Re: Windows 7 Activation - Clarification . . .

JK43232 · ‎04-02-2012

Hello All,

Relatively new to Fusion 4 and although I have ready many posts here regarding Windows 7 activation needs when using Fusion 4 (4.1), I wanted to see if I compiled the info correctly.

I have a Boot Camp Partition onto which I will install Windows 7 and activate.

My goal is to have the ability to run Windows 7 directly from the Boot Camp partition from within Lion via Fusion 4 for those times when I don't want to reboot into Windows natively.

If I understand what I have read in the forums and Knowledge Base:

When I launch Windows 7 directly from the Boot Camp Partition while running Fusion 4 for the first time, it will need to be re-activated because Windows sees the virtual hardware as different hardware.

BEFORE re-activating Windows I need to:

1) - Install the VMWare Tools on the Boot Camp partition (from within Fusion)

2) - Reboot Windows 7 (from within Fusion)

3) - THEN re-activate Windows 7 (from within Fusion)

From that point the VMWare Tools should keep track of the Windows 7 activation keys and I should be able to freely boot Windows 7 from the Boot Camp partition natively or from within Fusion without the need to re-activate each time I switch.

Furthermore, re-activating Windows 7 should not be a problem and can be done from within Fusion either by the Internet method or the automated phone method, which should give me a second activation key at no additional cost?????

Do I have all of this correct?

Thanks

John

WoodyZ · ‎04-02-2012

In theory, yes, however in practice not always. In other words the VMware Tools component that handles WPA has been known to fail at times and can cause issues however for the most part is does work as the KB describes. Of course YMMV although you need to be aware that for one reason or another it doesn't always work and it's not necessarily VMware's fault and you'll just have to do what's necessary to fix it if the issue arises.

MacsRule · ‎04-03-2012

JK43232 wrote:
Hello All,
Relatively new to Fusion 4 and although I have ready many posts here regarding Windows 7 activation needs when using Fusion 4 (4.1), I wanted to see if I compiled the info correctly.
I have a Boot Camp Partition onto which I will install Windows 7 and activate.
My goal is to have the ability to run Windows 7 directly from the Boot Camp partition from within Lion via Fusion 4 for those times when I don't want to reboot into Windows natively...

Not a direct answer to your question but since you're relatively new to Fusion 4, you might consider using Windows 7 as a VM exclusively rather than doing the Boot Camp dance. I believe it's possible to install Windows 7 without immediately activating it (you get 30 days to do so). If you created a VM that way, you could try it out to see if it suits your needs and if it doesn't, just delete the VM and proceed with the Boot Camp install. Using a VM offers the option of snapshots which allow you to correct all kinds of problems in minutes, and backups are just a matter of duplicating your VM file. Depending on the Mac you're using, the amount of available RAM and number of CPU's and cores, performance can be quite surprising. I know my Win 7 VM runs noticeably faster on a Mac Pro than my wife's Win 7 laptop, and even XPMode seems to fly as a nested VM.

WoodyZ · ‎04-03-2012

MacsRule wrote: Using a VM offers the option of snapshots

To clearify, this is only true for normal file based Virtual Machines that do not use Raw Disks and not the Boot Camp partition run as a Virtual Machine. Any Virtual Machine using a Raw Disk (like the Boot Camp partition run as a Virtual Machine) should not be suspended or use snapshots.

MacsRule · ‎04-03-2012

WoodyZ wrote:
MacsRule wrote: Using a VM offers the option of snapshots
To clearify, this is only true for normal file based Virtual Machines that do not use Raw Disks and not the Boot Camp partition run as a Virtual Machine. Any Virtual Machine using a Raw Disk (like the Boot Camp partition run as a Virtual Machine) should not be suspended or use snapshots.

Thanks for emphasising that; I didn't make that VM-only advantage clear enough.

JK43232 · ‎04-04-2012

Thanks for the confirmation. I am prepared for the possibility of activation problems. As long as I know what is supposed to happen in theory I can avoid asking too many questions for which answers already exist.

As for importing a Windows 7 Virtual machine; I will do that at times as well.

For the moment, I have piece or two of software that is rather processor/math intensive so I would like to see how it works first by running it from the Boot Camp partition via Fusion and see how it fairs.

Speaking of which . . .

Do I underdstand correctly, that once I have re-activated the Boot Camp partition while running from Fusion, that I can then import that as a virtual machine and should not need to re-activate yet again??? If so, that will be great for testing a new piece of software before commiting it to the Boot Camp partition . . .

