Amazon Workspaces

• Managed desktop as a service product (DAAS) - dedicated virtual Windows/Linux desktop delivered as a managed service
• Ideal for home working
• Similar to Citrix/Remote Desktop - hosted within AWS
• It provides a consistent desktop accessible from anywhere, we can log off and log back in from different places, applications maintaining their state
• We can have Windows and Linux workspaces in various sizes
• We can use commercial applications on the workspaces
• Workspaces can be charged on monthly or hourly basis. There is an additional monthly infrastructure cost, which is applied even in case when we are billed hourly
• Workspaces use Directory Service (Simple, AD, AD Connector) for authentication and user management
• Each workspace uses an ENI (Elastic Network Interface) injected in a VPC
• Workspaces are accessed using client software from desktop/laptop, bandwidth is included free of charge. For any other internet access from the workspaces normal VPC infrastructure is used and charged accordingly
• Windows workspaces can access FSx and EC2 windows resources
• Any existing hybrid network can be also utilized for accessing on-premise resources
• Workspaces provide a system volume and an user volume, both can be encrypted

Workspaces Architecture

• Workspaces inject an ENI into customer managed VPCs, they run into AWS managed VPCs
• Directory services also inject ENIs into customer managed VPCs for file access, etc.
• Workspaces are not highly available by design
• We can distribute workspaces in different AZs, but a single workspace in particular can be affected by an AZ failure