AMA: The latest in Windows 365 and Windows in the cloud

In addition to the questions posted on this page, we also answer questions posted elsewhere on Tech Community and in reply to the event on LinkedIn and X (Twitter). Here are the questions we answered:

Question -- How is the new shared mode different from the original W365 Frontline (dedicated)? - answered at 5:34.

Follow up question – Can you confirm that if folks have Frontline today, they now have access to Frontline in shared mode? – answered at 9:19.

Question from X -- When can we expect MAM on Android to go GA? Any new features being added between preview and GA? - answered at 11:34.

Question from LinkedIn -- Can we use Windows 365 Link with AVD? It looks like probably not so, are there plans to extend/include that? – answered at 12:40.

Question from Tech Community for Link -- This sounds intriguing, and I know VDIs from the past. How does everyone plan to handle situations where internet connectivity fails beyond the redundancies in place? – answered 13:41.

Question on Tech Community for Link -- Can it be powered from a single USB-C cable? Just thinking about a use case, someone else in the comments mentioned portable use where home and office have a fixed USB dock, screens, etc installed..... – answered at 15:43.

Question -- What are the prereqs for clipboard redirect? – answered at 17:47.

Follow up question – for iOS and Android, how does that work with MAM? - answered at 19:40.

Question -- Is dedicated mode the same concept of VDI, only this time around, the device is dedicated. Can this also run for multiple users with directories in Microsoft AD? – answered at 21:46.

Question -- I saw that Autopilot device prep is "coming soon" for Cloud PCs - How will that differ from the Win client approach? How can I test/preview it when that's available? – answered at 25:55.

Follow up question – Will the boot feature on Windows 11 also support the new autopilot technology? – answered at 28:48.

Follow up question – Does Link support autopilot for public preview? – answered at 29:17.

Question from X -- How do pass keys work with Windows 365? – answered at 30:46. For more information about comparing the different auth types, go to: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-app/compare-platforms-features?pivots=azure-virtual-desktop#authentication  

Follow up question -- Can we use passkeys and/or security keys to log in? – answered at 35:26.

Follow up question from “can we use passkeys and/or security keys to log in?” -- for the boot on Windows 11, depending on which mode you’re in (because boot has 2 modes), we’ll be sharing credentials? - answered at 36:55.

Follow up question from “can we use passkeys and/or security keys to log in?” -- Current Windows 365 experience is more of a shared device, so there is no windows hello? – answered at 37:34.

Question on Tech Community -- How long will Windows 365 Link be supported? OS security updates and driver security updates? – answered at 39:01.

Question -- What kind of reporting can we have for shared W365 PCs? Are there alerts if we run out - ideally before that happens? What if we run out and a user tries to log in? – answered at 40:43.

Follow up question – for the connection piece, are there specific requirements on the client side? Do we support all the clients right now for connecting to Frontline Shared, or is it just a sub-set right now? – answered at 43:54.

Follow up question -- I know we have other alerts for other features within Windows 365, like Azure Network Connection, is that where you set the alerts? - answered at 45:22.

Request on Tech Community -- Please make a comparison of Unidirectional clipboard for Azure Virtual Desktop and Windows 365 to that of someone using Azure Bastion. Thanks! – addressed at 46:06.

Question from LinkedIn -- How does the licensing for Windows 365 Link work? – answered at 48:11.

Follow up question from “How does the licensing for Windows 365 Link work?”  -- Do we support Microsoft dev box? 49:38.

Question -- Read about bulk restore points for Cloud PCs and saw there was a limit of 5K. How should we think about when and how to use restore points since there is a limit? – answered at 50:03.

Question on Tech Community -- Is there a laptop type harness or dock for the Link device? Realize it has the connections, but how to easily use it in the office in a dock, plug into a laptop harness (power and display) for the ride home, and then dock at home office? – answered at 53:35.

I hope you enjoyed today's AMA and learned something new! Visit aka.ms/AMA/Windows365 to add upcoming dates to your calendar--and tell your colleagues, friends, and decision makers so they can get their questions answered too.

Welcome to our final Windows 365 AMA of 2024! Let's get started. Please post your questions for today's panel here in the Comments.