Restart your Mac in macOS or Windows

After installing Microsoft Windows on your Mac, you can choose whether your Mac starts up in macOS or Windows.

How to start up in macOS from Windows

1. From the notification area on the right side of the Windows taskbar, click to show hidden icons.
2. Click the Boot Camp icon .
3. From the menu shown, choose Restart in macOS.
   If you haven’t installed the latest Boot Camp updates, you might get the message ”Could not locate the OS X boot volume.»
   

Or use Startup Manager as your Mac starts up:

1. Restart your Mac from the Start menu in Windows.
2. Press and hold the Option (or Alt) ⌥ key as your Mac begins to restart.
3. Select your Mac startup volume (Macintosh HD) in the Startup Manager window, then press Return or click the up arrow:
   

How to start up in Windows from macOS

• Use Startup Manager to choose your Windows (Boot Camp) volume during startup.
• Or select your Boot Camp volume in Startup Disk preferences, then restart.

Learn more

• If you’re having difficulty using VoiceOver or another screen reader to complete these steps, please contact Apple Support.
• Learn how to install Windows 10 on your Mac.

Information about products not manufactured by Apple, or independent websites not controlled or tested by Apple, is provided without recommendation or endorsement. Apple assumes no responsibility with regard to the selection, performance, or use of third-party websites or products. Apple makes no representations regarding third-party website accuracy or reliability. Contact the vendor for additional information.

Mac to PC Guide: How to Make the Switch

By Henry T. Casey 18 February 2016

There are plenty of reasons to switch OS X to Windows. You may be coveting the nearly borderless displays on the Dell XPS 13 notebook, or perhaps you’re intrigued by the prospect of getting the same Windows 10 interface on both a PC and a tablet.

Even if you’ve used a PC before, you’ll notice that Windows 10 looks and feels very different from previous versions of Microsoft’s operating system and from the OS X UI you’re used to. Basic tasks like uninstalling programs, switching between open apps and syncing with the cloud are all just different enough to give switchers a headache. Fortunately, with these tips, you’ll be comfortable on Windows 10 in no time.

How to Create a Microsoft Account

If you’re making the switch from a Mac to a Windows 10 PC, you’ll need to create a Microsoft account in order to sign into various services. Here’s a step by step tutorial on how to set up an account and what you can access after you do.

How to Set Up and Use iCloud on Windows

Just because you’ve switched from a Mac to a PC that doesn’t mean that you can’t use iCloud services. Here’s a step by step tutorial for how to get your iCloud photos and more on Windows.

How to Format a Hard Drive For Both Windows and Mac

If you plan to share an external hard drive between PC and Mac computers, you’ll need our step by step tutorial to make a hard drive that works with both Windows and Mac OS X.

How to Move Your Mac files to a Windows PC

If you’re switching from a Mac to a PC, you’ll probably need to bring all the files you’ve accumulated over the years with you. Here’s a step by step tutorial for how to place files where Windows apps will want them to go.

How to Convert Mac-Specific Files To Work on Windows 10

If you’ve got files from Apple’s Pages, Numbers, Keynote and Contacts apps, they can be used on a Windows PC, but you’ll need to follow these steps to get your files ready.

How to Authorize Your New PC with Your iTunes Account

You don’t have to kiss your years of iTunes purchases goodbye just because you switched from a Mac to a PC. Here’s how to set up iTunes on Windows!

How to Import iPhone Photos to Windows 10

Getting your photos off of your iPhone and onto a PC can be easy, but you have to set things up properly. Here are step by step directions to get your iPhone’s camera roll syncing with Windows’ Photos app.

A Guide to Windows 10 Touchpad Gestures for Mac Users

You can do some of the same gestures on PCs and Macs, but not all of them work. Here’s a quick walkthrough of the operating systems’ shared and unique gestures.

A Mac User’s Guide to Windows 10 Keyboard Shortcuts

If you’re switching from a Mac to a PC, you’ll notice that not all of the keyboard shortcuts you had gotten used to work the same way. Here’s a list of the keyboard shortcuts shared by the operating systems.

How to Sign Into Facebook and Twitter in Windows 10

You can’t log into social media directly through Windows itself, but with the native apps from Facebook and Twitter, you can Share more easily. Here are instructions for setting up native integration for Facebook and Twitter in Windows 10.

How to Set Up iCloud Email and Calendars on Windows 10

If you’ve moved from a Mac to a PC, you may be switching from Apple’s Mail and Calendar apps to Windows’ Mail and Calendar apps. Here’s a guide to move your iCloud accounts over.

How to Force Quit in Windows 10

Since you can’t Force Quit in Windows 10, Mac users switching to PCs will need to learn how to manually terminate applications that are not responsive. Here’s a quick guide for how to shut those programs down.

