Get started with Windows 365 Business

[Christiaan_Brinkhoff]

Windows 365 Business is a version of Windows 365 made specifically for use in smaller companies (up to 300 seats). It offers an easy, streamlined way of providing Cloud PCs to your users.

Users want technology that is familiar, easy to use, and always available so they can work and create fluidly across devices. Cloud PC makes this possible by combining the power and security of the cloud with the familiarity of the PC. Only Microsoft can bring together the PC and the cloud with a consistent and integrated Windows experience.

What is a Cloud PC? It is your personalized desktop, apps, data, settings, and content streamed securely from the cloud directly to your device. It enables you to decrease costs while lowering the complexity of your environment as you deploy and manage virtual endpoints in Microsoft Endpoint Manager. No additional virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) expertise or resources are needed.

What is Windows 365?

Windows 365 is the world’s first Cloud PC. With a Cloud PC, Windows evolves from a device-based OS to hybrid personalized computing.

Windows 365 enables you to:

• Procure, provision, and deploy in minutes, with automated OS updates.
• Offers user anywhere access to their personalized Windows desktop experience.
• Tailor compute and configurations for an elastic workforce.
• Pick up where you left off on the device of your choice.
• Optimize experiences on Windows endpoints.
• Scale confidently with per-user pricing.

Windows 365 Business supports Windows 11 now

It's simple to get started with Windows 365 Business today. The steps are easy to perform and no deep technical knowledge is needed to deploy Cloud PC. In fact, your users can be productive in less than 30 minutes!   

Windows 365 Business vs. Enterprise

Windows 365 Business is designed for any organization that wants to deploy cloud PCs for 300 seats or fewer. There are no technology prerequisites; simply utilize the Windows 365 cloud portal to purchase, deploy and manage Cloud PCs any time.

Windows 365 Business is built for simplicity. You don't need an Azure subscription or domain controller because everything works with Azure AD natively—with all the components running inside the Microsoft cloud and managed by Microsoft.

You can purchase Windows 365 Business directly from the Microsoft 365 admin center, set up your account without a domain, and provision and manage cloud PCs directly from the Windows 365 web portal.

No other Microsoft licenses are required; your organization can get started with just a credit card if desired.

	Windows 365 Business	Windows 365 Enterprise
Click –to-provision directly from product page	X
"No-domain" set up	X
Self-serve troubleshooting – reset	X
"Cloud Save" (minimal Azure storage and potentially OneDrive for Business)	X	X
Self-serve upgrades		X
Universal Print integration		X
Partner/programmatic enablement (Graph APIs, MSP tooling)		X
Custom images		X
Image management [store, replicate, deploy]		X
Microsoft Endpoint Manager policy-driven provisioning, management and guided scenarios		X
Endpoint analytics reporting and monitoring		X
Service health, operational health alerts		X
Connection to on-premises [networks, apps, resources] + diagnostics		X
Advanced Microsoft Endpoint Manager-based troubleshooting and device management		X

Note: More interested in Windows 365 Enterprise? Read Get started with Windows 365 Enterprise.

Windows 365 Business features

Self-service capabilities for end users

End users can perform maintenance on cloud PCs easily via the Windows 365 web portal. Let's look at the actions that are supported:

• Restart. Restarts the Cloud PC.
• Rename. Changes the name of the Cloud PC shown to the user on windows365.microsoft.com.
• Reset. Reset does the following:
  • Reinstalls Windows.
  • Removes your personal files (OneDrive data remains).
  • Removes any changes you made to settings.
  • Removes your apps.

Note: Before resetting your Cloud PC, make sure to back up any important files you need to keep to a cloud storage service or external storage. Resetting your Cloud PC will delete these files.

End user - self-service capabilities

Native Azure AD support

Windows 365 Business supports Azure AD natively and, therefore, doesn't require organizations to have an existing Active Directory domain or Azure subscription.

