Windows 365
(The Cloud PC)
“We want to move from people, needing windows to choosing windows to loving windows”
(Satya Nadella at Microsoft Windows 10 Event, 2015)
Microsoft Windows is the face of technology with a user base of approximately 1.5 Billion active users worldwide. With the advent of Windows 11, Microsoft is taking this all to a next level. At Microsoft Inspire conference 2021, the CEO Microsoft Satya Nadella introduced the next generation of Windows.
What is Windows 365? / The Cloud PC ❓
Windows 365 is simply the windows powered by Cloud. Windows 365 is the windows made accessible to users from Cloud. It is called “The Cloud PC” because Windows 365 will act as your personal Windows computer accessible to you regardless of any device (hardware) or any operating system (software).
Accessible everywhere, available anytime!
As we can access the cloud from any device running any underlying operating system same will be the case for windows 365, we can access our windows 365 (Cloud PC) from any hardware, it can be any device ranging from laptops, desktops, tablets to cell phones and it can be a non-windows device like Macintosh devices or iOS devices. You can access your windows 365 from an Apple iPhone running iOS, a Samsung device running Android OS, a desktop or a laptop running on top of Linux, an M1 MacBook running Macintosh and all the other hardware devices and software operating systems. As soon as we can be able to access Microsoft Azure (Microsoft’s Cloud service) from a device we can be able to access our cloud windows PC from the same device.
Hybrid Windows for a hybrid world!
We are living in a post-pandemic paradigm, which is a mix of in-person and virtual happenings. The work culture has been transformed from on-premises to a hybrid world. Work from home has introduced a new way of working in a hybrid model. With the advent of technology our world has become a hybrid world, let’s say we can be able to craft a spreadsheet of attendees in a meeting on a laptop and we can do the same task on the go with our phones by amazing applications like Microsoft Excel. So, technology has immensely eradicated the limitations to access technology and the cloud is the pivotal role player. With Windows 365 we can provide more leverage to this hybrid culture, with Windows 365 the Windows itself will become hybrid and be accessible via many modes.
OSaaS (Operating System as a Service)!
By harnessing the power of the cloud we can achieve almost everything. Like we moved the applications to the cloud in SaaS (Software as a Service) with Windows 365 the operating system itself will be available as a service. We can unofficially call it an (Operating System as a Service). Elaborating it more, like we have a service called serverless computing (Azure Functions) it’s an amazing feature with which we can deploy apps faster without the nuances of infrastructure and servers so, Azure Functions is an example of SaaS, similar to SaaS windows 365 will act as OSaaS or PaaS (Platform as a Service).
Stable State Reliability
You can start over from where you left working on your personalized Windows 365 even when you switch devices, the state of your cloud pc remains the same. As we have virtual machines hosted on the cloud, regardless of the device they have the same state, similar will be the case for Windows 365.
Your Personalized PC
Windows 365 will act as your personalized PC with all of your customized apps, settings and content just similar to your local windows experience.
Customized Hardware
Like Azure Virtual Machines you can easily set up your cloud PC according to your needs. You can customize the amount of hardware you need to fulfil your workloads. As the underlying technology is Microsoft Azure, you can easily scale up and scale down the cloud resources as per needs. The same is the case for costs, pay as you use on the go!
Security at its Best!
The robust security traits of Microsoft Azure (Cloud) powers your windows 365 cloud PC so, you don’t have to worry about security, data loss prevention and compliance etc. we have done the hard part for you. Ransomware and data loss? A genuine copy of the latest windows version running on remote customized servers of Microsoft Azure! All doubts about security cleared!
Windows 365 was paramount for us to protect our data. We’re confident that our information remains safely in our Azure tenant and that we’re protected from avoidable data loss scenarios.
(Dean Wells: Chief Information Officer at the Department of Community and Government Services, Government of Nunavut)
Windows 365 bridging the gaps! (Use-Case)
Nunavut, Canada
Nunavut is the northern part of Canada and it is one of the most remote regions of the world. Windows 365 is helping the local government of Nunavut to prevail the good governance. Nunavut truly relies on satellite internet up to 100 per cent, which is very substandard. During the pandemic to carry out the most vital operations like health care management, distant learning and work from home, the government of Nunavut collaborated with Microsoft for a solution. Microsoft implemented windows 365 as a pilot rollout for Nunavut and it seamlessly solved the problem.
Windows 365 is a great solution — it’s a PC in the cloud that follows you wherever you go.
(Martin Joy: Director of Information Communications and Technology, Department of Community and Government Services, Government of Nunavut)
Microsoft Teams is a major hit, and it’s working perfectly in Windows 365. The audio quality of a Teams meeting is better than the cell service we have in Nunavut communities.
(Farhan Nadeem: Senior Systems Expert, Government of Nunavut)
You can head over for more in-depth nuances!
https://customers.microsoft.com/en-us/story/1394372441759478452-nunavut-government-windows-365
A much-needed use case in Pakistan!
Northern areas of Pakistan are more vulnerable to terrestrial breakdowns due to excessive snowfall and hard weather conditions especially in the days of fall and winter. We can harness the power of Windows 365 to create a difference and can be able to provide a seamless experience to all the residents and can achieve a milestone in good governance.
Public Rollout!
Microsoft Windows 365 will be made publicly available on August 2nd, 2021
From our standpoint, the simplicity of Windows 365 is amazing. There are a lot of good things about its management and security. Windows 365 was a product we didn’t know we needed until we saw it and used it.
(Martin Joy, Government of Nunavut)
Signing Off :)
After this all, I am not going to buy a new PC with high specs, I am just going to explore
https://windows365.microsoft.com/
