CrowdStrike became a household name this summer after a faulty software update crashed nearly 10 million Windows machines. The effects of the largest IT outage in history were drastic – hospitals couldn’t deliver patient care, airlines came to a screeching halt, and thousands of IT professionals were scrambling to educate non-technical users how to boot their PCs in secure mode and delete system level files to get their machines functional again.
What if there were a better way? Instead of relying on widespread computer education (which I’m passionate about, having spent years promoting Hour of Code initiatives to bring Computer Science education to every student), IT now has advanced tools that eliminate the need for end users to modify their computers directly. Enter the world of Cloud PCs.
The Evolution and Impact of Microsoft’s Cloud PC Offerings
Microsoft has spent years perfecting the delivery of Cloud PCs, specifically the Windows 365 and Azure Virtual Desktop offerings. They even introduced Microsoft Managed Desktops, which ran for several years, to build and refine the tools needed for efficiently managing remote Windows machines at scale from the cloud (this service was retired in July 2024).
These Cloud PCs offerings allow end users to seamlessly access their business-critical applications from any devices. W365 is an ideal solution for remote workers, contractors, temporary workers and interns that just need cloud-based apps, while developers that need access to high powered compute power and businesses with on-premises resources will lean towards the AVD offering.
The Cloud PC Advantage in the Wake of the CrowdStrike Crisis
How does this relate to the CrowdStrike issue? I’ve spoken with dozens of IT professionals, and the remediation efforts needed for Cloud PCs were significantly less demanding compared to those required for legacy desktop environments.
Virtual machines were easily reverted to a stable image—specifically from the Thursday before the CrowdStrike issue on Friday—allowing IT teams to manage the process entirely in-house and at scale. This approach avoided the need for helpdesk teams to handle countless support calls over several days to restore users’ systems.
As IT departments globally reconsider their toolset to maintain resilience in an increasingly complex cyber security environment, I recommend exploring which users may be a good fit to begin piloting Cloud PCs. I also recommend a review of all security tools to see if a platform vs ‘best in breed’ approach can consolidate efforts to improve maintenance capabilities while reducing spend.
Microsoft’s Defender line keeps expanding its features, and when combined with a broader cloud-native identity and management strategy, such as Entra ID and Intune, it unlocks unparalleled automation and intelligence, enhanced further by CoPilot for Security.
Mobile Mentor is proud to be a leading Microsoft partner focusing on the endpoint ecosystem, and we would welcome the opportunity to work with your team to make cloud native management and Cloud PCs a reality.