Windows 11 support for newly created Cloud PCs

Windows 11 is the operating system for hybrid work, delivering new experiences that work how you do. By default, new Cloud PCs will come with Windows 11 installed, so users can take advantage of the latest features and security improvements in the OS.

From windows365.microsoft.com, users will be able to easily distinguish between their Windows 10 and Windows 11 Cloud PCs as shown below.

Windows365.microsoft.com with options to launch a Windows 11 or Windows 10 Cloud PC

Enhanced admin capabilities

Windows 365 Business admins will have much greater control over the lifecycle of Cloud PCs in their organization, including the ability to manage organization-wide Cloud PC settings and perform device-level actions. These settings and actions will be configurable both in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center and on windows365.microsoft.com.

Admins who are already comfortable managing in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center can continue to manage there. Admins who are managing a smaller number of users or products can perform license, user, and Cloud PC management all from within windows365.microsoft.com.

At the organization level, admins will be able to control two settings:

• OS: By default, new Cloud PCs will have Windows 11. Admins can change the default to Windows 10 if that better suits their organization’s needs.
• Account type: By default, new Cloud PCs will be set up with a Standard user account type. If an admin chooses, they can change the default to Local Administrator to allow users to install apps and change all settings on their Cloud PC. Read on for more details on the “change account type” functionality.

The OS and Account type organization settings will apply during the Cloud PC setup process.

At the device level, admins will be able to perform five actions:

• Change account type: Admins will be able to seamlessly switch the role of user on their Cloud PC between Standard user and Local Administrator.
• Restart: Admins can restart a user’s Cloud PC on their behalf.
• Reset: If a user is having trouble with their Cloud PC, admins will be able to reset the Cloud PC for them. This will:
  • Reinstall Windows (with the option to choose between Windows 11 and Windows 10).
  • Remove all apps and locally stored files.
  • Remove changes made to settings.
• Rename: Admins can change the Cloud PC name that users see on windows365.microsoft.com.
• Troubleshoot: Troubleshoot checks whether your organization’s Cloud PCs are in a connectable state. If there are any issues preventing a user from connecting to their Cloud PC, admins are given guidance on how to resolve them. (Troubleshoot is coming early 2022.)

Admins will be able to perform other basic management capabilities on windows365.microsoft.com, including:

• Create and delete users
• Reset passwords
• Manage licenses for Windows 365 Cloud PCs and Microsoft 365 products

Cloud PC management capabilities on windows365.microsoft.com

 

Partner support

Microsoft Graph APIs

All Cloud PC device actions can be triggered by the Microsoft Graph APIs. Partners can use the Graph API documentation to build custom Windows 365 solutions to match the needs of their users or customers.

Deploying Windows 365 Business

Note: Before starting, make sure that your Azure AD device settings for Users may join devices to Azure AD are set to All. This would avoid any errors during the provisioning process as the cloud PCs cannot be added to your Azure AD directory. 

Users may join devices to Azure AD needs to be set to All.

Purchase your cloud PC size license

First, visit admin.microsoft.com to purchase your Windows 365 Business licenses just as would do for other licenses such as Microsoft 365 Apps or Microsoft 365 Business Premium.

Purchase the license and size of your cloud PC that fits your use case best. Here is a breakdown for the different license options we provide as part of Windows 365 Cloud PC. For more information, see Windows 365 Business sizing options.

