Amazon WorkSpaces virtual cloud desktop service runs on the Amazon Web Services Inc.(AWS) cloud. This new option is for users who require more powerful computing jobs such as data analysts and developers.
Amazon WorkSpaces allows organizations to provide virtualized Microsoft Windows desktops for users. Users can access documents, applications, and other resources from any device, anywhere, at any given time, with any supported device. It competes against Google’s G Suite, and other Desktop-as-a-Service offerings (DaaS), from virtualization specialists.
A new service option was created to meet customer demand for higher-powered WorkSpaces infrastructure. It offers more virtual CPUs (vCPUs), storage, and memory.
AWS spokesperson Jeff Barr stated that today, “Today we are expanding the current set of WorkSpaces packages with a new Power package,” in a blog post. This bundle is made to make analysts, developers, and me smile. It includes four vCPUs and 16 GiB of memory. It also contains 275 GB storage (175 GB on system volume, 100 GB for user volume).
Developers and analysts are the users who asked AWS for more WorkSpaces. Barr stated that they needed a workstation-class machine to perform their high-powered computing tasks.
Barr stated that developers want to use Visual Studio, IntelliJ and Eclipse as IDEs. “Analysts desire to run complex simulations using MatLab, GNU Octave and R, and statistical analysis using Stata.”
There are five WorkSpaces bundles available now: Value, Standard and Performance. The latter has one vGPU and adds video memory. However, it has less regular memory and a smaller SSD root size than the Power bundle. These are the current bundles.
Value Standard Performance Power Graphics vCPUs 2 2 4 8 8 Memory GiB 2 4 7 16 15 vGPUs vCPUs 2 2 4 7.5 16 15 vGPUs 4 SSD Root Volume GB 40 80 80 175 100 100 100 Software Utilities Bundle Utilities Bundle Utilities Bundle Utilities Bundle Utilities Software bundle Barr stated that the new Power bundle is especially suited for stats-oriented data analysts Barr stated that a cloud-based virtual desktop is a great option for statistical analysis and simulations. “Analysts have the ability to mine and analyze petabytes (in terms of access time) of data stored in S3 that is local to the WorkSpace. This low latency access will increase productivity and simplify the use of other AWS data analysis tools like Amazon Redshift Spectrum and Amazon QuickSight.
All bundles include a Microsoft Windows 7/Windows 10 desktop and all applications, including Internet Explorer 11, Firefox, and 7-Zip. You can also choose to have different versions of Microsoft Office Professional.
Pricing information for WorkSpaces bundles is available here
Amazon WorkSpaces Desktop Service offers a new high-powered option
