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Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) vs Microsoft Virtual Server comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 4, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Citrix DaaS (formerly Citri...
Ranking in Application Virtualization
1st
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
125
Ranking in other categories
Remote Access (5th), Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) (3rd), Desktop as a Service (DaaS) (1st)
Microsoft Virtual Server
Ranking in Application Virtualization
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
8.0
Number of Reviews
36
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Application Virtualization category, the mindshare of Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) is 27.0%, down from 29.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Virtual Server is 2.0%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Application Virtualization
 

Featured Reviews

Mohd Abdul Aziz Shah Sulaiman - PeerSpot reviewer
Delivers secure and unified access to apps, desktops, and content for enhanced productivity
Citrix Workforce is good, but it needs improvement in diagnosing network issues. When errors occur, it is difficult to determine if they're due to network issues, Workspace issues, or environment issues. The error messages are too vague, just stating "connection error" without specifying if it's an IP address issue, connectivity problem, or something else related to the network. This lack of detail makes troubleshooting difficult. We often have to reinstall everything in Workspace, without knowing the root cause. Even after engaging with Citrix and sending logs, the feedback is often unsatisfactory, not meeting my expectations. This trial-and-error approach isn't effective problem-solving. While these issues aren't everyday occurrences, when they do happen, they can be catastrophic for our operations team.
ChimeremezeNwabueze - PeerSpot reviewer
Eliminates the need for physical hardware and is not platform dependent
You can detach and reuse the storage drive without disrupting the virtual server, which is quite useful. Additionally, it provides options like network security groups to protect virtual machines from unauthorized access. The tool offers compatibility with various operating systems through the Azure Marketplace. You can access a wide range of Windows operating systems, both enterprise and commercial.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"Citrix Virtual Apps is the most valuable feature. Many customers use this feature to publish only applications, and not the full desktop. They can publish the internal resource or allow the end-user to reach a site or an application without having the full desktop. That's why they love this feature. It helps them save on resources."
"It is a very scalable solution."
"The basic virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) feature is most valuable. We were lucky to have it in place when the pandemic hit. It is used very heavily now."
"The service dash and Workspace Environment Manager service are good features."
"In terms of Citrix Workforce features, the most valuable for managing our remote workforce is security, especially AppProtect. Users cannot simply copy and paste data to their local devices. This prevents data breaches, as data can't be copied to OneDrive or Google Drive. Screenshots from local PCs are also blocked, though data can still be manually copied using a phone."
"The feature that I like is that it is fast."
"Relative to other solutions, Citrix has fewer conditions and fewer parameters. Citrix also provides some flexibility because it can be used on any device."
"Security is a shining point of the Citrix Workspace. Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops is a very robust solution when security is a concern. Furthermore, the content collaboration data-hosting that Citrix integrates with Virtual Apps and Desktops is among the best there is."
"I appreciate the ease and speed with which I can set up and manage virtual machines using Microsoft Virtual Server."
"It is a scalable solution...I followed some online tutorials, because of which I did not face any technical issues or the need to contact the solution's technical support."
"The standout features are its seamless network integration, robust data restoration capabilities, and versatile computing functions."
"The solution provides easy monitoring and easy troubleshooting."
"Everything is fine as far as our implementation goes."
"The most valuable feature is the ability to share folders and run Active Directory."
"The most valuable feature is the stability of the solution."
"It has proven to be most effective for workloads associated with running web portals."
 

Cons

"It takes time to load."
"Citrix should consolidate the multiple tools currently required into a single platform."
"We encounter compatibility issues related to hardware, scanners, and other devices."
"The initial setup has room for improvement."
"We have had issues with certain aspects, which is why we are looking for alternatives. For example, the firewall solution from Citrix is a bit complicated. Integration is hard."
"If Citrix can develop something which can have more reach towards the backend infrastructure, other components of the Citrix environment, that would be ideal."
"As an end-to-end solution for implementing Zero Trust principles I would rate it a six or a seven out of 10, because it doesn't cover all aspects of Zero Trust. There are quite a few aspects you need to cover."
"The monitoring and management is in need of improvement."
"The response time from technical support could be faster."
"As certain medium-level complexities are involved in the product's setup process, the product's setup phase can be considered for improvement."
"The bandwidth to Singapore could be scaled better."
"We've faced challenges with migrating virtual machines from one host to another. Also, managing Microsoft updates has been a struggle. We have to update the host node every month when new updates are released, and our virtual machines go down every time there's an update. This causes downtime repeatedly and irritates our clients. It should also be lightweight."
"The solution’s stability could be improved."
"The tool must provide more freedom to the customer."
"The tool must provide updates less frequently."
"The product must provide better data analytics."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I think it is a little high priced."
"In the past, the prices of the product were great. With the acquisition of Citrix by your company, the prices have drastically increased. For my company, it has become a bit of a problem to sell products from Citrix."
"You can buy an on-cloud or on-prem license. You can switch between on-cloud users and on-prem users. Its licensing is cheap. It is from $8 to $15 per user. It is not that expensive when you compare the cost of buying new hardware with the cost of the license. For example, at $15 per user, it costs around $180 for a year, which is cheaper than buying a $600 PC that at a certain stage, you will again have to change because its hardware is not supported. It may also get damaged or stolen. So, you can compare the cost of the actual hardware that you have to buy and the time spent in supporting the clients with the cost of its license."
"It is quite expensive, but so are the competitors on the market."
"Based not only on the cost of Citrix, but additional costs like firewalls, IPS, and other solutions, the total cost of switching users from using normal laptops with VPNs to connection via Citrix were so huge that the CEO of our company decided to postpone the deployment process."
"We have more than a million seats under management so we get the best price."
"The purchase price was around $300,000 USD and then the maintenance fees were 20%. There are no other additional fees."
"It is a bit costly, but enterprise class features come with a cost."
"There is no need for me to pay anything towards the solution's licensing costs."
"Compared to the other products in the market, I believe that the prices of Microsoft Virtual Server are on the higher side."
"Microsoft Virtual Server’s licensing is expensive."
"It is an expensive product."
"Some of the licensing costs are monthly, and others are yearly."
"Microsoft Virtual Server is an expensive solution."
"The solution is very expensive."
"The tool's cost has been taken care of with the help of Microsoft Fabric and with a consolidated or unified interface, where the entire product serves as a SaaS offering for the user."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
17%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
7%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops?
My focus has primarily been on publishing virtual applications.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops?
I rate the product’s pricing a seven out of ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive.
What needs improvement with Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops?
I have found that Citrix DaaS is still a complex product, especially on the desktop side, which affects scalability. Although it works well on the apps side, the desktop aspect still has room for i...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Virtual Server?
One feature I would like to see is better compatibility with macOS. Due to business policies, macOS isn't currently available in the Azure Marketplace. Microsoft should come to agreement with it.
 

Also Known As

XenDesktop, XenApp (Citrix Virtual Apps), Citrix Workspace
Virtual Server, MS Virtual Server
 

Interactive Demo

Demo not available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Exelon, Aeronamic, AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Alameda County Medical Center, Alaska Department of Fish & Game, Aloysius Stichting, Amarchand Mangaldas, AmBev, Amnet Technology Solutions, Arval
Paylocity, ASELSAN, Sochi Organizing Committee, Supervisor of Elections, Orange County, Florida, Netgem, Nav Canada, The British & Irish Lions
Find out what your peers are saying about Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) vs. Microsoft Virtual Server and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
845,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.