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Microsoft Dev Box: a modern workstation

Microsoft Dev Box is a virtualized solution that enables IT engineers to quickly launch self-service workstations pre-configured for their tasks while maintaining centralized management to maximize security and compliance with organizational standards. Join emagineer and software architect Mateusz Pruchniak as he explores this modern workstation.

Mateusz Pruchniak, Software Architect / Cloud Native Architect

Microsoft Dev Box was announced as a generally available service for production use during the Microsoft Build event in May 2023. It's primarily designed as virtual workstations for IT professionals. Modern IT engineer workstations come with many challenges. Engineers can spend days, and sometimes weeks, preparing their work environment before making their first changes or completing tasks after the required workstation configuration.

This is particularly challenging for consultants or engineers working on multiple projects, which can result in conflicting library dependencies and software versions. It significantly impacts work comfort and project flexibility.

 

Images as an integral part of the product

With Microsoft Dev Box, engineering teams create and maintain Dev Box images with all the tools and dependencies needed for building, running, and configuring environments, or platforms (e.g., Cloud). Microsoft Dev Box supports any developer IDE, SDK, or in-house tool running on the Windows operating system. And because Microsoft Dev Boxes are hosted in the Microsoft Azure cloud, they can be accessed from anywhere: Windows, MacOS, Android, iOS, or a web browser.

This approach makes Dev Box images an integral part of the product, with development and changes going hand in hand. For example, development teams can include the application source code and generate binary files every night, enabling developers to start working immediately upon launching the Dev Box.

 

Key features of a Microsoft Dev Box

1. Delivery of pre-configured, ready-to-use workstations with all required dependencies. This minimizes the effort required to set up a workstation, reducing the onboarding process for new employees, for example.

2. Self-service workstations for engineers with SKU units ranging from 8 to 32 vCPU cores, up to 128 GB of memory, and 2 TB of storage.

3. Project and role-specific Dev Box images that can be pre-built with all tools, configurations, source code, and binary files to accelerate project initiation and changes.

4. Compatibility with the Intune service, which provides device and image management to secure, monitor, and ensure compliance with company standards.

5. Integration with Azure virtual networks, allowing administrators to restrict access to sensitive resources, databases, or internal endpoints to approved team members on specific workstations. It also enables connectivity to on-premises environments if there is appropriate infrastructure between Azure and on-premises.

6. Full integration with Azure Active Directory (AAD). Comprehensive access control in AAD enables IT administrators to limit access by project or user type, facilitating control over permissions and policies based on the project's needs. For instance, for highly sensitive workloads, conditional access policies or risk-based login requirements, such as requiring users to connect via compliant devices or use multi-factor authentication (MFA), can be configured.

What about costs?

In terms of costs, to use the Microsoft Dev Box service, each user must have a license for either Windows 11 Enterprise or Windows 10 Enterprise, Microsoft Endpoint Manager service, and Azure Active Directory (P1) service.

In addition to being available separately, these licenses are included in the subscriptions of Microsoft 365 F3, Microsoft 365 E3, Microsoft 365 E5, Microsoft 365 A3, Microsoft 365 A5, Microsoft 365 Business Premium, and Microsoft 365 Education Benefits for Students.

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An additional cost to consider is the cost of virtual machines. There are two payment models available: a fixed monthly fee for the Dev Box machine or a usage-based fee charged for each hour of Dev Box machine usage. In the usage-based payment model, charges accrue only up to the maximum monthly fee. It's important to carefully choose the payment model based on your needs and implement cost-saving mechanisms such as scheduling automatic shutdowns or machine hibernation.

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