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Amazon WorkSpaces

Amazon WorkSpaces FAQs

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    WorkSpaces Personal is a fully managed virtual desktop service that allows seamless access to applications and resources for knowledge workers, developers, engineers, and other users who need a persistent virtual desktop between sessions. With WorkSpaces Personal, each virtual desktop is assigned to a specific user. WorkSpaces Pools provides non-persistent virtual desktops for task workers, contact centers, training labs, and other shared-environment use cases. With WorkSpaces Pools, users access a new virtual desktop each time they sign in.

    Yes. WorkSpaces Thin Client currently supports both, WorkSpaces Personal and WorkSpaces Pools.

    The Connection Health Check page tests your latency to each Amazon WorkSpaces region and recommends the fastest one.

    Amazon WorkSpaces pricing includes network traffic between the user’s client and their WorkSpace. Web traffic from WorkSpaces (for example, accessing the public Internet, or downloading files) will be charged separately based on current AWS EC2 data transfer rates listed here.

    Amazon WorkSpaces bundles that provide the Windows desktop experience currently support English (US), French (Canadian), Korean, and Japanese. You can also download and install language packs for Windows directly from Microsoft. For more information, visit this page. Amazon WorkSpaces client applications currently support English (US), German, Chinese (Simplified), Japanese, French (Canadian), Korean, and Portuguese.

    Amazon WorkSpaces clients are available for the following devices:

    • Apple iPadOS based iPad, iPad Pro, iPad Mini, iPad Air

    • Android-compatible ChromeOS devices 

    • Android phones and tablets

    While we expect other popular Android tablets running Android version 8.1+ to work correctly with the Amazon WorkSpaces client, there may be some that are not compatible.

    Yes, as an administrator you can create a custom image from a running WorkSpace. Once you have customized your WorkSpace with your applications and settings, select the WorkSpace in the console and select “Create Image.” This creates an image with your applications and settings. Most WorkSpace images are available within 45 minutes.

    To launch an Amazon WorkSpace Personal from a custom image, you will first need to pair the custom image with a hardware type you want that WorkSpace to use, which results in a bundle. You can then select this bundle when launching new WorkSpaces. You can also use custom images to create a WorkSpaces Pool configuration. For important details on the process, see our documentation on creating custom images and custom bundles.

    As an administrator, you can create as many custom images as you need. Amazon WorkSpaces sets default limits, but you can request an increase in these limits here. To see the default limits for Amazon WorkSpaces, visit our documentation.

    Yes, you can use the WorkSpaces console, APIs, or CLI to copy your WorkSpaces Images to other AWS Regions where WorkSpaces is available. See our documentation for more information.

    You use your own Windows 10 or Windows 11 desktop licenses with WorkSpaces Personal and WorkSpaces Pools through a bring-your-own-license (BYOL) agreement if they meet Microsoft’s licensing requirements. To learn more about the licensing requirements for Windows Desktop on AWS, see the Windows Desktop section of the Microsoft on AWS FAQ. Desktop Windows requires dedicated hardware for compliance with Microsoft licensing. See the Requirements section of the Amazon WorkSpaces BYOL documentation for more information.

    By bringing your own Windows Desktop licenses to Amazon WorkSpaces, you will save $4 per user per month for WorkSpaces Personal when being billed monthly, and you will save money on the hourly usage fee when being billed hourly. For WorkSpaces Pools you will save $4.19 per user per month in RDS SAL fees (see the Amazon WorkSpaces pricing page for more information). If you have any applications which specifically require Windows Desktop, bringing your own Windows Desktop license will enable you to use those on WorkSpaces.

    In order to ensure that you have adequate dedicated capacity allocated to your account, reach out to your AWS account manager or sales representative to enable your account for BYOL. alternatively, you can create a Technical Support case with Amazon WorkSpaces to get started with BYOL.

    No. Your custom WorkSpaces or WorkSpaces Pools that support BYOL for Windows 10 or Windows 11 Desktops are launched on physically dedicated hardware to meet license compliance requirements with Microsoft. WorkSpaces launched in a directory marked for dedicated hardware can only be from the custom bundle you created that has your Windows 10 or Windows 11 Desktop image.

