Parallels Tools for Windows

Important: To take advantage of much of the functionality Parallels Desktop offers, Parallels Tools must be installed.

Parallels Tools can be installed in the following Windows guest operating systems:

  • Windows 7
  • Windows Server 2008
  • Windows Vista
  • Windows XP
  • Windows Server 2003
  • Windows 2000

Installing Parallels Tools

If you chose Express Installation when you first installed Windows, Parallels Tools were installed automatically after the installation.

If you didn't choose Express Installation , do the following to install Parallels Tools:

  1. Start Windows .
  2. When Windows boots up, choose Install Parallels Tools from the Virtual Machine menu.

    Note: After you choose Install Parallels Tools in Windows 7 and Windows Vista, User Access Control (UAC) may ask you whether to allow or deny the Parallels Tools installation. In this case, you need to allow the installation.

  3. In the Welcome window, click Install to start the Parallels Tools installation or wait for 8 seconds and it will start automatically.
  4. When the installation is complete, click Reboot to restart the virtual machine or wait for 8 seconds and it will be rebooted automatically.

If the Parallels Tools installation does not start automatically after you choose Install Parallels Tools (for example, because the CD/DVD autorun is disabled), you can install them manually:

  1. Log in to the Windows guest operating system and mount the Parallels Tools ISO image by doing the following:
    • Right-click the CD/DVD drive icon in the virtual machine's status bar and choose Connect Image .
    • In the Finder window, go to the hard disk folder (normally named "Macintosh HD"), select the /Library/Parallels/Tools/ folder, select the prl-tools-win.iso file, and click Open .
  2. In the Windows guest operating system, open My Computer , right-click the Parallels Tools disc and choose Open .
  3. Double-click Setup.exe to launch the installer.

    Note: After you double-click Setup.exe in Windows 7 and Windows Vista, User Access Control (UAC) may ask you whether to allow or deny the Parallels Tools installation. In this case, you need to allow the installation.

  4. Follow the wizard's instructions to complete the installation.

To edit the settings of Parallels Tools installed in your virtual machine, use the Options tab in the Virtual Machine Configuration dialog.

Reinstall or Update Parallels Tools

To reinstall Parallels Tools:

  1. Start Windows .

    Once Windows starts, if Parallels Desktop is in Coherence mode, click the Parallels icon in the menu bar and choose Exit Coherence .

  2. When Windows boots up, choose Install Parallels Tools from the Virtual Machine menu.

    This option is available only if Parallels Tools are up-to-date. If Parallels Tools are outdated, you will see the Update Parallels Tools option instead.

Check Whether Parallels Tools Have Been Installed

You can easily confirm whether Parallels Tools were installed. Start your virtual machine and look at the status bar of its window. If the tip "Press Ctrl + Alt to release the mouse and keyboard" appears in the status bar of the virtual machine's window, this means that Parallels Tools were not installed. When Parallels Tools are installed, you do not need to press any key to release the mouse and keyboard - they are released automatically.

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