Enabling Major Version Upgrades

Prior to Parallels Desktop 16, users were not automatically upgraded to the next major Parallels Desktop version. Starting with version 16, this option became available.

In the past, to upgrade Parallels Desktop for Mac Business Edition to a newer version, an IT administrator would need to set up a local update server or use a remote management tool or install the new version manually on a Mac computer. With this new option, administrators have the ability to automate major version upgrades if the organization policy allows it.

Here's a quick overview of how this feature works:

1. You create a configuration profile in Parallels My Account and configure the Product Updates payload where you enable or disable the "Allow upgrade..." option.

2. You then apply the configuration profile to a license or sublicense key.

3. Parallels Desktop periodically checks if a new major version is available. If it is, depending on how updates are configured in Parallels Desktop, the user will see a notification (with an option to upgrade or postpone), or the upgrade will be performed silently. When the upgrade is initiated, the new major version of Parallels Desktop is downloaded to the Mac computer and installed on it. After that, Parallels Desktop restarts, completing the upgrade.

Note: If a local update server is configured in your organization, the functionality described here will have no effect, even if you create a configuration profile and apply it to a license key used by Mac computers. For more info about local updates, see Setting up a local update server.

The subsequent topics describe in detail how to configure and use the major version upgrade functionality.