This topic describes the release notes for Elastic Desktop Service (EDS) in 2024 and provides links to the relevant references.
October 2024
Type | Feature | Description | References |
New | Addition of community images | Community images are custom images created by Alibaba Cloud accounts and shared with the community. All Alibaba Cloud accounts can use the community images to create custom cloud computer templates and use the templates to create cloud computers. | |
Optimized | Improved user experience when renewing cloud computers in batches | Up to 100 cloud computers can be renewed at the same time. You can also renew cloud computers from different regions at the same time. | |
Optimized | Addition of the Create Administrator portal in the Authorize Administrator panel | If no sub-administrator is available when you grant resource group permissions in the Authorize Administrator panel, you can click Create Administrator at the bottom of the list of existing sub-administrators. | Isolate the feature and data permissions across sub-administrators |
Optimized | Less restrictions on disk expansion | Cloud computers that are in the Running state support disk expansion. Previously, only cloud computers that are in the Stopped state support disk expansion. | |
Optimized | Improved user experience when authorizing cloud computers in batches | Cloud computers from all regions are displayed on the Cloud Computer Assignment and Authorization page, which eliminates the need for region-specific operations. | |
Optimized | Optimized cloud computer policies | New policies can be associated with cloud computers from any region, which eliminates region restrictions. | |
Optimized | Optimized user experience when importing cloud computer images | Automatic matching is supported when you create GPU-accelerated cloud computers. You no longer need to configure GPU drivers when importing images for GPU-accelerated cloud computers. |
September 2024
Type | Feature | Description | References |
New | Additon of the scheduled task module | Before the module is added, you can configure only isolated scheduled tasks for each cloud computer. Now, you can configure multiple scheduled tasks and associate each task with specific cloud computers. | |
Optimized | Optimzed EDS console | The left-side navigation pane layout in the EDS Enterprise console is optimized based on the service modules and management requirements. This enhances operational efficiency and convenience. You can use the search box in the upper part of the Overview page to search for global EDS resources or menus. Click the search results to go to the destination pages. | |
Optimized | Improved batch assignment of cloud computers | The batch assignment button is moved from the upper-right corner to the upper-left corner for convenient operation. You can batch assign cloud computers to enterprise Active Directory (AD) accounts. | |
Optimized | Addition of the remote assistance entry | Before the remote assistance feature is optimized, you can initiate remote assistance only on the Session Monitoring page. Now, another entry for remote assistance is added to the Cloud Computers page for you to send remote assistance requests to connected cloud computers for troubleshooting. |
August 2024
Type | Feature | Description | References |
New | Support for configuring the custom access domain names for office networks | If end users want to access EDS resources across regions, such as accessing cloud computers deployed in the Chinese mainland from an overseas region, you can configure a custom domain name for the office network in which the cloud computers reside. Then, you can use the custom domain name to replace the default gateway domain name of the deployment region. Network acceleration services such as Global Accelerator (GA), are used to accelerate resource access and improve user experience. | |
Optimized | Support for specifying resource groups when creating cloud computers | When you create a cloud computer, you can specify a resource group for the cloud computer for subsequent management. | |
Optimized | Optimized console page for creating cloud computer policies | The page to create a cloud computer policy is optimized, which allows you to quickly find the required rules and configurations. | |
Optimized | Optimized console page for screen recording playback | If you want to view a screen recording file, you can click Play Back on the Screen Recordings page. Then, a new page appears, on which you can view the file. On the Screen Recording File page, the file details section is moved to the upper part of the video window. | |
Optimized | Support for donwload of the authorized user list of a cloud computer pool | You can download the authorized users of a cloud computer pool to on-premises devices. | |
Optimized | Support for configuring the density of visible watermarks | You can configure the watermark content to display in columns and rows on the desktops of cloud computers. The watermark content can be displayed in 3 to 10 rows and columns. | |
Optimized | Support for configuring secondary domain controller hostnames and DNS addresses of enterprise AD office networks | This parameter is used to ensure high availability. Even if one of the domain name controllers is shut down, operations such as cloud computer creation, assignment, and logon are not affected. |
July 2024
Type | Feature | Description | References |
New | Addition of bandwidth throttling for cloud computers | After you enable a premium bandwidth plan, you can configure a bandwidth throttling rule and apply the rule to a cloud computer to deliberately slow down the Internet speed. | |
New | Switch of monthly subscription (Unlimited computing plan) to pay-as-you-go | You can switch the billing method of cloud computers from monthly subscription (Unlimited computing plan) to pay-as-you-go if the remaining quota is sufficient. | Switch monthly subscription (Unlimited computing plans) to pay-as-you-go |
