Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic swept across the world, many of us have been forced to work from home. When it comes to offering home working to your employees, Microsoft has two main methods to choose from: VDI [Virtual Desktop Interface] or RDS [Remote Desktop Services].
What are the similarities and differences between these two methods? How do they each support home working, and which should you choose? This will be described on our blog below:
What is Microsoft VDI?
Windows Virtual Desktop [VDI] is a desktop and app virtualization service that can run on your local network or on the cloud. VDI provides the user with a single virtualized instance of the Windows Client operating system, delivered through Azure, or, directly to your company’s domain and network
What is Microsoft RDS?
Much like VDI, RDS also allows users to take control of a remote computer or virtual machine over a network connection. The difference is that it allows multiple users to connect to the Virtual Machine [VM] or Operating System [OS]. In RDS, users connect to a remote desktop session, share the operating system, applications and hardware resources of the host [mostly a server], so it is considered shared computing.
What are the differences between the two?
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure [VDI] and Remote Desktop Services [RDS] offer a very similar functionality. The end-user experience is largely identical; the users log on to a remote system, which provides them with a desktop containing all the software they need to carry out their work. The desktop experience runs entirely remotely, so all applications and data stay on the server. This helps to eliminate compatibility and security issues, while also relieving the load on the user’s own machine, which can be considerably less powerful than if they were running the apps natively.
The differences between the two experiences come down to how they are delivered technologically.
The fundamental difference relates to the operating systems that each desktop service runs on; VDI is built around Windows client, whereas RDS is delivered through Windows Server. These differences have implications for the extensibility of the two options, and the overall cost depending on how many users you want to support.
When using VDI, a pool of virtual desktop servers is configured using virtualization software. Unlike RDS, which is limited to Windows Server, VDI is not limited to a single operating system or a single application architecture. This means that the user’s machine can also have an entirely different operating system; meaning, it can be an iPad, Android device or even a Mac!
RDS runs on a single server and users access it through a network connection and Remote Desktop Protocol. With RDS and Windows Server, one instance of 2016 Windows Server can support as many simultaneous users as the underlying hardware can support. This, as opposed to VDI, where each user receives his own virtual instance. Individual OS instances are hosted on VDI VMs with associated applications and data.
Administration is simplified with VDI, as a single master image can be configured and updated for all users. When using RDS, the desktop image you configure on the server is cloned and presented to users with all of its associated applications and data.
VDI has persistent and non-persistent desktops. Persistent desktops allow personalization with custom application installations and OS configurations, while with non-persistent desktops, users are given a randomly assigned desktop from the pool.
Which is better for you?
When does VDI offer better value than RDS, and vice versa? Well, it depends. RDS, is the “old school” method of reaching for information remotely. This was pretty much the only way back then. If you need a shared server with profiling options, group policies, an administrator who manages access and restrictions etc., then RDS is a great option. If you need YOUR desktop, but remotely, with the familiar look of your workstation and the freedom to customize as you wish – VDI is probably a more appropriate solution.
Furthermore, there are the licensing considerations: RDS on premises must be used with an additional Client Access License [CAL], while VDI is a subscription that you might already have – if you pay for Software Assurance for your Windows Client license for example. Costs need to be evaluated in order to understand which one is more cost effective.
In general, RDS is a better fit for organizations with many users who use the same applications and resources. It is simpler to implement and maintain than VDI, but is not as customisable. VDI is a better option for more complex deployments where you have many different user types.
As is often the case, the optimal situation is a combined infrastructure of both approaches: use RDS for those users whose applications and resources are more generic, and VDI for those with more complex, bespoke user configurations.
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Posted 28 April 2015 - 10:56 AM
Can someone explain the difference between these 3 programs?
Edited by Al1000, 05 February 2017 - 01:29 PM.
Moved from Windows 8
Posted 28 April 2015 - 11:54 AM
Hi Jason6161
Connect to another computer using Remote Desktop Connection
A Virtual Machine is like the state name, a machine that doesn't exist physically, it only exists virtually inside a system. It's the emulation of a system inside another system. So you could for example have Windows 8.1 installed on your computer, but using a program, create a virtual machine running Windows XP in it. To put it simply, it's running an independant system [guest] inside a system [host]. For more information, you can consult the Wikipedia article below.Virtual machine
VirtualBox is a program developped and maintenant by Oracle that allows you to create virtual machines. It's what we call an "hypervisor". A program that allows you to create and manage virtual machines. For more information, you can consult their website and their Wikipedia article.VirtualBox
VirtualBox Wiki
So to sum it up, you can use VirtualBox to create a virtual machine [or multiple VMs], and you use the "Remote Desktop" to connect remotely to another computer and access it. If you have any questions about any of these concepts, let me know. I use RDP at work and I'm running VirtualBox at home with multiple virtual machines. So I'm sure that I can answer your questions
Edited by Aura., 28 April 2015 - 11:54 AM.
