Import a Windows VM from Parallels Desktop

Kyvenza 4.0 can import a Windows virtual machine from Parallels Desktop, so you can move an existing Windows 11 on ARM setup across without reinstalling Windows. Shut Windows down in Parallels, choose File → Import from Parallels Desktop… in Kyvenza, and pick the .pvm. Kyvenza converts the system disk into its own library and leaves the Parallels VM exactly as it was.

This page covers what to prepare in Parallels Desktop, the import itself, and the first boot in Kyvenza, where you swap Parallels Tools for the Kyvenza guest tools.

When importing from Parallels fits

Importing is the faster path when you already have a working Windows 11 on ARM VM in Parallels Desktop, with your applications installed and configured, and you want to run it in Kyvenza instead of building a new one. Because the original is untouched, you can try the imported copy against the applications you actually use and keep Parallels until you are sure.

It does not fit every Parallels VM:

• Only Windows VMs can be imported. Linux and macOS VMs from Parallels are refused. For those, create a new VM in Kyvenza and move your data across over SSH or a shared folder.
• Only the system disk comes across. Extra disks attached to the Parallels VM stay in Parallels Desktop.
• Kyvenza's Windows support has gaps that Parallels does not. Windows guests in Kyvenza have no USB passthrough and no microphone input, and they use NAT networking only. Graphics acceleration is experimental and DirectX 11 only. If your Windows work depends on any of those, check the FAQ before you move.

Requirements

• Kyvenza 4.0 or later on an Apple Silicon Mac running macOS 26 or later. Windows VMs use a separate engine that needs macOS 26; see system requirements.
• An active trial or licence. Importing is part of the 7-day trial and the Pro licence; see trial and licensing.
• Free disk space about equal to the space the Parallels disk actually uses, plus roughly 1 GB. Kyvenza checks this before it starts and tells you if the volume is too small.
• Your BitLocker recovery key, if BitLocker or device encryption is on in Windows. More on that below.

Prepare the VM in Parallels Desktop

Kyvenza reads the .pvm package directly, so the VM has to be in a state it can read. Do these in Parallels Desktop first:

1. Shut Windows down. Use Start → Power → Shut down inside Windows, or stop the VM from Parallels. A VM that is suspended in Parallels is refused: start it there, shut Windows down, then import.
2. Delete the VM's snapshots. Deleting a snapshot in Parallels merges it into the disk. A VM that still has snapshots is refused.
3. Remove encryption. If the VM is encrypted in Parallels Desktop, remove the encryption first. This is Parallels' own VM encryption, not BitLocker inside Windows.

Kyvenza also cannot read a disk that is stored outside the .pvm package, a split disk, or a disk from a very old version of Parallels Desktop. If you see one of those messages, the VM needs to be moved or converted in Parallels before it can be imported.

Import the VM

1. In Kyvenza, choose File → Import from Parallels Desktop…. The same command is in the New menu on the toolbar.
2. Select the virtual machine's .pvm package. Parallels usually keeps these in ~/Parallels.
3. Review the import sheet. It shows the source, processor count, memory, and disk size read from the Parallels VM, and it keeps the Parallels name unless that name is already in your library, in which case it suggests Name (Parallels). You can change the name here.
4. Click Import. Kyvenza converts the disk to qcow2 and shows the progress. You can cancel at any point, and a cancelled import leaves nothing behind in the library.

The imported VM keeps the Parallels VM's processor count (up to the number of cores on this Mac) and memory, and uses the same virtual hardware as a Windows VM created in Kyvenza: TPM 2.0, Secure Boot, and the KYVENZA-DRIVERS disc. The display starts at 1440×900.

First start in Kyvenza

BitLocker and the new TPM

The imported VM gets a new virtual TPM. The TPM state from Parallels is kept in a private format that cannot be carried over. If BitLocker or device encryption is on, Windows notices the change and asks for the recovery key on the first start. Have the key ready before you import; for a Microsoft account it is usually listed at aka.ms/myrecoverykey.

Swap Parallels Tools for the Kyvenza guest tools

Until the Kyvenza guest tools are installed, an imported VM uses a basic display. This is deliberate: Windows imported from Parallels does not have the display driver Kyvenza's normal virtual GPU needs, so starting with it would leave a black screen.

1. Start the VM and sign in to Windows.
2. Uninstall Parallels Tools from Settings → Apps → Installed apps in Windows, and restart Windows if it asks.
3. Open the KYVENZA-DRIVERS disc in File Explorer and run Install-Kyvenza-Drivers.
4. Shut Windows down, then start the VM again from Kyvenza.

On that cold start, Kyvenza switches the VM to the full display driver by itself. The VM's overview shows which state it is in: a note that it is using a basic display until the guest tools are installed, then a note to shut down and start again once they are. Restarting from inside Windows is not enough; it has to be a shutdown followed by a start.

With the guest tools installed you get clipboard sharing for text and images in both directions, a shared drive, pasting or dropping files from the Mac, and sound output, the same as a Windows VM created in Kyvenza. If you want to try experimental graphics acceleration, turn it on in Edit Config → Graphics after this step; it takes effect on the next boot.

Windows activation

Moving to new virtual hardware can make Windows ask to be activated again. Kyvenza does not supply, sell, or activate Windows. Use your own valid Windows licence.

What happens to the Parallels VM

Nothing. Kyvenza only reads the Parallels disk while it converts it, and does not change the .pvm. Once the imported VM works the way you need, you can delete the original in Parallels Desktop to get the disk space back, or keep both. If you keep both, avoid running them at the same time with the same Windows licence.

Troubleshooting

Message	What to do
"This is not a Parallels Desktop virtual machine."	Select the .pvm package itself, not a folder inside it or a disk file.
"Kyvenza can import Windows virtual machines from Parallels Desktop. This one runs a different operating system."	Only Windows VMs can be imported. Create a new VM in Kyvenza for Linux or macOS.
"This virtual machine has snapshots…"	Delete the snapshots in Parallels Desktop, then import again.
"This virtual machine is encrypted…"	Remove the encryption in Parallels Desktop, then import again.
"This virtual machine is suspended in Parallels Desktop…"	Start it in Parallels, shut Windows down, then import again.
"…hard disk is stored outside its .pvm package…"	Move the disk back into the package in Parallels Desktop, or import a copy that keeps the disk inside the package.
Not enough disk space	Free space on the volume that holds your Kyvenza library. The storage location is shown in Settings.
Windows asks for a BitLocker recovery key	Expected after import, because of the new TPM. Enter the key once.

For anything else, export a diagnostics bundle as described in diagnostics and troubleshooting and email support@kyvenza.com.

Next steps

• Managing VMs: snapshots, clones, and backups for the imported VM.
• VM tool comparison: where Parallels Desktop is still the better fit for Windows.
• Windows 11 on ARM on a Mac: Kyvenza and Parallels Desktop side by side for Windows.
• Download Kyvenza and try the import during the 7-day trial, or see pricing.