Azure Virtual Desktop deployment in Parallels RAS is done by completing a series of wizards, including:
Enable Feature and Add Azure Virtual Desktop Provider.
Add an Azure Virtual Desktop Workspace.
Add an Azure Virtual Desktop host pool and then add standalone or template-based hosts to the host pool.
Publish Azure Virtual Desktop resources.
You can run all from the Start category as part of a single deployment procedure. Read on to learn how to do it.
A workspace is a logical grouping of application groups in Azure Virtual Desktop. Each Azure Virtual Desktop application group must be associated with a workspace for users to see the remote apps and desktops published to them.
To add a workspace:
Select whether you want to create a new workspace or select an existing one:
To select an existing workspace, click the [...] button next to the Name field.
To create a new workspace, type a name and optional description. Select an existing or create a new resource group. Specify a location. Note that the location that you select here will be used for all Azure Virtual Desktop objects, including workspaces, host pools, and application groups.
In the Friendly name field, specify the friendly name that will be used for the workspace in Azure Virtual Desktop and Parallels RAS.
Click Next, review the summary and click Finish.
The last page of the wizard has the Launch Azure Virtual Desktop host pool wizard option selected by default. This will automatically open the Add Azure Virtual Desktop Host Pool wizard when you click FInish.
Azure Virtual Desktop integration must first be enabled in the RAS Farm. This can be done from two places in the RAS Console:
Using the Deploy Azure Virtual Desktop wizard in the Start category.
By going to Farm > Site > Settings and selecting the Features tab.
The instructions below are for enabling and deploying Azure Virtual Desktop from the Start category. The Features tab in Site > Settings has the same elements as the Enable Feature page described below.
Note: If you haven't enabled Azure Virtual Desktop in the RAS Farm yet, the wizard pages will open in the order described below. If Azure Virtual Desktop is already enabled (e.g. you ran the wizard before or enabled Azure Virtual Desktop from Site settings), the first two pages will be skipped and the first page you'll see is Add Azure Virtual Desktop Provider where you need to enter the provider information.
To begin the deployment:
In the Parallels RAS Console, select the Start category and launch the Deploy Azure Virtual Desktop wizard.
System and user requirements: On the first page, read system and user requirements. Click a link at the bottom of the page to read a Parallels KB article for more information. Click Next.
Enable Feature: This page allows you to enable Azure Virtual Desktop in the RAS Farm. First, select where to store the Azure Virtual Desktop agent and bootloader from the following options:
Connection Broker: Store on the RAS Connection Broker server.
Network share: Specify or select a network share.
Click the Download agent and bootloader button. Wait for the download to complete and examine the Status section, which should indicate "Available" and display the version number. When a new version of the Azure Virtual Desktop agent is available, "Needs update" is shown so new servers deployed from Parallels RAS will use the updated version.
The Client feature set selection specifies which client features will be available when you open a published resource in Parallels Client. Select from the following options:
Standard: Standard feature set. This is identical to opening and running a published resource using the Microsoft Windows Desktop client, also known as Remote Desktop (MSRDC) client, which is the client used to access apps and desktops from Azure Virtual Desktop.
Advanced: This option also uses the Windows Desktop client but adds advanced Parallels Client features, such as drag and drop and others.
Advanced with fallback: This option first tries to open a published resource using the Advanced feature set. If Advanced doesn't work for any reason, it will try to open the resource using the Standard option.
This completes the task of enabling Azure Virtual Desktop in the RAS Farm. Click Next to advance to the next page.
Add Azure Virtual Desktop Provider: On this page you need to specify your Microsoft Azure Tenant ID, Subscription ID, Application ID, and a secret key. This is similar to setting up Microsoft Azure as a Provider in Parallels RAS. For the explanation of how to specify these properties, please see Add Microsoft Azure as a Provider. Please note that under subscription details, URIs/URLs may be edited during creation of a provider. The Feed URL setting, which by default is https://rdweb.wvd.microsoft.com/api/arm/feeddiscovery, may also be edited once an Azure Virtual Desktop provider is created.
Click Next, review the summary and click Finish. Note that changing Microsoft Azure app permissions after a provider is created may require a restart of the Parallels RAS redundancy service so new permissions are loaded and used.
This completes the first wizard in the series. On the last page, the Launch Azure Virtual Desktop Workspace wizard option is enabled by default. This will automatically open the next wizard where you can add an Azure Virtual Desktop workspace.
A host pool is a collection of one or more identical virtual machines (VMs) within an Azure Virtual Desktop environment. Each host pool contains an application group that users can access.
To add a host pool:
In the RAS console, navigate to Farm > <Site> > AVD > Host pools.
Click the Tasks drop-down list above the Pools list and then click Add (or click the plus-sign icon). This opens the Add AVD host pool wizard.