    If you wish to launch WorkSpaces from public bundles to users in the same domain, you can create a new AWS AD Connector directory that points to the same Microsoft Active Directory as your Windows 10 or Windows 11 Desktop WorkSpaces or Pools, and launch WorkSpaces or Pools in that directory as you normally would through the AWS Management Console or the WorkSpaces SDK and CLI.

    On WorkSpaces Personal and WorkSpaces Pools, you can bring your own Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise licenses to use on WorkSpaces services. On WorkSpaces Personal, you can purchase Office Pro Plus 2016, 2019, or 2021 from AWS as part of a WorkSpaces application bundle. See our Microsoft 365 BYOL Documentation for more information.

    Bringing your Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise license does not require use of Windows Desktop, nor does it require dedicated infrastructure.

    If you are running WorkSpaces Personal and are subscribed to a Microsoft Office license through AWS, you first need to unsubscribe from the Microsoft Office license provided by AWS before installing Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise. For more information on migrating from Microsoft Office to Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise, see this guide.

    You can use AWS CloudTrail to track the changes that you have requested.

    Multi-Factor Authentication adds an additional layer of security during the authentication process. Users must validate their identity by providing something they know (e.g. password), as well as something they have (e.g. hardware or software generated one-time password (OTP).

    WorkSpaces Pools and WorkSpaces Personal both support SAML 2.0 identity providers for additional security. For non-SAML setups, WorkSpaces Personal supports RADIUS with one time passwords that are delivered via hardware and software tokens. Out of band tokens, such as SMS tokens are not currently supported.

    MFA is available for Amazon WorkSpaces client applications on the following platforms - Windows, Mac, Linux, Chromebooks, iOS, Fire, Android, and PCoIP Zero Clients. MFA is also supported when using Web Access to access Amazon WorkSpaces.

    Amazon WorkSpaces supports SAML 2.0 authentication. Many SAML 2.0 identity providers (IdPs) support conditional access policies as well as multi-factor authentication. If your IdP is compatible with WorkSpaces and supports these features, we recommend enabling SAML 2.0 authentication for your WorkSpaces directory. For more information, see WorkSpaces Integration with SAML 2.0.

    Yes. You can set the Organizational Unit (OU) in which computer objects for your WorkSpaces are created in your directory. This OU can be part of the domain to which your users belong, part of a domain that has a trust relationship with the domain to which your users belong, or part of a child domain in your directory. See Select an organizational unit for more details.

    Yes. You can use Amazon VPC Security groups to limit access to resources in your network or the Internet from your WorkSpaces. You can select a default Amazon VPC Security Group for the WorkSpaces network interfaces in your VPC as part of the directory details on the WorkSpaces console. See our documentation for more details.

    You can use any of the free clients provided by AWS, which includes client applications for Windows, macOS, iPadOS, Android tablets, and Android-compatible ChromeOS devices, or Chrome or Firefox web browsers, to access WorkSpaces. If required, RDP or SSH can be configured for troubleshooting or administration of the WorkSpaces. This is not the default configuration, nor is it the supported way to access WorkSpaces. Multi Factor Authentication, connecting to AutoStop WorkSpaces Personal, and connecting to On-Demand Pools all require the WorkSpaces client.

    WorkSpaces clients support:

    • Keyboard, mouse, and touch input (touch input is only supported on tablet clients). Amazon WorkSpaces do not currently support 3D mice.

    • Audio output to client device

    • Analog and USB headsets

    WorkSpaces using Amazon DCV also support Common Access Card (CAC) and Personal Identity Verification (PIV) smart cards and webcams. DCV Linux WorkSpaces in the AWS GovCloud (US-West) Region only support input, display, audio out, and smart cards. PCoIP Windows WorkSpaces support in-session USB redirection of locally attached YubiKey for Universal 2nd Factor (U2F) authentication from the WorkSpaces Windows client.

    Yes - DCV WorkSpaces Personal can be accessed with SmartCard instead of username/password. You can access WorkSpaces Personal using smartcard if you use an Active Directory Connector and set the directory API to smartcard enabled. PCoIP WorkSpaces cannot support SmartCard features. See our smart card documentation for more information.

    WorkSpaces officially Supports CAC and PIV SmartCards.

    WorkSpaces can only handle one SmartCard in-session at the same time.

    In-session and pre-session SmartCard support for WorkSpaces is available in all regions in which Amazon DCV is supported.