John

WoodyZ · ‎04-05-2012

JK43232 wrote:

Speaking of which . . .
Do I underdstand correctly, that once I have re-activated the Boot Camp partition while running from Fusion, that I can then import that as a virtual machine and should not need to re-activate yet again??? If so, that will be great for testing a new piece of software before commiting it to the Boot Camp partition . . .

No using the Import Command and importing the Boot Camp partition to a Virtual Machine is not the same as running the Boot Camp partition as a Virtual Machine. Importing creates as separate instance of the physical installed OS on the Boot Camp partition to a modified* normal file base Virtual Machine and as such if you continue to use the source on the Boot Camp partition will require its own license and will also require reactivation and will in all likelihood fail WPA if it has also been reactivated while running the Boot Camp partition as a Virtual Machine.

Note: Each install or occurrence whether installed physically or virtually requires the appropriate number of licenses per the OS EULA requirements. So an imported occurrence as a Virtual Machine is a second occurrence of the physical source it you continue to use the physical source and thus two separate licenses for Windows are required. Even duplicating an originally installed Virtual Machine of Windows technically requires additional licenses if you use multiple occurrences derived from a singular source however if you're just duplicating the Virtual Machine for a backup/restore scenario then additional licenses are not necessary.

JK43232 · ‎04-05-2012

No using the Import Command and importing the Boot Camp partition to a Virtual Machine is not the same as running the Boot Camp partition as a Virtual Machine. Importing creates as separate instance of the physical installed OS on the Boot Camp partition to a modified* normal file base Virtual Machine and as such if you continue to use the source on the Boot Camp partition will require its own license and will also require reactivation and will in all likelihood fail WPA if it has also been reactivated while running the Boot Camp partition as a Virtual Machine.
Note: Each install or occurrence whether installed physically or virtually requires the appropriate number of licenses per the OS EULA requirements. So an imported occurrence as a Virtual Machine is a second occurrence of the physical source it you continue to use the physical source and thus two separate licenses for Windows are required. Even duplicating an originally installed Virtual Machine of Windows technically requires additional licenses if you use multiple occurrences derived from a singular source however if you're just duplicating the Virtual Machine for a backup/restore scenario then additional licenses are not necessary.

I understand that importing the Boot Camp partition is not the same as running the Boot Camp partition as a Virtual Machine. I am asking about a Boot Camp partition that is first run as a virtual machine in Fusion, re-activated while running it from Fusion and THEN later imported into Fusion as a virtual machine.

I am refering to a statement in the Knowledge Base article "Activating Windows or an application needs to be performed repeatedly" that states:

"Note: Because a virtual macine consists of virtual hardware, this hardware is always different from the Macs' hardware. Even if the Windows or the application has been acrivated in Boot Camp, it will need to be activated again when the Boot Camp partition is used in Fusion. However, if that Boot Camp partition is later imported into Fusion as a virtual machine, activation will not be required."

I am refering specifically to the last line of the above quote . . . It seems to indicated that a Boot Camp partition that has been activated while running as a virtual machine in Fusion does not require re-activation if it is later imported into Fusion as a virtual machine ????

Perhaps I misunderstand the statement . . .

WoodyZ · ‎04-05-2012

JK43232 wrote:
I understand that importing the Boot Camp partition is not the same as running the Boot Camp partition as a Virtual Machine. I am asking about a Boot Camp partition that is first run as a virtual machine in Fusion, re-activated while running it from Fusion and THEN later imported into Fusion as a virtual machine.
I am refering to a statement in the Knowledge Base article "Activating Windows or an application needs to be performed repeatedly" that states:
"Note: Because a virtual macine consists of virtual hardware, this hardware is always different from the Macs' hardware. Even if the Windows or the application has been acrivated in Boot Camp, it will need to be activated again when the Boot Camp partition is used in Fusion. However, if that Boot Camp partition is later imported into Fusion as a virtual machine, activation will not be required."
I am refering specifically to the last line of the above quote . . . It seems to indicated that a Boot Camp partition that has been activated while running as a virtual machine in Fusion does not require re-activation if it is later imported into Fusion as a virtual machine ????
Perhaps I misunderstand the statement . . .

I believe that statement is not correct because there can be (and or will be) a change with a couple of things that can/will trigger WPA. Most notable will be the MAC Address of the Network Adapter and the Serial Number of the Virtual Hard Disk, both of which together weigh heavy on the scale that triggers WPA. These are not the only factors and regardless AFAIC Licensing Issues out weight WPA issues and was the intended focus of my previous reply.