Parallels Desktop for Mac
Business Edition
IT Administrator's Guide
v18

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Contents
Introduction ............................................................................................ 5
Parallels Desktop Business Edition Features Overview ........................ 5
Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition ....................... 8
Deploying via an invitation email .......................................................... 8
Mass deployment using Mac management tools .............................. 11
Prerequisites ............................................................................... 11
Supported Mac management tools ............................................. 11
Preparing the autodeploy package .............................................. 12
Deploying Parallels Desktop and virtual machines to Macs .......... 29
Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features ....................... 42
Using Configuration Profiles .............................................................. 42
Create a configuration profile ...................................................... 43
Applying a configuration profile to a license key ........................... 45
Provisioning a corporate VM image ............................................. 46
Enabling major version upgrades ................................................ 50
Participating in the Customer Experience Program ........................... 52
Locking a Virtual Machine on Suspend ............................................. 53
Activation Using a Corporate Account .............................................. 53
Restricting a Virtual Machine Configuration with a Custom Password 54
Restricting User Actions in Parallels Desktop with a Custom Password55
Setting an Asset Tag in the Virtual Machine BIOS ............................. 56
Using Custom Graphics and Links in the Control Center ................... 57
Hiding Developer Tools in the Parallels Desktop GUI ......................... 58
Encrypting a Virtual Machine from the Command Line ...................... 59
Single Application Mode ................................................................... 60

Contents

Setting an Expiration Date for a Virtual Machine ................................ 61
Enforcing USB Device Policies .......................................................... 62
Resetting the Guest OS Password .................................................... 63
Setting Up a Local Update Server ..................................................... 64
Installing a web server ................................................................. 64
Creating the Parallels update XML file ......................................... 64
Configuring individual Macs......................................................... 66
Configuring Parallels Desktop update branch .................................... 68
Customizing the Support Center option ............................................ 69

CHAPTER 1

Introduction
Welcome to Parallels® Desktop for Mac Business Edition, a straightforward and high-performing
solution optimized for business and learning environments to run Windows applications on an Intelor Apple M-series chip Mac.
Note: This guide refers to Parallels Desktop v18. If you are using a newer version of Parallels Desktop(including updates), please download the latest guide from the Parallels website.

In This Chapter
Parallels Desktop Business Edition Features Overview .............................................. 5

Parallels Desktop Business Edition Features
Overview
With Parallels Desktop for Mac, your Mac users can seamlessly run both Windows and Mac
applications side-by-side with speed, control and confidence. Business users can experience asmuch or as little Windows as they want. Multiple view modes and options make it possible for users
to customize the level of integration between Mac and Windows without compromising
performance. Best of all, IT can lock down, secure, and control the settings that matter most.

Parallels Desktop Business Edition feature highlights• License management portal (Parallels My Account)• Split license keys into sublicenses• Enable product activation using sign in to corporate account• Maintain corporate compliance with restricted virtual machines• Set an expiration date for a virtual machine• Mass deployment of Parallels Desktop and virtual machines• Provision a corporate VM image from a link specified in Parallels My Account• Business-level support including 24/7 phone and email support options

Introduction

Parallels Desktop Business Edition feature matrix
See how Parallels Desktop Business Edition compares to Parallels Desktop Standard and Pro
editions.
FeatureStandard

Pro

Business

Straightforward and high-performing solution to run Windows applications
on an Intel or Apple M-series chip Mac.

•

•

•

Merge the coolness of Mac with the utility of Windows. Seamlessly utilize
Mac features inside Windows and leverage Windows' strengths on your
Mac.

•

•

•

•

•

Advanced networking tools. Create virtual networks for complex network
scenarios and testing, including simulating various network scenarios.
Mass deploy and mass manage Parallels Desktop and Windows VMs foryour employees.

•

Use the invitation email feature to invite users to install Parallels Desktop on
their Mac computers.

•

Provision a corporate VM image from a link specified in Parallels My
Account.

•

Single Application Mode. A special Parallels Desktop deployment option
allowing Mac users to run a Windows application without being aware of
Parallels Desktop and Windows running in a virtual machine.

•

Licensing and Support
Premium 24/7 phone and email support

only for subscriptions••

Centralized license management via Licensing Portal•

Simple deployment with unified volume license key•

Option to activate using sign in to corporate account•

Extended grace period to accommodate a possible license renewal delay
without disrupting the business•

Customizable in-product Support Center option•

Removed in-product notifications•

Configurable software update policy and local update server options•

Security
Restrict end-users from changing virtual machine settings••

Restrict end-users from creating new virtual machines••

Allow to disallow major Parallels Desktop version upgrades

6•

Introduction

Create expiring virtual machines•

Enforce USB device policies•

Advanced
Assign up to 32 vCPU and 128 GB vRAM per virtual machine on Intel or up
to 18 VCPU and 62 GB vRAM per virtual machine on Apple M-series Mac
computers••

Command line interface to control Parallels Desktop and virtual machines.
Command line interface allows you to work with Parallels plugins for
popular development tools including Vagrant and Jenkins••

Customize the Parallels Control Center to include custom graphics, text,
and links.

•

7

CHAPTER 2

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac
Business Edition
This chapter describes how to deploy Parallels Desktop Business Edition to Mac computers in yourorganization. The deployment can be performed using one of the following methods:• Using an invitation email. This is a simple and straightforward method. You send an invitation
email to your users from your Parallels business account and they perform the installation
themselves. You also have an option to provide users with a corporate virtual machine using
configuration profiles (p. 42). It's a great choice if you don't need to make any customization to
Parallels Desktop settings.
• Using Mac management tools. This is a highly customizable deployment method that gives
you access to many advanced options which you can configure according to your needs. You
should use this option if you want to customize Parallels Desktop settings or apply restrictions.
The subsequent sections describe each method in detail.

In This Chapter
Deploying via an invitation email ............................................................................... 8
Mass deployment using Mac management tools ...................................................... 11

Deploying via an invitation email
To invite users to install Parallels Desktop via email:1

Log in to your Parallels account at https://my.parallels.com/.

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition2

On the Dashboard page, locate the Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition
product card and click the Invite Users button.

3

In the dialog that opens, select a license key that you want to use to activate Parallels
Desktop on users' computers and click Next.

4

In the Invite Parallels Desktop Users dialog, specify the following options:9Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition• Language of Invitation: Select a language for the instructions in the invitation email.
• Invitation Expires in: Use the drop-down list to select when the invitation should expire.
After it expires, the temporary activation code included in it will no longer work.
• Email address: Type a user's email address and click Add. Repeat for all intended users.
You can also specify a CSV file containing email addresses of your users. The CSV file must
contain a single column (a valid email address) with multiple rows (one email address oneach row). Please note that if the number of users included in this list exceeds the number ofavailable licenses for the specified key, the activation of Parallels Desktop will happen on afirst-come, first-served basis.
• The Download Invitations button allows you to save the invitation email information to a
CSV file. The information includes email addresses that you specified, a temporary activation
code (generated individually for each user), and the Parallels Desktop download URL (alsogenerated individually for each user). As an example, you can use the information in thedownloaded file to create your own invitation email or to answer helpdesk questions, should
any arise.
Hint: To see how the invitation email looks and to test it, you can send it to yourself first.

5

Click Send Invitations to send the email to users.

The invitation email that the users receive contains the following information:• Installation instructions and a link from which a user can download the Parallels Desktop
installation file.
• The temporary activation code. The code will be used automatically when a user installs
Parallels Desktop on their computer. If for any reason automatic activation fails, the user canuse the code included in the mail to manually activate Parallels Desktop. Please note that this is
not the actual license key that you selected when you created the invitation email. This is only atemporary activation code with a limited scope and duration. The real license key is nevershown to your Parallels Desktop users.
Once the users install and activate Parallels Desktop on their computers, you can see the list ofactive installations in your Parallels account.

Setting up a virtual machine
Once Parallels Desktop is installed on a Mac computer, the user needs to set up a virtual machine
to run Windows on their Mac. This can be accomplished using one of the following methods:• A user can create and configure a virtual machine and install Windows in it manually. This canbe a viable method for tech savvy users.
• An administrator can prepare a virtual machine and put it on a corporate network storage from
where users can download it to their computers.
• An administrator can set up a Configuration Profile and provision a virtual machine to end users
through it. For more information see Using Configuration Profiles (p. 42) and Provisioning a
corporate VM image (p. 46). This is a recommended method for most users.
10Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition

Mass deployment using Mac management tools
This section describes how to mass deploy Parallels Desktop Business Edition using Mac
management tools.

Prerequisites
Parallels Desktop installation image
To mass deploy Parallels Desktop Business Edition, you will need the Parallels Desktop for Mac
installation image file (.dmg) and a Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition license key.
You can download the installation image fromhttps://www.parallels.com/products/business/download/.

Parallels Desktop autodeploy package
The Parallel Desktop autodeploy package is used to configure the deployment of Parallels Desktop.
The package can be downloaded from https://www.parallels.com/products/business/download/.
Please note that if you already have a configured autodeploy package from an earlier version (orbuild) of Parallels Desktop, don't use it because it may not be compatible with your build ofParallels Desktop. Always download the latest version of the package from the Parallels website
using the link above.

Supported guest OS versions
If you are deploying one or more virtual machines together with Parallels Desktop, please keep inmind the differences in supported guest operating systems on Mac computers with the Apple Mseries chip and Mac computers with an Intel processor. For the latest information, see system
requirements at https://www.parallels.com/requirements/.

Kernel extensions
If Mac computers in your organization run macOS Mojave or macOS Catalina, a Mac user mightneed to approve kernel extensions before they can launch Parallels Desktop. For more information,please read the following KB article: https://kb.parallels.com/en/128435.

Supported Mac management tools
Parallels Desktop Business Edition can be deployed to Mac computers using Mac management
tools, including, but not limited to:11

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition• Jamf Pro• Microsoft Intune• Kandji• Apple Remote Desktop (ARD)• IBM Endpoint Manager• Mosyle• Addigy• MunkiThis chapter includes detailed instructions on how to deploy Parallels Desktop using Jamf Pro orApple Remote Desktop. For instructions on how to use other tools, please see their respective
documentation.

Preparing the autodeploy package
To prepare the autodeploy package, you need to add the following required and optional
components to it:• Parallels Desktop installation image (required).
• Parallels Desktop Business Edition license key (required, unless you are using "Activation using
corporate account (SSO)").
• One or more virtual machines (optional). A virtual machine can be installed later or downloadedby the user via the link in a configuration profile (p. 42).
• One or more Windows application stubs (optional). Stubs are special links to Windows
applications installed in a virtual machine that can be added to the Dock in macOS during
deployment.
• You can also configure deployment options according to your needs by modifying theconfiguration file included in the autodeploy package.
The subsequent sections describe how to add the necessary components and how to configure
autodeploy package options.
Note: Sometimes deployment might fail with the "Install failed" error message due to enhanced security
restrictions introduced by Apple. To find out how avoid the issue, please see
https://kb.parallels.com/129460.

Download the autodeploy package
If you haven't already, download the Parallels Desktop Autodeploy Package to a Mac computerfrom https://www.parallels.com/products/business/download/.
The autodeploy package archive contains a folder named "Parallels Desktop Business Edition mass
deployment package vxxx", where "vxxx" is the autodeploy package version number.
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Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition

The folder contains the following files:• Changelog.txt — contains a record of changes that were made to the autodeploy package
over time.
• Parallels-Desktop-Business-Edition-Administrators-Guide.pdf — the version of the guidethat matches the autodeploy package version (otherwise, it's the same guide you are readingnow).
• Parallels Desktop Autodeploy.pkg — this is the actual autodeploy package that you need toprepare for mass deployment of Parallels Desktop. To view the package contents, right-click it
and choose Show Package Contents.
Read on to learn how to add the necessary components to the autodeploy package.

