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  • Sizing Azure Virtual Desktop: Key Considerations and Best Practices

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    Introduction
    Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD) is Microsoft’s Desktop as a Service (DaaS) solution that enables organizations to provide secure, remote access to Windows desktops and applications. Whether you’re migrating from an on-premises Remote Desktop environment or building a fresh virtual desktop infrastructure in the cloud, proper sizing is crucial. An under-provisioned environment leads to poor user experience, while over-provisioning increases costs unnecessarily. In this blog post, we will explore best practices for sizing Azure Virtual Desktop to ensure you strike the right balance between performance, cost, and scalability.

    1. Understand Your User Profiles

    User profiles are a foundational concept when sizing any VDI or DaaS environment. Each user’s workload requirements—memory usage, CPU consumption, graphics intensity, and disk I/O—vary widely. Typically, organizations classify users into categories such as:

    1. Task Workers – Minimal productivity applications (e.g., Microsoft Word, Excel, web browsers).
    2. Knowledge Workers – Heavier applications (e.g., Microsoft Teams, collaboration tools, multi-browser tabs).
    3. Power Users/Developers – Resource-intensive applications (e.g., Visual Studio, large datasets, analytics).
    4. Graphics-Intensive Users – Specialized workloads requiring GPUs (e.g., AutoCAD, 3D modeling, video editing).

    The better you understand each user profile, the more precise you can be when selecting the right Azure VM size and resource requirements.

    2. Estimate Concurrency and Peak Load

    Not all users are active all the time. Understanding the maximum number of concurrent sessions is essential for cost-efficient sizing. When planning concurrency:

    • Assess user work schedules: If your organization operates in multiple time zones or has shift-based usage, concurrency may be lower at certain times.
    • Evaluate burst and peak usage: Some applications or times of day (e.g., Monday mornings) may have heavier usage than others.
    • Leverage data from existing environments: If you have historical performance metrics or usage stats, use those to forecast concurrent sessions in AVD.

    A recommended approach is to combine concurrency data with your user profiles to get an accurate sizing baseline. For instance, 300 task users might share the same sessions as 50 power users, each requiring a different portion of the total resources.

    3. Choose the Right VM Sizes

    Azure offers a variety of VM families that suit different requirements:

    1. General Purpose (e.g., D-series) – Balanced CPU and memory, ideal for knowledge workers and light productivity tasks.
    2. Memory Optimized (e.g., E-series) – Increased memory per core, suitable for larger datasets or memory-hungry applications.
    3. Compute Optimized (e.g., F-series) – Higher CPU-to-memory ratio for CPU-intensive workloads.
    4. Graphics/Visualization (e.g., NV-series) – GPU-enabled VMs for graphics-intensive workloads.

    Selecting the right VM size often involves balancing the number of CPU cores, memory, and (if required) GPU resources for your user profiles. In many cases, a proof-of-concept (PoC) or pilot environment can help you test real-world performance before wider deployment.

    4. Plan for Storage and Profile Management

    Storage is a key consideration for both performance and cost:

    • User Profiles: Store roaming profiles on Azure Files or Azure NetApp Files for quick, consistent access to user data.
    • FSLogix Profile Containers: Simplify user profile management and reduce login times by using FSLogix with AVD. This helps ensure a more consistent experience as users move between session hosts.
    • IOPS and Throughput Requirements: If your applications are I/O-intensive, using Premium SSD or Azure NetApp Files may be necessary to meet performance requirements.

    Properly sizing your storage solution ensures minimal login delays, smooth application interaction, and a better overall user experience.

    5. Leverage Autoscaling

    One of the advantages of running virtual desktops in Azure is the ability to autoscale. By configuring autoscaling policies, you can:

    1. Scale Out – Automatically add more session hosts as usage spikes.
    2. Scale In – Shut down or deallocate underutilized hosts during off-peak times to minimize cost.

    This elasticity allows you to meet peak demands without maintaining a large number of constantly running hosts. Azure Virtual Desktop integrates with Azure Monitor and Azure Automation to adjust scale rules based on CPU utilization, user load, or time-based schedules.

    6. Optimize Cost and Evaluate Licensing

    AVD licensing is included with many existing Microsoft 365 or Windows 10/11 Enterprise agreements, simplifying licensing costs. However, you still pay for the underlying Azure infrastructure—VM compute, storage, networking, and other services. Keep these tips in mind:

    • Reserved Instances: For workloads with predictable usage, reserving VM compute resources for one or three years can save significantly on Azure costs.
    • Azure Hybrid Benefit: If you’re using Windows Server session hosts (RDSH), you can leverage Azure Hybrid Benefit to reduce licensing costs if you already own Windows Server licenses with Software Assurance.
    • Scale with Demand: Use cost analysis tools to identify underused resources and keep your environment aligned with demand.

    7. Monitor and Adjust

    Sizing an AVD environment is not a one-time activity. Performance and usage patterns may change due to software updates, new applications, or user growth. Regular monitoring helps ensure your sizing remains optimal. Tools and best practices include:

    • Azure Monitor and Logs: Track metrics such as CPU, memory usage, disk I/O, and network throughput.
    • Connection Diagnostics: Use built-in AVD diagnostics to troubleshoot connection issues and user performance.
    • User Feedback: Gather feedback from pilot users and end-users to refine and validate system performance.

    Constantly reviewing metrics and feedback helps you keep costs under control while maintaining a high-quality user experience.

    Conclusion

    Properly sizing your Azure Virtual Desktop deployment is essential to ensure performance, user satisfaction, and cost-effectiveness. By analyzing user profiles, planning for concurrency, selecting the right VM series, optimizing storage, and leveraging autoscaling, you can build a robust environment that scales with your organization’s needs. Finally, don’t forget to monitor and adjust your solution over time—user behavior and application demands rarely remain static. With the right approach, you can confidently deliver a secure, efficient, and cost-effective virtual desktop experience in the Azure cloud.