click or something, give that a shot.
But yeah, reminds me of that famous quote- "What can your PC do that my mac can't?"
"Right-Click."
70 -
Yeah, in OS X you can Alt+Click or Apple+Click - one of the two, I forget. But, um, in Windows, neither of those key combinations do the trick.
Matt (#35) "People buy macs not for the hardware, but for the OS"
uhmmm, are you kidding? The choice of hardware that Apple uses is THE main selling point of their computer systems. The fact that all Apple computers are identical makes their ability to support them much better than ANY PC manufacturer. They write one driver and never have to worry about hardware conflicts.
"Why waste your time, when you could just buy a perfectly capable PC laptop?"
If your argument is true and people are only buying Macs for their OS then I think you are a little confused. PC's can't run MacOSX x86 with an 83MB download. It takes hours of hacking away and even then, your hardware will never work right in OSX unless you write your own drivers.
Many people who use Apple computers also have a Windows PC so that they can run their business applications. Most businesses don't develop in-house software for computers that have 3% market share. This eliminates the need for Apple users to ever buy another PC again.
btw you can right click with mac laptops by touching two fingers on the trackpad then clicking!
ffs enough of the one button shite
All right you maggots. I am NOT your install Wizard, I'm your drill instructor. This is boot camp, you lame brain, not kiddie garten!
Repeat after me. This is my OS X rifle, this is my XP gun. With this I do work, and with this I have fun.
To begin intalling your worthless Piece of Crap operating system, insert the disc, then drop and give me 20!
You think this is funny? Do ya? Huh? How about you give me 50?
Well, that makes it a lot easier for me to decide to get a Mac for my next laptop....
#68 the windows key is the "apple" key or "command" key on an apple keyboard.
As they say: if you can't beat'em, join'em.
PLEASE Engadget, include something like this in your comment processing code. It really removes the tedium of reading your site.
if (ereg($comment,'mouse button')) ||
(ereg($comment,'right-click')) {
// Discard comment
// Punish user
// Hyperlink to FAQ
// Punish user
}
To those wondering how to ctrl-click (right click) for the contextual menu on Windows using the keyboard, it's Shift-F10.
I don't understand, what's big deal? Macs are good because of OS and hardware combination, remove one and what's the point paying for overpriced hardware just to run XP? I can't believe their stock went up 4 points on this news...
#61 (enz): You think you're so analytical and observant - "oh, FYI..all MAcs are designed on PC, just remember THAT!"
But your point is moot to the typical pc/mac user since most of us don't do design work. So why bother saying it? I can't fit a 24" pizza in my Viking range - but it's still an excellent oven. Get off your high horse. I bet you don't make squat designing crap in your little Dilbert cube anyway.
The only thing I can think is...
kekeke. games.
It's what was keeping me from getting a mac.
to #70,
right click using the one button mouse is ctrl+click
Ryan, Steve Jobs does not build his business plan in response to a bunch of hackers with blogs and too much free time. This has been in the works from the time Jobs decided to go to Intel. That's why he has billions and is treated like a rock star.
Not bad for a white dude pushing 50.
Just installed it. Works great. Super-fast and easy install. Now I have two machines in one!
79.
glad i could get a bit of flaming going :)
i get ur point, in fact i agree. just thought its funny to notice how things are connected and it amuses me mac users think macs are so superior. but u would agree: mac users take things so serious, easy to be insulted, quite silly. And I DO know, used to work at asus (that actually makes ome of the apple stuff) and now working independent making lots more bucks, no cubicle either, FYI.
try to take it easy and give PC's some credit. I use both anyways. so now I'll wait out if the coming macbooks run smoothly with XP doing what I and many others wanna do and can use it as a front end.
Hope u can broaden ur horizon a bit, cheers.
Apple shares gained $3.79, or 6.2 percent, to $64.96 in morning trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market, while Microsoft shares rose 21 cents to $27.85 and shares of Intel rose 2 cents to $19.32.
To those wondering how to ctrl-click (right click) for the contextual menu on Windows using the keyboard, press Shift-F10.
I doubt that this will have a long term effect on the market, I think this is just an attempt to solidify apple users for when vista comes out. People (apple users) will see that there is no point to running windows on a mac because macs are made to be simple so that even Forrest Gump can use it. That's why iPods are so popular. This way people won't shift to vista, though I doubt they would anyways.
Sweet. This is what I've been waiting for, and somehow I knew it was going to be Mac running Windows and not the other way around (anybody remember MacinDos? Bleccchhh). I think the Wintel folks are going to be scrambling a bit in the next year or so to outthink Apple on this one. You only need one computer to do everything now...
Kinda sucks that you have to reboot to switch OS, but I bet they're working on that too.
Enz - I don't need to broaden my horizon, I use both. Both have their good points. I'm not overly concerned with the colors of the buttons on the windows either. I have work to do. Emails to write. Etc.
I do see the connection as mildly interesting, a Mac designed on a PC, how ironic, whatever.
At the end of the day though, if I didn't need to run apps that require a pc, I prefer mac.
I'm an MCSE from a past life and have made money with the PC, but that OS has piled up a lot of baggage that I don't feel exists on the Mac. MS needs to strip the thing down and start over like they did with NT. But they don't seem to have the balls to do it.
What a win for Microsoft, too!
Note that it only works with full versions of XP, no "upgrade" versions. I see a big potential for lots of copies of XP full versions being purchased very soon.
Win win for both Apple & Microsoft.
Dell...HP...Gateway...this is gonna hurt you guys BIG TIME...(perhaps)
this is fantastic. i am convert and I have not felt the need to run windows so this does not interest me. However, this is fantastic for Apple. Who cares if people buy Macs to run windows because they can't run their applications? Apple is still selling tons of hardware and that is what they want!
We all know that Apple makes great products, even those windows/pc people. This gives them incentive to buy. All I can say is "YES!". This will be good for all of us. I can't wait to hear the sales numbers now!
Well for people like me who love mac but still need a PC to run PC only software like "Autocad", this is unbelievable. I can trash my PC and just stick with a Mac. Just wish that they would release a Intel Pro Mac soon.