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 Import from Parallels Desktop - Operating System not found

Fabio Manz's profile image
Fabio Manz posted Dec 15, 2024 03:58 PM

Hi,

I am on an Intel MacBook and want to switch over from Parallels Desktop Pro to VMWare Fusion. I try to migrate my Windows 11 Parallels .pvm file to use with VMWare Fusion. I used the File -> Import Dialog and it worked without errors, but when I start the imported VM in Fusion, I see a Network boot BIOS screen, which fails with the message "Operating System not found".

I also noticed, that the imported .vmwarevm file is significantly smaller than I expected. The .pvm file is 231 GB, the .vmwarevm file is 29 GB. I don't think you can compress the over 100 GB of data inside the VM into 29 GB ;)

Is there something I can change on the Parallels or VMWare side to make this transition possible? I tried both UEFI and legacy BIOS boot options.

I have a lot of files (all over the VM) and a lot software installed, which I just want to migrate over to stop using parallels and start using VMWare Fusion. But if this transition is not possible, I sadly can't make the switch. Is there maybe a different way to migrate the windows installation completely?

A few version numbers:

  • VMWare Fusion: Professional Version 13.6.1 (24319021)
  • Parallels Desktop Pro: Version 20.1.2 (55742)
  • MacOS (Host): 15.2 (24C101)
  • Windows 11 (Guest): 24H2

Thank you very much,

Fabio