Azure Virtual Desktop
Author: Ronald Fung
Creation Date: 30 May 2023
Next Modified Date: 30 May 2024
A. Introduction
Azure Virtual Desktop is a desktop and app virtualization service that runs on the cloud.
Here’s what you can do when you run Azure Virtual Desktop on Azure:
Set up a multi-session Windows 11 or Windows 10 deployment that delivers a full Windows experience with scalability
Present Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise and optimize it to run in multi-user virtual scenarios
Bring your existing Remote Desktop Services (RDS) and Windows Server desktops and apps to any computer
Virtualize both desktops and apps
Manage desktops and apps from different Windows and Windows Server operating systems with a unified management experience
Introductory video
Learn about Azure Virtual Desktop (formerly Windows Virtual Desktop), why it’s unique, and what’s new in this video:
For more videos about Azure Virtual Desktop, see our playlist.
Key capabilities
With Azure Virtual Desktop, you can set up a scalable and flexible environment:
Create a full desktop virtualization environment in your Azure subscription without running any gateway servers.
Publish host pools as you need to accommodate your diverse workloads.
Bring your own image for production workloads or test from the Azure Gallery.
Reduce costs with pooled, multi-session resources. With the new Windows 11 and Windows 10 Enterprise multi-session capability, exclusive to Azure Virtual Desktop and the Remote Desktop Session Host (RDSH) role on Windows Server, you can greatly reduce the number of virtual machines and operating system overhead while still providing the same resources to your users.
Provide individual ownership through personal (persistent) desktops.
Use autoscale to automatically increase or decrease capacity based on time of day, specific days of the week, or as demand changes, helping to manage cost.
You can deploy and manage virtual desktops:
Use the Azure portal, Azure CLI, PowerShell and REST API to configure the host pools, create application groups, assign users, and publish resources.
Publish full desktop or individual remote apps from a single host pool, create individual application groups for different sets of users, or even assign users to multiple application groups to reduce the number of images.
As you manage your environment, use built-in delegated access to assign roles and collect diagnostics to understand various configuration or user errors.
Use the new Diagnostics service to troubleshoot errors. = Only manage the image and virtual machines, not the infrastructure. You don’t need to personally manage the Remote Desktop roles like you do with Remote Desktop Services, just the virtual machines in your Azure subscription.
You can also assign and connect users to your virtual desktops:
Once assigned, users can launch any Azure Virtual Desktop client to connect to their published Windows desktops and applications. Connect from any device through either a native application on your device or the Azure Virtual Desktop HTML5 web client.
Securely establish users through reverse connections to the service, so you don’t need to open any inbound ports.
You can see a typical architectural setup of Azure Virtual Desktop for the enterprise in our architecture documentation.
B. How is it used at Seagen
As a biopharma research company that uses Microsoft Azure, Azure Virtual Desktop can be used to provide secure and remote access to applications and data for your employees. Here are some ways that Seagen can use Azure Virtual Desktop:
Remote access: Azure Virtual Desktop allows employees to securely access applications and data from any device with an internet connection, allowing them to work from anywhere.
Centralized management: Azure Virtual Desktop allows for centralized management of virtual machines, applications, and user access, making it easier to manage your IT infrastructure and ensure compliance.
Cost savings: Azure Virtual Desktop can help to reduce IT costs by providing a flexible and scalable solution that can be adjusted as your business needs change.
Security: Azure Virtual Desktop includes security features such as multi-factor authentication, encryption, and access control, helping to ensure that sensitive data is protected from cyber threats.
Application compatibility: Azure Virtual Desktop can be used to provide access to legacy applications that may not be compatible with newer operating systems or hardware.
Collaboration: Azure Virtual Desktop can be used to enable collaboration between employees who are working remotely, allowing them to share data and collaborate on projects in real-time.
Customization: Azure Virtual Desktop can be customized to meet the specific needs of your business, such as configuring virtual machines with specific applications or software.
Overall, Azure Virtual Desktop is a powerful tool for providing secure and remote access to applications and data for your employees. Its remote access, centralized management, cost savings, security, application compatibility, collaboration, and customization features make it an ideal solution for businesses looking to provide flexible and secure remote access to their employees.
C. Features
Azure Virtual Desktop is a cloud-based virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) service that enables users to securely access applications and data from any device with an internet connection. Here are some of the key features of Azure Virtual Desktop:
Remote access: Azure Virtual Desktop allows users to securely access their virtual desktops, applications, and data from any device with an internet connection.
Centralized management: Azure Virtual Desktop allows for centralized management of virtual machines, applications, and user access, making it easier to manage your IT infrastructure and ensure compliance.
Cost savings: Azure Virtual Desktop can help to reduce IT costs by providing a flexible and scalable solution that can be adjusted as your business needs change.
Security: Azure Virtual Desktop includes security features such as multi-factor authentication, encryption, and access control, helping to ensure that sensitive data is protected from cyber threats.
