Microsoft announces Windows 365 Reserve: Backup cloud PCs for the enterprise

Microsoft (Nasdaq:MSFT) has announced the preview of a new service, Windows 365 Reserve, which aims to provide enterprises with backups for PCs that are lost, stolen, or simply fail.

It offers a temporary pre-configured Cloud PC, accessible through a browser, that, Microsoft said, “looks and feels like a physical PC, and is accessible from any device, anywhere.”

The Reserve Cloud PC is managed through Microsoft Intune, and includes corporate applications, settings, and security policies, as well as Microsoft 365 apps (assuming the organization subscribes to M365) and OneDrive data sync.

The free preview will begin “soon”, the announcement said, and will run for up to 12 weeks.

There are restrictions, however. Preview participants must have a Windows E3 license, an Intune license, and Microsoft Entra ID P1 (formerly Azure Active Directory Premium Plan 1, or AADP1). Sovereign cloud customers are not supported, and participants must perform a few chores, including completing what the sign-up form calls “a set of admin and end user validation scenarios,” and then provide feedback on the experience.

Andrew Sharp, research director at Info-Tech Research Group, is impressed with the concept.

“In preview, the service claims it will allow an administrator to pre-stage a cloud PC, already loaded with the company’s policies, apps and security controls, so it can be handed to a stranded user in minutes,” he said. “Imagine your laptop dies at a client site. Helpdesk fires off a link, you open it in a browser or the Windows app, and you’re back at a familiar, compliant desktop before your coffee gets cold. At least that’s what they’re promising.” 

He likes the idea that Intune manages the virtual devices, so there’s no new control plane to learn, and he also sees potential for other use cases besides providing backups for PCs.

“Reserve could also be a low-friction way to dabble with virtual desktops with minimal commitment,” he noted. However, he does have reservations. “Microsoft’s value proposition is clear: quicker, safer recovery for lost, stolen, or broken devices,” he said. “At the end of the day, IT will still need an operational playbook. How does a user reach support when the primary device fails? Is a physical replacement shipped, or is Reserve the stopgap? Which applications and policies belong in the Reserve image? IT teams will need to sort out those workflows to make Windows 365 Reserve a practical resilience tool and not just another SKU.”

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