Add the Parallels Desktop installation image
To add the Parallels Desktop installation image file to the autodeploy package:
1

Right-click the Parallels Desktop Autodeploy.pkg file and choose Show Package Contents.
2

Open the Parallels Desktop DMG folder and copy the Parallels Desktop installation
image file to it (the .dmg file). If you don't have the file, you can download it fromhttps://www.parallels.com/products/business/download/

The package should now look like the following:

Please note that the Parallels Desktop installation image file name on the screenshot above is justan example. In your case, the file name will also include the current build number information.

Specify a license key
Parallels Desktop Business Edition license key is required to activate Parallels Desktop on target
Macs. The key must be specified in the autodeploy package.
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Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition

To specify the license key:
1

In the autodeploy package, expand the License Key and Configuration folder.

234Open the deploy.cfg file in a text editor.
Find the License section (second from the top) and enter your Parallels Desktop
Business Edition license key as a value of the license_key variable. The key must be
supplied in the following format: "XXXXXX-XXXXXX-XXXXXX-XXXXXX-XXXXXX" (including
quotes and dashes).
Save the deploy.cfg file.

Starting from Parallels Desktop 18, 'Activation using corporate account (SSO)' option became
available. This option works only if you purchased a special license type and setup integration withyour identity provider in Parallels My account. Please check your license certificate for details. To
enable 'Activation using corporate account' experience, comment the line with the license_key
variable.
Note: Parallels Desktop activation requires Internet access. You need to make sure that port 443 is
opened on target Mac computers, so they can communicate with Parallels License Server. You can also
verify that the Mac computers can reach the Parallels License Server at https://desktop.parallels.com

Add a virtual machine
Choosing a method of deploying virtual machines
Adding a virtual machine to the autodeploy package is optional. You can mass deploy Parallels
Desktop only and install virtual machines on individual Mac computers later. Consider the following
possible scenarios:
14Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition• If you are deploying Parallels Desktop on either Apple M-series or Intel based Mac computers(but not both at the same time), you can include a virtual machine in the autodeploy package,so it will be installed on a Mac as part of the deployment process.
• If you have both Apple M-series and Intel based Macs in your organization and would like todeploy Parallels Desktop with a virtual machine on all of them, you need to create two
autodeploy packages (one for Apple M-series and another for Intel based Macs) and deploy
them separately.
• The recommended approach is to deploy without any virtual machines in the autodeploy
package, and instead provision a corporate VM image using a Configuration Profile in Parallels
My Account. This method is especially useful when you plan to deploy Parallels Desktop on
both Apple M-series and Intel based Mac computers at the same time. For more information,please see Using Configuration Profiles (p. 42) and Corporate VM Image Provisioning (p.
46).

Adding a virtual machine (optional)
To add a virtual machine to the autodeploy package, simply copy the virtual machine file to the
Virtual Machine(s) folder. You can add a regular (.pvm) or archived (.pvmz) virtual machine. See
the Note below for details. More than one virtual machine can be added to the autodeploy package
if needed.
Note: To decrease network load during mass deployment, it is recommended to archive a virtual
machine before adding it to the autodeploy package. Archiving must be done in Parallels Desktop by
right-clicking a virtual machine in Control Center and clicking Archive, which will compress the virtual
machine file and give it the ".pvmz" extension. Please note that other archives (like .zip), are notsupported and must not be used. When a package is deployed on a Mac computer, the archived virtual
machine will be automatically unarchived to the standard ".pvm" format.

Before adding a virtual machine to the autodeploy package, you can configure it according to yourneeds. The subsections that follow this one describe the modifications that you can make to thevirtual machine configuration.
Please note that the virtual machine must be fully stopped before adding it to the autodeploy
package (it cannot be paused or suspended). This is necessary because deployment configuration
options are applied to a virtual machine on a target Mac and this can only be done if the virtual
machine is stopped.

15

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition

After you add a virtual machine to the autodeploy package, the package folders should look like thefollowing:

Read on to learn about modifications that you can make to the virtual machine configuration before
adding it to the autodeploy package. If you are not planning on configuring a virtual machine at thistime, you can skip to the Adding Windows application stubs section (p. 17).

Installing Parallels Tools
Parallels Tools is a collection of utilities and drivers that vastly improve the virtual machine
performance and enable some features that are not available otherwise. Parallels Tools are included
with every copy of Parallels Desktop and are highly recommended to be installed in every virtual
machine right after an operating system is installed in it. Your source virtual machine should have
Parallels Tools installed. For instructions on how to install Parallels Tools, please see
https://kb.parallels.com/en/115835.

Common configuration options
When preparing a source virtual machine for mass deployment, you may change any of its
configuration settings according to your needs. The following list describes a few common options:• CPU & Memory. Beginning with Parallels Desktop 17, you can configure a virtual machine toselect CPU and memory settings automatically depending on the available hardware resources.
This option is preselected for all new virtual machines. To make sure it is selected, open thevirtual machine configuration, select Hardware > CPU & Memory. In the right pane, check that
Automatic option is selected.

16

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition• Shared Folders and Profiles. Parallels Desktop offers great flexibility in bridging the capabilities
of macOS and your guest operating system by configuring shared folders and profiles. Thinkover which files and folders you wish to share between the two operating systems and set upthem in advance.
• Enforce USB Device Policies. Specify what types of USB devices can be connected to thevirtual machine. See Enforcing USB device policies (p. 62) for complete details.
• Installing Applications. You can install all the necessary applications in the virtual machine
before deploying it.
For the complete information about Parallels virtual machine configuration, please refer to the
Parallels Desktop User's Guide.

Adding Windows application stubs
Windows application stubs are special links to Windows applications installed in a virtual machinethat can be added to the Dock in macOS during deployment.

About application stubs
Application stubs are created in macOS when you create a virtual machine and install Parallels
Tools in it. To see applications stubs for a virtual machine:
1

In macOS, navigate to /Users/<user-name>/Applications (Parallels)2

Expand a desired virtual machine folder. For example, Windows 10 Applications, as
shown in the screenshot below:

17

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition

The icons that you see in the folder are Windows application stubs. If you double-click an icon, thecorresponding Windows application will be started in the virtual machine.
You can add one or more application stubs to the autodeploy package to be added to the Dock on
a target Mac computer. For example, if your Mac users will use a particular application most of thetime, it would make sense to add it to the Dock, so they can quickly launch it without dealing with
the Windows user interface.
Windows application stubs are specifically used when you deploy Parallels Desktop using Single
Application Mode. For more information, please see the Single application mode section (p. 26).

Adding an application stub to the autodeploy package
To add one or more application stubs to the autodeploy package, simply copy it to the Windows
Application(s) stubs to add to Dock folder, as shown on the screenshot below:

Configure deployment options
The autodeploy package contains a special script, which is automatically executed on a target Mac
after the package is transferred to it. When executed, the script reads the configuration parametervalues from the deploy.cfg file, which you can modify according to your needs.
To modify the parameters, expand the License Key and Configuration folder in the autodeploy
package and open the deploy.cfg file in a text editor. The configuration parameters are organizedin sections, which are described below.

18

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition

LicenseThe License section is used to specify the Parallels Desktop Business Edition license key.
Variable

Description

license_key

Specifies the Parallels Desktop license key. See Specify a License Key(p. 13) for more info.

Virtual Machines
The Virtual Machines section is used to specify virtual machine deployment options.
Variable

Description
Specifies the registration mode for the deployed virtual machines.
Accepted values:

vm_register_mode"Private" — The virtual machines will be registered for the active user
only. The virtual machines will be copied to the/Users/<username>/Parallels folder.
"Shared" — The virtual machines will be registered for all users of a Mac.
The virtual machines will be copied to the /Users/Shared/Parallels
folder.
The default destination folder for virtual machines can be modified using
the vm_destination_folder variable (see below).

vm_reset_hwid

Specifies whether the virtual machine SMBIOS ID (hardware ID) will be
regenerated. Each Parallels virtual machine is assigned a universally unique
SMBIOS ID when it is created. When you deploy a virtual machine to many
Macs, each resulting copy of the machine will have the same SMBIOS ID.
This is the default behavior and should not be normally changed. If yourenterprise management system relies on unique SMBOIS IDs, you canchange the value of the vm_reset_hwid variable as follows:"no" — Keep the original SMBIOS ID.
"yes" — Regenerate the ID.
Specifies whether the virtual machine(s) will be copied or moved from the
autodeploy package to their destination folder on a Mac (see theexplanation below).
Accepted values:"Copy" — Copy the virtual machine(s).
"Move" — Move the virtual machine(s).

vm_deploy_mode

If your autodeploy package contains one or more virtual machines, theyneed to be copied or moved to their destination folder on a Mac during
deployment (see vm_register_mode and vm_destination_folder
variables). Moving a virtual machine file is almost instantaneous, while
copying it will take a considerable time due to the large size of a typicalvirtual machine. The option you specify here depends on the following:•

If the deployment tool that you are using copies the entire
autodeploy package to a Mac computer before running it, you

19Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition
can use the fast "Move" option. Jamf Pro, Parallels Device
Management, and Apple Remote Desktop all copy packages to
a Mac before running them, so you can use the "Move" option
when using these tools. Note that the package and thedestination folder must be located on the same mount point on
a Mac for the "Move" operation to be fast; otherwise, it'll beessentially a copy-and-delete operation, hence slow.
•

If you are running the autodeploy package from a network
share mounted on a Mac (e.g. manually), then you should use"Copy" because moving a virtual machine from a remotelocation will be as slow as copying it, plus the virtual machine
will be removed from the package if you move it, so the
package will become incomplete (you want it to stay intact if
you want to install it on other Macs). Note that since macOS
10.13, the "Copy" mode supports the APFS feature "clone file".
This means that if the target FS is APFS, the "clone" feature isused to reduce the time and disk space when deploying a VM.

Please note that when testing the autodeploy package on a local Mac, it isbetter to use "Copy" to avoid removing a virtual machine from thepackage.

vm_destination_folder

Allows you to change the default destination folder for virtual machines.
The default folder is determined by the value of the vm_register_mode
variable (see above). The vm_destination_folder variable allows you
to change the default folder while keeping the selected virtual machine
registration mode.
Note: Beginning with Parallels Desktop 15, all restrictions are stored insidea VM bundle, therefore this configuration parameter is not considered.

vm_password_to_edit

20

Specifies a password that will be required to modify the configuration of avirtual machine. For more information, please see Restricting Virtual
Machine configuration with a custom password (p. 54).

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition
The parameter in this section allows you to change the default target
location and/or name of a virtual machine when it is copied to a Mac
computer.
By default, virtual machines included in the autodeploy package are copied
to the default location on a Mac, which is determined by thevm_register_mode variable (or the vm_destination_folder
variable if it’s present). If you have more than one virtual machine, you canspecify a different destination location and/or name for each desired virtual
machine. To do so, you must include a variable/value pair as shown inexamples below.
The variable name must be the same as the original virtual machine filename (including the “.pvm” or “.pvmz” extension). The value should
contain a name and path where you want the virtual machine to be copied
on a Mac.
<VM_file_name>

Please note the following:•

The path must be relative if vm_register_mode is set to"Shared".

•

The target VM extension must be “.pvm”, even if the original is“.pvmz” (because an archived virtual machine will be
automatically unarchived on a Mac during deployment).

Examples:"Shared VM.pvm"="./Shared VM.pvm""Private VM.pvm"="~/Parallels/Private VM.pvm"”Archived Shared VM.pvmz”="./Shared.pvm””Archived Private VM.pvmz"="~/Parallels/Private.pvm”
This and two variables below are grouped together and allow you tocustomize Parallels Desktop Control Center by displaying a custom HTMLbanner at the top of its window. For additional information, see Usingcustom graphics and links in the Control Center (p. 57).
control_center_banner_url

The URL of a custom HTML page to be displayed as a banner in the
Parallels Desktop Control Center window.
To disable the banner, comment out the variable or specify an empty string
as a value.
The banner height, in pixels. The recommended value is 350.

control_center_banner_height

To use the current value (if you are updating Parallels Desktop on a Mac),
comment out the variable.

The banner minimum width, in pixels. When resizing the Control Centerwindow, its minimum width will be limited accordingly. The recommended
control_center_banner_min_widt value is 350.
h
To use the current value (if you are updating Parallels Desktop on a Mac),
comment out the variable. To disable the minimum width limitation,comment out the variable or specify 0 (zero) as a value.

