Using Shared Applications

You can use Mac OS X applications to open the files in your Windows guest OS and vice versa.

Note: To share your Mac OS X and Windows applications, you need to disable the Isolate Mac from Windows option in the Security pane of the virtual machine configuration.

Using Mac OS X Applications in Windows Guest OS

The list of Parallels Shared Applications is created during the Parallels Tools installation. The list includes your Mac OS X applications and is available when you choose All Programs > Parallels Shared Applications from the Windows Start menu. You can select any application from the list and start it. To use this functionality, enable the Share Mac applications with Windows option in the Applications pane.

To open a Windows file with the Mac OS X application you prefer, right-click the file and choose the application from the Open With list.

Using Windows Applications in Mac OS X

You can create a list of Windows applications in Mac OS X and run them even when the virtual machine is stopped. If you start a Windows application when the virtual machine is stopped, the virtual machine will automatically start and switch to Coherence .

To open a file with the application you prefer, disregarding which operating system this file or application belongs, right-click the file and choose the application from the Open With list. To open a Mac OS X file in a virtual machine application, you can drag this file to this application icon on the Windows desktop.

If you selected the Show Windows applications folder in Dock option in the Applications pane of the Virtual Machine Configuration dialog, the folder with all applications installed in your Windows virtual machine will be displayed in the Dock. You can use this folder to quickly access the needed Windows application.

You can also create aliases for your favorite Windows applications on Mac OS Desktop and add their icons to the Dock.

To create an alias for the application and add its icon to the Dock:

1. Start your Windows virtual machine.
2. Start any of your favorite Windows applications in the virtual machine. When the application is started, its icon will appear in the Dock.
3. To create an alias for your favorite Windows application, right-click the application icon in the Dock and select Keep in Dock from its shortcut menu.

The application alias appears on the Mac OS desktop. It will be available from the Dock even when the virtual machine is stopped. If you double-click this alias when the virtual machine is turned off, the virtual machine and the corresponding application in it will start automatically.

If you have several instances of one application opened in a Windows virtual machine that is running, only one icon of this application will be displayed in the Dock.

Clicking this icon will bring the application to focus. If you right-click this icon, the shortcut menu will open. You can use this menu to:

• Switch between the opened instances of this application;
• Specify the SmartSelect associations;
• Manage the application's options;
• Hide/show the application; and
• Quit it.

Note: If you launch an application in a Windows guest OS and the application's icon does not appear in the Dock, most probably the Show Dock icons in Coherence only option is enabled in the Applications pane . With this option enabled, the icons of the running applications will be displayed in the Dock only when the virtual machine is working in the Coherence view mode .

Setting Guest OS Applications to Work with Mac CD/DVD Discs

Parallels Desktop allows you to set Windows guest OS applications to open CD/DVD discs with music/video/pictures inserted in your Mac. For example, if you want to play music/video or view pictures using Windows Media Player, you can set it to open such discs. You can also set a guest OS application to work with blank CD/DVD discs.

Note: This feature is available only for Windows virtual machines with Parallels Tools installed . These virtual machines must have the Share Windows applications with Mac option enabled in the Applications pane and Mac OS X CD/DVD-ROM must not be selected in the Connect to menu of the CD/DVD pane .

To set a guest OS application to work with Mac CD/DVD discs, follow these steps:

1. Go to Mac OS X System Preferences - > CDs & DVDs .
2. Select the necessary CD/DVD type (blank, music, picture, or video), click its menu, and choose Open other application .
3. In the displayed window, go to the <your username>/Applications directory. You will see the folders with your virtual machines' applications. Each folder corresponds to a specific virtual machine.
4. Click the folder of the virtual machine that has the necessary application installed, select this application, and click Choose .
5. Close the CDs & DVDs window. Now if you insert the selected CD/DVD type (blank, music, picture, or video) into your Mac, the selected guest OS application will launch and open the disc.

Note: If you insert the selected CD/DVD type but the virtual machine storing the necessary application is shut down, this virtual machine will start in the Coherence view mode .

Launching Windows Applications From Spotlight

You can launch guest OS applications installed in your Windows virtual machines from Mac OS X Spotlight. You can do this provided that:

• These Windows virtual machines have Parallels Tools installed ;
• The Share Windows applications with Mac option is enabled in the Applications pane ; and
• These virtual machines were started for at least one time after you enabled the Share Windows applications with Mac option.

To launch a Windows application from Spotlight, open Spotlight and start typing the application's name. Spotlight will display the list of items containing these letters. In this list, find the application you need and click it. The application will start in the Windows guest operating system if the virtual machine with this application installed is running. If the virtual machine is shut down, clicking the application in the Spotlight list will start the virtual machine and the application will open when the guest operating system boots up.

Viewing Task Progress in the Dock

If an application running in a Windows 7 virtual machine is performing a time consuming task like copying, downloading, etc, the progress bar of this task appears in the application's Dock icon. For example, if you start copying some files from an external storage to your Windows 7 virtual machine, the Windows Explorer icon with a progress bar appears in the Dock and you can view the copy progress:

If you decide to work with Mac OS X or any other virtual machine when the application is still performing its task, this progress bar allows you to monitor the task progress.

Note: If you start an application in the guest operating system but the application's icon does not appear in the Dock, make sure the Share Windows applications with Mac option is enabled and the Show Dock icons in Coherence only option is disabled in the Applications pane of the Virtual Machine Configuration dialog.

Sharing Windows System Tray Icons With Mac OS X

In the Crystal variation of the Coherence view mode, the integration between Mac OS X and a Windows guest operating system, installed in the virtual machine, is extended. In Crystal, Windows system tray icons are shared with Mac OS X and become displayed in the Mac OS X menu bar. You can use the system tray applications by clicking these icons.