Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent is Microsoft's agent that registers Windows session hosts with Azure Virtual Desktop and keeps the Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent connection alive for user sessions.
Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent is the Microsoft component that connects a Windows session host to Azure Virtual Desktop. Installed on each virtual machine in a host pool, Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent registers the machine with the service using a host pool registration token, then maintains the reverse connection users rely on to reach their desktops and apps. It also installs the side-by-side stack and Geneva Monitoring agent that support secure connectivity and health reporting. IT administrators and cloud teams deploying Azure Virtual Desktop use Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent during host pool creation with PowerShell or when rebuilding session hosts from a custom image.
Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent ships as a WiX-based MSI and is normally installed after the virtual machine has been generalized, since installing before sysprep is unsupported. Deployment through winget always pulls the latest build regardless of the version specified, because Microsoft does not publish older agent installers and the Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent components self-update. Registration requires a host pool token supplied at install time, and uninstalling both the agent and the agent bootloader is necessary before re-registering a machine to a different pool. Administrators who document the surrounding tooling sometimes pair Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent with readers such as Tableau Reader, though it is an infrastructure component rather than an end-user application.
Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent is what makes a Windows virtual machine usable in Azure Virtual Desktop, since without it a session host cannot register with the service or accept user connections. Installing Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent also deploys the side-by-side stack and Geneva Monitoring agent automatically, so administrators do not need to install those components separately or track their versions by hand. Because the components self-update and winget always retrieves the newest build, session hosts stay current without a manual patching routine, which reduces the risk of connectivity failures caused by outdated bits. Registration is scriptable, since a host pool token can be passed during install, allowing unattended deployment through Intune, Configuration Manager, or PowerShell at scale. Health monitoring through the Geneva agent gives operations teams visibility into session host state, and the standard MSI accepts silent switches for repeatable rollouts. Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent gives administrators a consistent, auditable way to bring virtual machines into a host pool.
Key capabilities and highlights.
Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent registers a Windows virtual machine with an Azure Virtual Desktop host pool using a registration token supplied at install time. Without a successful registration the machine never appears in the host pool and users cannot connect to it. This makes correct token handling and post-sysprep installation critical steps in any deployment.
Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent installs the side-by-side stack component that lets users establish secure reverse server-to-client connections to the service. This avoids opening inbound ports on the session host and is required for end-to-end connectivity to work. If the stack is missing or blocked, sessions fail even when the agent itself is running.
Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent and its bootloader update themselves rather than waiting for an administrator to push a new installer. Microsoft also stages releases through a validation ring before production, so fixes reach fleets gradually. This keeps session hosts current without a separate patching process, though the installed build can differ from the one downloaded.
Installation of Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent deploys the Geneva Monitoring agent, which reports session host health back to the service. Administrators can see whether a machine is available, unavailable, or needs attention without logging in to each VM. That visibility shortens troubleshooting when a host pool member stops accepting connections.
The Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent installer is a WiX-based MSI that accepts standard quiet switches such as /quiet and /norestart, so it can run unattended. This suits Intune Win32 apps, Configuration Manager packages, and PowerShell automation. The registration token is passed as a property, so deployment scripts can join machines to a pool without manual intervention.
Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent is published to the winget repository as Microsoft.WindowsVirtualDesktopAgent, so administrators can install it with a single command. The package always retrieves the newest build, and the override parameter allows the registration token to be supplied. This gives Windows administrators a consistent install path alongside existing deployment tools.
Uninstalling Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent and its bootloader removes the machine's association with its current host pool, after which the agent can be reinstalled with a new registration token. This workflow supports moving session hosts between pools or rebuilding hosts from a golden image without leaving stale registrations behind.
Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent runs on Windows virtual machines hosted in Azure, on-premises, or in another cloud, provided the required service URLs are reachable. Machines can be provisioned from the Azure Marketplace, where the agent is installed automatically, or built from custom images where it is installed manually.
Browse historical releases and previous builds.
Common questions about Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent.
It registers a Windows virtual machine as a session host in an Azure Virtual Desktop host pool and maintains the connection between that machine and the service. It also installs the side-by-side stack for secure reverse connections and the Geneva Monitoring agent for health reporting.
Yes. The agent is a free Microsoft component distributed as an MSI and through the winget repository. Costs come from the Azure Virtual Desktop service and the underlying virtual machines, not from the agent itself.
Supply the token during installation. With winget, use the override parameter: winget install microsoft.WindowsVirtualDesktopAgent --override 'REGISTRATIONTOKEN=""'. For MSI deployment, pass the same property through msiexec or a deployment tool such as Intune or Configuration Manager.
The winget package always installs the latest agent build regardless of the version specified, because Microsoft does not publish older agent installers and the components self-update. A checksum mismatch can appear between the moment Microsoft releases a new installer and the moment the package metadata is refreshed.
No. Installing the agent before the virtual machine is generalized is not supported. The agent should be installed after the VM has been deployed, which is why images are usually built without it and the agent is added during host pool registration.
Uninstall both the Remote Desktop Services Infrastructure Agent and the Remote Desktop Agent Bootloader from the virtual machine, reboot, and then reinstall the agent with the registration token for the new host pool. Uninstalling removes the association with the old pool, so the machine can be re-registered cleanly.
The session host must run a supported Windows version, be able to reach the URLs required by Azure Virtual Desktop, and run the agent together with the side-by-side stack and monitoring component. Blocked service URLs are a common cause of session hosts showing as unavailable.
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