21

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition
Specify whether the installer should override the hypervisor type of each
deployed VM to 'Apple' on macOS 11.0 Big Sur and newer. All macOS
versions since macOS Big Sur require a Mac reboot to run a VM with avm_set_hv_mode_apple_forcibly_ hypervisor type other than 'Apple'.
since_macos_11_0
To forcibly change the hypervisor type to 'Apple', use the following setting:vm_set_hv_mode_apple_forcibly_since_macos_11_0="yes"Software updates
The Software Updates section is used to configure Parallels Desktop automatic updates.
Please note that a configuration profile (p. 42) can be used to control upgrades over major versionsof Parallels Desktop. But if the updates_url variable is used (see the table below), then theconfiguration profile option is ignored. The recommended approach is not to use theupdates_url variable, and use a configuration profile to enable upgrades when the IT feels
confident about the new version.
Variable

Description
Specifies the update URL. Possible values are:"Parallels" — Download updates from the Parallels website over theInternet. Updates are downloaded from a special server hosting Parallels
Desktop Business Edition updates, which become available on the server
at a slightly later date compared to Parallels Desktop Pro edition. This is
the default and recommended option. For more info, please see
Configuring Parallels Desktop update options (p. 68).
"None" — Turn off automatic updates.
<URL> — Specifies a custom update URL. You can use this option in oneof the following two cases:

updates_url

1) If you have a local update server, specify a complete URL (in quotes) of
the parallels_updates.xml file on your local Web server. For more
information, please see Setting up a local update server (p. 64).
2) If you don't want to wait until Parallels Desktop Business Edition updates
become available, you can specify the URL to download updates intended
for Parallels Desktop Standard and Pro editions, which are released a bit
earlier. For more info, please see Configuring Parallels Desktop Update
Options. The URL is as follows (when assigning it to the variable, put it inquotes):https://update.parallels.com/desktop/v16/parallels/parallels_sbscr_update
s.xml
Note: The "v16" part in the URL above indicates the current Parallels
Desktop version number. If you are using a later version, substitute it withthe correct number.
Specifies how often Parallels Desktop should check for updates.
Possible values:

updates_auto_check"0" — never"1" — once a day

22

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition"2" — once a week"3" — once a month
Specifies the automatic update download options:"on" — Download updates automatically. This value should be specified
when using a local update server.

updates_auto_download"off" — Notify the user about updates but don't download them
automatically. This option is useful only when updates are downloaded
from the Parallels website and the user has full control over the update
functionality.

Help and support
The Help and Support section is used to specify the action for the Help > Support Center menu
item in the Parallels Desktop graphical user interface.
Variable

support_url

Description
Specifies a URL of a page that will be displayed when user selects theHelp > Support Center menu option in the Parallels Desktop graphicaluser interface. To display the default message, specify an empty string (thisis the default behavior). To display your own Web page (help desk, wiki,etc.), specify its URL.
See also Customizing Support Center options (p. 69).
Specifies a URL that will be included in error message dialogs related tolicensing operations. The URL should point to a web page or a resourcethat the user can visit to get help with the problem.

lic_admin_url

The error message appears when there's a problem with activating,renewing, or deactivating a Parallels Desktop license. If you specify a URL
using this variable, it will be included in the message dialog in the form "Fordetails click <URL>". If you don't specify a URL (comment out the variableor specify an empty string), the default "Contact your system administrator"
message will be displayed.

Problem reporting
The Problem Reporting section is used to specify whether Parallels Desktop problem reports
should contain screenshots of the macOS and virtual machine desktops. You can exclude thescreenshots for security reasons.
Variable

Description

report_allow_screenshots"yes" — Include screenshots of the macOS and virtual machine desktops
in Parallels Desktop problem reports.
"no" — Do not include the screenshots.

23

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition

Customer experience
The Customer Experience section allows you to specify whether the Macs should participate in
the Parallels Customer Experience Program. The Parallels Customer Experience Program is afeedback solution that allows Parallels Desktop to automatically collect usage statistics and system
information that will help Parallels to develop new features and updates for future releases. For
more information, please see https://www.parallels.com/pcep/.
NOTE: Starting from Parallels Desktop 18, CEP Participation option in deployment package and in
Parallels Desktop user interface is ignored. The setting for all users is managed by the licenseadministrator in Parallels My Account portal (my.parallels.com https://account.parallels.com,
https://my.parallels.com).
Variable

Description"off" — participation in the program is turned off.

cep_participation"on" — participation in the program is turned on.
See also Participating in Customer Experience program (p. 52).

Security
The Security section allows you to enable or disable the password requirement for a number ofParallels Desktop operations.
Variable

Description

The following set of parameters allows you set a custom password and then specify whether this password is required
to perform a corresponding action in Parallels Desktop. For more information about this feature, please see Restrictinguser actions in Parallels Desktop with a custom password (p. 55).
The current password (if one is already set in target Parallels Desktop
installations).
Use this key if you want to disable or change the current password, or if
you want to enable/disable any of the protected actions when the
password is already set.
For the following cases, both the “current_password” and the“new_password” (see below) keys must be uncommented and set
accordingly:
current_password

1. To disable the password completely, the “current_password” key must
contain the current password and the “new_password” key must be set to"" (empty string).
2. To change the password, the “current_password” key must containthen current password and the “new_password” key must contain the new
password.
3. To enable/disable any of the actions without changing the password,
both the “current_password” and the “new_password” keys must containthe current password.

new_password

24

Custom password. If no password is currently set, use this key to specify
the password. If a password is currently set, see the description above.

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition

password_to_edit_prefs"on" — require the password to open the Parallels Desktop Preferences
dialog.
"off" — the password is not required.
"on" — require the password to create a new virtual machine.

password_to_create_vm"off" — the password is not required.
"on" — require the password to add an existing virtual machine.

password_to_add_vm"off" — the password is not required.
"on" — require the password to remove a virtual machine.

password_to_remove_vm

password_to_clone_vm"off" — the password is not required.
"on" — require the password to clone a virtual machine or converting it toa template.
"off" — the password is not required.

The following set of parameters allows you to specify whether a local Mac administrator password is required toperform a corresponding action in Parallels Desktop. Please note that the parameters described above provide a higher
level of security since they allow you to use a custom password.
Note: Supported since Parallels Desktop 15.
admin_password_to_edit_prefs"on" — require a local Mac administrator password to modify Parallels
Desktop preferences.
"off" — a password is not required.

admin_password_to_create_vm"on" — require a local Mac administrator password to create a virtual
machine.
"off" — a password is not required.

admin_password_to_add_vm"on" — require a local Mac administrator password to add an existing
virtual machine.
"off" — a password is not required.

admin_password_to_remove_vm"on" — require a local Mac administrator password to remove a virtual
machine from Parallels Desktop.
"off" — a password is not required.

admin_password_to_clone_vm"on" — require a local Mac administrator password to clone a virtual
machine.
"off" — a password is not required.
Hide hostname in activation/heartbeat requests.

hide_license_request_params"on" — hide.
"off" — don't hide.

User experience
The User Experience section allows you specify options related to user experience.
Variable

Description25

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition
Specifies whether to enable Single Application Mode. For more
information, please see Single application mode (p. 26).
Possible values:"yes" — enable Single Application Mode.

enable_single_application_mode

If the parameter is commented out, Parallels Desktop will be deployedusing the "standard" mode.
When using the Single Application Mode, it is recommended to prepare
Windows guest operating system to have auto login enabled.
NOTE: Please note that you cannot redeploy Parallels Desktop with thisoption set to "no" or commented out to disable Single Application Mode.
For that, you will need to completely remove Parallels Desktop from your
Mac computers and then redeploy Parallels Desktop with this optioncommented out.
Specifies whether to show or hide developer tools in the Parallels Desktop
GUI. For more information, please see Hiding Developer Tools in
Parallels Desktop GUI (p. 58)
Possible values:

show_developers_menu"no" — hide developer tools.
"yes" — show developer tools.
Please note that this setting will be applied to every virtual machine
included in the autodeploy package. You can also configure each virtual
machine to hide (or show) developer tools prior to deployment, but withthis option you can apply the setting automatically during deployment.

Single application mode
Overview
Single Application Mode is a special Parallels Desktop deployment option that allows you tocompletely hide Parallels Desktop and Windows on a Mac and make a Windows application
appear like it's a native macOS app. This mode is designed for system administrators who want
Mac users in their organization to run one or more Windows applications without being aware of
Parallels Desktop or Windows running in a virtual machine.
When Parallels Desktop is deployed using Single Application Mode:• A Mac user will not see the Parallels Desktop icon, user interface, or the virtual machine window
at any time.
• A Windows application icon is added to the Dock. When the user clicks on the icon, theapplication will run on a Mac desktop like a native macOS application.
• The Mac location sharing feature is disabled in Parallels Desktop when deployed in Single
Application mode. This means that the user will never see a Parallels Desktop message about
using their current location in Windows.

26

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition• A Mac user will never know that Parallels Desktop and Windows are running on their Mac
computer.
Note: Single Application Mode doesn't work with "Activation using corporate account" option.

Configuring deployment options
To deploy Parallels Desktop using Single Application Mode, do the following:1

Add a virtual machine to the autodeploy package. For instructions, see Add a Virtual Machine(p. 14). Please take note of the following:• You can add only ONE virtual machine when using Single Application Mode.
• The virtual machine must be properly shut down before adding it to the autodeploy package(i.e. you need to properly shut down Windows). DO NOT simply close it, as this will be
detected as a crash by Windows and a Mac user will have to deal with it at startup.
2

Add a Windows application stub to the autodeploy package that will be used to run adesired Windows application on a Mac. If you want to deploy more than one Windows
application, add a corresponding stub for each one. For details, please see Adding
Windows Application stubs (p. 17).

3

To enable Single Application Mode, set theenable_single_application_mode="yes" parameter in the deploy.cfg file, as
described in Configure deployment options (p. 18). The parameter is included in the User
Experience section of the deploy.cfg file.

4

Deploy Parallels Desktop to Mac computers as described in Deploying Parallels
Desktop and Virtual Machines to Mac Computers (p. 29).

Configuring Windows
For Windows to be completely hidden on a Mac, you need to make some changes manually
because they cannot be automated. The following list describes these changes:• Enable auto logon in Windows. Make sure that Windows in the virtual machine doesn't ask
the user to log on. If this is not done, a Mac user will see the Windows logon screen when
Windows starts or reboots.
• Configure file associations in Windows. This is necessary so that Windows doesn't open
another Windows application when the user tries to open a file from the primary application. For
example, let's say you deployed Outlook for Windows. A Mac user may try to open a text fileattachment in Outlook. Normally, the file will open in Notepad in Windows, which may confuse
the user. To prevent this, you can associate text files with TextEdit (a macOS application) in a
virtual machine. The ability to associate file extensions with macOS applications is a standard
Parallels Desktop feature available in Windows in a virtual machine. In addition, we recommendthat you have as little applications installed in Windows as possible in order not to create
additional file associations.

27

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition• Use the Productivity profile. When creating a virtual machine for Single Application Mode,choose the Productivity profile in the virtual machine Installation Assistant. If you are using an
existing virtual machine, change its profile by going to Configuration > General > Configure
for, clicking Change and then selecting Productivity.
Please note that there's a known issue when users may see Windows screens when Windows is
installing updates.

Configuring macOSIf you are deploying Parallels Desktop on macOS Hight Sierra, macOS Catalina, or macOS Mojave,
you need to make sure in advance that Parallels Desktop kernel extensions are either approved or
don't require user consent on each Mac. This is particularly important when using the Single
Application Mode because if the extensions are not approved, Mac users will see warning
messages about them when they try to run a Windows application for the first time. For more
information, please see https://kb.parallels.com/en/128435.

