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September 28, 2007

windows

Macworld’s review of VMware’s Fusion is in… and it’s good

Posted Sep. 28, ’07, 5:23 AM PT by Derik DeLong
Category | Windows

Fusion Since its release (and perhaps even for part of its beta phase), I’ve been talking up VMware Fusion, the virtualization software that allows you to run alternative operating systems within OS X. It’s most often used to run Windows (yes, yes, I know, boo hiss), but it can be, and in some environments frequently is, used to run operating systems like Linux, Solaris, and other Unix variants. Parallels was the first to deliver the dream of running Windows at nearly full speed without leaving the comfort of Mac OS X and as such, became the early favorite. I tried Fusion and was pleasantly surprised by its functionality and reliability (Parallels and I were on the outs because it was misbehaving).

I don’t use Windows often, but I do use it to get the most out of Netflix and its streaming movie feature. I’ve read a lot of positive feedback about the product that seemed to corroborate my own feelings, but I was never quite sure if the fanboi in me forced me to look for validation. Rob Griffiths (that’s Mr. Mac OS X Hints to you) examined Fusion for Macworld’s review.

Rob likes Fusion’s multiple CPU and USB 2.0 support, strong memory management, and library of pre-built VMs. I personally would add 64 bit OS support, Cocoa interface, and excellent Linux support to the list. He dings it for single snapshots, Unity’s lack of multiple monitor support, less 3D supported uses, and costly tech support. Those are all fair points, but despite Parallel’s very accessible support, I felt as if I never got any (hence my multiple posts about its incompatibility with Cisco’s VPN client).

I can’t put my finger on it, but Fusion just feels like the more mature product despite Parallels early arrival on the scene.


2 Comments

Anonymous said:

I'll just note that I'd be interested in switching to Fusion (or at least giving it a trial) if I could migrate my existing Parallels installation to it. While Parallels appears to offer a tool to convert a VMWare VM to a Parallels VM the same does not appear to be true the other way around. So far the best that I have seen is using VMWare's tools within the Windows VM itself and that results in a VM that isn't multi-processor aware unless you reinstall the OS, which kinda defeats the point of the exercise. Currently, if I want to try this then I'd have to spend time on the phone to Microsoft in order to get the new XP VM authenticated and that's just a pain in the ass.

I'll also note that I use the Cisco VPN client for work under Parallels today and have never had a problem.

September 29, 2007 2:01 AM
Derik DeLong Author Profile Page said:

Rob Griffith's did for converting a Parallels install into a Fusion VM if you want to try it.

As for the Cisco VPN, it wasn't running under Parallels, it was running in the Mac. While it may not have affected everyone, it affected many people, including myself. It was a documented problem and Parallels solution for many months was rebooting and running a set of commands in the Terminal. That's not an acceptable solution and they began developing new features before fixing that bug.

September 29, 2007 11:06 AM

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