How to Install Apps in Windows 10

If you’re a Mac user who has switched to Windows, you may have trouble figuring out how to install new programs. Here are step by step instructions to get you up and running in the Windows Store.

How to Make Desktop Shortcuts in Windows 10

It’s not as easy to make desktop shortcuts on a PC as it is on a Mac, so if you’ve switched from OS X to Windows, you may need some guidance in placing links to your favorites on your desktop. Here’s a guide for how to make shortcuts for Desktop and Modern Windows apps.

How to Snap 4 Windows at Once in Windows 10

Window management in Windows 10 is different and more powerful than it is on OS X, so if you’ve switched from a Mac to a PC, you may be confused about how to split your screen between applications. Here’s how to use window snapping to divide your screen between 4 windows.

How to Use Cortana in Windows 10: Tips and How-Tos

Mac users never even got to use Siri on the desktop, so if you’ve switched from a Mac to a PC, you might be happy to hear that Microsoft’s digital assistant Cortana is on Windows 10. Here’s a complete guide for using Cortana to send emails, set up reminders and do a whole lot more.

How to Install QuickTime on Windows 10

You may need to download the QuickTime media player if you’ve just switched from a Mac to a PC, since Windows doesn’t come with the video player. Here’s how to install it and so you can start streaming even more videos.

How to Install and use Airport Utility for Windows

If you’ve just switched from a Mac to a PC, you can hold onto your Airport router. Here are step by step instructions for using it with your PC.

How to quickly switch between windows on your Mac computer using 4 different shortcuts

If you’re like pretty much everyone, you probably have many windows open every time you use your Mac.

It might be a group of Word documents, a host of browser windows, or collection of pictures — whatever the case, having too many windows open means frustration when it comes time to switch between them.

If you have too many windows open, finding the file, webpage, or document you want at any given moment can take a surprisingly long time. That is, unless you know a few Mac keyboard shortcuts that make navigating between windows quick and easy.

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How to quickly switch between windows on a Mac

There are several ways to switch windows on your Mac.

First of all, if you hit the F3 key (in the very top row on your keyboard), your windows will shrink so you can see them all. If you have multiple monitors, each monitor will show all the windows currently on that screen.

Once you’re in this view, you can click any window to switch to it, or press F3 again to return to your current window.

You can also switch windows using your Command key. Try hitting Command + Tab — a pop-up will appear showing every app that currently has windows open on your computer. Press Tab to cycle through them, and release Command when you’ve highlighted the one you want to switch to.

While you’re holding the Command key, tapping the tilde key will bring you to the next window of the same type. This is great if you’re working with lots of windows in the same program, like Word documents.

Finally, if you’re using a MacBook, swiping up on the trackpad with three or four fingers (depending on your settings) will open Mission Control, which shows all the windows that you have open. If this isn’t working, make sure it’s enabled in the «Trackpad» section of System Preferences.

Mac: Shortcut for switching between two windows of the same application

I want to switch between two different windows opened in the same desktop on Mac (El Capitan). I can’t do it with cmd+tab . Does anyone knows how to do it?

None of the following shortcuts work as well: cmd+` , cmd+shift+` , cmd+number

7 Answers 7

The shortcut is defined in System Preferences > Keyboard > Shortcuts

⌘` is the default, Check the shortcut and if it’s enabled at all

Using CMD + Shift + Backtick allows you to cycle through windows. To select a specific tab in a window you can use CMD + a number .

You may have this disabled in your settings. System Preference > Keyboard > Shortcuts

This is a common issue in all [currently released] versions of 10.12 [Sierra]. Although there isn’t a solid fix for it the quickest workaround is to go to the Apple menu > System Preferences > Keyboard > Text and in the lower left corner first click the ‘+’ button then click the ‘-‘ button, close System Preferences and you should be good to go. You may need to do this after restarting each time but it only takes a second.

Using cmd+number you will switch the windows, starting in number 1 to the number of open windows

Had this problem too (MaxOS Mojave) I knew about this fix: System Preferences > Keyboard > Shortcuts > Keyboard > Move focus to next window — but could not make it work The thing is. First just click on the right side of the «Move focus to the next window» you then see the area becomes editable with a line around the symbol to the right. Then you click the combination you want and voila! I noticed when done and then clicked «restore defaults» it went back to not working again. Followed the steps again and all good. Jonny

The solution by Johnny H works in my Mojave 10.14.2. You obviously cannot assign a key combination already in use in other shortcuts.

Had this problem too (MaxOS Mojave) I knew about this fix: System Preferences > Keyboard > Shortcuts > Keyboard > Move focus to next window — but could not make it work The thing is. First just click on the right side of the «Move focus to the next window» you then see the area becomes editable with a line around the symbol to the right. Then you click the combination you want and voila! I noticed when done and then clicked «restore defaults» it went back to not working again. Followed the steps again and all good. Jonny

Install Windows 10 on your Mac with Boot Camp Assistant

With Boot Camp, you can install Microsoft Windows 10 on your Mac, then switch between macOS and Windows when restarting your Mac.

