Spatial/Tech

www.allenfinchum.net

Stillwater, OK USA

Welcome - this site is a personal blog where I discuss issues related to Tech and Geography (two of my favorite issues) along with an occasional sports comment on one of my favorite teams.  There is no real schedule for updates, I will simply add things as something interesting comes up.  Comments in this blog are the thoughts and opinions of the author, and do not reflect the position of Oklahoma State University or the OSU Department of Geography in any manner.

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ArcGIS Pro and M1/M2 (ARM/Apple Silicon) Mac

January 03, 2023  /  Allen Finchum

I have been looking around on the web for comments on using ArcGIS Pro on an M1/M2 (ARM) Mac, but have only found some limited postings so far - here are my thoughts.  I currently own both an M1 Max 14” MacBook Pro (2021) and an M2 MacBook Air (2022), and I have been using a Mac as my day to day system since 2006 - and I have used a Mac from time to time since the mid-1980s, so I am very familiar with the platform., Prior to the ARM Mac’s my systems since 2006 had Intel processors which allowed for ArcGIS Pro to run in either a Windows VM (using Parallels or other VM system) or on Boot Camp.  However, when the ARM systems came out the question for people like me was if it would be possible in any manner.  My choice to use a Mac as my daily machine is because I prefer to use a Mac when it is the option – however, ArcGIS Pro is built to run on Intel based systems.

When I purchased the MacBook Pro in 2021 I wondered if I could still use a Mac for ArcGIS or if I would need to get a Windows system for running ArcGIS Pro.  Since Boot Camp is not an option on these systems I needed to be able use a VM system compiled for the M1 processor.  When Parallels was updated to run on the M1 I decided to see what would happen if I tried to make a way to run ArcGIS on a Mac again.  I installed Parallels 17 (now on v18) and installed the ARM version of Windows 11.  I then took the install media for the Intel based ESRI software and sort of crossed my fingers and began the install process – and IT INSTALLED normally.  That gave me hope – and then I started the software and it opened up normally.

From that point I tinkered with several processes I run frequently and they worked, and worked well.  These ARM based Macs are incredibly fast and fun to use, and the fact that even with the processor transition it can still run this very large and complex Intel based software is astounding.  My MacBook Pro also has 64GB RAM and I assign 32GB to the VM.  Here is what I assume is happening – the VM (ARM based) contains a specific Windows OS that is for the ARM platform.  And then within the VM and ARM Windows OS there is some form of emulation that allows ArcGIS Pro to run properly.  I simply find this amazing – especially since ArcGIS is running as quicky as it has for me on several laptops (both Windows and Mac) I have used in the last few years.  While there are a few minor little hiccups, none are significantly different than I experienced on Intel based Macs using a standard Windows VM.

I have to laud Apple, Microsoft, Parallels, and ESRI for building hardware platforms, operating systems, and application software that is able to work properly through all of these complications.  As I said, I prefer to use a Mac for my normal computing, and my use of ArcGIS (especially since my retirement) has been occasional, so I had little motivation to purchase a separate machine to run one piece of software – a large and important application yes, but an application that I only use from time to time.  The power and flexibility of the M1/M2 platform, the ability to run a fully functional combination of software like this is fantastic for the user.

More recently I have set up the same combination of software on the M2 MacBook Air with 24GB RAM (12GB assigned to the VM).  ArcGIS Pro runs almost as fast on this system as on the MacBook Pro.  If I am using a larger dataset and/or running some more complex processes I can tell the process is slower, but not to any extreme level – I would guess most processes on the Air run at 80-90% of the speed as the MacBook Pro – the Air is an astonishing little machine.  While the Pro is faster, has a dedicated active cooling system, and a better screen – the fact that this slim, fanless machine can run these processes in an acceptable manner is just incredible.

I know some will tell me to just use a Windows system, but my choice for my other computing needs are well served by the Mac and it is the system I prefer to use when I can.  If you are happy using a Windows system I encourage you to do so, especially if you are an ArcGIS Pro user – I have no problem encouraging people to go that route.  But if your preference is to use a Mac and run ArcGIS in a VM, my experience says it is possible and that the software runs well.  This experience simply proves the strength of the new Mac ARM/Apple Silicon platform, and if you prefer the Mac this is a workable solution.

As I continue to use ArcGIS Pro on the Apple Silicon platform I will consider posting more, and if you have any questions I am willing to consider them. 

Have a nice day.

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