Understanding How Microsoft VDI Licensing Works

You can license Windows in a virtual environment by using Windows Virtualization Rights, Windows 10 Multitenant Hosting Rights or Windows Virtual Desktop  in Azure. Either way, Microsoft virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) licensing provides you with the rights to run Windows locally in the virtual operating system environment on a licensed device.

Windows Virtualization Rights

These rights allow licensed devices or users to access virtual Windows desktops locally or remotely depending on how the user or device is licensed. The ways of licensing devices or users are:

Customers can use third-party solutions to host either Windows client virtual machines or Desktops as a Service (DaaS) solutions. The former is referred to as Outsourcing Software Management while the latter requires the third party to be an Authorized Outsourcer.

Windows 10 Multitenant Hosting Rights

Customers can also host their Windows client virtual machines for remote access using a third-party shared server (which must be a Qualified Multitenant Hosting Partner) or Microsoft Azure. These rights are not provided with device-based licenses and are available only with Windows Enterprise E3/E5 or Windows VDA E3/E5 subscription licenses on a per-user basis.

Windows Virtual Desktop in Azure

Yet another way to license a virtual machine is Windows Virtual Desktop. It is a desktop and application virtualization service that allows licensed users to access Windows 10 virtual machines using Windows Enterprise E3/E5, Windows VDA E3/E5 or Microsoft 365 suite license on a per-user basis.

Windows 10 Enterprise Versus Windows VDA

Both Windows 10 Enterprise and Windows VDA have the per-user and per-device options. The per-user licensing model requires every user to be licensed separately, and the user can use multiple devices.

On the other hand, the per-device licensing model requires every device to be licensed separately, and the licensed device can be used by multiple users. Choosing between the two depends on your individual needs. The differences between them are illustrated in the table below:

Windows 10 Enterprise Per-User Option Windows VDA Per-User Option Windows 10 Enterprise Per-Device Option Windows VDA Per-Device Option
Licensing Requirements The primary user’s primary device should be licensed for Windows 7/8/8.1/10 Pro, Enterprise, or Education. No device requirements Primary user’s primary device must be covered by Windows 10 Enterprise per Device. Primary user’s primary device must be covered by Windows VDA
License Model Per-user model without any device limits Per-user model without any device limits Per-user model without any device limits Per-user model without any device limits
Local Install of Windows Enterprise Can be installed on any Windows 7/8/8.1/10 Pro, Enterprise, Education device, or Windows tablet that is less than 10.1 inches Can be installed on any Windows 7/8/8.1/10 Pro, Enterprise, Education device, or Windows tablet that is less than 10.1 inches Can be installed on any Windows 7/8/8.1/10 Pro, Enterprise, Education device, or Windows tablet that is less than 10.1 inches Can be installed on any Windows 7/8/8.1/10 Pro, Enterprise, Education device, or Windows tablet that is less than 10.1 inches
VDI Access Any device Any device Any device Any device

Licensing Requirements to Access VDI Through RDS

To access VDI through Remote Desktop Services (RDS) (or virtual machines through remote desktop) you need a VDA license as well as an RDS Client Access License (CAL). All users that connect to a Remote Desktop Session Host need a CAL. A VDA license is generally covered by a Windows 10 Enterprise E3 or E5 license. You do not need Windows Server CAL to access VDI through RDS.

Licensing Windows Virtual Desktop on Azure

Using Windows Virtual Desktop on Azure requires you to possess an eligible license or subscription per user. With an eligible license, you can access either a Windows 7 or 10 machine. The following licenses can offer you this access:

If you want to access Windows Virtual Desktop based on Windows Server, then purchasing the Windows Server license is another way to access Windows Virtual Desktop on Azure. You can either purchase:

or

You also need to license RDS when using this option. This can be done via one of the following:

The pricing calculation for using Windows Virtual Desktop in Azure depends on the following factors apart from the kind of license (as mentioned above):

Parallels RAS Provides a Simple Licensing Model

Parallels® Remote Application Server (RAS) is a cost-effective, highly efficient service that helps deliver desktops and applications to end-user devices. Parallels RAS supports  Microsoft Azure Hypervisor to host VDI, allowing organizations to provision and scale virtual workloads on-demand directly on Microsoft Azure, simplifying management. Moreover, Parallels RAS integrates with and extends the Windows Virtual Desktop experience.

Parallels RAS provides a simple concurrent-user licensing model, allowing users to establish any number of connections to Parallels RAS as long as the number of users does not exceed the number of available licenses.

You can license Parallels RAS using a prepaid subscription. How does it work?

Parallels RAS is your best bet to deliver desktops and applications to remote devices. Download the free trial to reap its benefits today!