Testing the autodeploy package
Once you have the Parallels Desktop autodeploy package configured, you can test it on a single
Mac before you mass deploy it to other Mac computers in your organization.
To test the package:
1

28

Copy it to a Mac on which you want to test it. The Mac should have a configuration similar toother Mac computers on which you'll be deploying Parallels Desktop. Specifically, if your target
Mac computers don't have Parallels Desktop and virtual machines installed, the test Mac
shouldn't have them installed either. If target Macs have an older version of Parallels Desktop,
the test Mac should have it installed too, so you can see what will be the results.
2

To speed up the execution of the package during testing, consider running it from thecommand line using /System/Library/CoreServices/Installer.app. When executed this way,
the package will not be tested by macOS whether it is signed and the usual verification of
the package will be skipped. Please note that if you run the package by double-clicking on
it, macOS will complain that the package is not signed and will not install it. If you run the
package by right-clicking and choosing Open, the check whether the package is signed will
be skipped but the verification of the package will take a long time if you have one or morevirtual machines in it (because of the large size of a typical virtual machine). When you use
the Installer.app to run the package, the installation will begin immediately without any
checks or verifications. All of the above only applies when you run the package manually.
When you mass deploy it on Mac computers, verification is not performed and theinstallation is completely silent.

3

When the installation is complete, verify that Parallels Desktop is installed, activated, and isfunctioning properly. If your package is configured to deploy Parallels Desktop in Single
Application Mode, try running the application and see that it starts and runs as it should.

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition
4

Please note that when the package is executed, it writes logs into /var/log/install.log. If
you experience issues, examine the logs. If that doesn't help, you can contact Parallels
Support for business customers, which is available 24/7.

Read on to learn how to mass deploy the package using one of the Mac management tools.

Deploying Parallels Desktop and virtual machines to Macs
This section contains instruction on how to deploy the Parallels Desktop autodeploy package using
the following solutions:• Jamf Pro (p. 29)• Apple Remote Desktop (p. 35)• Deploying macOS image using NetBoot or System Image (p. 39)
Note: In some cases, when deploying Parallels Desktop autodeploy package on a computer running
macOS Catalina or later, you may get an error that "Parallels Desktop Autodeploy.pkg cannot be opened
because the developer cannot be verified". To work around this issue, please do the following. After you
prepared the autodeploy package (but before you deploy it), right-click the package and select Openfrom the context menu. In the dialog that opens, click the Open button and wait until macOS completes
the file verification. Once the file is verified, use the deployment tool of your choice to deploy the package.
See also https://kb.parallels.com/124989

Deploying with Jamf Pro
Jamf Pro includes the Software Distribution functionality that you can use to deploy the Parallels
Desktop package to Mac computers in your organization. To deploy the package you need:• Jamf Pro server installed and configured.
• Target Mac computers enrolled in Jamf Pro.
• A distribution point (cloud or file share) configured and be accessible from the target Mac
computers.

Add a distribution point
A distribution point is a server that hosts files for distribution to computers. If your Jamf Pro
installation doesn't have a distribution point, you need to add one to host the Parallels Desktop
autodeploy package.
To add a distribution point:
1

Open the Jamf Pro console and log in to your Jamf server.

29

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition
2

Click the gear icon in the upper right and then click Server Infrastructure in the left pane.

3

Jamf Pro supports cloud-based (content delivery networks) and file share distribution
points. Depending on what is available to you, click the Cloud Distribution Point or the File
Share Distribution Points icon. The instructions below are for setting up a file share
distribution point. If you would like to set up a cloud distribution point, please consult Jamf
Pro documentation for details.

4

After you click the File Share Distribution Point icon, click New.

5

On the General tab page:• Type a name for the distribution point.
• Specify the IP address or the host name of the distribution point server.
• Select the Use as master distribution point option.
6

Click the File Sharing tab and specify the following:• Protocol: Select AFP or SMB depending on which protocol is used on your server for filesharing.
• Share name: Specify the share name. For example, if your server name is MYSERVER andyour full share name is \\MYSERVER\JAMF-SHARE, specify JAMF-SHARE in this field.
• Port: In most cases the default value is what a given protocol normally uses. If you knowthat your server uses a different port number, specify it here.
• Read/Write Account: Specify credentials of an account that has read/write access to theshare.
• Read-Only Account: Specify credentials of an account that has read-only access to theshare.

30

7

If your server supports HTTP downloads, select the HTTP/HTTPS tab and then select theUse HTTP downloads option. Based on our own and other users' experience,
HTTP/HTTPS-enabled distribution points are more reliable than AFP/SMB shares, but you
can try both options and see which one works better for you.

8

Click Save to save the settings and add the distribution point to your Jamf Pro installation.

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition

Add the autodeploy package to the distribution point
Note: The instructions below describe uploading of the autodeploy package using the Jamf Admin app.
If you are using the web-based tool and the Google Chrome browser, you should zip the package before
uploading it. This is necessary because ownership and permissions of the content files in an unzipped
package may change during upload, which in turn may corrupt the autodeploy package itself. Please
note that this behavior has been observed when using the Google Chrome browser. If you are using
Safari or the Jamf Admin app, you don't need to zip the package prior to uploading it.

To add the autodeploy package to the distribution point:
1

Open the Jamf Admin app on a Mac and log in to your Jamf Pro server.
2

Drag the package to the main repository area (the middle area in the right pane).

3

The package will be uploaded to the master distribution point and will appear in Jamf
Admin.

31

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition
4

5

You can set other options if needed, such as add a package to a category or change thepackage priority. Indexing the package is not necessary for the purpose of deploying it on
Macs.
Close the Jamf Admin when done.

To verify that the package has been added to the distribution point:
1

Open the Jamf Pro console and login to Jamf Pro server.
2

Click the gear icon in the upper right and select Computer Management in the left pane.

3

Click Packages in the right pane. You should see the Parallels Desktop
Autodeploy.pkg.zip package in the list.

4

If needed, you can modify the package display name and other settings. To do so, click
the package and then click the Edit button in the lower right. Modify any of the settings as
you require (except the file name). All settings are optional. If not sure, simply leave themunchanged.

Install the package
You can install the package on Mac computers using a policy or you can use the Jamf Remote appthat works similar to Apple Remote Desktop. This section contains instructions on how to install apackage using a policy. For Jamf Remote instructions, please refer to the Jamf Pro documentation.

Create a policy
To create a policy:

32

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition
1

In the Jamf Pro console, click the Computers tab in the left pane and then click Policies.

2

In the right pane, click New. The New Policy pane loads where you can define the policy.

3

In the General payload, specify the following:• Type a name for the policy.
• Select the Enabled option.
• Specify a category (optional).
• In the Trigger section, select one or more events that should trigger the policy retrieval on
target Mac computers.
• In the Execution Frequency drop-down list, select a frequency at which to run the policy.
Since Parallels Desktop has to be installed just once, you may select Once per computeror Once per user (to install Parallels Desktop for each user if a Mac has more than one).
• The Target Drive option allows you to specify the drive on which to run the policy. You
would normally use the default option, which will run the policy on the boot drive.
• Other options in the General payload allow you to configure limitations on when the policy
can and cannot run. This includes server-side and client-side limitations. You can specify
them according to your needs or you can leave them blank.
4

To specify a package for the policy, click the Packages payload and then click theConfigure button in the right pane.The pane will be populated with the list of available
packages.

33

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition
5

Locate the Parallels Desktop Autodeploy.pkg.zip package and click Add.

6

Select a distribution point that contains the Parallels Desktop package. If you select theSpecific file share distribution point option, choose the distribution point. If the
distribution point is both an AFP/SMB and HTTP share, Jamf will try to use the HTTP option
to download the package to target Macs. If needed, you can force it to use the AFP/SMB
share by selecting the Force file sharing over AFP/SMB option. Based on ourobservations, HTTP shares work more reliably in Jamf, but you can try different options if
you are experiencing issues with mounting shares on Mac computers during the policy
execution.

7

In the Action drop-down list, select how the package should be downloaded and installedon Mac computers:• Install — when the policy runs, the package is downloaded and installed on a Mac
computer as a single operation. Note that if you have a large number of Macs and the policy
runs on all of them simultaneously, all of them will try to download the policy at the sametime. For this reason, you may consider the options below to avoid overloading yournetwork.
• Cache — when the policy runs, the package is downloaded to a Mac computer but is notinstalled at that time.
• Install Cached — a policy with this action installs the package that has been downloaded
previously using the Cache option. You can use this and the "Cache" options if you are
deploying Parallels Desktop on a large number of Macs. First, you "cache" the autodeploy
package on each Mac at a convenient time. Once that's done, you run the "Install Cached"policy to install the package, which will be a completely local operation for each Mac. Thisway, you can ensure that Parallels Desktop is deployed on each Mac at roughly the sametime (e.g. on the weekend) without delays.

34

8

The rest of the payloads are not required for Parallels Desktop package deployment.

9

To specify target Mac computers, click the Scope tab at the top of the pane. You canspecify targets by computer name or user name (or both).You can also set limitations andexclusions to further narrow down the target list.

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition

Note: If you are deploying Parallels Desktop on both Apple M-series and Intel based Macs and yourautodeploy package contains a virtual machine for one of the processor types, you need to selectcomputers of a corresponding type. This can be done using Smart Groups. For more information,please see the following article on the Jamf website: https://docs.jamf.com/best-practiceworkflows/jamf-pro/managing-macosupdates/Creating_a_Smart_Computer_Group_to_Identify_Target_Computers.html. If you are deploying
just Parallels Desktop (without any virtual machines), then this step is unnecessary.

10

If you would like the package to appear in the Self Service app on a Mac, click the Self
Service tab, select the Make the policy available in Self Service option, and specify
additional options if needed. The Self Service app allows the user to initiate the policy
retrieval manually without waiting for it to trigger.

11

The User Interaction tab page allows you to specify messages that will be displayed to a
Mac user when the policy runs on their Macs. If you want the installation to be completely
silent, you can skip this page.

12

When done, click Save to save the policy.

Deploy the package
Once the policy is retrieved by a Mac computer, it will install and activate Parallels Desktop on it.
Once completed, the Mac user can begin using Parallels Desktop.
If you are testing your policy, you can wait for it to trigger or you can run it manually using the Self
Service app on a Mac. The app is installed when a Mac is enrolled in Jamf Pro and can be opened
from the Applications folder in macOS. If there errors executing the policy, you can review them in
the app. Please also note that when testing a policy, don't try to run it on the same Mac that you
use as a distribution point because an attempt to mount a share on the same Mac that hosts it will
fail.

Deploying with Apple Remote Desktop
To use Apple Remote Desktop, you need Apple Remote Desktop Admin, which should run on youradministrator Mac, and Apple Remote Desktop client, which should run on client Macs.
Apple Remote Desktop Admin doesn't come standard with macOS. You will have to obtain thesoftware from Apple and install it on a Mac from which you are deploying Parallels Desktop. Apple
Remote Desktop client is installed during the standard macOS installation.
Note: Before continuing, please verify that the versions of Apple Remote Desktop Admin and each
instance of Apple Remote Desktop client match. If they don't, update the necessary software.

Configure Remote Management Services on target Macs
For a remote management tool (ARD in our case) to be able to distribute the software, the Remote
Management Services have to be configured in macOS on each individual Mac. In order to do so,
you need to log in to each Mac and perform the following steps:
35

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition
1

In macOS, open System Preferences.
2

Click Sharing.

3

In the Service list, select Remote Management.

4

Click Options.

5

Select the following options: Observe, Control, Open and quit applications, Change
settings, Delete and replace items, Copy items (see the picture below).

6

Click OK.

7

Close System Preferences.

Deploy the package
To deploy the package to Macs:
1

On the administrator Mac, open the Finder and click Applications > Remote Desktop to
display the main window of Apple Remote Desktop.
Note: If you have set up a Task Server, you can deploy the package from that server.

36

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition
2

Click All Computers in the left section of the ARD main window. The Mac computersconnected to your network are displayed in the right pane of the window.

3

Select the desired destination Macs and click Install in the ARD toolbar (or select Manage> Install Packages menu). The Install Packages window opens.

