On Tuesday, Apple released updated versions of its Boot Camp support software, which allows users to install Windows operating systems on a separate partition to run natively on Intel-based Macs. Two versions of the update were released: version 5.1.5640 for certain mid- and late-2013 model iMacs and MacBooks, and version 5.1.5621 for other machines. The updates bring Windows drivers for supporting 64-bit Windows 7 and Windows 8 installations.
Instructions for the downloads ask users to copy the entire contents of the Boot Camp 5 folder to the root level of a USB flash drive, or hard drive formatted for Windows’ FAT file system. Once that is done, users should open the existing Windows installation, located the USB flash drive and run the setup program from it to install the supporting software. A system restart of Windows will be required.
Owners of the “mid-2013” 11- or 13-inch MacBook Airs, the 13- or 15-inch “late 2013” MacBook Pros, and the late 2013 21.5- and 27-inch iMacs should user version 5.1.5640 rather than the 5.1.5621 version. The update must be downloaded, and does not appear in Software Update.