Learn About Using OCI Secure Desktops Image Builder and Readiness Checker

Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) Secure Desktops enables you to provide a secure, centrally managed, flexible, and consistent virtual desktop experience regardless of the endpoint device used to access the desktop. The OCI Secure Desktops managed service supports both Oracle Linux and Microsoft Windows as the operating system. Oracle provides a general purpose Oracle Linux 7 and Oracle Linux 8 base image that is preconfigured for use with OCI Secure Desktops.

To create Windows virtual desktops, you must bring your own image (BYOI) and comply with your Microsoft license agreement. Previously, creating custom Windows images required manual effort. You had to ensure that the image was compatible for use in OCI, a task that can be time-consuming and error prone.

OCI Secure Desktops Image Builder and Readiness Checker simplifies the creation and verification of Microsoft Windows images for use in desktop pools in the OCI Secure Desktops service. After you download the required resources, you can quickly create a Windows desktop image in under an hour with image builder. Images for Windows 11 (64-bit), Professional, or Enterprise editions are currently supported.

Image Builder offers the following features and benefits:

• Simple interface: A user-friendly command line interface that allows you to create desktop OS images with just a few steps.
• Built-in automation: Automates multiple tasks, reduces manual effort, and helps ensure consistent results.
• Rapid deployment: Enables deployment of Windows images quickly with enhanced operational efficiency and agility.

OCI Secure Desktops Readiness Checker verifies whether the Windows image files adhere to essential guidelines. This capability includes disabling Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) and lock screen, configuring Network Time Protocol (NTP), and more. The Readiness Checker ensures that any Windows image meets all the necessary criteria before importing an image into OCI.

In this solution playbook, you will learn to create a Microsoft Windows 11 image using OCI Secure Desktops Image Builder and Readiness Checker.

Before You Begin

The physical device used to create the image must meet the following requirements:

• Windows 11 physical platform (nested virtualization might create issues).
• VirtualBox 7.0.0 (or later) must be installed and running on the physical platform.
• Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit (ADK) must be installed and running on the physical platform.
• Windows 11 installable ISO image from Microsoft with Professional or Enterprise editions must be on a filesystem or drive local to the physical platform.
• 70 GB disk space on at least one attached disk.
• Minimum of 2 cores.
• Minimum 16 GB memory.
• Disable Hyper-V, at least temporarily.

Download and copy the following packages together in a single directory on a filesystem or drive local to the physical platform:

• Oracle VirtIO Drivers for Microsoft windows
• CloudbaseInit installer package
• OracleCloudAgent installer (Requires My Oracle Support account).

  Tip:

  To get the package, open a Service Request (SR) with Oracle Support under the OCI Secure Desktops product.

These packages don't have to be installed on the physical platform. They will be installed in the VM (guest) the tool will create.

Review the following solution playbook:

• Set up a new OCI tenancy and create a Secure Desktops pool

About Required Services and Roles

The OCI Secure Desktops Image Builder creates a virtual machine that can be moved to OCI and used as the basis for OCI Secure Desktops. It doesn't move the virtual machine to OCI. No OCI roles are required to use the tool.

This solution requires the following services and roles:

• Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI)
• Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Identity and Access Management
• Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Networking

These are the roles needed for each service.

Service Name: Role	Required to...
OCI: Tenancy administrator	Performs the initial deployment of the ORM stack. Create policies for users and groups. Note: The Tenancy administrator has permissions to deploy all the stacks. Oracle recommends that you use dedicated roles to perform individual deployments based on your organizational needs.
OCI: IAM (Identity Domain) Administrator	Manage users, groups, applications, system configuration, and security settings.
OCI: Network Administrator	Manage the network components including VCNs, subnets, security rules, and Bastions.
OCI: Security Administrator	Inspect access to resources such as compute, network, and complete access to observability and management services.

See Oracle Products, Solutions, and Services to get what you need.