What is Coherence?
Coherence is a new view mode that allows you to run Windows-only applications on your Mac, just like they were native Mac applications. In Coherence mode, you can use both your Windows and Mac applications at the same time, without managing two separate desktops or rebooting. You can even load Windows-only applications directly form your Mac application dock or Mac desktop.How to use it:

• To switch to Coherence mode, click the Coherence icon on the right side of your default Windows desktop, or click “actions” in the Parallels Desktop menu bar, and select “Coherence”.
• To add a Windows application to the dock: Drag a Windows applications short cut to the Mac Dock from the “Windows Applications” folder located at Macintosh HD - Documents - Parallels - Your VM folder -Windows Applications. Alternatively, you can load a Windows application, then click its shortcut icon in the Mac dock and select “keep in dock.”
• For more information, either see the User Guide located in the Parallels folder in the Applications folder on your Mac or go to www.parallels.com/en/products/desktop/features/coherence/

If I’m using Coherence, how do I shut down my virtual machine properly?
If you’ve chosen to keep your Windows taskbar on your Mac’s desktop, select Shut Down from the Windows Start menu. If you’ve chosen not to display the taskbar on your Mac’s desktop, go to View-> OS Window and select Shut Down from the Windows Start Menu. Alternatively, if the taskbar is hidden, you can double-click the Parallels icon to view the Windows Start Menu, and select Shut Down from the Windows.

What is the purpose of OS Installation Assistant?
It was designed to simplify the guest OS installation process. Using the Assistant you can easily install Windows XP or Windows Vista inside a VM. You don’t have to possess any special technical skills for this purpose.

Which OSes can I install using OS Installation Assistant?
In the current version of Parallels Desktop for Mac, OS Installation Assistant supports automatic installation of the following guest OSes: Windows XP (all versions except Upgrade Edition) and Windows Vista (Enterprise, Business and Ultimate).

Can I create a Parallels virtual machine with a Windows Vista operating system from a Boot Camp partition?
Parallels is currently compatible with Boot Camp partitions running Windows XP. Development is underway to support Vista partitions. However, you can run your licensed version of Windows Vista in Coherence mode, which enables you to run your guest operating system without having to manage two desktops.

Can I transfer files and the clipboard contents between Mac OS X and Windows running in a virtual machine?
Yes, you can transfer files via Shared folders and the clipboard contents between Mac OS X and your guest Windows after you install Parallels Tools. Please follow the steps below:

1. Install Parallels Tools in your guest OS. When your guest OS is running and you are logged in, choose Install Parallels Tools from the VM menu on the Mac menu bar. After you install Parallels Tools and restart the guest OS you will be able to transfer the text between Mac OS X and the guest OS installed in your VM using copy-paste method.
2. Turn off your Guest OS. When the virtual machine is stopped, choose Edit Configuration from the File menu, click the Shared Folders link, click the “+” button. Click the Browse button ("...") to specify the folder you want to share with your Guest OS, its name, path, and description (optional). Make sure that the Enabled option is selected. If you select the Read Only checkbox, you will have no permission to write to this folder from inside the VM.
3. Click the OK button. Now the specified folder appears in the shared folders list . Click the OK button to save the changes in Configuration Editor.
4. Start your Guest OS. You can access the shared folder by clicking its shortcut on the guest OS desktop or using My network places - Entire network - Parallels Shared Folders. If you don’t see your shared folder shortcut on the desktop, type “\\.psf” in the Explorer address bar to locate the folder.
5. You can map your shared folder so that it will appear as a Network Drive in My Computer folder. Open Start - My Computer - Tools -Map Network Drive. Specify the path to your shared folder, for instance My network places - Entire network -Parallels Shared Folders. Click the Finish button. Now, your shared folder will appear in the My Computer folder as a Network Drive.

I have updated Parallels Desktop for Mac to the latest version and loaded my old VM with Windows. Why can’t I access my Shared Folders after updating?Parallels Tools package that provides the functionality of Shared Folders should be also updated. You have to uninstall Parallels Tools in Windows using the standard uninstall procedure (Start – Control Panel – Add or Remove Programs - Parallels Tools), reboot the VM and, when logged in the system, install the new version of Parallels Tools choosing Install Parallels Tools from the VM menu.

When I load my VM with the Guest OS, Parallels Desktop for Mac’s window size changes, and it becomes difficult to use the VM in window mode. How can I fix it?
To change the size of Parallels Desktop for Mac window you should change the screen resolution of the guest OS.In order to change screen resolution in a Windows guest OS, please do the following:

1. Install Parallels Tools into your VM. When your Windows VM is running, and you are logged in, choose Install Parallels Tools from the VM menu.
2. To change the screen resolution in Windows, click Start- Control Panel - Appearance and Themes (for Control Panel in Category View) or Display - Settings (for Control Panel in Classic View).
3. After that, choose Preferences from the Parallels Desktop menu. On the User Interface tab, select the Allow to change guest screen resolution option, and clear the Allow to change Mac OS X screen resolution box. Click OK. This allows your guest Windows OS to run with native Mac OS X resolution while in full screen and at the custom resolution specified by you while in window mode.

Or, in the latest versions of Parallels Desktop, you can just use the common MacOS X window resizing operation by dragging the corner of the Parallels window with the guest Windows OS and Parallels Tools installed.

I’m having problems using copy/paste and drag and drop between my Parallels virtual machine and my Mac.
Sometimes Windows closes or compromises applications that aren’t operating properly, and does so without alerting the user. This may have been the case with Parallels Tools, and you may need to reinstall Parallels Tools.
How to fix it:

1. Right-click on the Parallels icon in the Windows tray, and choose Exit.
2. Go to C:/ - Program Files - Parallels - Parallels Tools, and run ParallelsToolsCenter.