4

Add the Parallels Desktop Autodeploy.pkg file to the Packages list either bydragging it there with the mouse or by locating the package using the '+' button

37

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition
5

Click Install to distribute the autodeploy package to selected Macs. The installation
progress is displayed in the main window. The result of the package distribution to eachindividual Mac is displayed in the Status column.

When the package is distributed to a Mac, it runs on it and installs Parallels Desktop and the virtual
machine(s). It then activates Parallels Desktop using the supplied license key.

Using Apple Remote Desktop templatesApple Remote Desktop allows you to save package installation settings as templates. This feature
may be useful if you need to deploy Parallels Desktop more than once using different settings. For
example, you may have a virtual machine specifically configured for your developers and anotherone configured for your graphics designers or quality assurance engineers. Instead of modifying the
autodeploy package every time you need to deploy Parallels Desktop to a specific group of Mac
users, you can create separate packages and save them as templates.
To create an ARD template:1

On the administrator Mac, open Apple Remote Desktop.
2

38

Click All Computers in the left pane of the ARD main window.

3

Select the computers where the autodeploy package is to be installed and click Install in
the ARD toolbar.

4

In the Install Packages window, add the desired Parallels Desktop autodeploy package
either by dragging it to the top area of the displayed window or locating it by using the '+'button.

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition
5

Save current installation setup as a template by selecting Save as Template from theTemplate pop-up menu located in the upper right-hand corner of the Install Packages
window.

6

In the displayed window, specify the name that you would like to use for the template andclick OK.

The next time when you are ready to deploy Parallels Desktop to a specific group of Mac users,
simply select the desired template from the same Template pop-up menu in the Install Packages
window and then click Install.

Deploying macOS image using NetBoot or System Image
If you are using NetBoot to deploy a macOS image with Parallels Desktop Business Edition
preinstalled, some additional steps need to be taken to properly activate a copy of Parallels
Desktop on individual Macs.
The following steps describe the process of installing Parallels Desktop and creating an image fromit suitable for NetBoot deployment:
1

Install macOS on a Mac.
39

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition
2

Install Parallels Desktop Business Edition.

3

Make sure your Mac can connect to the Internet.

4

Activate Parallels Desktop using your Business Edition license key.

5

Tune Parallels Desktop settings and add or create virtual machines according to yourneeds.

6

Open Terminal and deactivate the Parallels Desktop license by typing the following
command:prlsrvctl deactivate-license
On successful license deactivation, you should see the following output:
The License has been successfully deactivated7
8

Quit Parallels Desktop.
In Terminal, type the following command to prepare Parallels Desktop to activate a license
in deferred mode:

prlsrvctl install-license --key <key> --deferred
where <key> is the Parallels Desktop Business Edition license key.
On success, you should see the following output:
The License has been successfully prepared for deferredinstallation.
This means that the next time Parallels Desktop starts, it will try to activate the license
automatically. The Internet connection is required for activation. If a Mac can't connect to theInternet, the Parallels Desktop license activation will be postponed until the Internet connection
is available.
You can now create a macOS image from this system and deploy it to other Macs in yourenterprise using NetBoot.

Using a script to Change VM options
When you need to change configuration settings of all virtual machines that are already registeredon a Mac computer, you can use the Parallels desktop command-line interface. To do so, you firstneed to create a script to perform a desired configuration modification. You can then execute thescript on a Mac computer using one of the remote Mac management tools described earlier in thischapter.
The following is a script example that disables the auto pausing option for all virtual machinesregistered on a Mac computer:for i in $( prlctl list -a --info | grep "ID" | sed 's/.....//;s/.$//' ); do
prlctl set $i --pause-idle off
done

40

Deploying Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition

The script above uses the prlctl list command to first obtains a list of registered virtual
machines and then (inside the loop) sets the --pause-idle option for every VM to "off", which
disables pausing of an idle virtual machine.
The complete command-line reference is documented in the Parallels Desktop Command LineInterface chapter.

41

CHAPTER 3

Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition
FeaturesThis chapter describes features that are specific to Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition.

In This Chapter
Using Configuration Profiles ...................................................................................... 42
Participating in the Customer Experience Program ................................................... 52
Locking a Virtual Machine on Suspend ..................................................................... 53
Activation Using a Corporate Account ...................................................................... 53
Restricting a Virtual Machine Configuration with a Custom Password ....................... 54
Restricting User Actions in Parallels Desktop with a Custom Password .................... 55
Setting an Asset Tag in the Virtual Machine BIOS ..................................................... 56
Using Custom Graphics and Links in the Control Center .......................................... 57
Hiding Developer Tools in the Parallels Desktop GUI ................................................ 58
Encrypting a Virtual Machine from the Command Line .............................................. 59
Single Application Mode ........................................................................................... 60
Setting an Expiration Date for a Virtual Machine ........................................................ 61
Enforcing USB Device Policies.................................................................................. 62
Resetting the Guest OS Password ........................................................................... 63
Setting Up a Local Update Server ............................................................................ 64
Configuring Parallels Desktop update branch ........................................................... 68
Customizing the Support Center option .................................................................... 69

Using Configuration Profiles
Overview
A configuration profile in Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition is a set of parameters that canbe applied remotely to a Parallels Desktop installation and modify the appearance or behavior of
Parallels Desktop according to organization policies. Configuration profiles are created in an
organization's Parallels business account. You must be the administrator of the account to create
and manage configuration profiles. License administrators (admins who are allowed to manage
specific licenses) cannot manage configuration profiles.
At the time of this writing, configuration profiles can be used to enable and configure the following
functionality in Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition:

Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features• Provisioning a corporate virtual machine image• Enabling major version upgrades
We'll talk in detail about the functionality listed above later in this part of the guide. This and thefollowing two sections talk about configuration profiles in general and describe how to create andapply them.

Configuration profile payloads
Payloads in a configuration profile contain settings specific to a particular functionality. For example,
the VM for M-series Mac and VM for Intel Mac payloads allow you to configure virtual machine
image provisioning, while Product Updates payload allows you to manage Parallels Desktop
updates. The configuration profile itself is created and configured the same way regardless of whichof its payloads are configured and enabled.
A configuration profile can have one or more payloads configured and enabled. For example, you
can configure and enable a particular payload in one profile and a different payload in anotherprofile. This allows you to enable one functionality for one group of users and another functionality
for a different group (see below how configuration profiles are applied to Mac computers). You cancreate as many profiles as necessary.

Applying configuration profiles to Mac computers
Configuration profiles are applied to registered Mac computers based on a license or sublicense
key that computers are using to run Parallels Desktop. After you create a configuration profile, youneed to apply it to one or more license or sublicense keys in your subscription. By doing so, youare essentially applying the profile to Mac computers on which Parallels Desktop was activatedusing that license key.
The rest of this part of the guide describes how to:• Create a configuration profile• Apply the configuration profile to a license or sublicense key• Configure individual payloads

Create a configuration profile
To create a configuration profile:1

Log in to your Parallels business account.
2

In the Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition product card, click Registeredcomputers.

43

Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features
3

Click the More item in the main menu (top right) and choose Configuration Profiles asshown on the screenshot below.

4

The page listing configuration profiles opens. If you haven't created any profiles yet, the list
will be empty.

5

6
44

Click the Create Profile button. A dialog opens where you can configure the profile.

To replace the default profile name (top left), simply erase the default name (NewConfiguration Profile) and type a new one.

Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features
7

8

The payloads are listed in the left pane. To configure a payload, select it and then specify
the necessary settings in the right pane. Each payload has the "Enable..." option at the topof the right pane. This option enables or disables a payload, but doesn't change or discard
the payload settings. When a payload is enabled, it is included in the configuration profile
when the profile is applied to Mac computers. When a payload is disabled, it is not included,
so Mac computers don't receive it.
When done, click Save to save the configuration profile.

At this point we will not configure any of the payloads yet and will go straight to applying theconfiguration profile to a license or sublicense keys (it is allowed to create a profile with all payloads
disabled). Once you learn how to create and apply a configuration profile, we'll talk about how to
configure and use each individual payload.

Applying a configuration profile to a license key
Configuration profiles are applied to registered Mac computers based on a license or sublicense
key that they are using to run Parallels Desktop. By applying a configuration profile to a license or
sublicense key, you are essentially applying it to Mac computers that use (or will use in the future)that key.
Note: You can apply a configuration profile to one or more license or sublicense keys. However, a single
license key can have just one configuration profile applied to it.

To apply a configuration profile to a license or sublicense key:
1

In Parallels My Account, click Dashboard in the top menu and then click Active subscriptions
inside the Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition product card.
2
3

Click a subscription to open a page containing the subscription information.
In the License Keys list, choose a license or sublicense key and click the "gear" icon at
the end of the row. This opens a dialog containing the license key information and settings.
In the dialog, select the Configuration Profile tab.

45

Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features
4

Initially, the tab page will say that "Configuration profile is not set" and the drop-downmenu next to it will contain the "Default" profile. This is because you haven't applied acustom configuration profile to this license key yet.

Info: "Default" is a built-in profile that Parallels Desktop is using internally. It doesn't contain any
payloads that you can configure when you create a custom profile. If you don't have any custom profiles
assigned to a license key, the "Default" profile is used.

5

Expand the drop-down menu and select the configuration profile that you created earlier.

6

Click Save.

Note: If you apply a configuration profile to a primary license key (not a sublicense), all derived
sublicenses are automatically associated with the same configuration profile. However, if later a different
configuration profile is applied to the primary license key, the profile association on sublicenses will not beaffected (i.e. the profile assigned to them originally will remain). You can apply a different configuration
profile to a sublicense key at any time if needed.

Once a configuration profile is applied to a license key, the following will happen on Mac computersthat use this key:
• The next time Parallels Desktop communicates with Parallels cloud, it will receive theconfiguration profile and will save the data that it contains locally.
• When an action is performed (by the user or by a scheduled event) that has to do with one of
the configuration profile payloads, the data is read from the local storage and is usedaccordingly depending on the payload and its settings. This is described in more detail in topics
that describe individual payloads.
This concludes the description of how to create a configuration profile and how to apply it to alicense or sublicense key. The subsequent sections describe how to configure individual payloads
and how to use the corresponding functionality when managing Parallels Desktop installations inyour organization.

Provisioning a corporate VM image
Beginning with Parallels Desktop 16 for Mac Business Edition, IT administrators have an option toprovision a corporate Parallels Desktop virtual machine image from a link that they specify inParallels My Account.
Note: Due to differences in supported operating systems on Mac computers with the Apple M-series
chip and Mac computers with an Intel processor, different VM images must be used depending on theprocessor type. For the information about supported guest operating systems, please visit
https://www.parallels.com/requirements/.

Here's a quick overview of how this functionality works:
1

46

An administrator first creates a Parallels virtual machine image with the operating systeminstalled. The virtual machine will serve as a corporate VM image to be deployed on users'
computers to run Windows applications used in the organization.

Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features2

The virtual machine is then saved as an archive (ZIP or PVMP, we'll talk about archive
formats later) and is placed on a server from which Parallels Desktop users can download itto their computers via HTTP or HTTPS.

3

The administrator creates a configuration profile (p. 43) in Parallels My Account andspecifies the download URL of the virtual machine image (together with other required
parameters).

4

When a Parallels Desktop user initiates the process of creating a new virtual machine,
Parallels Desktop checks if a configuration profile with the VM image link exists and isapplicable to the Parallels Desktop license key used by this Mac computer. If the profile
exists, a dialog is shown to the user inviting them to download and install the corporate
virtual machine image. If the user accepts, the virtual machine is downloaded to the user's
computer and is registered in Parallels Desktop.

The subsequent sections describe how to perform the steps above.

Create a VM image
To create a VM image:1

First, create a Parallels virtual machine, install the operating system in it, and configure thevirtual machine according to your requirements. Note that if you have Apple M-series and Intel
based Macs in your organization, you need to create a separate virtual machine for eachprocessor type. For the list of supported operating systems, please visit
https://www.parallels.com/requirements/.
Note: Boot Camp-based virtual machines, archived virtual machines, and linked clones cannot be used
for deployment.

