Windows on external hard drive

Can windows be installed on an external hard drive and can it be used on my imac?

No. And even on PCs that is generally no 98% of the time.
Some PCs have a motherboard with a direct eSATA port that will, but not on Mac, not on USB or FW.
You can run a VM off an external drive, but those tend to be slow.

Similar Messages

  • Can i use windows migration assistant to transfer files from my windows formatted external hard drive to my mac?

    I have a windows formatted external hard drive and a macbook pro. I was wondering if i could use the windows migration assistant to transfer files from my external hard drive to the mac

    No.
    Just connect the drive to your Mac. The Mac can read most Windows formats (it cannot WRITE Windows New Technology File System (NTFS) formatted drives.

  • Installing Windows to external hard drive or using parallels?

    Will installing Windows on external hard drive protect mac from viruses better than parallels? Which option is more sound, installing windows on external hard drive or using parallels? My main concern is mac protection. Thanks

    Hi,
    Thank's for your reply.
    Using Parallels and creating a virtual machine, I think it should be possible installing Windows to an external hard drive, shouldn't it?
    Message was edited by: Oleguer Vilella

  • Using Current Windows-based External Hard drive on Mac

    Hello,
    I have a MacBook Pro now. I have BootCamp installed with Windows Vista. Working fine. I also have a Western Digital 160 GB external harddrive with data on it from my old Windows only computer. In other words, it is formatted with NFTS.
    I want to be able to do one of the following things:
    1. Partition the external drive in half so I can use half of it for new Mac data while keeping my old Windows data
    2. Seamlessly use the external drive as is between Mac OS X and Windows being able to transfer data. Right now, if I boot into Mac OSX, I can see the drive on the desktop and actually see the files and folders. But if I try to drag anything to the drive, I get permission denied.
    Any hints here? Basically, in a nutshell, I am going to have data from both Windows and Mac OSX that I would like to save on the same external hard drive
    Thanks.

    You won't likely be able to make one hard drive with two different partition types if it is already partitioned (partly anyway) in Windows in NTFS. Mac Disk Utility won't deal with the unpartitioned space AFAIK.
    It cannot hurt to try in Disk Utility and see if it shows the 60GB only or refuses to mount at all which I suspect will be what happens.
    Anything but My Book is the answer (I have seen at least a dozen My Book complaints here) - normally with macs there are a few trusted makers and one interface - firewire (NOT USB). I use LaCie drives - 3000GB worth - and for portable I have an OWC, they make very high quality cases and drives and nice and small.
    I have a few others that I do not rely on like a 320GB USB drive that was $100 and the drive inside is worth more than the whole external drive actually cost which is why I bought it. And a small USB Maxtor for use with Parallels since Parallels won't see Firewire drives.

  • Running Windows on external hard drive

    Does anyone know if you can run bootcamp and then windows vista from an external hard drive. I have a 320 gig LaCie hard drive and the 17" iMac with the 2ghz Intel Core 2 Duo processor and 1 gig 667 mhz ddr2 sdram for memory.

    Not sure why you asked in the iMac G3 CRT discussion area.
    I suggest that you ask this question in the Intel iMac discussion area.

  • Mac and Windows shared external hard drive - possible?

    Our set up is a Windows XP pc and iMac 20" and I hoped that we could back up both computers using one external hard drive - that way if the Mac failed we could still use the pc to access the files and vice versa. But having looked into buying one I'm starting to get doubts about whether it is possible. I just don't understand all the technical stuff. Can anyone help in layman's terms how we go about it?
    Thanks
    Jane

    Try iFelix's excellent guides for Windows to Mac networking (link). I understand that he will do Vista versions as soon as possible. 
    A FAT32 formatted drive in a NAS Enclosure like this one (link) should suit you needs. Remember that a NAS drive will not have the performance of a Firewire connected drive so you do need to consider your intended usage.
    kind regards
    mrtotes

  • Installing Windows on external hard drive

    Does anone know how I can install and run Windows from an external hard drive? I use only a couple Windows applications and want to clutter my MacBook internal hard drive.
    Thanks in advance, Ron

    RKD56 wrote:
    Does anone know how I can install and run Windows from an external hard drive? I use only a couple Windows applications and want to clutter my MacBook internal hard drive.
    Thanks in advance, Ron
    Check in the bootcamp forum here:
    http://discussions.apple.com/forum.jspa?forumID=1244
    You might also consider using a Windows Emulator, some of which support many Windows apps without requiring Windows at all.
    You can search the net for them.

