Windows Virtual Desktop generally available, including support for virtual Windows 7 desktops

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Windows desktops and apps on Azure can now be deployed anywhere with Windows Virtual Desktop.

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What you need to know

  • Windows Virtual Desktop is now generally available worldwide.
  • The service supports a multi-session Windows 10 experience.
  • The service was announced last year and has been in preview since March 2019.

Microsoft announced today that Windows Virtual Desktop is now generally available worldwide. The service supports a multi-session Windows 10 experience, has optimizations for Office 365 ProPlus, and supports Windows Server Remote Desktop Services (RDS). Windows Virtual Desktop was announced last year and entered into preview in March of 2019. Microsoft expands upon the release in a blog post.

In addition to providing a multi-session Windows 10 exprerience, Windows Virtual Desktop can also be used for Windows 7 applications. Extended support for Windows 7 ends in January, but users can legacy applications using Windows Virtual Desktop to virtualize Windows 7 desktops. Free Extended Sercurity Updates will be available through this method until January 2023 according to Microsoft.

Microsoft has focused on virtual technologies for years, and took that further through its acquisition of FSLogix. FSLogix improves Office when running in virtual environments. Microsoft shared that "all FSLogix tools are now fully integrated into Windows Virtual Desktops."

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Microsoft also announced several other expansions of Windows Virtual Desktop, including Citrix being able to extend Windows Virtual Desktop worldwide and VMware Horizon Cloud on Microsoft Azure extending Windows Virtual Desktops later this year.

Sean Endicott
Sean Endicott
News Writer

Sean Endicott is a News Writer at Windows Central, where he covers Windows 11, Surface hardware, Microsoft 365, AI, apps, and the broader PC ecosystem. Since joining the site in 2017, he has written well over a thousand articles across the Microsoft landscape, covering breaking news, analysis, and feature reporting.

He writes Windows Wrap, a weekly column covering the biggest stories in Windows and the PC industry, and what they mean for the platform going forward.

Before joining Windows Central full-time, Sean worked in journalism and media production after earning a First Class degree in Broadcast Journalism from Nottingham Trent University. Outside of tech, he is an award-winning American football coach based in Nottingham, England, and was named BAFCA Youth Coach of the Year in 2024.