Boot Camp Instructions

The boot camp is a utility which comes with Mac operating system versions 10.5 and higher. For Windows users who have moved over to the Mac platform, this utility proves to be of immense value since it allows the user to 'dual boot' a windows operating system on their macs. Dual boot, as the term suggests, is a situation where both the operating systems (OS), i.e. mac as well as windows are present on a single computer. Since there are few native windows applications which cannot run on the mac OS, this utility is essential when users switch platforms.

However, boot camp is just a utility present on the macintosh computer and it needs to be set up if one wants to make use of its dual boot functionality. There are a few boot camp instructions that one needs to know before trying out this utility. The following guide will help you to set up boot camp and install a windows OS on your macintosh computer.

Boot Camp Instructions
For carrying out the installation process, one would require an Intel-based Mac Computer with 2GB RAM and a minimum of 10 GB of hard disk space. The first step of this procedure is running the boot camp assistant followed by installing Windows; finally the Boot Camp drivers should be installed.

Run Boot Camp Assistant
The first step is to log in to the administrator account so as to quit all the other applications that are running. Boot Camp Assistant is located in 'Utilities' folder which in turn is located in a folder called 'Applications'. Double clicking the icon starts the setup process. Helpful onscreen instructions assist you in the process of setting up the windows OS. The first thing that needs to be done is creating a partition for the windows installation. By default, the existing hard drive on the computer where the mac OS is installed should be chosen as the location for the windows installation. This setting can be changed, however it is recommended not to do so. Also, boot camp uses exactly half of the hard drive space for the windows partition. This setting can be changed as well, but again, it is recommended not to change this value. While 10GB of hard disk space is required, it is important to note that Windows Vista uses significantly more space than Windows XP, and 10GB might not be enough for a Vista installation. Ideally, a hard drive with a capacity of 80GB or more would be best suited for dual booting purposes.

Once the partition is created, you can proceed on to the next step of installation. In this step, the windows operating system is installed in the partition created.

Windows Installation
The main things to keep in mind while installing windows on a mac machine running boot camp are using complete install discs and 32 bit operating systems. Complete install discs refer to the entire OS on a single CD or DVD as compared to a 2 CD installation set. In a 2 CD installation set, typically the OS is on one disc while the service pack is on another. Installing windows via boot camp does not allow these 2 CD discs to be used. The other thing to remember is that only 32 bit windows operating systems can be installed via boot camp. 64 bit versions are not supported. The versions to be installed could be any of the following ones: Windows XP Professional Edition, Windows XP Home Edition, Windows Vista Home Premium, Windows Vista Home Basic, Windows Vista Business or Windows Vista Ultimate Edition.

To start the installation process, the Windows installation disc should be inserted followed by selecting the "start installation" tab. The onscreen instructions would then guide the user in the process of installation. Selecting the correct partition ensures that the pre-existing Mac OS X is not overwritten. The "C: Partition3 BOOTCAMP [FAT32]" instruction is used to select the proper partition for Windows while the "Disk 0 Partition 3 BOOTCAMP" instruction is used for Vista. The NTFS or FAT format is used to for the formatting of partition. The following path, 'Drive Options (Advanced) - Format - OK - Next' should be followed in the formatting of the partition.

Installing the Boot Camp Drivers
In this step, the Mac specific drivers are installed for Windows. The Mac OSX Leopard installation disc is used for the same. The drivers which support the Mac components such as graphics, audio, networking, Bluetooth, Airport wireless connectivity, Apple remote, Apple keyboards, etc. are installed with the help of Mac OSX disc. The Windows installation disc needs to be ejected and the Mac OSX disc should then be inserted. Following the onscreen instructions enables the users in completing the installation process. After the computer restarts, instructions in the 'Found New Hardware Wizard' should be followed.

Once installed, the boot camp sets up a boot camp control panel which in turn enables users to set the default operating system. The path, 'Apple - System Preferences - Click Startup Disk' should be followed in selecting the startup disk with the appropriate operating system. By clicking the restart button, one can start using the selected operating system.

The boot camp instructions mentioned above would help in installing a Windows operating system on an Apple computer. While the process, as seen, is relatively easy, lack of the important instructions presented above can make this a frustrating experience for even an experienced user.