Frequently Asked Questions

Onboarding GuidefAQ Guide
What is Softdrive?
Softdrive is a high performance Cloud PC that can be streamed to any device. On the surface, it feels just like a high-end PC where you can install and run whatever software you wish. Under the hood, Softdrive leverages the computational power of a data center. The result: a lightning-fast PC accessible on any device, gigabit Internet speeds, scalable storage, improved security, and a seamless experience for IT.
What devices can I use Softdrive on?
Softdrive is supported on any:
Windows 10, 11
Apple iOS, Mac
Other Operating Systems are coming soon!
What type of hardware do I need to use Softdrive?
If your device is capable of playing HD videos, it's capable of running Softdrive!
What sort of Internet speeds do I need for Softdrive?
We recommend having a download speed of 5 Mbps+, and an upload speed of 1 Mbps+.

That said, our software dynamically adapts to your available bandwidth and Internet quality. We've seen Softdrive work on an airplane flight and with as low as 1 Mbps of bandwidth.

Using additional monitors and higher resolutions can lead to higher bandwidth requirements.
What's the difference between a Cloud PC, DaaS, and VDI?
VDI, or Virtual Desktop Infrastructure, is a set of technologies which use virtual machines (VMs) as personal computers or computational resources. VDI typically refers to a self-managed, or on-prem solution.

DaaS, or Desktop-as-a-Service, is a managed, cloud-based, product that provides VMs for use as personal computers.

Cloud PCs are largely synonymous with DaaS. We use this name to distinguish Softdrive as a next-gen provider with an amazing end-user experience as a core goal.
Users
How do I use Softdrive?

Download Softdrive's Remote Desktop Client. Install it, login, and hit Connect!
‍Additional details about Getting Started.

How do I login?

Cloud PC:
‍If you're looking to use your Softdrive Cloud PC, log into the Remote Desktop Client: "SoftdriveClient.exe".
‍
‍Dashboard: If you're looking to manage your Cloud PC, such as to restart or troubleshoot, log into the management dashboard.

Your organization can control which login methods are enabled: email+password or Single-Sign-On (SSO), and whether 2-factor authentication (2FA) is enabled.Logging into Softdrive lets you see the Cloud PC - you will have a separate login for Windows, depending on your organization's settings.

Is there a guide for using the software?

Absolutely! Here's the link to our Onboarding document.

I'm getting an indicator that the network conditions are suboptimal. What should I do?
Generally, this indicator is a sign of network issues, although several possible issues exist.

A troubleshooting guide is coming soon. In the meantime, if the issue persists, contact your IT team or us for assistance.
How do I provide feedback or report issues?

We'd love to hear from you!For feedback, reviews are always appreciated.
You can also use our feedback page.

To report issues, you can use the Report Issue option in the overlay menu of our remote desktop software, or visit this link.

For feature requests, it's best to email us.

Administrators
Are Windows licenses included?
No, not by default.

Our default templates come with an unlicensed version of Windows Pro. Microsoft's recommendation is that our customers bring their own licenses, which is the model we follow. In particular, you can make use of Windows VDA. Please contact us for help if you're unfamiliar with this.

We can also provide Windows Pro licenses upon request.
How can I configure a standard Windows template for my team?
On the management dashboard, you can upload a Windows image to use as a template. Any version of Windows 10, Windows 11, or Windows Server 2019+ is supported.

You can also convert Cloud PCs into templates using the dashboard. A guide for this is coming soon.
How does login and authentication work with Softdrive?
There are two systems to authenticate with: (1) Softdrive's services, for access to our remote desktop software and management dashboard; and (2) Windows.

1) For logging into Softdrive, you can use email + password authentication, Microsoft SSO, or you can work with us to configure a custom OIDC or SAML provider.

2) For logging into Windows, you can use Microsoft accounts, join the cloud PCs to your domain, or use local Windows accounts.
Do I need to configure firewall / VPN settings?
These can be configured on:
1. the client-side: the device and network the user is connecting from
2. the server-side: the Cloud PC and network the user is connecting to.

1. Client
By default, Softdrive Cloud PCs are accessible from anywhere, so no client-side VPN is required. We're able to do this using a secure connection-establishment procedure leveraging our common servers. All traffic is encrypted and authenticated for security. If users are connecting from within a corporate network, you may need to add exceptions to your firewall for Softdrive's traffic.

2. Server
By default, no configuration is needed. If you would like to use a VPN or firewall here, please contact us for assistance. Guides are coming soon.
Can I use existing RMM tools to manage the Virtual desktops?
Yes! Unlike other virtual desktop companies, Softdrive was engineered to work within your existing security and management posture.
Leverage your IT's existing RMM, Antivirus, and backup tools to simplify Virtual Desktop deployment.

Whether its PDQ, Intune, SCCM, Ninjaone, Atera, or others, Softdrive desktops should be your ITs best friend, not worst enemy.
How do I leverage our Active Directory, or how do I domain join?

Onprem:
If it's an on-prem environment, Softdrive can leverage an Oracle IP-sec tunnel or fast-connect tunnel to facilitate an "always on" connection. Once the connection is established, your VMs can be domain-joined!

