User`s guide

Configuring the Virtual Machine 172
General Settings include the following:
 The virtual machine name. The Name field displays the name assigned to the virtual
machine. The length of this name is limited to 50 characters. The name of the virtual
machine is displayed in its guest OS window (p. 36).
 The guest OS t
ype and version. This field displays the type of the operating system installed
in the virtual machine or declared to be installed in the future. The OS type and version field
should reflect the real operating system type and version installed in the virtual machine.
 The number of processors. The CPUs field allows you to change the number of virtual CPUs
that will be used to handle the processes running in the virtual machine. The maximum
allowable number of virtual CPUs is automatically calculated by Parallels Desktop. The
calculation is based on the number of physical CPUs available to your Mac OS X computer.
Note: It is reasonable to use more than one CPU in your guest OS if you are going to use
applications that perform better under multi-core processors.
 The memory amount. In the Memory field, you can set the amount of RAM that will be
available to the virtual machine. To configure the main memory limit, drag the slider or type
the value directly into the Memory field.
Note: If your Mac has 1 GB of RAM, it is strongly recommended to assign not more than
512 MB to a single virtual machine.
 The virtual machine description. The Notes field displays additional information related to
the virtual machine.
If you want to prevent Virtual Machine Configuration from unauthorized changes, click the
Lock icon
at the bottom of the window. The next time someone wants to change the
settings in any pane of Virtual Machine Configuration, an administrator's password will be
required.