CPU, RAM, and storage	Example scenarios	Recommended apps
1vCPU/2GB/64GB	Frontline workers, Call centers, Education/training/CRM access.	Office light (web-based), Microsoft Edge, OneDrive, lightweight line-of-business app (e.g. call center application – web-apps), Defender support.
2vCPU/4GB/256GB 2vCPU/4GB/128GB 2vCPU/4GB/64GB	Mergers and acquisition, Short-term and seasonal, Customer Services, Bring-Your-Own-PC, Work from home	Microsoft 365 Apps, Microsoft Teams (audio-only), Outlook, Excel, PowerPoint, OneDrive, Adobe Reader, Edge, Line-of-business app s) , Defender support.
2vCPU/8GB/256GB 2vCPU/8GB/128GB	Bring-Your-Own-PC, Work from home, Market Researchers, Government, consultants	Microsoft 365 Apps, Microsoft Teams, Outlook, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, OneDrive, Adobe Reader, Edge, Line-of-business app s) , Defender support.
4vCPU/16GB/512GB 4vCPU/16GB/256GB 4vCPU/16GB/128GB	Finance, Government, consultants, Healthcare services, Bring-Your-Own-PC, Work from home	Microsoft 365 Apps, Microsoft Teams, Outlook, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, PowerBi, Dynamics 365, OneDrive, Adobe Reader, Edge, Line-of-business app s), Defender support.
8vCPU/32GB/512GB 8vCPU/32GB/256GB 8vCPU/32GB/128GB	Software developers, engineers, Content Creators, Design and Engineering workstations	Microsoft 365 Apps, Microsoft Teams, Outlook, Access, OneDrive, Adobe Reader, Edge, PowerBi, Visual Studio Code, Line-of-business app s), Defender support.

Once you have selected your license and size preferences, enter your email and complete the ordering process.

Once the order process is finished, select Continue to return to the Microsoft 365 admin center console.

Assign licenses to users

In the Microsoft 365 admin center, under Users, select Active users.

Select the users you want to assign a Windows 365 Business cloud PC.

Select Licenses and apps.

Assign your user the Windows 365 Business license, and save your changes.

The cloud PC for the user will immediately be provisioned, no IT admin interaction is needed after the license assignment, very simple!

Log on to the Windows 365 web portal

Visit the Windows 365 web portal at windows365.microsoft.com. Here you will see that the Cloud PC is being created for the user – automatic and very simple!

The process will take around 10 – 30 minutes. After that, the user can directly log on to their cloud PC.

The end user experience

As explained in the beginning of this post, end users can perform all kinds of self-service options from the Windows 365 web portal, such as performing a system reset, restart, or rename. End users can also perform troubleshooting steps.

For example, I can rename my Windows 365 Cloud PC to "My cloud PC – Christiaan Brinkhoff" from within the portal.

Now let’s select Open in browser to see if my Windows 365 Cloud PC works.

Select the desired level of access that the Cloud PC to your local resources.

And yes, it does! :smiling_face_with_smiling_eyes: In less than one hour, my Cloud PC is ready for productivity with Microsoft 365 Apps, OneDrive, Microsoft Edge and Teams (Optimized) pre-installed and configured for me out of the box!

Note: Microsoft 365 Apps and Teams is only supported on 2vCPU/4GB/64GB and higher SKUs.

Log on to your cloud PC via the Remote Desktop Client

Just like Windows 365 Enterprise, it’s also possible to use other clients such as the Remote Desktop client for Windows, macOS, iOS and Android. You can find all the clients at the downloads tab in the Windows 365 web portal.

The most common endpoint client you will use with the highest level of device redirection support is the Windows Remote Desktop client for Windows. Please verify before moving forward if your domain scenario is supported.

Note: Make sure to align with one of the following endpoint domain configuration scenarios to logon to an Azure AD joined Cloud PC via the Remote Desktop (MSRDC) client. This only applies to Windows-based endpoints.

Windows endpoint domain scenario	Supported?
Not AAD joined or AD joined	Yes
AAD joined or AD joined from the same domain	Yes
AD joined from another domain, but AAD registered to the same domain	Yes
AD or AAD joined from another domain, and NOT registered to the same domain	No

After downloading the client, Subscribe your Azure AD user in the app.

Then simply launch your Cloud PC from your Windows endpoint.

Note: It will also add your Cloud PC into the local start menu of your endpoint for a smoother and quicker entry path.

