This week, Microsoft finally published their pricing for the Windows 365 Cloud PC. As expected, the lowest pricing is reserved for those using Windows Hybrid Benefit which means that Microsoft lets users apply their existing licenses against the product pricing. Pricing models start at $20 per user, per month for the lowest-end SKU (single vCPU running on the Azure Cloud, 2GB of RAM, and 64GB of OneDrive cloud storage) and range up to $163 per user, per month. (8 vCPUs, 32GB of RAM, and 512GB of OneDrive storage.)
According to Microsoft, license pricing includes:
- The ability to purchase, provision, and deploy in minutes
- Easy scaling with per-user cost basis
- Automated OS updates
- “Anywhere access” for users
- Tailored configurations and optimized experiences
- Ability to resume from any point on any device, regardless of location
Two Versions of Windows 365 Cloud PC
- Windows 365 Business is designed for small businesses looking for cloud PC usage for up to 300 seats. There are no technology prerequisites. Organizations simply go to the Windows 365 cloud portal to buy, deploy, and manage Cloud PCs whenever they need them. Neither an Azure subscription or an Active Directory (AD) domain controller is required. Everything works seamlessly with Azure AD and Microsoft manages the entire process. Just pay the fee, and you’re ready to go.
- Windows 365 Enterprise offers more features, and offers IT people more control – although not as much control as Azure Virtual Desktop provides. Pricing is also simpler and, you can use in concert with Office 365 or any of Microsoft’s other cloud offerings.Experts warn, however, that these programs are not designed for intense data processing on a Windows 365 system. The Windows 365 Business Plan includes a data cap for upstream traffic of 20GB per user per month on the low end and up to 70GB per user per month on the high end.
It Costs How Much?
The costs for the cloud service are causing a lot of conversation – many people think them too high, but this may come as a result of not really understanding cloud computing. The cost structure is flat pricing, which means they are easily budgeted for and are not variable based on the number of hours or resources used. This fact alone results in these services being ultimately more affordable than most Desktop-as-a-Service (DaaS) offerings.
While critics point to the monthly fee as more than the cost of a laptop over a three year period, that cost doesn’t reflect the Windows 365 tech support, remote assistance, the ease of remote management and Microsoft’s Security Defender software that is built-in. Windows 365 also won’t steal any additional resource if you must revert, take a system snapshot, or recover the network. If one laptop goes down, that downtime may cost you more than the cost savings you think you’ll be achieving. But if you have Windows Cloud PC, you can resume working on any device if one goes down.
Accountants will tell you that you can’t amortize a cloud service like you can a building full of laptops – so you need to make the right financial decision for your company. While the Microsoft 365 Cloud Service is not for everyone, this blog is meant to dispel the initial feeling that the service is “too expensive” to consider. It may be exactly what your company needs and wants in 2021.
Alliance IT is a managed services company based in Sarasota, helping clients in procuring and deploying Azure Desktop and Windows 365 Cloud PC environments.
