Azure Virtual Desktop Hybrid
Azure Virtual Desktop with the session hosts on your own servers, next to the applications and data that need to stay on site.
Checked 4 October 2026. Built from the full service page.
In short: Azure Virtual Desktop Hybrid keeps the AVD service in Azure and runs the session hosts on your own hardware: Windows VMs on the hypervisor you already use, or headless physical Windows Server machines. It suits organisations whose applications need to sit close to on-premises databases, file servers or production systems. Microsoft runs the service; the machines are yours to run, or ours, because AVD Hybrid does not provision or power-manage them.
Who this is for
The problem
When the desktop moves to the cloud and the data does not, every query, file open and save makes a round trip between the two. Applications built for a local network feel it first: screens that used to load at once take seconds, and the new platform gets the blame.
What we would do
Keep the session hosts where the data is. If your applications depend on on-premises systems and you have hardware with life left, AVD Hybrid gives you the Azure Virtual Desktop service and user experience without putting a region's worth of distance between the desktop and its data. Plan from day one for the parts it leaves to you: building, patching, sizing and powering the hosts.
- If nothing your users run depends on on-premises systems, cloud AVD or Windows 365 is simpler, because there is no hardware to run at all.
- If you need Windows 11 or Windows 10 Enterprise multi-session on site, AVD Hybrid does not support it: AVD on Azure Local or a Windows Server RDS estate is the route.
- If you want autoscale, power management or Start VM on Connect from the service itself, those are cloud AVD features, not AVD Hybrid ones.
When we are not the answer: If your on-premises estate is being retired within a year or two anyway, building hybrid session hosts on it rarely pays, and we would point you at cloud AVD or Windows 365 instead. And if the RDS estate you have works and nobody needs anything it does not do, keeping it is a legitimate answer.
What is included
- Application and data dependency review: which workloads need to stay on site
- Host and hypervisor readiness, including headless physical Windows Server hosts
- Licensing check covering user entitlement, RDS CALs and the AVD Hybrid service licence
- Azure Arc onboarding and Azure Virtual Desktop Arc extension deployment
- Host pool, workspace and application group design, with managed identity and roles
- AD DS or hybrid join design for Windows Server session hosts
- Network checks for the AVD required URLs and Azure Arc endpoints
- Ongoing patching, image consistency and capacity management for the on-premises hosts
What the last 12 months looked like
What it costs
Scoped and quoted against your estate rather than sold from a rate card. We price what you already run, including the parts that are working and do not need replacing, and the quote itemises what is included so it can be compared line by line with anyone else’s. Managed IT support starts at £40 per user, per month if that is the wider question.
Three questions people ask
What is Azure Virtual Desktop Hybrid?
It is Azure Virtual Desktop with the session hosts on your own infrastructure.
Is AVD Hybrid the same as Azure Virtual Desktop on Azure Local?
No. AVD Hybrid uses the hypervisor or physical servers you already run.
Does AVD Hybrid support Windows 11 Enterprise multi-session?
No. Windows 11 and Windows 10 Enterprise multi-session are not supported on AVD Hybrid. Windows client session hosts run Windows 11 or Windows 10 Enterprise, and shared sessions on site come from Windows Server 2016 to 2025 hosts.
Tell us what you need
A short call to talk through how your IT works today, what your team handles, and what you need from a provider. We will tell you plainly how we would approach it.
Prefer to talk now? Call us on +44 (0)1482 770583.