Desktops are an important part of your IT infrastructure. Companies can choose to use either virtual and physical desktops or use both approaches. Each approach has its own strengths and drawbacks. Here are some advantages of using a virtual desktop compared to a physical desktop:

• Flexibility and scalability: Virtual desktops can easily be provisioned or de-provisioned, meaning that the number of desktops can be scaled up or down depending on the needs of the organization. Distributing a virtual desktop to an end user is a fast process since a virtual desktop can be accessed remotely.

  Scaling up using physical desktops often involves buying additional hardware or implementing a strategy to keep stock of certain hardware. This hardware needs to be configured before handing over the desktop to the user, which can take up more time.

• Resource utilization: Virtual desktops can run together on a physical machine, which allows for better resource...

Windows 365 enables companies to stream a full desktop from the Microsoft cloud to the desktop of the user. Users can perform their daily tasks including accessing their company applications and data from the desktop in the Microsoft cloud, also referred to as a Cloud PC.

There are a lot of advantages to using Windows 365 when compared to a modern managed physical or virtual desktop for both IT admins and end users. Here are some key advantages:

• Advantages for IT admins:
  • Windows 365 is a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) offering, which means that Microsoft takes care of a lot of complex tasks. IT admins do not need as much technical knowledge when compared to other VDI solutions.
  • Another advantage of SaaS is that it uses a per-user/per-month licensing model. Licenses can easily be scaled to company needs by adding or removing them.
  • IT admins can easily determine the total cost of licenses on a per user basis.
  • IT admins can use Microsoft Intune to manage Windows...

Azure Virtual Desktop is a Cloud VDI and offered as a Platform as a Service (PaaS). This means that companies can leverage all the scalability and flexibility that the Microsoft cloud provides. Using Azure Virtual Desktop has additional benefits such as running a multi-session operating system where multiple users can sign in to the same session host at the same time or provide a RemoteApp instance instead of a full desktop. A big advantage compared to the traditional Remote Desktop Services is that Microsoft manages the backend infrastructure, such as gateways and licensing.

The following diagram shows the components that Microsoft manages, and which components in turn need to be managed by the customer.

Figure 1.8 – Components managed by Microsoft and by the customer

The only component that we don’t see in the preceding diagram is security. You can leverage the default security that Microsoft offers...

Licensing Windows 365 works differently than that for Azure Virtual Desktop. Let’s start with Windows 365!

Licensing Windows 365

Windows 365 Business does not have any prerequisites and licenses are assigned on a per-user/per-month basis.

Windows 365 Enterprise does have the following prerequisites:

• Windows 10/11 Enterprise
• Microsoft Intune
• Microsoft Entra ID P1

Chances are that companies already have these prerequisites covered if they are using a Microsoft 365 bundle license. For example, the Microsoft 365 E3 (or higher), Microsoft A3 (or higher), and the Microsoft 365 Business Premium bundles already have these prerequisites included.

Windows 365 Enterprise licenses are assigned on a per-user/per-month basis.

Windows 365 Frontline has the same prerequisites as Windows 365 Enterprise. Licenses are assigned to a group instead of on a per-user basis. This group will be assigned to a provisioning...

Earlier in this chapter, we talked about the Windows 365 app, which is a great way to connect to your Cloud PC and provide users with self-service capabilities. One drawback of the app is that it is specifically for Windows 365. It cannot connect to desktops hosted in Azure Virtual Desktop. That’s where the new Windows App comes in. This modern app is installed via the Microsoft Store, or by using Microsoft Intune for managed devices, which means it will automatically be updated without any action required from the IT admins.

The new Windows App provides a unified experience to connect to Microsoft-based virtual desktops. In the following table, you can see which platforms and virtual desktops are supported.

Figure 1.12 – The platforms and solutions to which Windows App can connect

Windows App has two sections that users can open via the sidebar. The top icon and default section that opens is named Home. Users can...

In this chapter, you have learned the advantages of Windows 365 and Azure Virtual Desktop and the differences between them. While both provide a great way to deploy virtual desktops in the Microsoft cloud, each solution has its own advantages. You learned how to connect to each solution and how to properly license your users for Windows 365 and Azure Virtual Desktop. And last but not least, you gained insights into the new Windows App.

Join us in the next chapter as we look at the why. Why is it important to secure (virtual) desktops, and what are the possible consequences when they are not secured properly?