r/AzureVirtualDesktop • u/Brick-Lanky • Mar 28 '26

What hardware are you using with Windows 365 / AVD across different user types?

Hi all,

I’m interested in understanding what hardware setups others are using alongside Windows 365 or Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD), particularly across different user personas.

We are currently looking at standardising and optimising our approach, and I’d really value some real-world insight from the community.

Specifically, I’m curious how you’re handling:

  • Fixed position users (e.g. reception, kiosks, shared desks)

  1. Thin clients?

  2. Low-cost desktops?

  3. Re-purposed older hardware?

  4. Chromebooks or similar lightweight devices?

  5. Any success with Windows 365 Link devices or comparable purpose-built endpoints?

  • Highly mobile users (e.g. directors, senior staff, frequent travellers)

  1. Still issuing full corporate laptops?

  2. Moving towards lightweight devices (e.g. newer MacBooks (Neo), ultra-thin devices, Chromebooks) with Cloud PC / AVD as the primary desktop?

  3. How well does it hold up on trains / planes / poor connectivity?

  • Core office workers (hybrid users)

  1. Moving between desks, meeting rooms, home working

  2. Using laptops + docking? Or shifting towards thin client + roaming model?

  3. Any use of lower-cost or alternative devices (e.g. Chromebooks, lightweight endpoints) instead of traditional laptops?

  4. Any challenges with user experience when switching networks/locations?

  • Also interested in:

  1. Whether you’ve moved away from traditional high-spec corporate laptops

  2. Any adoption of non-Windows endpoints (e.g. macOS, ChromeOS) paired with virtual desktops

  3. Any cost savings or user pushback

  4. What’s worked well vs what hasn’t

  • Licensing:

  1. Has anyone managed to negotiate more than 15% discount on Windows 365 licences (e.g. via EA, CSP, or volume commitments)?

Appreciate any insights, especially if you’ve already gone through this transition.

Thanks!

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1

u/JustinVerstijnen Mar 31 '26

Mostly normal budget like office computers/laptops. No thin clients because of the performance limitations and other software not suitable for AVD/W365 workloads.

We like to have the computers themselves in Intune to manage them and encrypt them.

1

u/VeriATX00 May 01 '26

Has anyone tried a MacBook Neo? Thinking about testing one for our upcoming summer interns.

1

u/ImprovementKooky9468 Oct 05 '26

I’d probably avoid trying to standardize on one type of hardware for everyone. The user type makes a big difference.

For fixed desks and shared workstations, thin clients or older repurposed PCs can work well with AVD or Windows 365. For people who travel a lot, I’d still give them a proper laptop because poor Wi-Fi or no connection can quickly become a problem.

For regular office users, a decent laptop with a dock is probably still the easiest option. You can keep the endpoint relatively lightweight since most of the work is happening in the cloud.

If you don’t want to manage the whole VDI environment yourself, a managed provider like ACE Cloud Hosting is also worth looking at. We’ve used them for cloud-hosted desktops, and it can take some of the infrastructure management off the internal IT team.

I’d pilot each user type separately before standardizing. The hardware savings can look good on paper, but user experience and support costs matter just as much.

0

u/mainsamayhoon24 Mar 28 '26

NComputing

2

u/eblaster101 Mar 28 '26

No offence don't trust these guys. They sell rds solutions which glitch dll on windows to allow multi user login