Finally installed Parallels and Windows. And it's slooow.
Thread poster: Elisabeth Maurland
Elisabeth Maurland
Elisabeth Maurland
United States
Local time: 10:27
Member (2013)
English to Norwegian
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Jul 24, 2019

First the numbers: MacBook Pro version 10.14.5, Parallels 14, Windows 10.

Several years ago I asked here if there were any disadvantages to installing Parallels and Windows, such as slowness. No one reported any slowness, but I ended up not doing it anyway, until now.
I installed them yesterday, and everything about it (Windows) is slow, from booting up to clicking on just about everything. The MacOS slows down too.
I have 16 GB of RAM installed, and 170 GB of storage le
... See more
First the numbers: MacBook Pro version 10.14.5, Parallels 14, Windows 10.

Several years ago I asked here if there were any disadvantages to installing Parallels and Windows, such as slowness. No one reported any slowness, but I ended up not doing it anyway, until now.
I installed them yesterday, and everything about it (Windows) is slow, from booting up to clicking on just about everything. The MacOS slows down too.
I have 16 GB of RAM installed, and 170 GB of storage left. I have found that maybe I need to replace the HDD with an SSD, but I only want to do that as a last resort (due to the cost). Maybe there is a simple reason why it's so slow? Anyone care to venture a guess, or have had a similar problem?

Thanks,

Elisabeth
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Dylan J Hartmann
Dylan J Hartmann  Identity Verified
Australia
Member (2014)
Thai to English
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Moderator of this forum
Welcome to the hassle of Parallels! Jul 24, 2019

What year model MacBook Pro is yours?

It's already slow on my iMac (2017 3.4 GHz 24 GB RAM), I couldn't imagine how painfully bad it'd be on an older, slower MacBook Pro. Once it has loaded, however, the programs tend to run okay, even in coherence.

Rather than going through the hassle (and labour costs) of changing HDDs etc, I'd suggest investing in an 'office iMac' and leaving the laptop for when you need to work outside of home. This option might cost less and you'd
... See more
What year model MacBook Pro is yours?

It's already slow on my iMac (2017 3.4 GHz 24 GB RAM), I couldn't imagine how painfully bad it'd be on an older, slower MacBook Pro. Once it has loaded, however, the programs tend to run okay, even in coherence.

Rather than going through the hassle (and labour costs) of changing HDDs etc, I'd suggest investing in an 'office iMac' and leaving the laptop for when you need to work outside of home. This option might cost less and you'd get better performance than trying to upgrade an already slow MacBook Pro.

Best of luck!
Dylan
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Hans Lenting
Hans Lenting
Netherlands
Member (2006)
German to Dutch
System Management Controller reset? Jul 24, 2019

This slowness of Parallels was another symptom the new user reported:

https://cafetran.freshdesk.com/support/discussions/topics/6000058889

Perhaps the solution he used is valid to you too?


 
Elisabeth Maurland
Elisabeth Maurland
United States
Local time: 10:27
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English to Norwegian
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TOPIC STARTER
Maybe Jul 25, 2019


Rather than going through the hassle (and labour costs) of changing HDDs etc, I'd suggest investing in an 'office iMac' and leaving the laptop for when you need to work outside of home. This option might cost less and you'd get better performance than trying to upgrade an already slow MacBook Pro.


Or maybe just get a cheap PC, just for MemoQ? I had been considering that before deciding to try Parallels.
My Mac is mid-2012, so pretty old, yeah.

Elisabeth


DZiW (X)
Francisco Chagas
 
Elisabeth Maurland
Elisabeth Maurland
United States
Local time: 10:27
Member (2013)
English to Norwegian
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TOPIC STARTER
System Manager Controller Jul 25, 2019

I remember vaguely having done an SMC reset once before, and I think it worked, whatever I needed it to do. I could try that again.

 
Dylan J Hartmann
Dylan J Hartmann  Identity Verified
Australia
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Thai to English
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Moderator of this forum
Time to upgrade! Jul 25, 2019

Elisabeth Maurland wrote:

My Mac is mid-2012, so pretty old, yeah.

Elisabeth


That's your problem Elisabeth. Even a 2012 PC laptop running Windows 10 would be slow.

Going for the cheap PC option might just be the cheapest option. However, I prefer being able to "just" use windows for the client software that requires it, then turn it off when the job is done. I'll never want to go back to being a PC user. So, it might just be time for you to upgrade the Mac! (I love that time!).

Best,
Dylan


 
Elisabeth Maurland
Elisabeth Maurland
United States
Local time: 10:27
Member (2013)
English to Norwegian
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TOPIC STARTER
I've only had it five years … Jul 25, 2019

I do love getting a new computer, but I feel like I just got it! Time flies when you're having fun …

 
Dylan J Hartmann
Dylan J Hartmann  Identity Verified
Australia
Member (2014)
Thai to English
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Moderator of this forum
After 2 years this iMac is starting to chug! Jul 25, 2019

Yes, I think to maintain the speed we expect, we sadly need to upgrade regularly.

 
Elisabeth Maurland
Elisabeth Maurland
United States
Local time: 10:27
Member (2013)
English to Norwegian
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Already looking :) Jul 25, 2019

Checking prices now.

 
Hans Lenting
Hans Lenting
Netherlands
Member (2006)
German to Dutch
Try that first Jul 25, 2019

Elisabeth Maurland wrote:

I remember vaguely having done an SMC reset once before, and I think it worked, whatever I needed it to do. I could try that again.


You really should try the SMC reset first. The other person's Mac was as old as yours ...


 
Gregory Lassale
Gregory Lassale  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 10:27
English to French
... Jul 25, 2019

What Mac do you use? (year, specs etc) As mentioned above, if it's an older architecture, you're going to have trouble running some power-hungry apps. More RAM is good, but sort of pointless for many users past a certain amount, unless you do things like video editing or gaming. you will see more improvement from upgrading your HD. SSDs are not cheap but will yield the single largest performance gain most of the time. Upgrading the HD might not even be an option depending on what Mac you have. A... See more
What Mac do you use? (year, specs etc) As mentioned above, if it's an older architecture, you're going to have trouble running some power-hungry apps. More RAM is good, but sort of pointless for many users past a certain amount, unless you do things like video editing or gaming. you will see more improvement from upgrading your HD. SSDs are not cheap but will yield the single largest performance gain most of the time. Upgrading the HD might not even be an option depending on what Mac you have. A middle of the road option would be to buy an external SSD and use that to store your VMs. Lastly, you also have the option to use Bootcamp. It will be faster than running VMs, but again overall performance will be relative to your computer's specs. I personally don't use Bootcamp. I'm always uneasy about partitioning my hard drive and run Windows on it. As you mentioned, investing in a cheap windows computer is also an option.Collapse


 
Elisabeth Maurland
Elisabeth Maurland
United States
Local time: 10:27
Member (2013)
English to Norwegian
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Thanks for all the responses Jul 29, 2019

I have been thinking long and hard about this over the weekend, and I think the result will be a new MacBook. Mine is, as mentioned, a mid-2012, and it seems slow. So instead of spending money on a cheap PC or an SSD, only to have to buy another Mac in a year or two anyway, I'll just get a mid-2018 (or maybe 2019?) now.

Elisabeth


 


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Finally installed Parallels and Windows. And it's slooow.






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