Microsoft has announced the limited public preview of Windows 365 Reserve, a service that provides temporary desktop access to pre-configured cloud PCs for employees whose computers have become unavailable due to cyberattacks, hardware issues, or software problems.
Windows 365 Reserve provides up to 10 days of access per user annually to these cloud-based Windows 365 disaster recovery PCs, enabling organizations to mitigate productivity issues during outages without requiring physical replacement for defective devices.
Microsoft says the current gated public preview requires application approval, with broader availability planned following the testing phase.
“Even a single device failure can ripple across an organization—halting productivity, delaying deliverables, and straining IT teams. Multiply that disruption across thousands of employees, and the impact becomes massive. Exacerbated by cyberattacks, the cost of employee and device downtime is no longer theoretical—it’s a business-critical concern,” Microsoft said on Monday.
“That’s why we’re introducing Windows 365 Reserve: a modern, secure, and scalable solution that helps employees stay productive and connected when the unexpected strikes.
This cloud-based service works as a standalone Windows 365 offering that administrators can deploy as pre-configured Cloud PCs through Microsoft Intune, provisioned with corporate applications, security policies, and Microsoft 365 access.
Once provisioned, users can access their new temporary desktops from any other device through web browsers or Microsoft’s Windows App, all via a secure connection, while the main computers are being repaired or replaced.
Microsoft says that Windows 365 Reserve also applies your organization’s security posture by default, follows Zero Trust principles for increased security during outages and downtime, and the 10-day annual allocation can be used consecutively or divided across multiple incidents.
Administrators will also receive automatic notifications when user access approaches expiration, allowing them to avoid interruptions or deprovision the Cloud PCs to preserve remaining time for future use if they’re no longer needed.
“While Windows 365 Reserve delivers enhanced availability, it remains subject to scale limitations such as Azure capacity constraints and requires a network connection to connect to use the Windows 365 Reserve Cloud PC,” the company added.
In June, Microsoft announced new security defaults for Windows 365, effective in the second half of 2025, that will disable clipboard, drive, USB, and printer redirection on newly provisioned Cloud PCs to reduce the risk of data theft and malware attacks.
One month earlier, the company also enabled virtualization-based security, Credential Guard, and hypervisor-protected code integrity (HVCI) by default on Windows 365 Cloud PCs running Windows 11 gallery images, creating secure memory enclaves and preventing malicious code execution at the kernel level.
46% of environments had passwords cracked, nearly doubling from 25% last year.
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