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Posted 30 April 2015 - 01:09 AM
Virtual machine is dynamically provisioned with Citrix XenDesktop or VMWare View Manager providing the desktop resource for the user. Remote Desktop is where RDP is used to connect to a physical or virtual server which has a static IP Address.
Virtual box allows users to run additional operating systems on a single machine, as a Guest OS, run in a virtual environment and to freely switch between OS instances running simultaneously
Edited by justinkemp99, 30 April 2015 - 01:09 AM.
Customers often come to us asking for VDI, but after understanding what they are truly looking for, they understand how RDS can meet their needs and save money. Let’s talk about the difference and why one vs. the other may be beneficial to you.
What is VDI? What is RDS?
VDI stands for Virtual Desktop Infrastructure and RDS stands for Remote Desktop Session Hosts. What this really means is VDI is built around the Windows Client Operating System, Windows 10. RDS is built around the Windows Server Operating System. At this point you are thinking, of course I want my users on Windows 10, not Windows Server. Right? Well, maybe not.
Keep in mind that Windows 10 only supports one user per Operating System instance. This means if you need to support 4 users, you need 4 instances, or virtual machines, running Windows 10. In a Cloud environment, that means you need 4 separate virtual machines. From a cost perspective, that means you must pay the runtime cost of 4 virtual machines and the Windows 10 licensing cost for 4 Windows 10 instances. Below is the cost breakdown for 4 users.
This is a basic price breakdown for 4 users. Keep in mind it is not complete because it does not include the Windows 10 client licensing. This chart compares the Azure VM runtime cost of running the 4 VMs required to support 4 users with Windows 10, compared to the single VM running the Windows Server OS. The VM runtime cost includes the Windows Server 2016 license. You just need to add your RDS CALs, or RDS SALs for each user. For Windows 10 licensing, see below. |
With RDS and Windows Server, one instance of Windows Server 2016 can support as many simultaneous users as the underlying hardware will support. For a moderately priced Azure VM, we have found that one instance of Windows Server 2016 can usually support four to eight simultaneous users. This means that one single Windows Server license and one single Azure virtual machine can now support your four users at a lower cost than Windows 10. Of course, you can make the virtual machine larger to support additional users, but we do not advocate continuing to make the VM larger, that can get expensive quickly. We prefer having multiple VMs, each one supporting between 4 and 8 users. The MyCloudIT platform supports auto-scaling so those additional VMs can be started as user demand increases, then after hours, the VMs can be taken offline as users log off. We have a great article talking about how you can keep each VM smaller while using auto-scaling to increase capacity as users log in.
What's the Difference?
The two big differences between VDI and RDS really comes down to reducing cost and how you acquire your Windows 10 license. With Azure, your runtime cost includes the Windows Server license and user CALs, you just need to add the RDS SALs for each RDS user. The same cannot be said for Windows 10 licenses. Microsoft is releasing new Windows 10 licensing mechanisms, but I have not seen a complete solution for running Windows 10 in Azure in a VDI environment.
From a technical perspective, Windows 10 client OS’ managed by the Windows Server infrastructure requires the ability to be able to create new virtual machines on demand. For every VDI scenario I have seen, that means the Windows Server infrastructure will require access to the Hypervisor host. Azure does not expose the Hypervisor hosts to external management, so the only way I can see running VDI in Azure is with nested virtualization. That means that whether you have 1 or 100 users connected, you must always have an Azure nested virtual infrastructure that can support all 100 users running all the time. To me, this limits your ability to manage runtime costs if you are using VDI. Again, when using the Windows Server 2016 OS, VMs can easily be started and stopped directly in Azure.
Will It Get Easier?
I believe that using Windows 10 in Azure will be easier over time, but for now, using Windows Server 2016 and RDS will provide the capabilities your users need, while providing a cost-effective solution.
Have other questions? Check out some of our other common questions and answers here.
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