DaaS in Transition: Comparing AVD, Windows 365, Citrix, Dizzion, and Omnissa

Many rely on the use of desktop virtualization as part of their day to day job. However many organizations are now considering new options for the DaaS service given a lot of changes that have happened to different virtualization vendors and also license increase.

In this article, we will go deeper into some of the different DaaS options, go into their strengths and weaknesses and also what kind of virtualization stack they support.

With all the changes happening with Broadcom and VMware, a lot of organizations are looking for different ways to handle their virtualization needs. This means thinking about moving workloads to the public cloud or trying out a completely new virtualization setup. But here’s the thing: these kinds of moves, whether it’s to a new virtualization stack or the public cloud, can really change what kind of DaaS services you’ll be able to use.

These days, lots of folks lean on their DaaS service for things like image management, provisioning, and even power management. This just makes it simpler for admins to keep their environment running smoothly and up-to-date.

The majority of the DaaS market today consists mostly of Microsoft (Azure Virtual Desktop, Windows 365), Dizzion, Citrix and Omnissa (former VMware).

Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD)

Strengths: AVD offers deep integration with Azure services, providing scalability and flexibility. It supports multi-session Windows 10/11, reducing infrastructure costs. Its pay-as-you-go model allows for cost optimization based on usage. AVD is also supported for Azure Local for those that require to run DaaS within their own infrastructure.

Weaknesses: AVD requires a strong understanding of Azure infrastructure for optimal deployment and management. Managing images and applications can be complex for organizations without existing Azure expertise. Also running AVD on Azure Local still requires Azure components meaning that it is not supported for air-gapped environments.

Windows 365

Strengths: Windows 365 provides a simpler, more user-friendly experience with a fixed monthly cost per user, making budgeting predictable. It’s a cloud-PC solution, offering a personalized desktop experience accessible from anywhere.

Weaknesses: Windows 365 offers less customization and control compared to AVD. Its fixed pricing model might not be as cost-effective for highly variable usage patterns. Also can only be deployed within public cloud.

Dizzion Frame

Strengths: Dizzion Frame provides a cloud-native DaaS platform that is hypervisor-agnostic, supporting multiple cloud providers and on-premise infrastructure. It excels in application delivery and image management, simplifying administration.

Weaknesses: While flexible, Dizzion Frame might require additional infrastructure or licensing for underlying virtualization platforms depending on the deployment model.

Citrix

Strengths: Citrix has a really solid and full-featured DaaS solution. It’s got tons of options for managing your images, delivering apps, and keeping things secure. Plus, it works with a bunch of different virtualization platforms and you can deploy it pretty much anywhere – on-prem, hybrid, or in the public cloud.

Weaknesses: Citrix can be complex to deploy and manage due to its extensive feature set. Licensing costs can be higher compared to some cloud-native alternatives.

Omnissa (formerly VMware)

Strengths: Omnissa provides robust DaaS solutions, leveraging its strong virtualization heritage. It offers tight integration with VMware’s vSphere and NSX, making it a natural fit for organizations with existing VMware investments.

Weaknesses: Omnissa’s DaaS offerings are primarily focused on VMware’s virtualization stack, which may limit flexibility for organizations looking for multi-cloud or other hypervisor support. While Omnissa has recently released integration with Nutanix and their hypervisor AHV it is still in the early phases.

This table below also summarizes which hypervisor and cloud the different DaaS products offer. Citrix on one hand has the broadest support, and even introduced support for Openshift just recently, however it can be more expensive compared to the more cloud-native offerings such as Azure Virtual Desktop.

Platform support​	Azure Virtual Desktop​	Windows 365​	Dizzion Frame	Citrix​	Omnissa​
Microsoft Azure​	Yes​	Yes​	Yes​	Yes	Yes
Google Cloud	No	No	Yes	Yes	No
VMware ESXi​	No​	No​	No​	Yes​	Yes
Nutanix​	No​	No​	Yes​	Yes	Yes
XenServer​	No​	No​	No	Yes	No​
Azure Local​	Yes	No	No	Yes (SCVMM)	No​
Proxmox​	No	No	No	No	No
Red Hat OpenShift	No	No	No	(Preview )	No
IBM Cloud	No	No	Yes	Yes (PVS)	No

One also needs to take into account that integrations with different platforms is one part, the second part is the user-experience which mostly relies on the transport protocol underneath.