New | Addition of stream collaboration | EDS provides the stream collaboration feature for administrators and end users. You and your end users can share the desktops of cloud computers for remote assistance and collaboration. | |
New | Addition of organization IDs and enterprise identity sources |
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Optimized | Addition of system disk capacity options on the Quick Purchase tab | Before system disk capacity options are added to the Quick Purchase tab, you can purchase the system disk with only 80 GiB capacity. Now, you can purchase the disk with 120 GiB capacity. | |
Optimized | Addition of the Billing Method column to the Session Monitoring page of the Monitoring & Alerts module | The optimized feature allows you to easily filter cloud computer sessions. | |
Optimized | Support for configuring the maximum retry duration of automatic reconnection in a cloud computer policy | You can configure the maximum retry duration in a cloud computer policy in case of connection failures. | |
Optimized | Support for manually disabling the system snapshot feature | You can manually stop the creation of automatic snapshots for cloud computers. Note The feature is in invitational preview. If you want to use this feature, submit a ticket. | |
Optimized | Increase of the maximum number of remote commands that can be sent | Before the increase, you can send up to 100 remote commands. Now, you can send up to 500 remote commands. |
June 2024
Type | Feature | Description | References |
New | Support for switching to the specified billing methods | The monthly subscription (Unlimited computing plan) and pay-as-you-go billing methods can be switched to monthly subscription (a computing plan with specified running hours). | |
New | Support for resizing disks of monthly subscription cloud computers | You can resize the system disks and data disks of cloud computers that are billed on a monthly subscription (120 Hours/Month or 250 Hours/Month) basis. | |
New | Support for scheduling tasks upon inactivity on cloud computers running Linux 2.0 or later | You can configure scheduled tasks upon inactivity for Linux cloud computers that use the Adaptive Streaming Protocol (ASP) and whose image versions are V2.0.0 or later. | |
Optimized | Support for automatic stop of monthly subscription cloud computers | If the monthly running hours of a cloud computer are used up before the end of the month, the cloud computer continues to run and generates extra fees. If you want the cloud computer to stop running upon hour exhaustion, select When the monthly running hours of a cloud computer are exhausted in advance, the system automatically stops or hibernates the cloud computer.... | |
Optimized | Optimized renewals for one or more cloud computers | You can renew monthly subscription cloud computers. |
May 2024
Type | Feature | Description | References |
New | Addition of new computing plans for monthly subscription plans | The following computing plans are added to reduce your costs: 120 Hours/Month and 250 Hours/Month. The monthly duration refers to the length of time for which end users can use cloud computers in a month. If the duration has a remainder after subtraction, the remaining hours do not roll over to the next month. If the duration is exhausted ahead of time, hourly charging is used for continual usage. For pricing details, prices on the EDS buy page shall prevail. A fee cap mechanism is provided to prevent excessive charges. When the fee of a monthly subscription cloud computer with limited running hours reaches the fee of a monthly subscription (Unlimited computing plan) cloud computer, you are no longer charged. | |
New | Addition of the quick purchase mode | The following section describes how to purchase cloud computers on the Quick Purchase tab, which streamlines the process. This method is suitable for general customers with no special requirements. | |
New | Support for configuring the password validity period | By default, the password of a user account never expires. You can specify a validity period of 30 to 365 days for the password. When the specified validity period elapses, end users must change the password before they can log on to the Alibaba Cloud Workspace terminals. Note This feature is in invitational preview. If you want to use this feature, submit a ticket. | |
New | Removal of the user whitelist for using the user data roaming feature implemented by user profile management (UPM) | All users can use the feature. | |
New | Automatic addition of information about the Alibaba Cloud Workspace client to the Software Clients tab of the Hardware Terminals & Software Clients page | After end users log on to the Windows or macOS client by using organization IDs, information about the client is automatically added to the EDS console. You can also bind Alibaba Cloud Workspace terminals to user accounts. | |
Optimized | Removal of the restrictions on office network types when you migrate cloud computers across office networks | Cloud computers can be migrated from advanced office networks to basic office networks. |
April 2024
Type | Feature | Description | References |
Optimized | Optimized image management of cloud computer pools |
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Optimized | Optimized management of cloud computer pools |
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New | Addition of the running duration rankings of cloud computers to the Cloud Computer Monitoring page | The Top Runtime Duration tab is added to the Cloud Computer Monitoring page. You can view the runtime duration rankings of all cloud computers, manage cloud computer resources, and view user operation logs based on your business requirements. | |
Optimized | Improved compatibility of the usernames of convenience accounts | The naming conventions of the usernames of convenience users are optimized. This prevents the failure of assigning Linux cloud computers to convenience users. |