    Most analog and USB headsets will work for audio conversations through WorkSpaces running Windows. For USB headsets, you should ensure they show up as a playback device locally on your client computer.

    Yes. For the best experience, we recommend using a headset for audio calls. However, you may experience an echo when using the built-in microphone and speakers with certain communication applications.

    Audio-in is supported on the Windows, macOS, Android and iPadOS clients.

    Audio-in is enabled for all new WorkSpaces. For WorkSpaces with Windows, enabling the WorkSpaces Audio-in capability requires local logon access inside your WorkSpace. If you have a Group Policy restricting user local logon in your WorkSpace, we will detect it and not apply the Audio-in update to the WorkSpace. You can remove the Group Policy and the Audio-in capability will be enabled after the next reboot.

    Yes. The Amazon WorkSpaces desktop client application will automatically scale the in-session display to match the DPI settings of the local device.

    Yes. The bandwidth requirements for WorkSpaces depends on multiple factors:

    • The number of screens it has to stream to.

    • The amount of pixel changes taking place in each screen.

    • The resolution of each monitor being used.

    The full-screen mode setting will be preserved. If you quit a WorkSpaces session in the full-screen mode, you will be able to log into the full-screen mode next time. However, display configurations will not be saved. Every time you initiate a WorkSpaces session, the client application extracts the EDID of uses your local setup configuration and sends that to the WorkSpaces host to deliver an optimal display experience.

    When you connect from a different desktop computer, the display settings of that computer will take precedence to deliver an optimal display experience.

    The Android client supports both keyboard and mouse input. The iPad client supports keyboard and Bluetooth mouse inputs. While we expect most popular keyboard and mouse devices to work correctly, there may be devices that may not be compatible. If you are interested in support for a particular device, let us know via the AWS re:Post.

    Yes, you can use WorkSpaces Web Access to log in to your WorkSpace with Windows through Chrome or Firefox web browsers with PCoIP WorkSpaces, and through any Chromium-based web browser with DCV WorkSpaces. You do not need to install any software, and you can connect from any network that can access the public Internet. To get started, your WorkSpaces admin needs to enable Web Access from the AWS Console in the WorkSpaces Directory Details – Access Control Options section. Once these steps are complete, to access your WorkSpace through a browser, simply visit the Amazon WorkSpaces Web Access page using a supported browser and enter your WorkSpaces registration code and then login to the WorkSpace with your username and password.

    See our documentation on Web Access for more information.

    You can pay for WorkSpaces either by the hour, or by the month. You only pay for the WorkSpaces you launch, and there are no upfront fees and no term commitments. The fees for using WorkSpaces include use of both the infrastructure (compute, storage, and bandwidth for streaming the desktop experience to the user) and the software applications listed in the bundle.

    Yes, you can pay for your Amazon WorkSpaces by the hour. Hourly pricing is available for all WorkSpaces bundles, and in all AWS regions where Amazon WorkSpaces is offered.

    Hourly pricing has two components: an hourly usage fee, and a low monthly fee for fixed infrastructure costs.

    Yes. By setting tags to appear on your monthly Cost Allocation Report, your AWS monthly bill will also include those tags. You can then easily track costs according to your needs. To do this, first assign tags to your Amazon WorkSpaces by following the steps listed on this web page: Tagging WorkSpaces. Next, select the tag keys to include in your cost allocation report by following the steps listed on this web page: Setting Up Your Monthly Cost Allocation Report.

    There are no additional costs when using tags with your Amazon WorkSpaces.

    Schools, universities, and public institutions may qualify for reduced WorkSpaces licensing fees. Reference Microsoft Licensing Documents for qualification requirements. If you think you may qualify, create a case with the AWS support center here. Select Regarding: , Service: , Category: , and enter the required info. We will review your information and work with you to reduce your fees and costs.

    You will need to provide AWS your institution's full legal name, principle office address, and public website URL. AWS will use this information to qualify you for reduced user fees for qualified educational institutions with your WorkSpaces. Note that the use of Microsoft software is subject to Microsoft’s terms. You are responsible for complying with Microsoft licensing. If you have questions about your licensing or rights to Microsoft software, consult your legal team, Microsoft, or your Microsoft reseller. You agree that we may provide the information to Microsoft in order to apply educational pricing to your Amazon WorkSpaces usage.