What you need to install Windows 10 on Mac

• MacBook introduced in 2015 or later
• MacBook Air introduced in 2012 or later
• MacBook Pro introduced in 2012 or later
• Mac mini introduced in 2012 or later

• iMac introduced in 2012 or later 1
• iMac Pro (all models)
• Mac Pro introduced in 2013 or later

The latest macOS updates, which can include updates to Boot Camp Assistant. You will use Boot Camp Assistant to install Windows 10.

64GB or more free storage space on your Mac startup disk:

• Your Mac can have as little as 64GB of free storage space, but at least 128GB of free storage space provides the best experience. Automatic Windows updates require that much space or more.
• If you have an iMac Pro or Mac Pro with 128GB of memory (RAM) or more, your startup disk needs at least as much free storage space as your Mac has memory. 2

An external USB flash drive with a storage capacity of 16GB or more, unless you’re using a Mac that doesn’t need a flash drive to install Windows.

A 64-bit version of Windows 10 Home or Windows 10 Pro on a disk image (ISO) or other installation media. If installing Windows on your Mac for the first time, this must be a full version of Windows, not an upgrade.

• If your copy of Windows came on a USB flash drive, or you have a Windows product key and no installation disc, download a Windows 10 disk image from Microsoft.
• If your copy of Windows came on a DVD, you might need to create a disk image of that DVD.

How to install Windows 10 on Mac

To install Windows, use Boot Camp Assistant, which is included with your Mac.

1. Check your Secure Boot setting

Learn how to check your Secure Boot setting. The default Secure Boot setting is Full Security. If you changed it to No Security, change it back to Full Security before installing Windows. After installing Windows, you can use any Secure Boot setting without affecting your ability to start up from Windows.

2. Use Boot Camp Assistant to create a Windows partition

Open Boot Camp Assistant, which is in the Utilities folder of your Applications folder. Follow the onscreen instructions.

• If you’re asked to insert a USB drive, plug your USB flash drive into your Mac. Boot Camp Assistant will use it to create a bootable USB drive for Windows installation.
• When Boot Camp Assistant asks you to set the size of the Windows partition, remember the minimum storage-space requirements in the previous section. Set a partition size that meets your needs, because you can’t change its size later.

3. Format the Windows (BOOTCAMP) partition

When Boot Camp Assistant finishes, your Mac restarts to the Windows installer. If the installer asks where to install Windows, select the BOOTCAMP partition and click Format. In most cases, the installer selects and formats the BOOTCAMP partition automatically.

4. Install Windows

Unplug any external devices that aren’t necessary during installation. Then click Next and follow the onscreen instructions to begin installing Windows.

5. Use the Boot Camp installer in Windows

After Windows installation completes, your Mac starts up in Windows and opens a ”Welcome to the Boot Camp installer” window. Follow the onscreen instructions to install Boot Camp and Windows support software (drivers). You will be asked to restart when done.

• If the Boot Camp installer never opens, open the Boot Camp installer manually and use it to complete Boot Camp installation.
• If you have an external display connected to a Thunderbolt 3 port on your Mac, the display will be blank (black, gray, or blue) for up to 2 minutes during installation.

How to switch between Windows and macOS

Restart, then press and hold the Option (or Alt) ⌥ key during startup to switch between Windows and macOS.

Learn more

If you have one of these Intel-based Mac models using OS X El Capitan or later, you don’t need a USB flash drive to install Windows:

• MacBook introduced in 2015 or later
• MacBook Air introduced in 2017 or later 3
• MacBook Pro introduced in 2015 or later 3

• iMac introduced in 2015 or later
• iMac Pro (all models)
• Mac Pro introduced in late 2013 or later

For more information about using Windows on your Mac, open Boot Camp Assistant and click the Open Boot Camp Help button.

1. If you’re using an iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, Late 2014) or iMac (27-inch, Late 2013) or iMac (27-inch, Late 2012) with a 3TB hard drive and macOS Mojave or later, learn about an alert you might see during installation.

2. For example, if your Mac has 128GB of memory, its startup disk must have at least 128GB of storage space available for Windows. To see how much memory your Mac has, choose Apple menu  > About This Mac. To see how much storage space is available, click the Storage tab in the same window.

3. These Mac models were offered with 128GB hard drives as an option. Apple recommends 256GB or larger hard drives so that you can create a Boot Camp partition of at least 128GB.

Information about products not manufactured by Apple, or independent websites not controlled or tested by Apple, is provided without recommendation or endorsement. Apple assumes no responsibility with regard to the selection, performance, or use of third-party websites or products. Apple makes no representations regarding third-party website accuracy or reliability. Contact the vendor for additional information.