Windows 10 reaches end of support on October 14, 2025. A great place to learn about all the Windows 10 Extended Security Updates (ESU) options is in our blog post, When to use Windows 10 Extended Security Updates.
In this article, I will provide more detail on the Windows 10 lifecycle for Windows 365 across the following scenarios:
- Existing Cloud PCs running Windows 10
- Creating new and reprovisioned Cloud PCs with Windows 10
- How to create a Windows 10 custom image with Extended Security Updates
- ESUs for physical PCs that connect to Windows 365
- Microsoft 365 Apps support for Windows 10
- Windows 10 ESU support
Existing Cloud PCs running Windows 10
On existing Cloud PCs running Windows 10 22H2 in Azure, ESUs are available at no additional cost—read about the Extended Security Updates (ESU) program for Windows 10 for more information. The ESU program enables PCs to continue to receive critical and important security updates. ESUs will be offered on Cloud PCs running 22H2 when Windows Update or Autopatch is run without requiring any admin action. Updates will be installed based on Windows Update configurations of each Cloud PC and are applied automatically after deployment.
Creating new and reprovisioned Cloud PCs with Windows 10
Starting October 14, 2025 the Windows 10 gallery images have been removed and are no longer available to create new provisioning policies. If you still need to create Windows 10-based provisioning policies, please follow the process to create a custom image based on the Azure Marketplace Images that are available until April 14, 2026.
Windows 365 provisioning policies that use Windows 10 22H2 gallery images (with or without Microsoft 365 Apps) will continue to work until April 14, 2026. After that date, these images will be retired and no longer available. For any provisioning policies that still reference these images, the image status will change to “out of support” and new provisioning attempts will fail. To learn more, please read Lifecycle policies and end of support for Cloud PC operating systems.
The final monthly update to the Windows 365 Windows 10 gallery images will be the Windows 10 October 2025 update. Between October 2025 and April 2026, Cloud PCs created will need to install ESUs to be current. Microsoft recommends switching to Windows 11 for a more secure Windows experience.
A Windows 10 22H2 image that contains the October 2025 update will remain published in the Azure Marketplace. This is the same version as published in Volume Licensing and Visual Studio downloads. It does not contain any Windows 365 or Microsoft 365 app customizations.
How to create a Windows 10 custom image with Extended Security Updates
After April 2026, customers that want to create a Windows 10 image will need to create a custom image and import it into Windows 365. Here’s how:
- Create an Azure Virtual Machine using Windows 10 22H2 from Azure Marketplace.
- Note: the last Windows 10 image available is October 2025.
- Perform a Windows Update to ensure the latest ESUs are installed. Multiple reboots may be required.
- Review support details before installing Microsoft 365 apps.
- Follow all instructions for creating and importing custom images into Windows 365.
ESUs for physical PCs that connect to Windows 365
If users are connecting to Cloud PCs from Windows 10 physical PCs that are Intune-managed, each physical PC is automatically entitled to receive Windows 10 ESUs. This benefit’s purpose is to extend the life of Windows 10 PCs that do not meet Windows 11 hardware requirements.
Note: Physical devices connecting to Windows 365 Frontline Shared and Windows 365 Reserve Cloud PCs are not eligible for free ESUs.
Learn more about enabling Extended Security Updates (ESU).
Microsoft 365 Apps support for Windows 10
Visit Windows 10 end of support and Microsoft 365 Apps to learn more.
Windows 10 ESU support
We will determine if the issue pertains to Windows 365 or with Windows 10. If the issue is determined to be with Windows 365, we will support as expected and work towards a resolution to your reported issue. If the issue is determined to pertain to the operating system, we will request/require an attempt to reproduce the same issue on a currently supported version of Windows 11. If that issue is able to reproduce on Windows 11, we will work that issue as it is supported. Once resolved, and if applicable, we can attempt to apply that same solution to the originally reported Windows 10 system. If the Windows 11 solution does not resolve the issue on Windows 10, we would recommend upgrading to Windows 11 as Windows 10 is no longer supported.
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