We support a variety of endpoints, see below the differences in support in device redirection features to pick the best endpoint for your scenario.

	Windows Desktop	Store client	Android	iOS/iPadOS	macOS	Web
Keyboard	X	X	X	X	X	X
Mouse	X	X	X	X*	X	X
Touch	X	X	X	X		X
Serial port	X
USB	X
Teams AV Redirection	X
Multi-media redirection	Coming soon
Multi-monitor	16 monitors
Dynamic resolution	X	X			X	X
Screen capture protection	X
Cameras	X		X	X	X
Start menu integration	X
Clipboard	X	X	Text	Text, images	X	text
Local drive/storage	X		X	X	X
Accessibility	X
Location	X
Microphones	X	X	Coming soon	X	X	In preview
Printers	X				X (CUPS only)	PDF print
Scanners	X
Smart Cards	X				X
Speakers	X	X	X	X	X	X

Need help? Visit the Windows 365 Tech Community!

Visit the new Windows 365 Tech Community to connect with other people seeking to learn and help each other while adopting Windows 365 and Cloud PC.

Have ideas on what features you'd like to see in this service? Submit them through the Windows 365 feature requests board!

[James van den Berg]

Thank you @Christiaan_Brinkhoff for Sharing with the Community 

[HansWalter]

Thank you @Christiaan_Brinkhoff for Sharing with the Community.

I got my License for Windows 365 Business and assigned it.

Now it says Setting up cloud PC but it it Sitting there vor Hours and not 10 to 30 Minutes.

Stucks at VSB_Policy_with_Microsoft_365_Apps.

So no clue what should i do.

[raymondesray]

@Christiaan_Brinkhoff , Great article, keep up the good work!
For the Business and Enterprise version of Windows365, FSLogix is not supported, right?
What about a backup functionality since the VM is not accessible by Azure administrators?

Let's say, user has 1 license assigned and VM is stuck/does nothing at all. Removing license will remove the Cloud PC stream? Re-assign license and the user will get a new instance/stream? Too quick, re-provisioning could be a potential solution Provisioning in Windows 365 | Microsoft Docs

[phil_lenovo]

I too, am experiencing what @HansWalter  is experiencing.  If I connect via Remote Desktop client or Web browser for the first time after provisioning, I see "Setting up your device for work" for an incredibly long time and eventually will see the following:

Joining your organization's network (Complete)

Security policies (failed)

Certificates (failed)

Network connections (failed)

Apps (failed)

Resetting the PC via windows365.microsoft.com is successful but loops with the same results.

[redsky365]

Thank you @Christiaan_Brinkhoff for Sharing, really keen to see how this can help some of the not for profits I'm currently working with. Very exciting!

[joergackermann]

I am not able to activate office products with my "Microsoft 365 Business Standard" subscription because it says, there are not shared computer licenses available. What am I doing wrong?

[Andrew_Woo]

I am not able to activate office products with my " Microsoft 365 Business Standard and Apps for Business" subscription because it says, there are not shared computer licenses available. 

[Robert Crane]

@Andrew_Woo @joergackermann 

Microsoft 365 Business Standard does not support shared computer activation. You need M365 Business premium or Enterprise SKUs for that capability. See - https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/DeployOffice/overview-shared-computer-activation 

[joergackermann]

@Robert Crane but why is a windows 365 computer treated as „shared computer“? That makes no sense to me.

[Robert Crane]

@joergackermann It is treated as shared as it runs on shared hardware (i.e. a client on a Windows Server host running Hyper V virtualization in an Azure datacentre that typically is one piece of hardware shared amongst various client machines on same physical box). I don't the rules but that typically is a 'shared computer'

[joergackermann]

@Robert Crane for Office licensing, a Shared computer is a Terminal Server … not a single windows client system like in windows 365. As far as I know, this has Nothing to do with virtualization. 
@Christiaan_Brinkhoff can you tell if this is the intended behavior?

