Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Amazon WorkSpaces Delivers Virtual Windows 7 Desktops

Amazon Web Services launched a virtual desktop in the cloud service.


Amazon WorkSpaces provides a Windows 7 desktop with persistent storage and integrated with corporate active directories. Because it is a cloud service, all data is secured in the cloud and not at the user's location.

There are four standard bundles. Here are the hardware specifications for each one:

  • Standard - 1 vCPU, 3.75 GiB of memory, and 50 GB of persistent user storage - $35 / user / month.
  • Standard Plus - 1 vCPU, 3.75 GiB of memory, and 50 GB of persistent user storage - $50 / user / month.
  • Performance - 1 vCPU, 3.75 GiB of memory, and 100 GB of persistent user storage - $60 / month.
  • Performance Plus - 2 vCPU, 7.5 GiB of memory, and 100 GB of persistent user storage - $75 / month.

All of the bundles include Adobe Reader, Adobe Flash, Firefox, Internet Explorer 9, 7-Zip, the Java Runtime Environment (JRE), and other utilities. The Standard and Performance Plus bundles also include Microsoft Office Professional and Trend Micro Worry-Free Business Security Services.

WorkSpaces can also be accessed from iPads, Kindles, and Android tablets.