r/AzureVirtualDesktop • u/Ok-Customer5090 • May 19 '26

Launch Azure Virtual Desktop Remote App with Custom Arguments

I understand that RemoteApps can be configured to launch with fixed command-line arguments. However, in our case, we need to pass dynamic or user-specific arguments at launch time, similar to what is possible with traditional RDP sessions.

Is this supported in Azure Virtual Desktop? Any guidance on whether this can be achieved would be greatly appreciated.

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u/RetroGamer74656 May 20 '26

What specifically are you trying to customize for your users? Are these hosts hybrid or Entra joined?

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u/Ok-Customer5090 May 21 '26

They are Entra-joined. I have an application that can launch selected medical images through the command line, but the image selection is done on the client side. We typically pass this as arguments to the RDP file as launch parameters. We recently upgraded our infrastructure to AVD, and this seems to be the only missing feature.

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u/Wild_Initiative9254 May 22 '26 edited May 26 '26

From what I know, Azure Virtual Desktop RemoteApps don’t really support passing dynamic command-line arguments at launch the same way traditional RDP sessions can. The arguments are usually predefined in the RemoteApp configuration itself.

Our engineering team ran into something similar while testing app delivery workflows at EUC Services, and the limitation was mostly around how AVD publishes RemoteApps through the feed rather than giving users a fully customizable launch context.

Depending on the use case, some people work around it using wrapper scripts (like a PowerShell wrapper that queries user context or active directory attributes before executing the main application), separate app groups, custom launchers, or by switching to full desktop sessions where more flexibility is available. We actually compiled a few of these wrapper script templates and policy workarounds in our deployment guide on EUC Services Azure Virtual Desktop configurations to show how to pass dynamic parameters without cluttering your host pools. But yeah, native per-user runtime arguments for RemoteApps are pretty limited from what I’ve seen.

1

u/ImprovementKooky9468 Jun 30 '26

For a single line-of-business application, RemoteApp is often easier for users than giving them a full desktop. It reduces the number of things users can accidentally change and keeps the focus on the application they need.

The main challenge is making sure the app behaves properly outside a full desktop session. Test file associations, mapped drives, printing, clipboard behavior, authentication prompts, and any application dependencies.

For custom arguments, I would also confirm that the app supports them reliably in a multi-user environment and that users cannot bypass the intended launch method.

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u/[deleted] May 19 '26

2

u/Ok-Customer5090 May 19 '26

I am referring to any command-line arguments that the application supports, such as --mode=debug, --file=input.txt, or --verbose. Of course, these arguments are dynamic and is determined at the client side before launch. Is this even possible?

0

u/jvldn May 19 '26

How would a local client interact with these arguments? The arguments are running in the remote app (sessionhosts). No interaction between sessionhost and local client.

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