What you need to know
- Windows Virtual Desktop is now generally available worldwide.
- The service supports a multi-session Windows 10 experience.
- The service was announced last year and has been in preview since March 2019.
Microsoft announced today that Windows Virtual Desktop is now generally available worldwide. The service supports a multi-session Windows 10 experience, has optimizations for Office 365 ProPlus, and supports Windows Server Remote Desktop Services (RDS). Windows Virtual Desktop was announced last year and entered into preview in March of 2019. Microsoft expands upon the release in a blog post.
In addition to providing a multi-session Windows 10 exprerience, Windows Virtual Desktop can also be used for Windows 7 applications. Extended support for Windows 7 ends in January, but users can legacy applications using Windows Virtual Desktop to virtualize Windows 7 desktops. Free Extended Sercurity Updates will be available through this method until January 2023 according to Microsoft.
Microsoft has focused on virtual technologies for years, and took that further through its acquisition of FSLogix. FSLogix improves Office when running in virtual environments. Microsoft shared that "all FSLogix tools are now fully integrated into Windows Virtual Desktops."
Microsoft also announced several other expansions of Windows Virtual Desktop, including Citrix being able to extend Windows Virtual Desktop worldwide and VMware Horizon Cloud on Microsoft Azure extending Windows Virtual Desktops later this year.
