We highly recommend setting up host machines as Team Computers, regardless of which cloud you choose. That allows you to manage access to the cloud workstation via the Parsec for Teams web management panel and automate the deployment process.
Parsec requires access to GPU resources for efficient video encoding. This means you will need GPU-enabled instances with GPUs that have encoding capability.
Additionally, our standard hardware and OS requirements apply.
Most customers deploy Parsec's High-Performance Relay Server (HPR) in the cloud for simplified, secure networking. For maximum security, place the HPR and host machines on different VNets.
Cloud-Specific Information
Azure
Instances
You will need to use NVIDIA GRID driver compatible instances, which are typically N-series instances. See Microsoft's article with the appropriate drivers and instances for guidance. Download the appropriate GRID drivers for Windows 10, Windows 11, Server 2016, or Server 2019/20.
NCv3 Tesla V100
NCasT4_v3 Tesla T4
Standard_NVads_A10_v5 vGPU partitioned A10
The NVv3 is the only one with Intel E5-2690 v4 (Broadwell) CPUs and Intel Hyper-Threading Technology if hyper-threading is required.
Marketplace
Optionally, Parsec has a Marketplace listing that will deploy the following:
- Nvidia VM
- Size: NC4asT4v3 series
- RAM: 28GiB
- vCPU: 4
- Network Interface
- Virtual Network
- Public IP address
- Network Security Group
Networking
When using 2 VNets with the High-Performance Relay Server (HPR): Once the virtual networks are created, peer them to connect the 2 networks. Create a peering from the HPR VNet to the host’s VNet.
AWS
Instances
You will need to use NVIDIA GRID driver compatible instances, which currently include:
G3, G4dn, and G5 instances.
G4 and G5 are the instances we see used most frequently. G5 instances use the NVIDIA Tesla A10G. Compared to the G4dn, which uses a Tesla T4, G5 instances will be faster.
AWS G3.4xLarge (Tesla M60)
AWS G2.2xLarge (GRID K520)
AWS G4dn.xLarge (Tesla T4 with vGaming driver)
AWS G5 (A10G Tensor Core GPUs)
Follow AWS' instructions for installing GRID drivers.
Marketplace
Parsec has an AMI on the AWS Marketplace. You will want to manually install Parsec's Virtual Display Driver.
Sound
If you do not have sound, you may need to install a virtual audio cable.
Google Cloud
Instances
You will need to use NVIDIA GRID driver compatible instances. See Google's Drivers for NVIDIA RTX Virtual Workstations.
Some examples include:
Google P100 VW (Tesla P100 with Virtual Workstation Driver)
Google P4 VW (Tesla P4 with Virtual Workstation Driver)
Google T4 VW (Tesla T4 with Virtual Workstation Driver)
General Information
RDP Into The Machine And Install Parsec
When you create the machine, you should create a Key Pair in AWS or grab the Windows administrator password provided by your cloud provider.
- Install Parsec from our site.
- Follow the Team Computers setup guide to authenticate your new host as a Team Computer.
- Install using the "Shared" option, which will allow Parsec to start on bootup and connect at the login screen.
- Assign the desired user/group to the machine on the Team Computers page.
- If you chose to port forward, in the Parsec App > Network settings tab, add the first port in the range you chose to the host start port.
Parsec and RDP
After initially setting up the instance with RDP, we do not recommend using RDP and Parsec in succession or combination with each other.
Setting Up NVIDIA Graphics
It's important you follow the cloud providers documentation when setting up the instance. Typically most GPU instance types require you to use a "GRID Virtual Workstation" or "vGaming" licensed version of the driver which allows resolutions up to 3840x2160 and Quadro Workstation features. It's also critical that the GPU operates in WDDM mode (rather than TCC).
Driver installation methods can vary wildly across different cloud providers; some rely on installing a driver from a private S3 bucket, others from a support site via direct link, some require registry changes, and some require NVIDIA SMI changes.
Virtual Display Driver
Parsec for Teams offers a virtual display driver (VDD). This allows you to connect to a headless machine with up to 3 monitors client-side with custom resolutions on each monitor. Install the VDD and enable virtual displays on the host machine (or enable Host Privacy Mode and Host Virtual Monitors in the Admin Panel for all Team Computers).
Setting Up Sound
Cloud machines typically do not include an audio output device, thus there is no sound. You may need to install a Virtual Audio Cable style driver application in order to make a virtual sound device.
Mouse
On a Windows machine, if a mouse is not plugged in, the cursor will not be displayed. This can be fixed by installing a driver or enabling Mouse Keys in Accessibility settings, outlined in our mouse support article.
Cloning
Parsec shouldn't already be installed in the source, because then the peer ID will be duplicated and you won't see it in the Admin Panel. Instead, include the installer in the source, and run it on boot so it gets a unique/new ID.
Networking
Please follow your organization's best practices for configuring and securing your cloud workstation's connectivity.
If you are looking for a quick and dirty test environment: Assign a static public IP or dynamic public IP address and allow all traffic outbound through your cloud provider's firewall. If you prefer to lock it down, allow UDP ports 8000-8011 outbound and HTTPS. If you do this, your client's router/firewall should support UPnP for best results.
Paperspace needs a static IP purchased; by default the instances are behind NAT.
Most customers deploy the High-Performance Relay (HPR) Server in the cloud for a simplified, secure environment. For maximum security, host the HPR and host machines on different VNets.
Other Cloud Providers
Other cloud providers or instance types may work with Parsec, but we do not validate Parsec on them.
They must support running in WDDM mode and must be able to virtualize the display output (Instances with V100 and K80 for example do not support this).
NVIDIA GTX cards in hosting providers require a headless dongle installed or our Virtual Display Driver.
Example Paperspace instances:
Paperspace P4000 (Quadro P4000)
Paperspace P5000 (Quadro P5000)