A few weeks after unveiling Windows 11, Microsoft announced Windows 365.
This service is a part of Microsofts push to get into the emerging hybrid work setup.
But how does it work, and who exactly is it for?
From usingfree online collaboration toolsto video conferencing software, companies needed to empower their people as they worked.
You may ask yourself, Why would I want to stream a computer to my computer?
But theres more to it than that.
Instead of lugging your laptop along, it’s possible for you to bring your tablet instead.
This would already save you some weight as most tablets are a lot lighter than a typical laptop.
Using a Cloud PC to Access Specialist Hardware
Heres another use case for it.
Say youre a 3D modeler working on petabytes of data on your office workstation.
If you gotta work from home, you cannot do your work on your personal laptop.
It neither has the storage nor computing capacity to execute what you need.
With Windows 365, you could have the same power as your office workstation at home.
This is because the computing power is housed at Microsofts servers.
All your doing is accessing it via your personal gear.
Instead, youre downloading it to Microsofts data centers.
Because of that, downloads only take an instant.
Microsoft even demonstrated a speed test.
How Windows 365 Benefits IT Administrators
Windows 365 is designed to make the IT administrators life easier.
Using MEM, the administrator can manage both physical and virtual devices in one app.
They can deploy software, add virtual machines, and even upgrade capacity through it.
Administrators can also see how much computing power each member uses.
This lets them allocate resources as needed.
Onboarding a new team member no longer requires a lot of effort from administrators.
They only need to ensure the new member is part of the enterprise connection.
And if they have an available license, they can immediately assign a virtual PC to that person.
And in less than an hour, they’ll have a new Windows 365 account assigned to them.
You no longer have to wait for someone to buy you a physical PC.
On the flip side, if youre not maximizing your virtual PC, your administrator could lower its specifications.
This ensures that no extra computing power is wasted.
internet performance monitoring is also built inside Windows 365.
Because the service is run from Microsofts servers, they can continuously check and run diagnostics on your system.
If they detect a failure, the administrator is alerted immediately.
They would also give recommendations on how to correct the issue.
This is because only administrators have complete control over it.
As youre accessing it over a web client or app, its insulated from most threats.
To protect company data, administrators can set up multi-factor authentication and conditional access.
This ensures that only authorized users are actually accessing the system.
Who Is Windows 365 For?
Windows 365 isnt designed for the consumer market.
Instead, its for companies and enterprises that need to deploy a online grid over a large area.
Its also designed to allow businesses to utilize computing power as they see fit.
The cloud PC will revolutionize business computing.
Companies no longer need to spend on high-end systems to satisfy the needs of their people.
They only need a reliable internet connection and an entry-level computer as a client to Windows 365.
With the cloud PC, they can purchase computing power as they need.
This allows them to be more efficient with the use of their resources.
Is Windows 365 the Future of Enterprise Computing?
Many developers, including Microsoft, are now moving to theSoftware-as-a-Service(SaaS) business model.
Some find this unfavorable because theyre used to paying for programs once.
However, SaaS allows businesses to avail of software as they need it.
This will enable companies to make more efficient use of their resources.
With Windows 365, Microsoft takes this business model up a notch.
They now offer hardware capability as a subscription service.
Businesses can forgo investing in expensive infrastructure and equipment.
Windows 365 is ideal for people who enjoy to WFH.