Documentation:

IP-tunnel: https://docs.oracle.com/en-us/iaas/Content/Network/Tasks/managingIPsec.htm

‍Fast-Connect: https://docs.oracle.com/en-us/iaas/Content/Network/Concepts/fastconnect.htm

‍Cloud:
‍Cloud-based is easy, simply register the VMs accordingly. To batch register Windows has a hardware hash that it generates. We're able to extract and expose this to the customers so they can manually add it. Microsoft mentions they can do up to 500 at a time. Therefore if you create 100-200 VMs, we can provide the CSV for those 100-200 which then you can upload and register. This makes it easier than manually adding each one.  

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/autopilot/manual-registration

Frequently Asked Questions

General
Conveniently supply empowered infrastructures whereas client-centered sources. Synergistically exploit high-quality quality vectors for excellent scenarios. Uniquely reinvent intermandated imperatives with unique partnerships. Proactively engage client-focused.
What is Softdrive?
Softdrive is a high performance Cloud PC that can be streamed to any device. On the surface, it feels just like a high-end PC where you can install and run whatever software you wish. Under the hood, Softdrive leverages the computational power of a data center. The result: a lightning-fast PC accessible on any device, gigabit Internet speeds, scalable storage, improved security, and a seamless experience for IT.
What devices can I use Softdrive on?
Softdrive is supported on any Windows 10 and 11 device. Other Operating Systems are coming soon!

If your device is capable of playing videos, it's capable of running Softdrive!
What sort of Internet speeds do I need for Softdrive?
We recommend having a download speed of 15 Mbps+, and an upload speed of 1 Mbps+.

That said, our software dynamically adapts to your available bandwidth and Internet quality. We've seen Softdrive work on an airplane flight and with as low as 5 Mbps of bandwidth.

Using additional monitors and higher resolutions can lead to higher bandwidth requirements.
What's the difference between a Cloud PC, DaaS, and VDI?
VDI, or Virtual Desktop Infrastructure, is a set of technologies which use virtual machines (VMs) as personal computers or computational resources. VDI typically refers to a self-managed, or on-prem solution.

DaaS, or Desktop-as-a-Service, is a managed, cloud-based, product that provides VMs for use as personal computers.

Cloud PCs are largely synonymous with DaaS. We use this name to distinguish Softdrive as a next-gen provider with an amazing end-user experience as a core goal.
Users
Conveniently supply empowered infrastructures whereas client-centered sources. Synergistically exploit high-quality quality vectors for excellent scenarios. Uniquely reinvent intermandated imperatives with unique partnerships. Proactively engage client-focused.
How do I use Softdrive?
Download Softdrive's Remote Desktop Client. Install it, login, and hit Connect!
tab
Additional details about Getting Started.
How do I login?
If you're looking to use your Softdrive Cloud PC, log into the Remote Desktop Client: "SoftdriveClient.exe". If you're looking to manage your Cloud PC, such as to restart or troubleshoot, log into the management dashboard.

Your organization can control which login methods are enabled: email+password or Single-Sign-On (SSO), and whether 2-factor authentication (2FA) is enabled.

Logging into Softdrive lets you see the Cloud PC - you will have a separate login for Windows, depending on your organization's settings.

Is there a guide for using the software?
Absolutely! Here's the link to our Onboarding document.
Management Dashboard
Is there a guide for using the software?
Absolutely!
Onboarding document.
I'm getting an indicator that the network conditions are suboptimal. What should I do?
Generally, this indicator is a sign of network issues, although several possible issues exist.

A troubleshooting guide is coming soon. In the meantime, if the issue persists, contact your IT team or us for assistance.
How do I provide feedback or report issues?
We'd love to hear from you!

For feedback, reviews are always appreciated. You can also use our feedback page.

To report issues, you can use the Report Issue option in the overlay menu of our remote desktop software, or visit this link.

For feature requests, it's best to email us.
Adminstrators
Conveniently supply empowered infrastructures whereas client-centered sources. Synergistically exploit high-quality quality vectors for excellent scenarios. Uniquely reinvent intermandated imperatives with unique partnerships. Proactively engage client-focused.
How do I add a new user?
Go to your management dashboard at dashboard.softdrive.co. On the Users tab, select Invite a New User.
How do you add a new Cloud PC?
On the management dashboard, you can invite a new user and select the option to provision a new Cloud PC for them.

Alternatively, you can go to the Cloud PCs page, and use the bottom on the top right to add a new Cloud PC.
Are Windows licenses included?
No, not by default.

Our default templates come with an unlicensed version of Windows Pro. Microsoft's recommendation is that our customers bring their own licenses, which is the model we follow. In particular, you can make use of Windows VDA. Please contact us for help if you're unfamiliar with this.

We can also provide Windows Pro licenses upon request.
How can I configure a standard Windows template for my team?
These can be configured on the client-side: the device and network the user is connecting from, and on the server-side: the Cloud PC and network the user is connecting to.

Client
By default, Softdrive Cloud PCs are accessible from anywhere, so no client-side VPN is required. We're able to do this using a connection-establishment procedure leveraging our common servers. All traffic is encrypted and authenticated, so this is still secure. If users are connecting from within a corporate network, you may need to add exceptions to your firewall for Softdrive's traffic.

Server
By default, no configuration is needed. If you would like to use a VPN or firewall here, please contact us for assistance. Guides are coming soon.