The document provides an overview of planning, deploying, and managing a Microsoft Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI). It discusses various aspects, including VDI architecture, personal vs. pooled desktops, user experience, and licensing considerations for Windows VDI. Additionally, it covers the features and benefits of Microsoft RemoteFX technology for enhancing the virtual desktop experience.

1. Planning, Deploying and
Managing a Microsoft VDI
Infrastructure
Fabrizio Volpe
MVP Directory Services
@Fabriziovlp
Fabrizio.volpe@gmx.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/fabriziov

2. Agenda
Virtual Desktop – Five ways to the virtual desktop
Microsoft VDI – Architecture
Microsoft VDI – Personal Vs Pooled Desktops
Windows Licensing for VDI
Microsoft VDI – Microsoft RemoteFX

3. Virtual Desktop – Five ways to the virtual
desktop
Desktop Virtualization
Server Hosted -
Client - Local
Remote Execution
1 Bare 3 „Shared‟
2 Hosted Personal
Metal (RDS)
4 Stateless 5 Steteful
(Pooled) (Assigned)

4. Virtual Desktop – Preliminary Evaluation
Applicazions
1) What applications are we using and how much they are important ?
2) Are they feasible to be used remotelly in the datacenter ?
3) Applicazione is compatible with a Terminal Server environment ?
Other considerations
1) Will we use non-Windows clients ?
2) Applications will need data from the back-end ?
3) Should I start the application in a fast way from new devices ?
4) The application needs locally saved data ?

5. Virtual Desktop – Vendors

6. Virtual Desktop – Features Comparison
http://www.virtuall.eu/view-document-details/vdi-smackdown

7. Microsoft VDI – Architecture

8. Microsoft VDI – Architecture in Deep
Remote Desktop Web Access (RDWA) is the unified
starting point
Remote Desktop Gateway (RDG) is an optional feature
and we‟ll use it on the network edge using Network
Policy Server (NPS) and certificates to improve our
security.

9. Microsoft VDI – Architecture in Deep
Remote Desktop Session Host (RDSH) holds applications
and redirects to RDVH
Remote Desktop Virtualization Host (RDVH) is an
Hyper-V server dedicated to virtual desktops
Remote Desktop Connection Broker (RDCB) gives
informations about the right host to use for connection

10. Microsoft VDI – User Experience
Using Remote Desktop Connection Broker (RDCB) and Web
Access (RDWA) we have a logon screen with the same look as
the one for RemoteApp but with access to the two different
kinds of virtual desktop

11. Microsoft VDI – Personal Vs Pooled Desktops
Personal Virtual Desktop:
Day 1 Day 2 Day n
User 1 Day 2 Day n
Golden Clone
Image
User n Day 2 Day n
Pooled Virtual Desktop: User
Profiles
Pool Day 1 Day 2 Day 3
etc
1 User 1 User 1
Golden Clone
Image
n User 1

12. Microsoft VDI – Personal Virtual Desktop
A single Virtual Machine VM hosted on a RD Virtualization Host
server may be assigned to an Active Directory account to be used
as a personal virtual desktop
The personal virtual desktop is used through RemoteApp and
Desktop Connection or with RD Web Access

13. Microsoft VDI – Personal Desktop - Requirements
The “Personal Virtual
Desktop” tab requires
Active Directory forest Domain functional level at
Windows Server 2008 R2
schema minimum level least Windows 2000 Server
A.D.U.C or Windows 7 with
Windows Server 2008 native
Remote Server
Administration Tools (RSAT)
A virtual machine can be
The user and the computer
A user is enabled to have only used as personal virtual
must be both members of an
one virtual desktop at a time desktop for a single user at a
A.D. domain
time
The virtual machine name in Hyper-V Manager must match the computer FQDN

14. Connecting to a Personal Desktop
RD Connection Broker
Connection starts with RD Session Host server
queries Active Directory
RD Web Access or in redirection mode
to match a virtual
RemoteApp / Desktop redirects to the RD
machine name with the
Connection Connection Broker
user
RD Virtualization Host
The RD Connection server gives the ip Connection Broker
Broker forwards the associated with the requires to the RD
information to the RD name to the RD Virtualization Host to
Session Host Connection Broker start the virtual machine
server
RD Session Host
forwards the above
Client connects to the
informations to the
personal virtual desktop
client that now starts the
connection

15. Connecting to a Personal Desktop

16. Microsoft VDI – Virtual Desktop Pools
A pool of virtual desktops is a group of virtual
machines with identical settings on a RD
Virtualization Host
Users have access to the pool using
RemoteApp or RD Web Access
We have identical virtual machines, so the
users will have always the same working
environment (if we have no roaming profiles)

17. Microsoft VDI – Desktop Pools- Requirements
Virtua Machines in a pool of
virtual desktops must be A single virtual machine can be
identical, including installed only in a given pool at a time
programs
Using RD Web Access we‟re
User data must NOT be saved
able to create more than one
locally if we use virtual
virtual desktops pool
desktops in a pool
The user will have a different
icon for every pool

18. Connessione al Pool di Virtual Desktops
Connection starts with RD Session Host server RD Connection Broker
RD Web Access or in redirection mode verifies if there is already
RemoteApp / Desktop redirects to the RD a session opened for the
Connection Connection Broker user
RD Virtualization Host
If there is already an
server gives the ip Connection Broker
active session, there is
associated with the requires to the RD
no need to start up a
name to the RD Virtualization Host to
v.m. , else we go to the
Connection Broker start a virtual machine
next step
server
RD Session Host
The RD Connection
forwards the above
Broker forwards the Client connects to the
informations to the
information to the RD personal virtual desktop
client that now starts the
Session Host
connection

19. Connecting to a Virtual Desktops pool

20. Windows Licensing for VDI
What is the license name? Windows Virtual Desktop
Access (Windows VDA)
What is the scenario? Access to a virtual copy of
Windows
client OS (Windows 7, Windows
Vista, Windows XP) in the
datacenter
What devices can be covered? Thin clients, non corporate PCs,
devices that do not qualify for
Windows Client SA
Is Microsoft Software Assurance No
a prerequisite?
What is the retail price? $100/year/device
Are there Software Assurance Yes
benefits?
What is the license type? Annual subscription
What is the licensing unit? Per accessing device

21. Windows Licensing Scenarios for VDI
http://download.microsoft.com/download/7/8/4/78480C7D-
DC7E-492E-8567-F5DD5644774D/VDA_Brochure.pdf

22. Microsoft VDI – Microsoft RemoteFX
• Gives the “full” Windows experience to standard clients, thin clients, and
ultrathin clients.
What‟s • Has a 3D virtual adapter, intelligent codecs, and redirection of ports and
RemoteFX devices
• Windows Server 2008 R2 Standard with SP1
• Windows Server 2008 R2 Enterprise with SP1
RemoteFX is • Windows Server 2008 R2 Datacenter with SP1
available on • Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2008 R2 with Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 update
• Windows 7 Enterprise with SP1
RemoteFX on • Windows 7 Ultimate with SP1
virtual desktop

23. Microsoft VDI – RemoteFX features
Host side rendering
• Graphic is elaborated on the host, not on the client
GPU Virtualization
• RemoteFX creates a graphic driver (Windows Display Driver Model ) and makes it available
to the virtual desktop. More than one virtual desktop are enabled to share the single GPU
on a single Hyper-V server
Intelligent Screen Capture
• Evaluates the client – host network performances and regulates rendering and compression
• Identifies the modified zones on the screen
RemoteFX USB Redirection
• Redirects USB ports from the client to the host (no device driver needed on the client side)