Windows 11 preview is now available on Azure Virtual Desktop

Azure Virtual Desktop has become a popular cloud VDI platform to run desktops and apps in the cloud and deliver a full Windows experience to users virtually anywhere. Organizations today use it with Windows 10, Windows 7, Windows Server … and now we are pleased to offer Windows 11 on Azure Virtual Desktop. Windows 11 is the operating system for hybrid work and learning. It delivers a more streamlined, more personal computing experience that doesn’t compromise performance, security, and manageability. 

For Windows 11, Azure Virtual Desktop still provides exclusive support for multi-session, an important option that helps you optimize costs by running multiple users on a single Azure virtual machine. You can use Trusted Launch (available in preview) to enable TPM 2.0 and secure boot as part of the VM configuration to take full advantage of the security capabilities in Windows 11.  The user experience with Azure Virtual Desktop is intended to be identical to the local PC experience. Some higher-end graphics effects, such as transparencies, animations, and rounded corners, may require using Azure Virtual Desktop with an Azure VM with the right GPU support.   

Getting started 

Azure Virtual Desktop is a great place for customers to set up their validation environment to try out this new operating system. Enterprise and Education customers can use Azure Virtual Desktop to test Windows 11 now that it is available in the Windows Insider Program. 

You can visit the Azure Marketplace to choose from three Windows 11 images: 

• Windows 11 Enterprise (Preview) 
• Windows 11 Enterprise multi-session (Preview) 
• Windows 11 Enterprise multi-session + Microsoft 365 Apps (Preview) 

Please join the Azure Virtual Desktop Tech Community to share your feedback and compare notes with other users.