  • Booting Windows on External Hard Drive

    Is it possible to set up an external hard drive with one or more Windoze partitions so I can boot from them? If so, will the drive also boot a Windoze machine? Also, what is the oldest version that will work with a 2.2 GHz MB?
    Message was edited by: MacInAction7

    Windows does not boot from external drives.
    For Boot Camp installations:
    Windows XP Home Edition or Professional with Service Pack 2 or later, or Windows
    Vista Home Basic, Home Premium, Business, or Ultimate
    Important:
    You must use a single full-install Windows installation disc (Service Pack 2 is required for Windows XP installations). Do not use an upgrade version of Windows and do not install an earlier version of Windows XP and attempt to update it later to SP2. Use only 32-bit versions of Windows.

  • Windows NT External Hard Driv

    Hello,
    I have an external USB hard drive that I am trying to use with my Mac. This drive is formated as "Windows NT Filesystem". I can only read items on the hard drive, I can not write to the drive. When I Get Info, the Ownership & Permissions say I can only read. However, when I open up the Terminal, it says I have read/write/execute permissions. I also noticed that Disk Utility won't let me repair permissions or even verify permissions on it.
    Does anyone know how I can copy information to this hard drive from my Mac?
    Thanks.

    The Mac OS can *only read* NTFS-formatted drives, despite the readout you're seeing in Terminal. You can use 3rd party software (e.g. Paragon NTFS) to write to NTFS-formatted drives, or you can reformat the drive as FAT32 (which both Macs and PCs can read/write access, but has a limitation that single files cannot be larger that 4 GB). Or, if the drive will primarily be used with the Mac, you can format is as Mac OS Extended (Journaled), and use something like MacDrive to access it from Windows. +Note that reformatting will erase the drive, so you'll need to copy data that you want to save off of the drive first.+
    You can't Verify/Repair Permissions on anything except your Mac OS X boot disk. In any case, those "permissions" are not the same thing as general ownership/read/write permissions, but instead are really Unix-type "privileges" associated with applications installed using the Apple installer. Read this kbase article for more details.
    Hope this helps...

  • Boot Camp will not let me install Windows via external hard drive

    Hi,
    I'm having problems installing Windows 7 on my MacBook Pro. I have the iso file on my external hard dirve and have went to Boot Camp but the following message comes up:
    "The startup disk cannot be partitioned or restored to a single partition.
    The startup disk must be formatted as a single Mac OS Extended (Journaled) volume or already partitioned by Boot Camp Assistant for installing Windows."
    At one point i just clicked OK and let Boot Camp install the selected tasks, which formated the disk, copied the Windows files and downloaded the Windows support software but another message came up:
    "Install this Windows support software after installing Windows"
    It then only gives me an option to Quit...
    I would like to add that i tried to install Windows a few days ago and everything was working well up until instead of clicking on "customize" to continue the installation i clicked on "upgrade" then it asked me to remove disk and reboot the computer, i did that and it didn't work. Luckily i got that sorted but wanted to try and install Windows again as it didn't end up getting it installed and this is what is happening now...
    Can someone suggest to me what might be wrong?
    Thanks in advance.

    My other post has been deleted. I will reply to you on this post instead.
    I dragged down the Macintosh HD partition via the small triangle at the bottom right hand side of it. It now looks like this:
    Is it back to normal now? Can i install Windows now or do i need to do anything else?
    Thanks a lot for your help!

