Microsoft has recently announced the availability of the new VDI solution for Teams on Azure Virtual Desktops/Windows 365 environments. This new architecture aims to bring the Teams user experience closer between physical and virtual desktops by introducing a new media engine, decoupled from the Remote Desktop client, allowing for faster feature updates without requiring VDI infrastructure upgrades.
Key components of this new optimization include an up-to-date version of Teams, an updated Remote Desktop client or Windows App with a plugin for SlimCore, and the benefits include more features, performance improvements, auto-updates, and streamlined support for Teams issues.
The deployment of SlimCore-based optimization does not require the WebRTC-based optimization as a prerequisite. The plugin installation does not need admin rights as it is bundled with the Remote Desktop client or Windows App. Multiple SlimCore versions can co-exist on the same endpoint, allowing for faster optimization in different VDI environments.
Newer versions of the plugin and SlimCore are released periodically to enhance the optimization. Auto-updating in this new architecture ensures that Teams and the plugin stay up to date without requiring manual intervention. Networking changes are expected to allow SlimCore to handle media and signaling efficiently.
Administrators can benefit from improvements in supportability, including enhanced visibility in Teams Admin Center and the ability to create custom reports using the Call Quality Dashboard. Session roaming between devices supporting different optimizations is managed to ensure a seamless user experience.
While the new optimization is enabled by default at the org-wide level, it can be disabled using PowerShell policy and controlled at a user-group level. Stay tuned for updates on support for Mac and Linux endpoints and the deprecation of the legacy WebRTC optimization.
For more detailed information and FAQs, you can refer to the provided Microsoft article link.
