Windows Virtual Desktop is now called Azure Virtual Desktop

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Microsoft renames Microsoft Virtual Desktop to Azure Virtual Desktop. The company reports this in a blog post. The service is also getting new features, which should help employees who work both in the office and from home.

With Azure Virtual Desktop allows users to use a virtualized Windows installation in the cloud from the Azure platform, as the name suggests. This allows users to access their PC and files from anywhere. Since the outbreak of the coronavirus, the platform has been used by companies, among others, so that employees can always access their work computers, even when they work from home. According to Microsoft, the service can also be used by ‘hybrid’ employees who work from multiple locations.

In addition to the new name, the service will also receive new functions. For example, Azure Virtual Desktop gains support for managing multi-session virtual machines in Microsoft EndPoint Manager. Multi-session virtual machines allow multiple users to share a single VM. System administrators can thus manage such VMs in the future through EndPoint Manager, just as they can with physical Windows devices. That should make it easier for system administrators to roll out applications and updates to such VMs. This feature is currently available in preview.

Furthermore, support for Azure Active Directory is also improved. It is used by organizations to manage users’ virtual machines and app access, and to handle security features. In the future, users will be able to more easily associate their Azure Virtual Desktop instances with Azure Active Directory and thus more easily connect to the virtual machines from “any device”. In the future, this AAD integration will get new security features, such as support for FIDO2 and single sign-on . The Azure Active Directory integration will be available in preview soon.

Also, Azure Virtual Desktop gets a new QuickStart option that allows users to set up a virtual machine faster. According to the company, this should be possible within a few minutes. A preview version of this feature will also be available soon. In addition, Microsoft is announcing a new pricing option for remote app streaming , which allows companies to stream an app to remote users. Starting January 1, that feature for apps will cost $5.50 per month per user. For apps and desktops, companies must pay $10 per user per month. The feature is free to use between July 14 and December 31, 2021.

Update: Initially, the article stated that the new pricing options for remote app streaming apply to employees of companies. That is not the case; these prices are for external users. The article has been adapted accordingly.

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