Home VDI system (Virtual Desktop Infrastructure),

jimbo45 said:

Hi there

Has anybody got experience of setting up for a HOME LAN a VDI (virtual desk top infrastructure) type of system. I'd like the client machines to be able to logon and be presented with a Windows desktop. If this means running a server edition of Windows I've the 180 day 2022 LTSC server (extendable via /slmgr -rearm 5 times so you could in theory run this for 6 X 180 days / 3 years) .

I'd have a max of 4 client machines at any one time -- I'd like to use this for teaching small groups about VM's and a few other things. My local Internet infrastructure is more than sufficient to carry that extra traffic easily enough.

if LTSC Server is your chosen option, Windows Server is your only choice due to license requirements. Otherwise 11 Pro for Workstations is an option.

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pseymour said:

I maintain a decent-sized VDI for a college, but that's a Citrix environment.

You would need some kind of hypervisor to host the VMs, whether that be Xen, ESXi, Hyper-V, etc. There is a Hyper-V Server 2019, which is supported until 2029, but there will be no 2022 version, just FYI.

Then, you would need to create a desktop environment to which users connect. That could be individual, single-user VMs (e.g., Windows 10 or 11), or it could be multi-user hosts like Remote Desktop Services on a Windows Server OS. Which way you go there depends on what you're trying to show folks, what you want them to be able to do, etc. For example, if you run a multi-user OS, you probably don't want any one user to be able to reboot the server while others are on it. :)

And then you need some way for clients to connect. That's typically where your web server comes into play. For a home lab, something like Apache Guacamole might be of use here.

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