Question

You manage session host images for a large Azure Virtual Desktop deployment. You need to automate the creation of a custom Windows 11 Enterprise multi-session image that installs LOB applications, applies the latest Windows updates, and makes the resulting image available with multiple replicas across three Azure regions so that host pools in each region can deploy session hosts from a local copy. You want to minimize ongoing manual effort. Which approach should you use?

Accepted Answer

Use Azure VM Image Builder with a template that references a customization script, then distribute the output to an Azure Compute Gallery image definition with replicaCount and targetRegions configured.

Answer

Manually build a VM, install the applications and updates, run Sysprep, capture a managed image, and copy the managed image to each region.

Answer

Use Azure VM Image Builder to output a managed image, then reference that managed image directly when creating each host pool in every region.

Answer

Create the image with Azure VM Image Builder and distribute it to a storage account as a VHD, then import the VHD in each region when deploying session hosts.