Suggestions for Azure Lab replacement with its retirement approaching

Trevor Hopkins 5 Reputation points
2026-03-05T15:28:44.2733333+00:00

We are a small UK education provider delivering IT apprenticeships and "Free Courses For Jobs". We have been using Azure Labs for a number of years to host instructional labs for our learners. We have found it to be of huge benefit to our learners in terms of allowing them to develop their IT Support and Engineering skills further by putting their knowledge into practice. The platform has been ideal for us, and we are experiencing difficulties finding an alternative solution. DevTest Labs lacks a lot of the functionality we need (the ability to limit learners to a number of hours use of a particular lab vm for example). We have approached the Microsoft recommended partners, however they have all but said we are too small to be of commercial interest -our current Azure Lab spend varies from around £300pm to circa £700 per month. Wondering if any other providers have found themselves in a similar situation and if they have found any viable solutions? All suggestions welcome.

Azure Lab Services
Azure Lab Services

An Azure service that is used to set up labs for classrooms, trials, development and testing, and other scenarios.

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  1. AI answer

    2026-03-05T15:29:08.69+00:00

    Azure Lab Services is being fully retired on 28 June 2027, so a replacement strategy is required even if current usage and spend are relatively small.

    Based on the documented guidance, there are two main paths to consider:

    1. Use Azure Lab Services (lab plans) as an interim step
    • If existing labs are still on the older lab accounts model, move to lab plans now and continue using Azure Lab Services while planning a longer‑term exit.
    • Lab plans are the newer version and provide:
      • Enhanced performance and updated hardware
      • Wider range of VM sizes
      • Better student experience and faster VM start/creation
      • Ability to create labs with no template to simplify provisioning
    • This does not solve the 2027 retirement, but it gives time to design and test a replacement while keeping a familiar experience for learners.

    Relevant docs:

    • Lab plans replace lab accounts and are the recommended interim option: “Use the latest Azure Lab Services version (utilizing lab plans) as an interim solution… as you develop your long-term retirement plan to move to other Microsoft or Azure partner solutions.”
    • Guidance on moving from lab accounts to lab plans: Migrate from lab accounts to lab plans.
    1. Plan a long‑term move to another Microsoft or partner solution The official retirement guidance recommends:
    • Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD)
      • Full desktop and app virtualization platform.
      • Supports CPU/GPU VMs, Azure compute gallery images, Microsoft Entra ID, Intune, and multi‑session.
      • Suitable if a managed VDI platform is acceptable and there is capacity to manage AVD constructs (host pools, images, FSLogix, etc.).
      • For education scenarios, Microsoft specifically recommends using Nerdio Manager for Enterprise (NME) on top of AVD to simplify deployment and management.
    • Azure DevTest Labs
      • IaaS‑oriented lab environment with usage‑based pricing.
      • Supports Linux/Windows, CPU/GPU VMs, student admin access, network‑isolated labs, nested virtualization, and images from Marketplace or compute gallery.
      • Microsoft provides a dedicated Azure Lab Services to Azure DevTest Labs Transition Guide to help map scenarios.
      • DevTest Labs does not natively replicate all Azure Lab Services features (such as per‑learner hour caps), so additional governance may need to be implemented using policies, schedules, or automation.
    • Education‑focused partner solutions (Apporto, CloudLabs by Spektra, Skillable)
      • All support browser‑based access, cost controls, Azure compute gallery images, CPU/GPU VMs, and education‑specific features such as:
        • Over‑the‑shoulder monitoring and remote control
        • Student admin/non‑admin modes
        • LMS integrations (e.g., Canvas) and URL‑based delivery
        • Multi‑VM/nested virtualization environments
      • These are the closest functional equivalents to Azure Lab Services for classroom training.

    The documentation does not provide pricing thresholds or minimum‑spend requirements for these partners, but it explicitly positions them as suitable for education providers of various sizes and emphasizes that they run on Azure with region selection for latency and data residency.

    1. Practical next steps
    • In the short term (now–2027):
      • If still on lab accounts, move to lab plans and continue using Azure Lab Services while designing the replacement.
      • Clean up unused labs and use the published retirement scripts to reduce cost and complexity.
    • For the long term (post‑2027):
      • Evaluate whether the organization prefers:
        • A more general‑purpose Microsoft platform (AVD or DevTest Labs) with custom governance and scheduling, or
        • An education‑focused partner solution (Apporto, CloudLabs, Skillable) that more closely matches Azure Lab Services’ classroom features.
      • For Windows‑heavy scenarios with strong VDI requirements, prioritize Azure Virtual Desktop + Nerdio Manager for Enterprise.
      • For IaaS‑style labs where learners are comfortable with Azure concepts, evaluate Azure DevTest Labs using the transition guide.

    If partner responses suggest being “too small”, it is still appropriate to reference the official retirement guidance that explicitly recommends these solutions for education and training scenarios and to continue discussions based on functional requirements (browser access, time‑bounded labs, cost controls, region, etc.).

    References:

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  2. Anonymous
    2026-03-05T16:35:11.08+00:00

    Hello Trevor,

    I understand that this change may be challenging to accommodate, especially considering your monthly budgeting constraints, which make the recommended solution less feasible.

    Currently, Microsoft does not provide a direct replacement offering comparable per learner hour limits at a low monthly cost. Azure Lab Services will be retired on 28 June 2027. Alternatives such as Azure DevTest Labs, Azure Virtual Desktop, Windows 365, or partner platforms are suggested, though none replicate the simple learner hour controls available in Lab Services.

    Azure DevTest Labs includes features like auto shutdown and VM limits, but it does not support tracking or enforcing hours per learner without custom scripts or automation. Azure Virtual Desktop similarly lacks built-in learner hour limits and requires additional setup and management.

    Windows 365 and Microsoft Dev Box are based on a fixed monthly rate per user, which can quickly exceed budgets between £300 and £700 per month.

    Partner platforms, including Apporto, CloudLabs, Skillable, and Nerdio, are also recommended; however, they are generally tailored for larger training providers and often require minimum spending, making them less suitable for smaller providers with limited budgets.

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  3. Julian Sharp 42,721 Reputation points
    2026-03-05T17:06:01.9566667+00:00

    Have you tried GoDeploy https://godeploy.com/, they're based near Milton Keynes

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