Application compatibility: Azure Virtual Desktop can be used to provide access to legacy applications that may not be compatible with newer operating systems or hardware.
Collaboration: Azure Virtual Desktop can be used to enable collaboration between users who are working remotely, allowing them to share data and collaborate on projects in real-time.
Customization: Azure Virtual Desktop can be customized to meet the specific needs of your business, such as configuring virtual machines with specific applications or software.
User experience: Azure Virtual Desktop provides a seamless user experience, with fast and responsive virtual desktops that can be accessed from anywhere.
Integration: Azure Virtual Desktop integrates with other Azure services and third-party services, allowing you to easily integrate it into your existing IT infrastructure.
Scalability: Azure Virtual Desktop is highly scalable, allowing you to add or remove virtual machines as needed to meet the changing demands of your business.
Overall, Azure Virtual Desktop is a powerful tool for providing secure and remote access to applications and data for your users. Its remote access, centralized management, cost savings, security, application compatibility, collaboration, customization, user experience, integration, and scalability features make it an ideal solution for businesses looking to provide flexible and secure remote access to their employees.
D. Where Implemented
E. How it is tested
Testing Azure Virtual Desktop involves verifying that the virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) is functioning correctly and that it is effectively providing secure and remote access to applications and data. Here are some steps you can take to test Azure Virtual Desktop:
Verify remote access: Verify that users can securely access their virtual desktops, applications, and data from any device with an internet connection.
Test centralized management: Test the centralized management capabilities of Azure Virtual Desktop by verifying that virtual machines, applications, and user access can be easily managed from a single location.
Test cost savings: Test the cost savings capabilities of Azure Virtual Desktop by evaluating the flexibility and scalability of the solution and verifying that it can be adjusted as business needs change.
Test security: Test the security features of Azure Virtual Desktop by attempting to exploit known vulnerabilities and verifying that they are successfully mitigated by the security features.
Test application compatibility: Test the application compatibility capabilities of Azure Virtual Desktop by providing access to legacy applications that may not be compatible with newer operating systems or hardware.
Test collaboration: Test the collaboration capabilities of Azure Virtual Desktop by enabling users to share data and collaborate on projects in real-time.
Test customization: Test the customization capabilities of Azure Virtual Desktop by configuring virtual machines with specific applications or software.
Test user experience: Test the user experience of Azure Virtual Desktop by verifying that virtual desktops are fast and responsive, and that users can seamlessly access their applications and data.
Test integration: Test the integration capabilities of Azure Virtual Desktop by integrating it with other Azure services and third-party services.
Test scalability: Test the scalability of Azure Virtual Desktop by adding or removing virtual machines as needed to meet the changing demands of your business.
Overall, testing Azure Virtual Desktop involves verifying that the VDI is functioning correctly and that it is effectively providing secure and remote access to applications and data. By verifying remote access, testing centralized management, testing cost savings, testing security, testing application compatibility, testing collaboration, testing customization, testing user experience, testing integration, and testing scalability, you can ensure that Azure Virtual Desktop is effectively providing secure and remote access to applications and data and that your virtual desktop infrastructure is working as intended.
F. 2023 Roadmap
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G. 2024 Roadmap
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H. Known Issues
As with any software, there may be known issues or limitations that users should be aware of when using Azure Virtual Desktop. Here are some of the known issues for Azure Virtual Desktop:
Limited scalability: Azure Virtual Desktop may have scalability limitations when it comes to large deployments, which may impact the ability of users to add or remove virtual machines as needed.
Limited hardware support: Azure Virtual Desktop may not be compatible with all hardware platforms, which may limit the ability of users to run the service on their existing hardware.
Limited software support: Azure Virtual Desktop may not be compatible with all software applications or programming languages, which may limit the ability of users to use the service with their existing software stack.
Performance issues: Azure Virtual Desktop may experience performance issues when running multiple virtual machines or when processing large amounts of data.
Compatibility issues: Azure Virtual Desktop may have compatibility issues when integrating with other Azure services or third-party services.
Security concerns: As with any remote access solution, there may be security concerns related to Azure Virtual Desktop. Users must take appropriate measures to protect sensitive data and ensure that their virtual desktop infrastructure is properly secured.
Overall, while Azure Virtual Desktop is a powerful tool for providing secure and remote access to applications and data for your users, users must be aware of these known issues and take steps to mitigate their impact. This may include carefully selecting hardware platforms and software that are compatible with Azure Virtual Desktop, carefully configuring the service to meet the specific needs of their business, providing training and support to users to effectively use and manage Azure Virtual Desktop, and carefully integrating Azure Virtual Desktop with other Azure services and third-party services to minimize the risk of compatibility issues.
[x] Reviewed by Enterprise Architecture
[x] Reviewed by Application Development
[x] Reviewed by Data Architecture