Apple Silicon Macs Break Windows

Wes Miller analyzes and writes about Microsoft’s security, identity management, and systems management technologies. Before joining Directions on Microsoft, Wes... more

Mac models shipping with Apple’s own ARM-based processors, referred to as Apple silicon, became available in Nov. 2020. Apple silicon likely spells the end of running Windows locally on Macs, as all will eventually ship with the new processors. The inability to run Windows locally on Apple silicon could limit the immediate viability of these devices for developers, IT pros, and executives who need to continue to run applications designed for use on Windows for Intel processors and not available for macOS, particularly if those applications require drivers or other software that is not compatible with Windows on ARM.

The changes discussed here apply only to new Macs shipping with Apple silicon and running Apple’s the 2020 macOS release, 11.0 (“Big Sur”) or newer; Intel-based Macs are not affected by this change, regardless of OS version.

No Windows on Apple Silicon

Traditionally, there have been two primary means of installing and running the Windows OS locally on a Mac:

Running Windows

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