Windows 365/ Cloud PCs have got very popular very soon and also came a long way in a very short period of time.
I wanted to write a blog about Windows 365 and its capabilities for a while now mainly because the reason it being how closely connected Microsoft Intune and Azure AD. This is for anyone who is starting out with the product and or needs to try it out the product. So let’s get started.
What I will be covering? 👇🏽
- What is Windows 365 and What will this Answer?
- What do you need to have to get started?
- Sort out the Licensing Requirements
- Right Size the CPC
- Windows 365 Portal
- Windows 365 App
- Wrapping Up
What is Windows 365 and What will this Answer?
A highly available VM in the cloud that is optimized to do more and personalised. Simply put, it’s Windows in the cloud. Windows as a Service or Cloud PC in other words. There are 2 flavors at the moment.
Once you have the license and proper infrastructure, you can start provisioning them to your users according to the requirements.
Hybrid work has become a buzzword in organizations with the rise of the pandemic and it is here to stay. I mean Hybrid work, not the pandemic 🙂
With this, the IT departments are making every effort to make their devices ready for Hybrid work. VPN, Remote Desktop Services, and other ways of connecting to the corporate infrastructure.
Enter Windows 365. This provides the users with the same experience from anywhere, any device that they launch the session from. IT departments can now provision the Cloud PCs (CPC) very easily and it will not take a long time get to up and running.
Power of the cloud hey?
The best thing is it is still protected with the same security features you are using for your Identity Infrastruue (Eg: MFA)
What do you need to have to get started?
This is the high-level of the components and I will be covering them in my upcoming blog posts.
- M365 Admin Portal
- Proper W365 License
- A W365 provisioning Policy
- Azure environment (vNet etc) to connect the device as Hybrid
- Proper RBAC accounts
Sort out the Licensing Requirements
Windows 365 Enterprise
To take the advantage of all things related to Enterprise benefits, users should be assigned with below
Each user that is assigned with a CPC should have Windows 10 Enterprise or Windows 11 Enterprise along with Microsoft Intune, Azure Active Directory Premium P1
Microsoft Intune, AAD Premium P1 and Windows 10/11 Enterprise is included in Microsoft 365 F3, Microsoft 365 E3, Microsoft 365 E5, Microsoft 365 A3, Microsoft 365 A5, Microsoft 365 Business Premium, and Microsoft 365 Education Student
Check M365 Maps by Aaron Dinnage as he has made understanding licensing so easy (hats off!!!!)
Compare Windows 365 Enterprise and Business versions
Compare the features between Windows 365 Business and Enterprise versions from this link
Right Size the CPC
If you are new to this, to get an understanding of the costs, you can go to this link to get an idea about how much you will be paying
As mentioned earlier, it is vital to understand the user requirements and what application they need to open in the CPC, Then you can purchase the licenses appropriately.
Go to Cloud PC Chooser link here as that will guide you to go for the right sizing. Once you are done with the wizard you will get something similar to below.
while you can always check this with your CSP or the PS partner, you can go to M365 Admin Portal > Billing > Purchase Services
And search Windows 365.
Windows 365 Portal
This is where the fun begins! Sorry Anakin, I had to use your line because this is where the fun begins for real 🙂
Now that you have purchased the licenses, go through the below steps to provision and configure the devices. The nitty-gritty of how to provision your first CPC will be published in the next Windows 365 blog post as that will be easier for you to digest
- Go to the Intune Portal (endpoint.microsoft.com) > Devices > Windows 365
- Overview of the page
Windows 365 App
Before a dedicated app is being released, the app to use was the Microsoft Remote Desktop app
But in the Ignite 2022, the Windows 365 App was announced and at the moment this is in Preview mode and can be downloaded from the Microsoft Store.
Because the CPC is not provisioned yet when my user logs in they will be getting the below message.
Wrapping Up
The power of cloud computing at your fingertips, this term is accurate because it really is. I want to look at many good things that Windows 365 brought to light over the past few months and my main idea is if anyone is to make this guide easy to understand so it can be used if anyone is starting with Windows 365.
I will be looking at how to provision your first CPC in the next Windows 365 blog post.
EMS Route - Shehan Perera 
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