What Azure Virtual Desktop setups work well for civil engineering firms using OpenRoads Designer?

For engineering workloads, N-series machines in Azure Virtual Desktop are a common approach. The right user count depends heavily on how many people are actively working in OpenRoads at the same time, since CAD performance is often limited by single-thread speed, GPU capability, and driver behavior rather than just the total number of vCPUs. I’d test one, two, and four concurrent users performing typical design and rendering tasks before settling on a density.

Azure Files Premium can be a less expensive option for FSLogix in many environments, although Azure NetApp Files can be a very good choice when you need its performance, throughput, or management features. If your users are happy with the speed and the flexible capacity plan is cost-effective for your usage, there may not be a strong reason to change it.

Your scaling approach sounds reasonable for a 26-user company: start the session hosts in the morning and deallocate them after work. Automation platforms such as Nerdio can help larger deployments scale N-series hosts more aggressively, but for a small environment, native scaling plans may be simpler and cheaper to operate.

Be careful when comparing recommendations for NVv3 machines, because that series is scheduled to retire on September 30, 2026. Since you’re using NV12ads V710 v5 rather than NVv3, focus your testing on the current V710-based SKU and confirm that the GPU drivers and OpenRoads version are supported. Benchmark realistic OpenRoads workflows with multiple simultaneous users before making any change.