2

Make sure the virtual machine is shut down.

3

If your virtual machine has snapshots, it is recommended that you remove them. This will
significantly reduce the virtual machine size. Moreover, these snapshots may be unusable
on another computer because of hardware differences.

4

When the virtual machine is ready, it needs to be saved as an archive before you make itavailable for download to your users. Choose from the following options:• ZIP — simply archive the virtual machine bundle (.pvm) as a .zip file. In general, you can use
any archiving format that can be extracted using the tar -xf command. For example, zip,tar.gz, tar.bz2.
Please note that you will also need to calculate an SHA-256 checksum for the ZIP file. You
can use the shasum command or another third-party tool. For instructions on how to use
the shasum command, please see Calculating SHA-256 checksum below.
• PVMP — this is a Parallels own archiving format that was first introduced in Parallels
Desktop 16. It is primarily used to transfer virtual machines from one computer to anotherand is optimized for archiving Parallels virtual machine bundles. For instructions on how tocreate a PVMP archive, please see below.
47

Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features

Creating a PVMP archive
To create a PVMP archive of a virtual machine, do the following:
1

Open the Parallels Desktop Control Center.
2

Right-click the virtual machine that you want to transfer and select Prepare for Transfer.
Parallels Desktop starts packing the virtual machine. This process may take some timedepending on the virtual machine size.

3

Once the package is created, you can right-click it and choose to show where it is stored
in the Finder. The package has the .pvmp extension.

4

An SHA-256 checksum for the virtual machine package is calculated automatically andsaved as VmName.sha256.txt file in the same folder. You will need it when creating a
configuration profile for the VM image provisioning later. You can also calculate thechecksum by executing the shasum command. For more info, please see Calculating
SHA-256 checksum below.

Calculating SHA-256 checksum
When creating a configuration profile for VM image provisioning (described later in this chapter), youwill need to specify an SHA-256 checksum for the VM image archive. As was mentioned in theprevious subsection, the checksum is calculated automatically for the PVMP archive. If you arearchiving a virtual machine bundle using a different archiving format (or if you need to calculate thechecksum again for the PVMP format) you can execute the following command from the commandline:
shasum -a 256 <path>/"<archive_name>"
For example:
shasum -a 256 /Users/<your_user>/Parallels/"Windows.zip"
The output will look similar to the following:
63a90c3c38cc8c358221da339068fc1292b10bf7c00ed8449787b0e6019d706b/Users/parallels/Parallels/Windows.zip

Upload the image
Once you have a virtual machine saved as a ZIP or PVMP archive, upload it to the server fromwhich Parallels Desktop users can download it to their Mac computers via HTTP or HTTPS. Notethat the server might serve a number of simultaneous downloads, which can negatively affect the
speed of a download (depending on the number of end users). For this reason, CDN isrecommended for very large deployments.

48

Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features

Create a configuration profile
To create a configuration profile for VM image provisioning:
1

Begin creating a new configuration profile as described in the Create a Configuration Profile
section (p. 43).
2

When you have the new configuration profile dialog open, select VM for Intel Mac or VM
for M-series Mac payload, depending on the image type that you want to provision.

3

In the right pane, select the Enable VM image provisioning option and specify thefollowing properties:• Name: Type a name for the VM image as you want it be called in this profile. This is thename your users will see in Parallels Desktop when they receive an invitation to download it.
This field is mandatory.
• Description: An optional description. End user will see this description in Parallels Desktop.
For example, if a VPN connection is required to download the image, you may include thisinformation here.
• Download URL: The VM Image download URL. Mac users must be able to download theimage via HTTP or HTTPS using this URL. This field is mandatory. For additional info, please
see Create a VM Image (p. 47).

49

Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features• Checksum (SHA-256): The VM image checksum. This field is mandatory. If you used the
PVMP format to archive the virtual machine, then the checksum was calculated
automatically and saved as VmName.sha256.txt file. If you archived the virtual machineusing the ZIP or other supported format, you'll need to calculate the checksum. For the info
about the PVMP format and how to calculate the checksum, please see Create a VM
Image (p. 47).
4

Click Save to save the configuration profile.

The configuration profile now needs to be applied to a license or sublicense key. If you haven't
done so already, use the instructions in Applying a configuration profile to a license key (p. 45)
and apply the profile.

Installing VM image on a Mac computer
The corporate VM image policy is checked every time a new VM creation process is started by theuser in Parallels Desktop on a Mac computer. If the corporate VM image policy is set (aconfiguration profile with the VM for Intel Mac or VM for M-series Mac payload exists and has
been applied to the license key used by this Parallels Desktop installation), the Parallels Desktop
Control Center displays a message inviting the user to download the corporate VM image. If theuser accepts the invitation, the VM image download begins and the progress indicator is displayed(note that because of the large size of a VM, the download may take some time). If the user
declines, he/she is taken to the Installation Assistant where they can create a virtual machine fromscratch.
After the VM image download completes, the image is unpacked and the virtual machine isregistered in Parallels Desktop.

Enabling major version upgrades
Prior to Parallels Desktop 16, users were not automatically upgraded to the next major Parallels
Desktop version. Starting with version 16, this option became available.
In the past, to upgrade Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition to a newer version, an IT
administrator would need to set up a local update server or use a remote management tool, or
install the new version manually on a Mac computer. With this new option, administrators have theability to automate major version upgrades if the organization policy allows it.
Here's a quick overview of how this feature works:
1

You create a configuration profile in Parallels My Account and configure the Product Updates
payload where you enable or disable the "Allow upgrade..." option.
2

50

You then apply the configuration profile to a license or sublicense key.

Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features
3

Parallels Desktop periodically checks if a new major version is available. If it is, depending
on how updates are configured in Parallels Desktop, the user will see a notification (with an
option to upgrade or postpone) or the upgrade will be performed silently. When the upgrade
is initiated, the new major version of Parallels Desktop is downloaded to the Mac computerand is installed on it. After that, Parallels Desktop restarts completing the upgrade.

Note: If a local update server is configured in your organization, the functionality described here will haveno effect, even if you create a configuration profile and apply it to a license key used by Mac computers.
For more info about local updates, see Setting up a local update server (p. 64).

The subsequent topics describe in detail how to configure and use the major version upgrade
functionality.

Create a configuration profile
To create a configuration profile for enabling major version upgrades, do the following:
1

Begin creating a new configuration profile as described in the Create a configuration profile
section (p. 43).
2

When you have the new configuration profile dialog open, select the Product Updates
payload in the left pane.

3

In the right pane, select the Enable managing product updates option. This will enable
the payload, so when the configuration profile is sent to Mac computers, they will receive it.

4

To enable major version upgrades, select the Allow upgrade to the major Parallels
Desktop version option.
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Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features
5

Click Save to save the configuration profile.

The configuration profile now needs to be applied to a license or sublicense key. If you haven't
done so already, use the instructions in Applying a configuration profile to a license key (p. 45)
and apply the profile.

Participating in the Customer Experience
Program
The Parallels Customer Experience Program is a feedback solution that allows Parallels Desktop to
automatically collect usage statistics and system information that will help Parallels to develop newfeatures and updates for future releases.
Note: Starting from Parallels Desktop 18, CEP Participation option in the deployment package and in
Parallels Desktop user interface is ignored. The setting for all users is managed by the licenseadministrator in Parallels My Account portal (https://my.myparallels.com/dashboard).

52

Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features

Locking a Virtual Machine on Suspend
To avoid possible security and privacy issues, a suspended Windows virtual machine can becompletely locked from user interaction and viewing. When this option is enabled and a virtual
machine is suspended, the Windows desktop in the virtual machine window (and in the Parallels
Desktop Control Center) is replaced with a black background and the Windows session isinterrupted. When the virtual machine is resumed, the Windows session is remained locked and theuser will have to enter their credentials or authenticate (depending on how Windows is set up) to
unlock it and see the Windows desktop.
To enable or disable this option:
1

Open Parallels Desktop and select the desired virtual machine (e.g. the source virtual machine
when preparing it for mass deployment).
2

On the Parallels Desktop menu bar, select Actions > Configure to open the virtual
machine configuration dialog.

3

Click the Security tab.

4

Depending on your needs select or clear the Always lock Windows on suspend option.

5

Close the dialog.

Note: The Always lock Windows on suspend option is available only for virtual machine running
Windows with Parallels Tools installed. For all other virtual machines, the option will be hidden.

Activation Using a Corporate AccountStarting from Parallels Desktop 18, 'Activation using corporate account' (sometimes referred as
SSO-activation) option became available.
This option works best for Medium and Enterprise size organizations that have an identity provider(e.g., Azure AD) and rely on it to automate applications license management routines. With SCIM
integration (optional) licenses from contractors and people who left the company and removed fromthe identity provider directory will be automatically revoked. There is also an option to automatically
revoke licenses from people who are not using the product for a long time.
The license key is also not used in this scenario, so there are less chances for it to be misused.
There are three major steps to enable this option:
1

This option works only if you purchased a special license type. Please check your license
certificate for details and contact your sales representative if you have questions. Note that theminimum purchase for this license type is 50 licenses and it is not available as an online
purchase from parallels.com.
53

Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features
2

IT team has to setup integration between your identity provider (Azure AD, Okta, Ping
Identity, or others) and Parallels My Account by using the "Configure SSO-based activation"
guide that is available at https://www.parallels.com/products/business/resources/. If there is
no guide for your identity provider, it is recommended to follow the one for Azure AD.

3

To provide your employees with the best user experience use the deployment capabilities
described in this guide or simply share this link with users:
https://parallels.com/directdownload/pd?experience=sso.

Restricting a Virtual Machine Configuration with a
Custom Password
Parallels Desktop Business Edition provides you with the ability to protect the configuration of avirtual machine with a custom password. When a password is set, even a local Mac administrator
will be required to enter it in order to modify virtual machine settings.

Using the Parallels Desktop graphical user interface to set the password
To set a password in the Parallels Desktop graphical user interface:
1

Open Parallels Desktop and select a virtual machine.
2

On the Parallels Desktop menu bar, select Actions > Configure to open the virtual machine
configuration dialog.

3

Select Security.

4

Click the Custom password: Turn On... button.

5Enter a password, then enter it again to verify and click OK.

To change or remove the password:• To change the password, click the Change Password button and follow the instructions on thescreen.
• To remove the password, click Custom password: Turn Off and follow the instructions on thescreen.
If the password is set and the user tries to view or modify the virtual machine configuration, they will
be required to enter this custom password.

Using the command line utility to set the password
In addition to the graphical user interface, you can use the prlctl command-line utility to set acustom password for editing the virtual machine configuration.

54

Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features

Note: The command option described below is available since Parallels Desktop 15. Older versions ofParallels Desktop used the --password-to-edit option, which is no longer supported.

To set the password, type the following command in Terminal:
prlctl set "vm_name" --custom-pwd

where vm_name is the virtual machine name in quotes. You'll be asked to enter a password andthen confirm it.
To change or remove the password, type the same command as above:
prlctl set "vm_name" --custom-pwd

You'll be asked to enter the current password and then a new password.
To view the current protection status for a virtual machine, type the following command:
prlctl list "vm_name" -i

In the output, search for the Security section and look at the Custom password protection
property. It will be either set to "on" or "off".

Using the mass deployment process to set the password
If you are mass deploying Parallels Desktop and one or more virtual machines, you can simply set
the custom password in the source virtual machine. When a virtual machine is deployed on Mac
computers, the password will be retained.
Note: Prior to Parallels Desktop 15, the custom password needed to be set in the deploy.cfg file (a partof the Parallels Desktop autodeploy package) using the password-to-edit parameter. The parameter
is no longer supported.

Restricting User Actions in Parallels Desktop witha Custom Password
As an administrator of Parallels Desktop Business Edition, you have the ability to restrict thefollowing user actions in Parallels Desktop:• Creating a new virtual machine.
• Adding an existing virtual machine.
• Removing a virtual machine.
• Cloning a virtual machine or converting it to a template.
• Opening the Parallels Desktop Preferences dialog.

