- Mac Apps That Can Use Exe Files Windows 10
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- Extract Exe File Mac
Problem:You need to open an .exe file but you have a Mac®.
Solution:You can easily open an .exe from your Mac by using Parallels Desktop® for Mac.
I frequently get questions like this from Mac users:
My friend asked me to download a file named Paint-tool-sai.exe, but I can’t open it on my Mac. How can I open this file?
From a person who only uses Mac computers and iPads, this is a very reasonable question.
It’s possible to safely open and run EXE files on your Mac using mediums like Boot Camp, Remote Desktop, CrossOver, Virtual Machine and WINE, to mention the most prominent ones. And you don’t need to be an expert to do this. As long as you can follow simple instructions, you’re all set. Perfect - Easy and very simple to use This app made life more easier. As soon as you download the rar file you have will recongize it and than all you have to do is double click the file to extract if not all you have to do is drag the file you are trying to open up and drop it on the program. It cant get easier that that to use. Apps to open exe files free download - Run Multiple EXE Files At Same Time Software, RAR File Open Knife - Free Opener, MDF Open File Tool, and many more programs var bingData = ; Navigation.
The quick, short answer is, “By itself, the Mac can’t open this file.”
The longer, more positive answer requires a little background.
File Extensions
Both PC and Mac computers use three- or four-letter extensions on file names—the portion of the name after the period—to determine which application can open a file.
You may have noticed that files with extensions “.jpg” or “.jpeg” are opened by the Preview app on the Mac. Those files are images or photos.
Similarly, you may have noticed that files with extensions “.docx” or “.doc” are opened on the Mac by Microsoft Word or TextEdit. Those files are word processing documents.
Mac Apps That Can Use Exe Files Windows 10
What you may not have noticed is that Mac applications themselves have an “.app” extension. (See figure 1.)
Figure 1_Applications on the Mac have the file name extension “.app”
When you double click on a file with the “.app” extension on a Mac, the macOS® launches that application. In other words, opening a file with an “.app” extension is really launching that application; the macOS itself opens that file.
With this background, it is understandable that the Mac by itself can’t open an “.exe” file because the .exe extension means that the file is a Windows application. The Windows operating system is needed to open an “.exe” file.
Enter Parallels Desktop
When you have Parallels Desktop and a Windows virtual machine (VM) on your Mac, everything just works when you double click on an “.exe” file. It feels a little bit like magic.
What App Opens Exe Files
Underneath, here is how the magic works: Parallels Desktop tells the Mac that it can open “.exe” files. So when you double click on that “.exe” file, the macOS® launches Parallels Desktop. This is just like when you double click on a “.jpg” file and the macOS launches Preview, or when you double click on a “.docx” file and the macOS launches Microsoft Word.
When Parallels Desktop is launched because you clicked on an “.exe” file, Parallels Desktop boots your Windows VM and tells Windows that you want this “.exe” file opened. Windows then launches the application for that “.exe” file.
While the quick, short answer to the question at the beginning of this blog post still is, “By itself, the Mac can’t open this file”…
The longer, more positive answer is, “This is a Windows file, so you need Windows to open it. The easiest way to get Windows on your Mac is to get Parallels Desktop and a Windows VM.”
How To Open Exe On Mac
Oh yeah, and if you have Boot Camp® on your Mac, you still won’t be able to double click on that “.exe” file and have it open. The short answer to “Why not?” is because the macOS and Boot Camp can’t talk to each other. The long answer will be the subject of a future blog post.
Extract Exe File Mac
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