Transport Protocols

These protocols are crucial for performance, responsiveness, and overall user satisfaction, especially over varying network conditions.

Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD)

AVD primarily uses the Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) with significant enhancements from Microsoft, often referred to as RDP Shortpath. This optimized protocol is designed for efficient delivery of desktops and applications, providing a fluid experience over various network types, including high-latency connections.

Windows 365

Being built on the same underlying technology as AVD, Windows 365 also leverages Microsoft’s enhanced RDP. Microsoft has also built multi-path features into their cloud service, ensuring that users are routed based upon the best path available to the service, and leveraging the core network backbone of Azure.

Dizzion Frame

Dizzion Frame uses The Frame Remoting Protocol (FRP) that enables communication between an end user’s browser or Frame App and a virtual machine running the Frame Guest Agent (FGA). FRP8 is based on WebRTC and uses UDP by default for efficient, low-latency communication.

Citrix

Citrix is well-known for its proprietary HDX protocol. HDX is highly optimized for delivering virtual desktops and applications, offering advanced features like adaptive transport, multi-stream HDX, and various compression techniques.  The default part of the protocol called EDT uses DTLS for transport. This allows Citrix to provide a high-quality user experience even in challenging network environments.

Omnissa (formerly VMware)

Omnissa’s DaaS offerings leverage the Blast Extreme protocol, their proprietary display protocol designed for an optimal user experience across various devices and network conditions. Similar to HDX, Blast Extreme dynamically adjusts to network speed and device capabilities to ensure peak performance.

While most of these protocols might seem similar, there are still notable differences in how they handle latency, packet loss, and bandwidth optimization. For example:

• RDP Shortpath (AVD / Windows 365) is tightly integrated into Azure’s networking backbone, giving it an advantage in Azure-hosted environments. However, it can be less adaptive than Citrix HDX or Blast Extreme in very poor network conditions.
• FRP8 (Dizzion Frame) is modern and browser-friendly, being based on WebRTC, which makes it very easy to adopt. It’s optimized for HTML5 delivery, which reduces client complexity but may not yet match HDX’s maturity for large-scale enterprise use cases.
• HDX (Citrix) remains the gold standard for environments with highly variable network conditions, especially for workloads with demanding graphics or multimedia. Its advanced compression and adaptive transport features are difficult to match.
• Blast Extreme (Omnissa) sits somewhere between RDP and HDX—it’s versatile and optimized for VMware’s stack, performing very well for standard enterprise apps and office workloads, while also supporting GPU acceleration for 3D or CAD use cases.

Key Considerations for Choosing a DaaS Platform

When organizations evaluate their DaaS options, the decision often comes down to more than just cost or platform compatibility. Some of the main factors to keep in mind are:

1. Ecosystem Fit
   • If your organization is already heavily invested in Microsoft 365 and Azure, then AVD or Windows 365 will provide the smoothest integration.
   • If you are still largely VMware-based, Omnissa is the path of least resistance, though its roadmap under Broadcom may influence long-term planning.
   • If you need multi-cloud flexibility or want to avoid lock-in, Dizzion or Citrix are generally stronger options.
2. User Experience
   • Think about what you’ll primarily use it for: standard office work, heavy-duty graphics, or just securely delivering apps. Citrix and Blast Extreme are awesome for the last two, while AVD/Windows 365 are great for the first.
3. Operational Complexity
   • Windows 365 is the easiest to adopt but the least flexible.
   • Citrix is the most feature-rich but requires more expertise to deploy and maintain.
   • AVD sits in the middle: flexible and scalable but demands Azure know-how.
4. Cost Model
   • Pay-as-you-go (AVD, Dizzion, Citrix in cloud) is ideal for dynamic workloads.
   • Per-user fixed pricing (Windows 365) is better suited to organizations needing predictable budgets.

Conclusion

There’s no one-size-fits-all DaaS. Some companies will value the plug-and-play simplicity of Windows 365, others will want the flexibility of Citrix or Dizzion, and VMware shops may find Omnissa the natural next step. AVD sits somewhere in the middle, powerful but Azure-heavy. At the end of the day, the right choice comes down to where your workloads live today, how much complexity you’re ready to handle, and what kind of user experience you want to deliver tomorrow.

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