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Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features

You can set a custom password (i.e. it can be different from the local Mac administrator password)and specify which user actions from the list above should require it. Once you apply these settings,
even the local Mac administrator will not be able to perform these actions without specifying the
password that you set.
To set the password and specify the actions:1

In the Parallels Desktop menu bar, click Parallels Desktop > Preferences.
2

Click the Security tab.

3

Click the Custom password: Turn On... button.

4

In the dialog that opens, type a password. This becomes the custom password that will
be required to perform actions that you will select in the next step. Click OK.

Note: If later you need to change this password, click the Change Password button and follow the
instructions on the screen.

5

Back in the Security dialog, select the user action(s) you want to restrict.

6

Close the dialog to apply the settings.

If a Mac user now tries to perform any of the actions that were password-protected (e.g. creating avirtual machine, etc.), they will be required to enter this custom password. To select or deselect anaction in the Parallels Desktop Preferences dialog will also require the password.
The steps described above allow you to set the password and restrict user actions in Parallels
Desktop on a particular Mac. If you want to apply these settings on multiple Mac computers in yourorganization, you can do it using the mass deployment process. For more information, please see
Mass Deployment of Parallels Desktop and Virtual Machines (p. 8). Specifically, these options
are set in the Security section of the deploy.cfg file, as described in Configure Deployment
Configuration Options (p. 18).

Setting an Asset Tag in the Virtual Machine BIOS
Asset tags help identify, control, and track computer assets in an organization. Parallels Desktop
for Mac Business Edition provides the ability to set an asset tag in the virtual machine BIOS, which
can then be read using the standard tools of the guest operating system. You can set an asset tag
using the Parallels Desktop graphical user interface or the prlctl command line utility that comeswith Parallels Desktop.
To set an asset tag using the Parallels Desktop GUI:
1

56

On the Parallels Desktop menu bar, select Actions > Configure to open the virtual machine
configuration dialog.
2

Select Business.

3

Use the Asset tag field to specify the desired tag.

Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features

To set an asset tag using the prlctl command line utility, use the following syntax:
prlctl set ID|name --asset-id tag

where ID|name is the virtual machine ID or name, and tag is the asset tag to set.
To obtain the asset tag in Windows, use the WMIC.exe command:
WMIC SystemEnclosure get SMBIOSAssetTag

For the complete syntax of the WMIC utility please see the Microsoft documentation.
Once set, the asset tag never changes. Even if you perform such virtual machine operations ascloning, template manipulation, registering, or any other, the asset tag always stays the same. If
you do want to change an existing asset tag for any reason, you can do it manually using of themethods described above.

Using Custom Graphics and Links in the Control
CenterParallels Desktop Control Center is a part of the Parallels Desktop graphical user interface. It's awindow from which a Mac user launches virtual machines. By default, the Control Center displays
the list of the available virtual machines, as in the following example:

You can customize the Control Center by specifying a URL to your own HTML document, which
will be embedded at the top of the Control Center window. The HTML page can contain text,
graphics, and links such as your company logo, custom text, a link to a support page, etc. The
HTML document format doesn't have any specific requirements.
The URL must be specified during the preparation stage of the Mass Deployment process (p. 8).
Specifically, you need to specify the URL and the HTML page size using the following variables in
the mass deployment configuration file (deploy.cfg):• control_center_banner_url
57

Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features• control_center_banner_height• control_center_banner_min_width
For the description of how to specify the values, please see Configure Deployment Configuration
Options (p. 18). The variables are described in the Virtual Machines section.
The following is an example of Parallels Desktop Control Center displaying a custom banner at thetop.

You can download a sample HTML document defining the banner using the following URL:
https://download.parallels.com/desktop/tools/header13.zip

Hiding Developer Tools in the Parallels Desktop
GUI
Parallels Desktop Business and Pro editions include developer tools which are aimed at softwaredevelopers using Parallels Desktop as their development platform. The tools are accessed byclicking the Develop menu on the virtual machine menu bar and then choosing one of the available
options (e.g. Start SSH Session, Start Debugging Session, and others). If users in yourorganization are not using these tools, you can hide the Develop menu altogether. The reason you
would want to do this, some of these features (if used accidentally) may start a debugging session
or engage some other development-specific task that may temporarily disrupt a normal Parallels
Desktop operation.
This option is a part of a virtual machine configuration and can be set using the Parallels graphicaluser interface as follows:58

Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features
1

Open the virtual machine configuration dialog (click the gear icon or choose Actions >Configure).
2

In the dialog, click Options (at the top) and then click More Options in the left pane.

3

In the right pane, select or clear the Show developer tools option. This will show or hide
the Develop menu on the virtual machine menu bar (you don't have to restart a virtual
machine if it's running).

To modify this setting from the command line, execute the following command in Terminal:
prlctl set ID|Name --show-dev-tools on|off

where ID/Name is the GUID or name of a target virtual machine.
When mass deploying Parallels Desktop on Mac computers in your organization, you can configure
the autodeploy package to apply this settings to all included virtual machines automatically. For
details, see Configure deployment options (p. 18).

Encrypting a Virtual Machine from the CommandLine
A Parallels virtual machine can be encrypted from the Parallels Desktop graphical user interface.
This is done from the Security tab of the virtual machine configuration dialog.
You can also use the prlctl command line utility (included with Parallels Desktop) to perform afull set of encryption operations on a virtual machine.
The following command line options are available:• Encrypt a virtual machine
prlctl encrypt <ID | NAME>• Decrypt a virtual machine
prlctl decrypt <ID | NAME>• Change the encryption password
prlctl change-passwd <ID | NAME>
The <ID | NAME> parameter can be either the virtual machine ID or the virtual machine name.
When encrypting a virtual machine, you'll be asked to enter a password phrase, which will be used
to encrypt the machine. When decrypting a virtual machine, you will be asked to enter the current
password. When changing the password, you'll be asked to enter the old password and then the
new password.

59

Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features

The encryption password will also be required to perform any other command line operation on an
encrypted virtual machine, including starting, stopping, restarting, pausing, suspending, cloning,
deleting a virtual machine, etc. For example, to start an encrypted virtual machine, you'll use thefollowing command:$ prlctl start my_virtual_machine

After executing the command above, you'll be asked to enter the password:
Virtual machine "my_virtual_machine" is encrypted - password required to continue
operation
Please enter password:

After typing in the correct password, you'll see the following output:
Starting the VM...
The VM has been successfully started.

If you need to execute a command remotely without having to enter the password on every Mac,
you can send the password via standard input (stdin) as shown in the following example:$ echo mypass | prlctl start my_virtual_machine
Virtual machine 'my_virtual_machine' is encrypted - password required to continue
operation
Please enter password:
Starting the VM...
The VM has been successfully started.

If you need to provide two passwords (as with the change-passwd command that changes the
password), you can save the passwords to a text file and then use the following syntax:$ cat /tmp/pass | prlctl change-passwd my_virtual_machine
Virtual machine 'my_virtual_machine' is encrypted - password required to continue
operation
Please enter password:
Please enter new password:
The password has been successfully changed.

The /tmp/pass file in the example above should contain the old password on the first line and thenew password on the second line:$ cat /tmp/pass
mypassnewpass

Single Application Mode
Single Application Mode is a special Parallels Desktop deployment option that allows you tocompletely hide Parallels Desktop and Windows on a Mac and make a Windows application
appear like it's a native macOS app. This mode is designed for system administrators who want
Mac users in their organization to run one or more Windows applications without being aware of
Parallels Desktop or Windows running in a virtual machine.
To make Parallels Desktop run in Single Application Mode, you need to deploy it on Mac
computers via the autodeploy package. This includes preparing the autodeploy package in a
special way and then either deploying it on Mac computers using Mac management tools or
running it manually on a Mac.
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Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features

For more information about how to use the autodeploy package and how to deploy Parallels
Desktop in Single Application Mode, please see the following sections of this guide:• Mass deployment using Mac management tools (p. 8)• Single application mode (p. 26)

Setting an Expiration Date for a Virtual Machine
You can set an expiration date for a virtual machine. This can be a useful option if you are preparing
a virtual machine for a contractor (or a third party user) and want to make sure that it works only forthe duration of the contract.
To set an expiration date for a virtual machine:
1

Open Parallels Desktop and select the desired virtual machine.
2
3

On the Parallels Desktop menu bar, select Actions > Configure to open the virtual
machine configuration dialog.
Select the Security tab.

4

An expiration date can only be set on an encrypted virtual machine. If your machine is not
yet encrypted, click Encryption: Turn On, specify an encryption password, and click OK.
Make sure to record the password or you will not be able to start the virtual machine. Wait
until the encryption process finishes.

5

To set an expiration date for the virtual machine, click Expiration Date: Set Date, specify
a password and click OK. Make sure to record the password to be able to change theexpiration settings later. You should keep this password secret to prevent the prospective
user of the virtual machine from changing the expiration date.

6

On the next screen, specify the following options:• Do not allow this VM start after: specifies the virtual machine expiration date.
• Contact info: specifies the system administrator email, phone number, or other contact
information. This information will be included in the message that will be displayed to theuser when the virtual machine is about to expire. You can include each piece of information
on a separate line.
• Time Server: specifies the time server URL. The virtual machine expiration time will bechecked against this server. The default time server is https://parallels.com.
• Date Check Frequency: specifies how often the date and time should be verified against
the time server. You can specify it in minutes, hours, or days.
• If unable to check date, use VM for: specifies for how long the virtual machine should be
kept working if the time server cannot be reached. For the duration of this period, the virtual
machine will continue to check the date. If it succeeds before this period is over, the counteris reset and the virtual machine will continue to work normally.
7

Click OK when done entering the expiration info.
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Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features8

To modify the current expiration date or password, click Expiration Date: Change Dateor Expiration Date: Change Password and enter the new values.

Note: When giving the virtual machine to a contractor, make sure to provide them the encryption
password, which is needed to start the virtual machine. Please note that this is NOT the expiration datepassword you've set in step 5 above. This is the password you set when you encrypted the virtual
machine.

When the expiration date approaches, the virtual machine user will be notified as follows: amessage will begin to be displayed seven days before the expiration date. The message will beshown to the user every 24 hours and additionally on every virtual machine startup. Once the dateis reached, the virtual machine will be locked, so the user will not be able to start or resume it
anymore.

Enforcing USB Device Policies
When configuring USB device settings for a virtual machine, you can enforce what types of USB
devices are allowed to be connected. For example, if storage devices (in general) are not allowed,
the Mac user will not be able to connect an external hard disk or thumb drive to the virtual machine.
This functionality is available in Parallels Desktop Business edition only and is absent in othereditions.
To enforce USB device policies, open the virtual machine configuration window and selectHardware > USB & Bluetooth.

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Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features

In the Allow external devices list:• Clear the types of devices that you don't want Mac users to connect to the virtual machine.
• Select the types of devices that should be allowed.

Resetting the Guest OS Password
If a virtual machine user forgets the password of their guest OS account (e.g. a Windows user
password), it can be reset outside the virtual machine using the command line interface.
To use this functionality the following conditions must be met:
• Parallels Tools must be installed in the guest OS.
• The virtual machine must be running. If it's stopped, start it and wait until you see the guest OS
login prompt.
• Depending on your requirements, the following option can be selected or cleared in the virtual
machine configuration dialog: Security > Require Password to: [ ] Change guest OS
password via CLI. If this option is selected, you will be asked to provide the macOS
administrator password to change the guest OS password from the command line. If the option
is cleared, the administrator password will not be required. By default, the option is cleared.
To reset the password, open Terminal and enter the following command:
prlctl set vm_name --userpasswd username:new_password

where:• vm_name is the virtual machine name. To obtain the list of virtual machines installed on thisMac, type prlctl list.
• username is the guest OS user name.
• new_password is the new password.
Example:prlctl set My_Win8_VM --userpasswd JohnDoe:A12345

If the Require Password to: Change guest OS password via CLI option is selected in the virtual
machine configuration dialog (see above), the command will display the following text and prompt:
Only host administrator can change user password in the guest OS.
Confirm your administrator credentials.
Username:Enter the name of the macOS user with administrative privileges and press the Enter key. Type theuser password and press Enter again.
Once the new password is set, you can use it to log in to the guest OS.

