Firewire/Thunderbolt device is not working in Parallels Desktop

Symptoms

My Firewire®/Thunderbolt® device is not working in a Windows virtual machine.

Cause

Unsupported device or its misconfiguration.

Resolution

Parallels Desktop supports the use of only mass storage Firewire®/Thunderbolt® devices directly in virtual machines.

NOTE: Firewire® to USB adapters are not supported in Parallels Desktop due to lack of compatibility with hardware and missed functionality.

Devices like scanners and printers can be used in Parallels Desktop via Sharing features.

To find out how to use the external graphics card in Parallels Desktop, see KB 124266.

Having the external sound card gives you an opportunity to share sound between Mac and Windows sides. Make sure to enable the following feature in the virtual machine's configuration > Hardware > Sound > Sync volume with Mac.

Some external displays that connected to the Mac via Thunderbolt® may appear in the Devices > USB & Bluetooth menu thus may be accidentally forwarded to the virtual machine directly rendering them unusable on the Mac side until disconnected or Mac rebooted. Go to Mac menu bar > Devices > USB & Bluetooth and make sure that your external display is not be checked in the list.

Additionally, check Parallels Desktop preferences for any permanent assignment of any Firewire®/Thunderbolt® devices to a virtual machine:

1. Click on Parallels Desktop icon (II) on the Mac menu bar > Preferences...
2. Go to the Devices tab and make sure that none of your Firewire®/Thunderbolt® devices are set to be connected to a virtual machine.
3. To change where to connect a device to, double-click on it under Connect to section and change assignment to Your Mac.
4. Close the preferences window and try using the device on the Mac side.