Posted On 05 Aug 2021
Microsoft has developed a new service, Windows 365, that gives access to a Cloud PC via a streamed version of Windows 10 or 11. While this is by no means the first service to offer virtual PCs, Microsoft is leveraging the opportunities offered by the new remote working paradigm developed during the pandemic.
Users will be able to connect to their Cloud PC using various devices, either with an up-to-date web browser or the dedicated Remote Desktop app from Microsoft. One useful feature is that when a user switches devices, for example from an iPad to an Android phone, the PC will be in the same state as it was on the previous device.
The new service will be launched on August 2 for a monthly subscription (prices have yet to be released); it will initially only be for business users, from single person operations to multinational companies.
Two iterations of the new service will be available, Business and Enterprise. Both versions use the Azure Virtual Desktop, and users can select the configuration of the Cloud PC with from one to eight CPUs, 2 GB to 32 GB of RAM, and 64 GB to 512 GB of storage. 12 individual configurations will be available in both versions of the new service.
As previously mentioned, having a PC in the cloud is not a new concept, where even Microsoft provided a similar service using Azure, but the company claims that the new service will be far easier to use and to manage than existing offerings and is hoping that many organizations that were previously deterred by the complexity or cost of using cloud PCs will be won over.
Creating a new cloud PC for an employee can be done very quickly and there is no need for employees to have any specific hardware, a great advantage to any organization whose workers are remote or on temporary contracts. With the whole PC being in the cloud, there are no security concerns about employees using their own hardware.
The timing of the new offering is fortuitous, given that many businesses are moving towards a hybrid home/office work balance, but Microsoft has been working on the new service for a few years, although the company did accelerate development to make it available more quickly. Many industry observers believe that the new business offering is the start of a development that may ultimately see individual home users offered PCs in the cloud as well.
