Creating and Editing a Configuration Profile in iMazing

In macOS, you may control various aspects of the operating system and particular apps' behavior by installing or remotely deploying the so-called configuration profiles: files that contain specific instructions written in specified syntax. Such files have a .mobileconfig extension. They can be created or edited manually or in special software and distributed along with the app using your preferred device management solution. In this manual, we rely on iMazing Profile Editor.

Note: If you have never used iMazing Profile Editor before, consider studying its quick start guide first.

Follow these steps to create a profile that will control the Parallels Desktop activation method and (optionally) set the privacy preferences for it in advance so that your users won't have to click Allow on multiple system access requests when they first launch the app:

1. Download and install iMazing Profile Editor from their website or Mac App Store.

2. Launch the app.

3. While in the General domain, set the following values at your discretion:

   1. Payload Display Name: what your profile will be named.

   2. Payload Organization: put your company's name here.

   3. Payload Description: what your profile controls.

   4. Prevent users from removing this profile: we recommend that you activate this option.

   5. Payload Scope: whether the profile should apply to the whole Mac, no matter what user signs in, or just the particular user.

   6. Target Device Type: Mac.

   
4. Scroll down the left-side bar until you find the item called Parallels Desktop for Mac. Select it and click the + Add Configuration Payload button. This will add the Parallels Desktop activation method payload to your profile.

   
5. Under Activation Experience, select SSO for the sign-in experience of per-user licensing or License Key for per-device licensing. In the latter case, providing the license key to activate Parallels Desktop is mandatory.

   
6. Optionally, scroll down the left-side bar to find the payload called Privacy Preferences Policy Control, add it to the configuration profile, and set it up as you see fit, following these guidelines from Apple. At the very minimum, we recommend that you enable Parallels Desktop's access to Desktop, Documents, and Downloads folders.

   

7. Use File -> Save As to save the newly created profile for further distribution. You may choose to sign the profile; if so, make sure the certificate with which you sign is also present on all target Macs.