What is a Cloud PC and how to access (Windows 365)

Employees can access their Cloud PCs in these ways:

• Windows 365 app
• windows365.microsoft.com web client
• Microsoft Remote Desktop (Recommended Method)

For information on hardware requirements, see End user hardware requirements.

A Cloud PC is a highly available, optimized, and scalable virtual machine providing end users with a rich Windows desktop experience. It’s hosted in the Windows 365 service and is accessible from anywhere, on any device, including personal computers.

End users have a 1:1 relationship with their Cloud PC. It’s their own personal PC in the cloud. If licensed by BDS, employees can connect to their Cloud PC by using windows365.microsoft.com. Browser and app-based access is available for Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android devices.

It is very important to understand that BDS does not have any access whatsoever to the employee’s personal device, computer or files on their personal device in any way through which they access their CloudPC, they are simply using their personal device/computer to view and access their CloudPC.

Please watch this VIDEO for an even better explanation and demo.

Employees can navigate to windows365.microsoft.com or go to myapps.microsoft.com to access their Cloud PCs.

To access their Cloud PC from this website, the user's device must meet the following requirements:

• Supported operating systems: Windows, macOS, ChromeOS, Linux
• A modern browser like Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, Safari, or Mozilla Firefox (v55.0 and later).

On their Windows 365 home page, employees see the Cloud PCs they have access to in the Your Cloud PCs section.

From this page, employees have two options to connect to your Cloud PC:

• Select Open in browser to open their Cloud PC in the web client (not available for mobile devices). For more information, see Windows 365 web client.
• Select Open in Remote Desktop app to open their Cloud PC in Remote Desktop. For more information, see Remote Desktop.

While on windows365.microsoft.com, employees can take actions on their Cloud PCs by selecting the gear icon on a Cloud PC card.

• Rename: Changes the name of the Cloud PC shown to the user on the web site. This action doesn't affect any name in Microsoft Intune, Azure Active Directory, on the device, or in the Remote Desktop Apps.

• Reset:

  • Reinstalls Windows (with the option to choose between Windows 11 and Windows 10).

  • Removes your personal files.

  • Removes any changes you made to settings.

  • Removes your apps.

     Important

    Before resetting your Cloud PC, make sure to back up any important files you need to keep to a cloud storage service or external storage. Resetting your Cloud PC will delete these files.

• Restart: Restarts the Cloud PC.

• Troubleshoot: Troubleshoot and attempt to resolve any issues that may be preventing a user from connecting to their Cloud PC. The checks run include:

  • Check whether any files or agents required for connectivity are correctly installed.
  • Make sure that the Azure resources are available.

  Return state	Description
  No issues detected	None of the checks discovered an issue with the Cloud PC.
  Issues resolved	An issue was detected and fixed.
  Can’t connect to Cloud PC. We’re working to fix it, try again later.	A Microsoft service required for connectivity is unavailable. Try connecting again later.
  We couldn’t fix issues with your Cloud PC. Contact your administrator.	An issue was detected but it couldn't be fixed. This issue exists because of an ongoing Windows update or another issue. If this error persists for an extended period of time, the Cloud PC may need to be reset.

• System Information: Displays information about the Cloud PC specification.

When you select Open in browser for a Cloud PC on the windows365.microsoft.com web site, the In Session Settings window appears, where you can choose multiple options before connecting to your Cloud PC:

1. Select which devices and features on your physical device that your Cloud PC can access:
   • Printer
   • Microphone
   • Clipboard
   • Location (preview)
2. Select Show advanced settings to see the following options:
   • Alternative keyboard layout
3. Select Connect. The Cloud PC opens in the web client (browser).

Employees can collect logs of their Cloud PC sessions. The logs are collected from the browser and the user can choose the save location.

To turn on log collection, in the client, select the gear icon > Capture logs.

You can turn on hardware acceleration when using the web client to access your Cloud PC. This option decreases network latency, improving the web client Cloud PC experience. This option is turned on by default.

To turn hardware acceleration on or off, in the client, select the gear icon > Use hardware acceleration.

You can use the High DPI toggle to render the web client using the native resolution of the end user device.

Use this option if you're using a nonstandard keyboard that includes special characters (like Chinese (Traditional) or Spanish (Mexico)).

1. In the Windows 365 web client In Session Settings window, choose Show advanced settings > Alternative keyboard layout > On.

   

2. In the drop-down list, select the language that matches the keyboard.

By default, Alternative keyboard layout is turned off. If using a standard keyboard that doesn't require special layouts, the user can deselect this option. Deselecting the option in the middle of a session requires reconnecting.

Location redirection lets Cloud PCs access your approximate location safely without privacy concerns. By turning on the location service, you let your Cloud PC use the location of your physical device for most apps (the Weather widget isn’t currently supported).

For more information about location services, see Windows location service and privacy.

To turn on location redirection, follow these steps:

1. On your physical device, go to Settings > Privacy & Security > Location.

2. For Location services, set the toggle to On.

3. For Let apps access your location, set the toggle to On.

4. For each app that you want your Cloud PC to have location information, set the toggle to On.

5. Go to windows365.microsoft.com.

6. Under Your Cloud PCs, select Open in a browser for your Cloud PC.

7. Under In Session Settings, select Location (Preview) > Connect.

   

8. In the windows365.microsoft.com wants to Know your location confirmation box, select Allow.

Organizational settings might override the location settings for your device. For example, your organization might disable location redirection for all Cloud PCs they manage.

To switch the windows365.microsoft.com site to dark mode:

1. Go to windows365.microsoft.com.

2. Select the settings icon and select Dark Mode.

   

The Microsoft Remote Desktop app lets employees access and control a remote PC, including a Cloud PC.

For a list of clients by operating system, see Remote Desktop clients. For a comparison of features by client, see Compare the clients: features.

To set up their Remote Desktop client, employees can follow these steps:

1. Download the Remote Desktop app from the Remote Desktop clients page.
2. Select Subscribe.
3. Enter their Azure Active Directory credentials.
4. The Cloud PC appears in the list, and they can double-click it to launch.