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Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features

Setting Up a Local Update ServerWith Parallels Desktop Business Edition you can set up a local update server on your network fromwhich Mac users can get Parallels Desktop updates. Updates are released periodically to improve
the performance and reliability of Parallels Desktop. To reduce Internet traffic when downloading
updates, you can set up a local update server, download the available updates to it, and then set
up individual Macs on your network to take the updates from it instead of the Internet. Read on tolearn about setting a local update server.

Installing a web server
To set up a Parallels Desktop update server, you'll need a local Web server. Install a Web server on
a computer connected to your network (or use an existing one).

Creating the Parallels update XML file
Create a file named parallels_updates.xml on the Web server where it can be accessed via
HTTP. The file is an XML document that should contain specifications for a particular Parallels
Desktop update available on your local updated server.
To create your own document, use the following sample XML document and the XML document
specification that follows it as a reference.

Sample parallels_updates.xml file<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><ParallelsUpdates schemaVersion="1.0"><Product><ProductName>Parallels Desktop</ProductName><UpdateEnabled>1</UpdateEnabled><Version><Major>12</Major><Minor>0</Minor><SubMinor>12494</SubMinor><SubSubMinor>262214</SubSubMinor><StringRepresentation>Sumer</StringRepresentation><Update uuid="desktop.13.0.13291.237436.en_US.parallels.mac"><UpdateType>0</UpdateType><UpdateName>Build 13291 is available!</UpdateName><UpdateDescription>Update description goes here</UpdateDescription><FilePath>URL to the update file goes here</FilePath><FileSize>219515</FileSize><Status>0</Status><DateTime>2017-06-17 01:23:00</DateTime><Chargeable>0</Chargeable><LocaleName>en_US</LocaleName><DistributorName>parallels</DistributorName><OsType>mac</OsType><Ancestry><Ancestor>desktop.13.0.12927.482436.en_US.parallels.mac</Ancestor>

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Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features<Ancestor>desktop.13.0.12473.274921.en_US.parallels.mac</Ancestor><Ancestor>desktop.13.0.12262.823647.en_US.parallels.mac</Ancestor></Ancestry></Update></Version></Product></ParallelsUpdates>

XML document specification
Name

Type

Description
Root element.

ParallelsUpdates

Container for Parallels Desktop information.

Product
ProductName

stringUse "Parallels Desktop".

UpdateEnabledint

Specifies whether the automatic updates are enabled. To
enable updates, specify 1.
Container for Parallels Desktop version information.

VersionMajor

int

Major version number (e.g. 13)

Minor

int

Minor version number. Specify 0.

SubMinor

Build number. This element may be empty.

SubSubMinor

Revision number. This element may be empty.

StringRepresentation

Product codename. This element may be empty.
Container for the information about the Parallels Desktop
update.
Attributes:
uuid — String. A globally unique ID identifying the
product.
The uuid attribute is very important and must contain thecorrect information for the update to work. The attributevalue consists of the following parameters (substrings)
separated by periods (see the provided XML example):
desktop — specify "desktop"

Updatemajor — major version number (e.g. 13)
minor — minor version number (0)build — build number
revision — revision number
locale — locale ("en_US", "de_DE", etc)
vendor — vendor ("parallels")
platform — platform ("mac")
UpdateType

int

Update type. Specify 0.

UpdateNamestring

The user-defined update name.

UpdateDescription

string

The update description.

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Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features

FilePath

stringA URL to the update file on your local update server. The
actual update files can be obtained from Parallels.

FileSizeint

The update file size, in megabytes.

Statusint

Specify 0.

DateTime

stringDate and time when the updated was published. Use thefollowing format:
yyyy-mm-dd hh:mm:ss

Chargeable

int

Specify 0.

LocaleNamestring

Locale name ("en_US", "it_IT", etc).

DistributorName

The update distributor name. Specify "parallels".

OsTypeOperating system type. Specify "mac".

Ancestry

Container for the list of updates that directly preceded thisupdate.
An individual Parallels Desktop update information.
This element may appear more than once in the same
document, one for each update.
The value is combined using the following parameters(substrings) separated by periods (see the provided XML
example):desktop — specify "desktop".

Ancestor

stringmajor — Parallels Desktop major version number.
minor — minor version number.
build — build number.
revision — revision number.
locale — locale (e.g. "en_US")
vendor — vendor ("parallels").
platform -— platform ("mac").

Configuring individual Macs
The next step is to configure individual Macs to take their updates from the local update server.
This can be done automatically during the mass deployment of Parallels Desktop by modifying theappropriate deployment configuration option. Please see Configure Deployment Configuration
Options (p. 18) for the complete info (see the description of the Software Updates section of theconfiguration file).
If you have an existing Parallels Desktop installation that was not configured for automatic updates
during deployment, then read on to learn how to do it manually.

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Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features

Note: The information provided here applies only to Parallels Desktop installations that were NOT
configured to use automatic updates during the mass deployment process.

To configure Parallels Desktop automatic updates, you need to modify the Parallels Desktop
property list file on a Mac as follows:1

Find the com.parallels.Parallels Desktop.plist file located in the
Library/Preferences subfolder in the user's home folder. This is the Parallels Desktop
property list file that contains the user-specific information.
2
3Open the file using the Property List Editor application (included with Xcode).
Set the update policy by modifying the Applicationpreferences.VolumeLicenseUpdatePolicy property. If the property doesn't exist,
add it to the file specifying its data type as String. Set the property value using one of thefollowing options (see also the Notes subsection below):• "Parallels" — when this value is set, the updates will be downloaded from the Parallels
update server via the Internet. The value is case-sensitive.
• Complete URL of the parallels_updates.xml file residing on your local update server.
For example, "https://10.0.0.1/pdfm/v8/en_us/parallels/parallels_updates.xml". When the
URL is specified, the updates will be obtained from the local update server.
• "None" — automatic updates are disabled. The value is case-sensitive.
4

Specify how often Parallels Desktop should check for updates. This is done by modifying
the Application preferences.Check for updates property. If the property
doesn't exist, add it to the file specifying its data type as Number. Specify the property value
using one of the following options:• 0 — Never• 1 — Once a day• 2 — Once a week
• 3 — Once a month5

Set the automatic download option. Find the Application preferences.Download
updates automatically property. If it doesn't exist, add it to the file specifying its data
type as Boolean. Set the property value using one of the following options:• True — Download updates automatically. Specify this value when using a local update
server.
• False — Notify the user about the updates but don't download them automatically. This
option is useful only when updates are downloaded from the Parallels update server and theuser has full control over the update functionality.
6

Save the file and close the Property List Editor application.

Note: If Parallels Desktop is running while you are modifying the plist file, it will have to be restarted forthe changes to take effect.

67Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features

Notes
On initial Parallels Desktop activation using a Business Edition key, the Parallels Desktop update
properties will be absent from the com.parallels.Parallels Desktop.plist file. In such acase, a Mac user will be able to configure Parallels Desktop automatic updates using the Parallels
Desktop graphical user interface.
When the update-related properties are added to the com.parallels.Parallels
Desktop.plist file, the automatic updates will be performed according to the specified values.
In addition, the value of the Application preferences.VolumeLicenseUpdatePolicy
property will affect the Parallels Desktop update-related elements in the Parallels Desktop graphicaluser interface as follows:• If the property contains a URL of the local update server or "None", the Parallels Desktop
update-related controls will be disabled (grayed out) in the Parallels Desktop graphical userinterface. The displayed settings will have no effect on how the Parallels Desktop updates arecarried out. Therefore, the user will not be able to configure automatic updates or check for
updates manually.
• If the property doesn't exist, has no value, or contains "Parallels" as a value, the Parallels
Desktop update controls will be enabled in the user interface giving the user the ability toconfigure automatic updates and check for updates manually.

Configuring Parallels Desktop update branch
By default, Parallels Desktop Business Edition downloads updates from a special location on the
Parallels website dedicated to hosting Parallels Desktop Business Edition updates. Parallels
Desktop Standard and Pro editions download their updates from a different location. As an
administrator, you have an option to choose the location from which Parallels Desktop Business
Edition downloads updates. The reason why you would want to do this is explained below.
When Parallels Desktop updates are released by Parallels, they become immediately available for
Parallels Desktop Standard and Pro Editions. Updates for Parallels Desktop Business Edition are
released at a slightly later date (from a few days to 1-2 weeks from the initial release). The delay isnecessary for additional testing of business features of Parallels Desktop to ensure they meet thehighest quality standards. During this period, we even give an updated version of Parallels Desktop
to some of our business clients, who test and evaluate it in their real-world business environments.
We recommend that you use the default configuration and download Parallels Desktop Business
Edition updates when they are finalized and available for download. However, if for any reason you
don't want to wait, you can configure Parallels Desktop Business Edition to download updates fromthe Parallels Desktop Pro location. The updates are the same regardless of where you download
them from. The only difference is, the updates downloaded from the Parallels Desktop Pro location
will not be fully tested in a business environment.

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Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features

When you mass-deploy Parallels Desktop, you can set the desired Software Update options in the
deployment configuration file. Mass Deployment of Parallels Desktop is described later in this guide.
For more information, please read the entire Mass Deployment chapter (p. 8) and specifically theConfigure Deployment Configuration Options section (p. 18). Look for the Software Updates
section in the parameter table.
If you need to modify Parallels Desktop software update options on a specific Mac without using
the Mass Deployment procedure, you can do this as described below.
To configure Parallels Desktop to download updates from the Parallels Desktop Pro location,
execute the following command on a Mac:defaults write com.parallels.Parallels\ Desktop.plist Application\
preferences.VolumeLicenseUpdatePolicy
https://update.parallels.com/desktop/v16/parallels/parallels_sbscr_updates.xml

The command above writes the specified URL (the parameter in the second part of the command)
into the Parallels Desktop plist file. Please note that the "v16" part of the URL indicates the current
Parallels Desktop version number. If you are using a later version, substitute this part with thecorrect number.
To switch back to the default Parallels Desktop Business download location, execute the following
command:defaults write com.parallels.Parallels\ Desktop.plist Application\
preferences.VolumeLicenseUpdatePolicy Parallels

Notes
Options described above only work in Parallels Desktop Business Edition. Other editions can only
download software updates from their default locations.
When you configure Parallels Desktop to download updates from a custom URL (i.e. the Parallels
Desktop Pro download location), the Check for Updates option in the Parallels Desktop GUI
becomes disabled. This means that a Parallels Desktop Business Edition user will not be able tocheck for and install updates manually.

Customizing the Support Center option
When users run Parallels Desktop Business Edition, they can get support at any time by clicking
the Help > Support Center menu. By default, this will open one of the following:• If you are a large organization with your own Help Desk, the menu will open a message box
saying that the user should contact the system administrator for assistance.
• If you are a small organization without a Help Desk or if you are using a trial version of Parallels
Desktop, the menu will open the Parallels Desktop support web page.

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Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition Features

You can change the default behavior described above and make the Help > Support Center
menu open a custom URL, such as your corporate Help Desk page or any other web page thatyou desire.
The customization can be done during mass deployment of Parallels Desktop by modifying thecorresponding deployment configuration parameter. Please see Configure deployment
configuration options (p. 18) for the complete info (see the description of the Help and Support
section of the configuration file).
You can also make the customization manually on an individual Mac as follows:1

Log in to the Mac.
2

In the Finder, navigate to the /Users/<User_Name>/Library/Preferences
directory and locate the com.parallels.Parallels Desktop.plist file.

3

Open the file using the Property List Editor application, which is included with Xcode.

4

Find the SupportRequestUrl property in the file. If the property doesn't exist, add it to
the file specifying its data type as String.

5

To specify the action that should be performed by the Help > Support Center menu, set
the value of the SupportRequestUrl property:• To display the default text message, clear the property value.
• To open a URL, specify the full URL to the desired Web page or a resource.
Note: The SupportRequestUrl property value has no effect when Parallels Desktop is activated using
the Parallels Desktop Standard Edition license key.

70