When Apple switched Macintosh computers to the popular Intel based architecture, the same one used by almost all other personal computers, they made it technically possible to run an unmodified Windows operating system on a Mac. This got a lot of Mac users interested in running Windows on their Macs, so in 2006 Apple decided to officially support this capability by launching a beta of Boot Camp.

What Boot Camp Does

Boot Camp was intended to make it easier to install Windows on a Mac without deleting Mac OS X, therefore setting up a “dual-boot” that would allow users to switch between both Mac OS X and Windows when rebooting their Macs. Pressing and holding down the option key would reveal a choice of a startup disk between Mac OS X and Windows.

To set this up users rely on a Boot Camp Assistant, an utility that guides users through the process of partitioning the hard drive so it includes a separate Windows partition. It can also create a Windows install disk from a provided ISO file, and download Windows support software, including drivers and the Windows version of the Boot Camp Assistant.

Once it finishes saving the support software, and partitioning the disk, the Boot Camp Assistant reboots asking for a Windows install disk. Once booted from this disk a normal Windows installation can be started where users select the partition conveniently marked “BOOTCAMP” to install Windows on.

After completing the Windows installation users can insert a disk, or an external drive, which contains the downloaded support software, and launch it to install drivers and the configuration utility that can be used to control various Mac features within Windows, such as the touchpad, and the keyboard.

Boot Camp Assistant introduction

The Benefits of Boot Camp

Apple touts Boot Camp as one of the upsides of switching from a Windows PC to a Mac as it means users don’t have to give up Windows completely in order to make the switch. As Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing Phillip Schiller said, “Boot Camp makes the Mac even more appealing to Windows users considering making the switch”.

Boot Camp was at first available as a free downloadable preview package that supported installing Windows XP, but with the launch of Mac OS X Leopard it was made a part of the operating system, and supported Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7. With the launch of Mac OS X Lion Apple dropped support for Windows XP and Vista, and continues to support only Windows 7.

More Information

Read How to Install Windows on Mac for a complete guide on using Boot Camp to get Windows installed on your Mac. For all other information you can consult Apple’s Boot Camp support pages.