[Robert Crane]

@joergackermann Shared computer activation applies not only to RDS machines, it applies to things like workstations used by multiple people as well. The license refers to a 'shared device' it makes no distinction as to whether a server or a workstation. A device in that context is a single piece of tin and according to the license to run multiple versions of Office for multiple users on that same piece of time you need shared computer activation which doesn't come with Business Basic. Again, I don't make the rules here but shared activation is not limited to terminal servers, it applies everywhere. per the link I quoted:

Shared computer activation lets you deploy Microsoft 365 Apps to a computer in your organization that is accessed by multiple users. Here are some examples of supported scenarios:

• Three workers at a factory share the same physical computer, with each worker using Office on that computer during their eight-hour shift.
• Fifteen nurses at a hospital use Office on ten different computers throughout the day.
• Five employees connect remotely to the same computer to run Office.
• Multiple employees use Office on a computer that's located in a conference room or some other public space in the company.
• Multiple users access an instance of Office that is hosted through Remote Desktop Services (RDS).

[joergackermann]

@Robert Crane but all this does not apply to a windows 365 computer … it is one computer per person, nothing shared.

[Robert Crane]

@joergackermann I'm sorry to say that according to the definition in the licensing that it is in fact a shared device. It is one physical server running hyper V virtualization with multiple host Windows 10 systems (which are the Windows 365 'computers') all of which are running Office. That means many Office versions on one physical piece of tin. That means it requires Shared Computer Activation Office capable licensing, which means not Business Basic. Again, check directly with MS but I'll bet it has something to do with this definition of shared computer access you'll find. Licensing is challenging is all that needs to be said here and you need to get an 'official' ruling from MS I would suggest.

[SrikantRon]

Thank you for this guide, really helpful

[Alex Melching]

We were able to get one up and running. Our 1 Cloud PC took over 2 hours to provision.  I'm chalking that one up to a ton of people firing up trials.  So far, enjoy the experience, but we are unable to access the Cloud PC through the Remote Desktop app.  Get the good old the computer you are trying to connect to requires NLA, but your Windows domain controller cannot be contacted to perform NLA.  Everything seems set up correctly.  Anyone else running into that?

[RaphaelBerger]

@Robert Crane Thank you very much. That helps a lot. Yesterday I purchased an Office 365 E3 license because I looked up the functionalities in the comparison section in Microsoft 365 Admin Center. For Microsoft 365 Business Premium there is also no tag for „shared computer activation“ - is this a mistake? 

[Robert Crane]

@RaphaelBerger M365 Business premium Includes shared computer activation abilities. See https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/office365/servicedescriptions/microsoft-365-service-descriptions/mi...

[RaphaelBerger]

@Robert Crane Thank you. I looked it up in the comparison where you can buy services in Microsoft 365 Admin Portal. And there was no tag (see below). Do you know why? Is this another functionality besides „Shared computer activation“?

[Robert Crane]

@RaphaelBerger The service descriptions are always the authoritative technical reference for what is included in each SKU. As for what appears elsewhere, you'll need to speak with MS.

[RaphaelBerger]

@Robert Crane OK, I picked the Microsoft 365 Business Premium license now instead of Office 365 E3 and it works - so, thank you, also for the hint with the service descriptions. 

[DavidPye10]

Hi There, I notice that Windows 365 Enterprise allows Admin to see all the times and durations of users logins. Is that feature available on Windows 365 Business as well. If so, how do I access it? Thanks.

[Andrew_Woo]

@joergackermann 

I have solved the problem. 

Uninstall the original MO365 comes together with W365

goto portal.office365.com

Download your installation copy

Install

Done

[amarek1010]

So testing it since yesterday.

One bothering issue is the font scaling.