Select whether you want to create new or select an existing host pool:
To select an existing workspace, click the [...] button next to the Name field.
To create a new host pool, select Create new host pool and select the provider, workspace, name, description, resource group, and location.
In the Friendly name field, specify the friendly name that will be used for the host pool in Azure Virtual Desktop and Parallels RAS.
Click Next.
On the Configuration page, specify the following:
Host pool type: Select from Pooled (multi-session hosts) or Personal (single-session hosts).
Publishing type: Select from Application or Desktop depending on what you want to use the pool for.
Load balancer: Select a load balancer type. Breadth-first load balancing allows you to evenly distribute user sessions across the session hosts in a host pool. Depth-first load balancing allows you to saturate a session host with user sessions in a host pool. Once the first session host reaches its session limit threshold, the load balancer directs any new user connections to the next session host in the host pool until it reaches its limit, and so on.
Limit number of sessions on host: For a pooled (multi-session) pool type, specify the maximum allowed number of sessions on a host.
Power on host on-demand: Specify whether a powered down host should be powered on when a user tries to connect to it. Note that this applies only if all session hosts in the host pool are powered off.
Default license type: Select the Azure license type.
Service updates validation: Select the Validation environment option if you want to make this host pool a validation environment for Microsoft service updates.
Click Next.
On the Provisioning page, select whether this host pool will contain template-based or standalone hosts:
Template: Hosts will be created dynamically from a template. You will need to create or select an existing template in the next step or later. Choosing Template as the provisioning type ensures a homogeneous host pool, which is recommended to provide consistent user experience across the host pool. For information on how to create a template, see Create a template.
Standalone: Select one or more hosts that already exist. You'll be able to do it in the next step or you can do it later. Prior to adding hosts to host pools, ensure that hosts are domain joined and have network access to the domain environment. Note that the Standalone provisioning is considered "unmanaged" as it lacks some of the functionality, such as Autoscaling.
Click Next.
Depending on the selection made on the Provisioning page (above), do one of the following
Standalone: Select one or more hosts from the list to be included in the host pool (you can also add hosts to the pool later).
Template: Select a template from the list or click Create new to create a new template and specify the template settings. Versions: If you selected an existing template, select one of its versions. Enable autoscale: (Multi-session hosts) Enable and configure autoscale. Overwrite the size specified in template properties: Overwrite the virtual machine size, which is normally set on the template level. The size that you specify here will be used by this host pool only. Other host pools using the same template will be unaffected. Note that if a VM is later taken out of such a host pool due to autoscale settings, the VM will retain the last known size and may join another host pool with the new size specified. Also note that available sizes may depend on the location, size, and power state of the host pool members and the template.
Click Next.
(Templates only) On the Properties page, specify the following options:
Template name: Choose and type a template name.
Maximum hosts: Specify the maximum number of hosts that can be created from this template.
Number of hosts deployed on wizard completion: The number of hosts to deploy once the template is created. Please keep in mind that this will take some time because the hosts will be created one at a time.
Host prefix: A pattern to use when naming new hosts.
Click Next.
(Templates only) On the Settings page, specify the following options:
Keep available buffer: The minimum number of hosts to always keep unassigned and session free for the template. As soon as the number of free and unassigned desktops drops below the setting value, it forces the template to create another host. The template uses its own settings for host creation including initial power state.
Host state after the preparation: Select the power state that should be applied to a host after it is prepared. Choose from Powered on, Powered off, or Suspended. Note that when the power state is set to Power off or Suspended, the number of running (fully ready and waiting for incoming connections) hosts is controlled by the Keep available buffer setting (see above). For example, let's say the Maximum hosts value is set at 200, the number of guest hosts deployed on wizard completion is 100, and the power state after preparation is Powered off. The result of such a configuration will be 100 clones deployed and powered off.
Delete unused hosts after: Select what to do with unused hosts to save resources. Choose whether to never delete them or specify the time period after which they should be deleted.
Click Next.
On the Assignment page, specify users or groups to be assigned to the application group in the host pool. This is necessary for users to have access to published applications or desktops. Click Tasks > Add and specify a user or group. An application group of type Desktop or RemoteApp (whichever is appropriate) will be created and associated with the host pool automatically on wizard completion.
On the User profile page, you can select from Do not manage by RAS (user profiles will not be managed) or FSlogix. Microsoft FSLogix Profile Container allows to maintain user context in non-persistent environments, minimize sign-in times and provides native profile experience eliminating compatibility issues.
Follow the onscreen instructions and complete the wizard.
On the Summary page, review the template summary information. You can click the Back button to correct some of the information if needed.
Finally, click Finish to create the host pool and close the wizard.
Note: In the case of using the Advanced Client Feature Set, RemoteApp groups are not required for publishing applications since the Desktop App Group with Parallels seamless technology will be used to provide application publishing from configured desktop app groups.
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