Citrix and Azure Virtual Desktop: Preparing for Day 1 support

Update: Microsoft’s Azure Virtual Desktop is now available worldwide. Check out our Day 1 Support blog post for details!

Live from the Citrix Synergy 2019 keynote stage, Citrix EVP and Chief Product Officer PJ Hough was joined by Brad Anderson, Corporate Vice President, Microsoft 365, to highlight the value of integrating Citrix Workspace solutions with Azure Virtual Desktop (formerly Windows Virtual Desktop).

Azure Virtual Desktop is an exciting new Microsoft service that provides Azure-based desktop and app virtualization capabilities. Expected to ship in the second half of 2019, Azure Virtual Desktop is in public preview today, and Citrix customers can leverage Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops services to start experimenting with this exciting new platform. Citrix administrators can check out our Preview Guide for step-by-step setup instructions to get up and running.

Citrix and Microsoft have been in lockstep throughout this journey, and Citrix has announced Day 1 support for Azure Virtual Desktop features, including:

• The new multi-session Windows 10 experience on Azure: This expanded operating system entitlement brings the multisession capabilities previously restricted to Windows Server RDS to the Windows 10 client operating system, along with enhanced user experience and application compatibility
• Windows 7 Extended Security Updates on Azure: Offering three additional years of extended security updates to Windows 7 virtual machines hosted in Azure Virtual Desktop
• Microsoft’s new Office 365 Virtualization enhancements (part of their FSLogix acquisition), improving the virtualized Office 365 experience

Ready to test out this new platform? Azure Virtual Desktop is compatible with our Citrix virtualization service offerings today:

Citrix is ready. The latest Citrix VDA stack has been updated to take advantage of the platform, including support for the new multi-session Windows 10 experience in Azure Virtual Desktop. All Citrix Virtual App and Desktop service offerings allow for hybrid management capabilities of on-premises and Azure-hosted Azure Virtual Desktop workloads side by side, giving IT the flexibility to migrate workloads, support new desktop or app virtualization use cases, or implement cloud transformation strategies without disrupting existing infrastructure.

If you aren’t a Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service customer today, now is a great time to look at trading up to our service offerings to take advantage of all our latest functionality and assess your IT strategies for how Citrix hybrid management of Azure Virtual Desktop can ease your transition to the cloud.

For Citrix Investors

This release contains forward-looking statements which are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The forward-looking statements in this release do not constitute guarantees of future performance. Those statements involve a number of factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, including risks associated with the impact of the global economy and uncertainty in the IT spending environment, revenue growth and recognition of revenue, products and services, their development and distribution, product demand and pipeline, economic and competitive factors, the Company’s key strategic relationships, acquisition and related integration risks as well as other risks detailed in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Citrix assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking information contained in this press release or with respect to the announcements described herein. The development, release and timing of any features or functionality described for our products remains at our sole discretion and is subject to change without notice or consultation. The information provided is for informational purposes only and is not a commitment, promise or legal obligation to deliver any material, code or functionality and should not be relied upon in making purchasing decisions or incorporated into any contract.