  • Finder window on external hard drive slams shut

    I accessed my iomega external drive earlier today with no problem, but later in searching for another file, upon opening a folder, the drive's finder window closed. Now everytime I try to open the drive (double click on the icon or open through the finder) it shows the list of folders briefly, then by itself goes to open a folder, then the window closes. I have restarted, unplugged the drive, repaired permissions, repaired both the external and internal drives (though I did not boot up from the disk), zapped the p-ram and whacked it with my foot. Ok not that last one. Yet. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
    Mac Pro   Mac OS X (10.4.9)  

    Trust me you're not the first person to kick a computer. Sounds like maybe you have a corrupted Finder preference file... here's how to kick it.
    Locate this file: com.apple.finder.plist Using this path: MacintoshHD/Users/Library/Preferences. Locate that pesky file, drag it to the Trash, empty the Trash and reboot. It's ok to trash a pref file, your Mac will create a new one for you.
    I hope this works... <fingers crossed>
    Carolyn

  • How do i transfer data from a windows 7 external hard drive to my new macbook pro

    I had just ordered this MacBook Pro (first timer w/ mac) and was looking forward to transfering the data from the Dell XPS Studio to the MBP... When my wife called me at work to tell me:  While speaking with her mom on Skype (on the dell) ... she was trying to show her a bowl full of "shrimp"... yes "shrimp"... when she poured several ounces of shrimp water (salty/fishy) into the keyboad and trackpad of the Dell.
    It stopped working... 3 days later my (this) MBP arrived.. was able to start dell and use a mouse and keyboard... attempted data transfer with "Parrallels" software... and it failed ... Parrallels does not work with "OEM" sofware... Have to buy a seperately licensends Windows 7 software at $120 to make parrallels work.  Sent software back to Parrellels with nasty note...
    Dell computer began to stop responding... as the salty water/corrosion was reeking havoc on the electronics.  Took Dell to repair store where they removed and installed in to a SIIG Hi-Speed USB to Sata 2.5" Enclosure... The last time I attempted to transfer data I was very frustrated... as there are more than 120 gig... it takes a long time... only to find out it didn't work...
    Please help !!
    NOTE: I do have a 2T Time Capsule... that I'm "NOT" completley familure with as well... if this helps.

    Take the drive out of the enclosure and use a SATA to USB adapter for $12-$30 you can get online.
    The Mac can read NTFS drives, but not write files to that format unless you install more software which you will have to pay for and keep upgraded.
    Once you have your files off the drive, transferring manually via drag and drop methods, reformat it which will erase it, that way you can use it likely back in the enclosure as a storage drive.
    Avoid using gimmicky software to migrate for you, learn to do it by hand and then you'll always prefer this method for it's ease, control, reliability and directness in times of crises.
    Yes if you want to run Windows on a Mac, you need a licensed disk version. Parallels would be sued out of existence if they used a OEM copy.
    Drives, partitions, formatting w/Mac's + PC's

  • Administrative rights to external hard drive when using Parallels

    I have installed Parallels to run an embroidery software (Floriani) on my MacBook Air.  Both Parallels and the Floriani are running fine and I can see my windows formatted external hard drive when in Floriani and can bring in files from it.  But when I try to save a redesigned embroidery file to the external hard drive it tells me I can not because I do not have administrative rights.  I have tried to also tried to copy embroidery files downloaded from the internet to my Macbook and get the same message.  Since I am the administrator (and only user) of this laptop, how can I get access to the hard drive.  I tried following the all the suggestions in the Help Center for setting permission but even though I can set the drive as a "shared" file I cannot see the "lock'" icon referred to  and in the "Sharing and Permissions" it still says I can only read.  I was told this would be simple???

    It is coming from a Windows program (Floriani) AND my Mac/Finder.  From Floriani (Windows program) when I try to save a file to the external hard drive.  And when I try to copy a file from my Mac hard drive to the external hard drive, it just refuses to do it.  I get a "bonk" sound.  So I tried highlighting the external drive in finder, went to "file" then "get info" and it says this is a read only "file"....although it is a hard drive, not a file.  So I tried same with folders on the hard drive.  Same thing. 

