Comments on: How do I install a disk image using Boot Camp?

Question: How do I install a disk image using Boot Camp?

EatenByAGrue — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 11:29:09 -0800

Can I convert/install a VMWare Fusion image onto a Boot Camp partition? Or alternatively, can I copy/install a drive image onto a Boot Camp partition?

I have a VMWare Fusion-based virtual machine with Windows XP installed in it. I would like to set up a Boot Camp partition and move the Windows environment over from my virtual machine. Can this be done? I found a solution for Parallels, but I'm not sure it's applicable to Fusion VMs.

Alternatively, can drive images be installed/copied onto a Boot Camp partition, and if so, how?

The reason I ask these questions is my workplace cannot set up my Mac with a virgin install of XP and then individually install the programs I need, but can only install a disk image. They were able to set it up using Fusion, but they don't know how to do it for Boot Camp. Thanks for any help.

By: chairface

chairface — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 13:27:03 -0800

It looks like it ought to. It basically has you boot into your VM, image the drive, then install/mirror that image onto the bootcamp partition. After that it's all repair & duct tape. In principal, it's fine. The imaging happens from within the running VM so it shouldn't matter what kind of VM you use.

Obviously, back everything up before you try it. In fact, I'd back up computers that just happen to be near by. It looks pretty involved.

By: kindall

kindall — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 14:49:06 -0800

Acronis True Image should do it, and they have a time-limited fully-functional trial. True Image does imaging, but it also does cloning, so you should be able to cut out a lot of those steps by cloning directly from your boot disk to your Boot Camp C: drive within Fusion.

By: EatenByAGrue

EatenByAGrue — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 14:44:39 -0800

Thanks.