Updating Parallels Tools

The procedure of updating Parallels Tools depends on the guest operating system they are installed in.

In a Windows guest OS

Parallels Desktop automatically checks for new Parallels Tools updates when you start your virtual machine.

If a newer version of Parallels Tools is available, you will see the corresponding message offering you to download and update the tools. Click Yes to download Parallels Tools from the Parallels Update server and install them into your virtual machine. Updating will start right after the download finishes and will prompt you to restart the virtual machine when it is complete.

If you do not want to update Parallels Tools or want to do it later, click No. You will be able to update them later by using the Update Parallels Tools option from the Virtual Machine menu.

Note: If you revert to a snapshot that was made when you had an earlier version of Parallels Tools in your virtual machine, you will also be offered to update them.

If Parallels Tools are up-to-date but you want to reinstall them, select the Reinstall Parallels Tools option from the Virtual Machine menu.

In a Linux guest OS

Before updating Parallels Tools, you should perform the following actions:

• Close all applications in the guest operating system.
• Disable the 3D accelerated window manager if you use any.

In Linux guest operating systems, you should manually check for Parallels Tools updates from time to time.

To update Parallels Tools:

1. Start the virtual machine.
2. To update Parallels Tools, you should mount the prl-tools-lin.iso image and launch Parallels Tools Installer. See Installing Parallels Tools in a Linux Guest OS for detailed information how you can do it.
3. Follow the Parallels Tools Installer instructions. When prompted to choose the action to perform, select Update and press Enter.
4. When the updating is complete, restart your virtual machine.

In Mac OS X Server Leopard

In Mac OS X guest operating systems, you should manually check for Parallels Tools updates from time to time.

To install Parallels Tools

1. Start the virtual machine.
2. When the guest OS boots up, choose Install Parallels Tools from the Virtual Machine menu of Parallels Desktop.
3. This will connect the prl-tools-mac.iso image to your virtual machine's CD/DVD-ROM.
4. Open the Parallels Tools CD-ROM mounted on the virtual machine's desktop and double-click the Install icon.
5. In the Welcome window, click Continue.
6. In the Select a Destination window, specify the disk for Parallels Tools to be installed to and click Continue.
7. In the Standard Install on "Macintosh HD" window, click Install. Specify your name and password when prompted.

When the updating is complete, click Restart to quit the installer and restart your virtual machine.

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