I use a tablet which has a high resolution screen (S Tab 7+) - and there a few issues:

1. With the MS remote desktop app - I have only 2 resolutions to choose - 1700x780 (or sth like that) or native resolution. While the first one is making the font blurry and not nice to read the second one is sharp - however the scaling is not being done.

2. The option to scale fonts is greyed out, when I try to do custom scaling - its not affecting the Cloud PC.

Any clue how to approach this one?

[RaphaelBerger]

Yesterday I started the first Windows 365 Cloud PC (Business) and it is really cool. Right now, there is only one problem: I installed the OpenVPN client (community version), because I wanted to establish a VPN connection to connect via RDP to our servers. That would be useful for external staff e.g. But the VPN connection can not be established. I tried it on other platforms like for example my local WIN10 and iPad and it just works fine. But not on Windows 365. Is there anything I have to set up? Maybe firewall rules?

Thanks and KR.

[AndySVM]

Hi, are there any early termination fees for cancelling?  I see in the Partner Center it mentioned the Term = Annual.

[RichAtFins]

Thanks for this! I do have a question for you. Where you mention the Native Azure AD Support, it says that support will be coming soon for W365 Enterprise. Do you have a rough timescale on that? We are looking to move to a cloud-only configuration, following the Modern Workplace model, and want to be able to provide a remote desktop for users with only an AzureAD identity. I was hoping that this would be the solution (same problem with AVD needing an AD account).

Any indication of when this may be available would be gratefully received.

R

Native Azure AD support

Windows 365 Business is the first version that will support Azure AD natively and, therefore, doesn't require organizations to have an existing Active Directory domain or Azure subscription.

Support for Azure AD only will be available for Windows 365 Enterprise soon.

[Losingthewires]

I'm trying the simplest version for Business which doesn't require any Azure configuration.

However, it consistently fails to create the Virtual PC - very frustrating.

I've checked the relevant settings and have a support ticket with MS but not fixed at the moment - any thoughts?

[Robert Crane]

@LosingthewiresI am having exact the same issue, and have had so for almost a week. It maybe because I opted for a trial not a full license initially or perhaps overly strict conditional access policies. Unsure but I haven't be able to successfully provision a basic VPC at all! Super frustrating when there is not much troubleshooting you can do. 

[Losingthewires]

@Robert Crane

I too am using the trial so maybe it's that. However, a poor start if you can't even provision a VM!

[DavidPye10]

I set up the trial for a basic business W365, and it's all working well in both a browser and the RD client. That was following the excellent instructions above. I did get in early though, on the 2nd August. Took about an hour to come online. I hear Microsoft were quickly overwhelmed with trials and had to close it for a while.

[Losingthewires]

Hi @DavidPye10 I did the same but have subscribed to 3 trials for the different VMS as wanted to test them all against various workloads. No success with any of them despite getting in within an hour or so of it going live.

[DavidPye10]

Hi @Robert Crane, I didn't try more than one trial, as assumed, (rightly or wrongly), you couldn't link more than one trial to the same user. Might be worth trying again with another of your users and just one trial and see if that works.

[Robert Crane]

@DavidPye10 I have tried but 1 x VPC. I am thinking that perhaps I need to full paying license to gain priority. However, I'd liek to make sure it works before paying money for it!

[DavidPye10]

@Robert Crane Worth trying, at least you can cancel it very easily, no minimum term. I have the 2vCPU/4GB/64GB trial, it's really only good for office 365 apps, a program like 3d viewer is painfully slow to update. Good luck!

[Andrew_Woo]

I just wonder can the VM be assign to other owner?

[the_one_and_only]

I "accidentally" signed up for a Windows 365 Enterprise trial. How may I switch this to a Windows 365 Business trial?  I hate to see my trial go to waste:(

[Andrew_Woo]

No more trials account can be created and changed.

[jim_tpa]

I don't see anything that talks about the Azure network egress costs.  Where can I find that? 

[the_one_and_only]

@jim_tpa https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/details/bandwidth/