Golden Images

This section of the Management Portal is where you go to designate the virtual machines that will be deployed across your organization. You can deploy multiple golden images. Each golden image may contain up to two virtual machine images, one for Apple silicon Macs, and one for Intel Macs.

Note: To learn how to prepare a virtual machine for deployment, please refer to this section of the guide. The result should be a .pvmp file containing a virtual machine and a .txt file containing the SHA-256 checksum for it.

If you are configuring your Parallels Desktop Enterprise Edition setup for the first time, the Golden Images section in your Parallels Management Portal will look like this:

Use the Create Golden Image button and follow the instructions below.

Note: Prior to the February 2025 update, Parallels Desktop Enterprise Edition only allowed two virtual machine images per organization, one for Apple silicon Macs, and one for Intel Macs.

The update results in those two images listed as one Golden Image, suitable for two architectures, with the option to add more.

Each golden image can be assigned to one or several groups of users.

Note: At the moment, each group of users may only have one golden image assigned to it (for up to two processor architectures).

Adding a virtual machine golden image for deployment

Fill out the following fields when adding a golden image record:

1. Name. Give the virtual machine a descriptive, easy-to-read name, e.g., {company_name} Windows 11 Pro for Arm. This name will be shown to your users;

2. [OPTIONAL] Description. Feel free to add a more detailed description that helps to understand the specific purpose or setup of each image, e.g., This image is for the accountants to run Excel for Windows. This description will be shown to your users;

3. Enable for {architecture}. You may provide golden images for one specific processor type or both. ;

4. Download URL for {architechture}. Upload your virtual machine .pvmp file to a server location that supports direct links and is accessible to all the machines where you plan on deploying it, and share the file. Optionally, you may use a URL shortener. Apple silicon Macs and Intel Macs will require two separate image files. Make sure the files are accessible without authentication. Before proceeding, verify the link works. ;
5. Checksum (SHA-256). When packaging a virtual machine (right-click on it in the Control Center and choose Prepare for Transfer), the resulting .pvmp file is accompanied by a .txt file containing a SHA-256 checksum for it. Copy and paste the contents of that file in this field.

   1. Right-click on the .pvmp file while holding down the Option key and choose Copy {file_name} as Pathname;

   2. Open Terminal;

   3. Type in shasum -a 256 {file_desination}, pasting the copied pathname from Step 1, and hit Enter.

   63a90c3c38cc8c358221da339068fc1292b10bf7c00ed8449787b0e6019d706b /Users/parallels/Parallels/Windows11Pro.pvmp;

6. Assign to. Use this field to add all the user groups to which you plan to offer this golden image. You may only add a group that does not yet have a golden image assigned, as one group can only be assigned one golden image. Add groups by using the drop-down menu, and remove them by clicking the (X) symbol.

   

   If you choose your primary license key, all users activated with that key will be assigned this golden image. If your SSO setup involves user groups, that may include all the users who have not been included in one of the groups and have therefore been activated using the primary license key quota.

Note: If you use the Single Sign-On (SSO) activation method without dividing users into groups and want to assign a single Golden Image to all your users, link that Golden Image to the primary license key.

If you want different Golden Images for different user groups, follow the steps in this chapter to link the SSO user groups to the license keys and force the product activation quota from a specific license key pool.

Once you are done filling out the required fields, click Save to activate the golden image.

Editing or removing a virtual machine golden image

To change the settings for a golden image, click Edit on the golden image's card, and change the settings as described above.

To remove a golden image, select the one you want to delete, click Edit on the golden image's card, click Delete Golden Image in the bottom left corner of the card, and confirm the deletion.

Warning: Deleting a golden image is irreversible. If you have deleted a golden image by mistake, you will have to create it again. If the groups that were assigned that image, were also restricted to corporate virtual machines only, the users in those groups wouldn't be able to install new virtual machines until assigned another golden image.