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Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs VMware Fusion Pro comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Remote Desktop Se...
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
3rd
Average Rating
8.0
Number of Reviews
77
Ranking in other categories
Remote Access (2nd)
VMware Fusion Pro
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
4th
Average Rating
9.0
Number of Reviews
5
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2024, in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category, the mindshare of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is 11.3%, down from 15.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VMware Fusion Pro is 21.3%, up from 13.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
 

Featured Reviews

FB
Feb 27, 2023
Scales well but reliability could improve
The solution is a remote desktop service to connect outside our company The most valuable feature of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is that it scales well. I have been using Microsoft Remote Desktop Services for approximately eight years. The reliability of the solution could improve. We…
Amit Negi - PeerSpot reviewer
May 29, 2023
Robust software with efficient snapshot and cloning features
The solution helps us install multiple operating systems on a single machine The solution's snapshot feature best captures the machine's current state. Also, its cloning feature allows us to create clones of a single virtual machine. Both features help us with machine backup. The solution is…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature is that it gives me full accessibility to my servers."
"The product is stable."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is highly stable."
"The most valuable feature of this solution at the moment is the HTML5 web client. You get a browser experience, not just the terminal sort of client, and the integration with Azure multi-factor application."
"I give the stability a nine out of ten."
"We have scaled the solution and find this easy to do."
"We use it to connect to the legacy system."
"It's built into the operating system and has a command line interface capability to insert credentials, IDs, a password, et cetera."
"The most value that it provides is that it is versatile."
"It is a highly stable solution."
"The whole point of it is to run Windows VMs on a Mac. This is the most valuable feature. There is snapshotting, but we don't really use that. The Pro version allows me to actually attach to the Windows ESXi infrastructure at the backend, and I'm able to create a session that I can attach to the VMware hooks at the backend, so one is running a VM, and the whole operating system is running on the actual Mac. The other one is literally a frontend to the VMs that are running in the infrastructure at the backend. These are the two main features I use."
"The product is easy to use and has a simple user interface."
 

Cons

"The performance depends on connectivity."
"We'd like more granular security control of the desktop services."
"Security in the connection between us and our clients' servers is something that can be improved."
"The performance of Remote Desktop Services could be better."
"In a future release, they could improve by providing more advanced technology and better buffering for if the connection is degraded or lost."
"Microsoft still has some really bad remote desktop appliance for Mac."
"The product is not very scalable."
"The reliability of the solution could improve."
"VMware Fusion's licensing cost needs improvement."
"The way they handle snapshotting can be improved. One time, I moved a machine from one to another, and I tried to pull it up on the second machine, but it didn't work. This was because I had not cleaned up the snapshot before I deleted it and moved it across. So, when I tried to pull it up, it wouldn't let me bring it up. The backups for the VMs themselves can also be improved. I pretty much have to rely on Windows backups and not something on VMware. That's where it needs improvement. I am able to upload from my Fusion into the ESXi easily. I'm able to spin something up on Fusion and push it into the big arena, but the reverse is not as easy, that is, trying to pull something down from that. I would love to have a functionality where I could pull something from the VMware infrastructure into Fusion, but I'm not sure if I can take something from ESXi and pull it into Fusion."
"I would like to see newer and updated cloud functions."
"Its installation process could be simpler."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I am aware that for Azure we do have an extra license because we are leveraging on different tenants."
"Although not an expensive product, pricing is always something that can be improved."
"I would say it's expensive as there similar products available for free."
"The solution is overly expensive."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services comes free as part of Microsoft Windows."
"It will probably cost about $500 USD to get the resources set up in the cloud."
"The solution has a pretty comparable pricing."
"The cost is fair."
"Starting with version 12, it is now free on a Mac for personal use. Fusion Pro has a cost."
"The cost varies depending on the season and whether it is scaled up or scaled down, but I would guess that it's approximately $1,000 per month."
"I rate the product's pricing a seven or eight. It is highly-priced."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Government
9%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
15%
University
12%
Educational Organization
10%
Comms Service Provider
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?
The tool must be cheaper. It should provide an option to pay the license fee once in a year or once in two years.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?
When we update the environment, we face problems sometimes, and the users cannot use the system.
What do you like most about VMware Fusion?
The product is easy to use and has a simple user interface.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for VMware Fusion?
I rate the product's pricing a seven or eight. It is highly-priced.
What needs improvement with VMware Fusion?
The solution could be a little more stable.
 

Also Known As

Remote Desktop Services, MS Remote Desktop Services
No data available
 

Learn More

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Bank Alfalah Ltd.
NetApp
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs. VMware Fusion Pro and other solutions. Updated: July 2024.
800,688 professionals have used our research since 2012.