Instead of the friendly ⌃, ⌥, and ⌘ keys, I was presented with Control, Windows, and Alt keys. All of the modifier keys on a Windows keyboard map 1:1 with the keys on a Mac from a. My biggest issue when flipping back and forth between Parallels and OS X are the shortcut keys. I am completely lost as to a Mac and what the difference between Fn, Control, Option and Command are. I mean, I get that they are modifiers. Use Microsoft Keyboard Layout Creator to find the key combinations for unique characters in the language and region your Apple keyboard is designed to support: Download, install, and open the Microsoft Keyboard Layout Creator. Parallels Desktop for Mac is a hardware emulation virtualization software, using hypervisor technology that works by mapping the host computer’s hardware resources directly to the virtual machine’s resources.

Active6 years, 10 months ago

I'm running Windows 8 through Parallels and I seem to have to map every Win+other key combination for my VM separately.

Is there a way to do wildcard mapping so that, for example, Cmd + anything maps to Win + anything or do I have to map every key combination explicitly?

kristiankristian

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1 Answer

In windows, open up a new notepad and paste the following into it:

Save this as key.reg (or any name really, just make it .reg) and then run it to add to the registry. Then, restart your VM and it should be remapped.

tr4656tr4656

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Mapping Windows keys to Apple keyboards

Many of the keys that you'd see on a PC have equivalent keys on an Apple keyboard:

Windows logo: press Command (⌘)

Backspace or Delete: press Delete

Enter or ⏎: press Return

Alt (left): press Option

Parallels desktop 12 for mac 12.2.1 ubuntu 17.10 to 18.04. Alt GR (right): press Option + Control

Applications: This key isn't available on Apple keyboards

Using the Windows On-Screen Keyboard for other functions

If your keyboard doesn't include these keys, you can recreate them using the On-Screen Keyboard as described in this Microsoft support article.

Pause/Break
Insert
Forward Delete
Home
End
Page Up
Page Down
Number Lock
Scroll Lock

Printing from the screen

To recreate the Print Screen and Print Active Window function in Windows, use the Snipping Tool as described in this Microsoft support article.

Numeric keypad mappings

Use the standard numerical keys beneath the Function keys for numerical entry on the Apple Wireless Keyboard. Apple external keyboards with built-in numeric keypads provide the same function as Microsoft-compatible numeric keypads.

If your keyboard isn't working

Boot Camp installs Windows support software (drivers) that let you use features of Apple keyboards in Windows. If your keyboard works when your Mac is started in macOS but not Windows, try reinstalling Windows support software from Boot Camp Assistant.

Apple To Pc Keyboard Mapping

Learn more

Parallels For Mac Keyboard Mapping Software

Use Microsoft Keyboard Layout Creator to find the key combinations for unique characters in the language and region your Apple keyboard is designed to support:

Download, install, and open the Microsoft Keyboard Layout Creator.
Choose File > Load Existing Keyboard.
Select the keyboard you want to see.
Find the country or region name in the keyboard list that's followed by '(Apple)'.
Follow the instructions provided with the app. You can print images of the keyboard, including what keys look like when holding modifiers like Shift, Option, or Fn.

Parallels For Mac Support

Microsoft provides a keyboard mapping article that describes using a Windows keyboard with macOS.

Mac Os Keyboard Mapping

Apple does not provide technical phone support for installing, using, or recovering Microsoft Windows. Support is available for using Boot Camp Setup Assistant, as well as installing or restoring Boot Camp software while your Mac is started from Windows. Support articles and discussions might also be available on Apple's support website.