We manage several hundred Windows 365 Cloud PCs for different clients and have typically set them up with 2 CPUs, 8GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage. While performance was decent with versions 22H2 and 23H2, we've recently been overwhelmed with support tickets regarding poor performance since updating to 24H2 and 25H2. Upgrading to 16GB RAM improves things, but it costs quite a bit when scaled across so many systems. I know 8GB isn't ideal for Windows 11, but it was functional before. I'm considering A/B testing a 25H2 image with our security tools or possibly moving to Zero Trust Network Access and connecting directly to Azure instead. I'm curious to hear about others' experiences with this situation; it seems like Windows 365 is becoming more of a hassle lately.
5 Answers
For what it's worth, I also noticed slowdowns post-update. I have a VMWare VM, and after switching to 24H2, apps lagged horribly. I ran a clean-up with Cleanmgr, which helped restore some speed. Maybe running a similar cleanup on your Windows 365 setups could help too!
Ram issues aren't as big of a problem with SSDs. If you're still on HDDs, that could be why you're facing these issues. Check for background processes too—I've noticed Chrome and Edge using a lot of unnecessary resources lately, especially with new AI features. It might be worth tweaking some settings.
Changing some app settings can definitely ease the burden too. Just keep an eye on what’s running in the background!
I've been finding that W365 isn't great, especially since many setups are on HDDs. None of my 128GB machines have much free space left, which makes everything slow. I think Azure Virtual Desktop might be a better option if you're familiar with tools like Terraform. W365's performance has really declined recently, and it's becoming frustrating for everyone.
Totally agree! It seems like a lot of people are saying 'W365 sucks' lately. I had faith in it, but I'm leaning toward Azure now because it just seems to work better for users.
You're not wrong, I've also been stuck dealing with complaints lately. AVD could be a much better option for your clients.
We’ve experienced the same issues with 8GB and 2 CPUs on the latest updates. Edge and M365 are hogging RAM like crazy. I recommend running some tests with clean installs to see if certain security tools are bogging down performance. And if it fits your scale, long-lining into Azure could ease the load.
We're considering making the switch too. Using ZTNA for Azure access sounds promising, especially since many clients are already on Active Directory. My friend has had great success with it!
Definitely do some testing! The latest updates seem to require more resources, so isolating the issue could save a lot of headaches.
I had similar issues with AWS Workspaces. We were okay on Windows Server 2016, but upgrading to 2022 caused all sorts of performance problems. Users complained a lot, and we ended up having to move to higher tiers to satisfy their needs. It's just the nature of newer Windows versions requiring more horsepower, despite their claims of optimization.
Great point about SSDs! We've had better performance overall since upgrading storage for some users.