  • Windows Easy Transfer (WET) Issues with External Hard Drive - "Can't read from the source file or disk"

    I work for Office Depot, in the tech department. Basically, one of our associates was supposed to do a data backup, and re-install Windows 7, then transfer the files back. He used Windows Easy Transfer and compacted everything into a 163 GB file. 
    Now comes the hard part. When we try to put it back on his computer ((drag-and-drop to the desktop) which has been wiped back to factory settings using the recovery partition), it stops at 79.5 GB remaining (you know how it doesn't give you a % of completion,
    it just shows how many GB are remaining) and then says "Can't read from the source file or disk" and gives you an option to try again, or cancel. It gets hung up on the same point each time.
    Normally, this wouldn't be a huge issue, but the contents on the drive are his wife's architect blueprints and interior design stuff, along with wedding photos, etc, which are the only copies they have. On top of those, they have court documents and other
    important files that we are unable to access now.
    I wasn't involved with this transfer, so I'm trying to clean up the mess as best I can. I remembered that the customer's wife was Russian, and had some files typed with a Russian keyboard, so on and so forth. I wonder if that's the issue? If not, I really
    have no idea how to manually extract things from a ".mig" file, or how to diagnose what area is potentially corrupted.
    In light of this situation, we tried using "Recuva" to recover the files post-wipe, but everything was corrupted or unable to be opened, and it also extracted and recovered all of the "useless" photos, such as the skype logos, up and
    down arrows for browsers, etc (it was 160,000+ photos).
    Trying to avoid a potential lawsuit, unhappy customer, and costing the company lots of money to see if professionals can get into this external hard drive.
    Other relevant information:
    We used a Toshiba 500 GB (465 GB) external hard drive.
    Customer's computer is an HP Pavilion P6000 Series (Model No. p6520y) running Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit Service Pack 1.
    Any other information that is needed can be provided, thanks in advance, and hopefully we can find a solution to this issue quickly!
    -John

    I think there's a lack of understanding somewhere.
    "If you even can't start the process, please unplug it from your new PC. Then head back to your new computer and plug
    the external drive back in to your new computer. "
    Unplug from new, head back to new, plug it back in? That doesn't make much sense! Haha.
    I knew what you meant though, somewhat. When I search through the drives after clicking yes (Has windows easy transfer
    already saved your files blah blah blah) I click on the transfer file and it says "Windows Easy Transfer could not open the file".
    Rather than drag-and-drop the file to the desktop, I now tried to double-click on the file itself while it was plugged
    into the computer. It opened, and it started transferring until it was about 70% completed, and then an error popped up saying "WET can't open the easy transfer file, make sure your USB device is plugged in or check your internet connection". 
    I checked, and the USB hard drive's light wasn't on. Now, I unplug it and plug it back in, and the light comes back on,
    so I click Retry, and it resets the bar back to nothing and says "Transfer time: 1 minute".
    Rather than continue trying, I clicked "Cancel" instead of Retry, and it says "Your transfer did not complete successfully."
    It says to click "view report" for more information, but there's no "view report button".
    At the moment, I am scanning the External Drive for bad sectors using the check disk tool in properties. It's frozen
    at "0 USN bytes processed".

  • I have a new Windows tablet computer with limited hard drive space, and cannot transfer my itunes library to the hard drive. Can I run t media from an external hard drive? If so, how do I transfer my files?

    I have a new Windows tablet computer with limited hard drive space (32 GB), and cannot transfer my itunes library to the hard drive. Can I run itunes from an external hard drive? I have tried to follow some of the directions on this site, but am having no success. Thanks.

    iTunes will run fine with the media on an external drive.
    However, I suggest that a tablet computer with a tiny hard drive is not ideal as the primary computer for managing an iTunes library, even a small one. If you have another machine, perhaps a big, boxy, inexpensive old desktop with a decent amount of storage, that might be a better choice.
    http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1364

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