Virtual machines are software emulations of physical computers.
Virtual machines are software emulations of physical computers.
Sure thing! Running eight virtual machines on your PC is definitely achievable, especially with Hyper-V. Each VM can have its own dedicated hardware setup—monitors, keyboards, and mice—so you’ll get the isolation you want. Your current system looks solid with the XFX R9 290X and the 8350 motherboard, and you’re planning a upgrade soon. Just make sure your RAM and storage are ready for the load!
Remote access lets you link external machines to your system. Your primary device will distribute resources among all virtual machines, handling them all while you can restrict CPU cores or usage percentages per guest VM (check each VM's settings in Hyper-V, under the Processor section). Each connected computer will have its own mouse and keyboard. To allow remote desktop connections, configure Windows in each VM to enable Remote Desktop for the desired user account (the default account is already active) and choose the permission option. These settings are located in the System panel > Remote Settings, situated on the left side.
You need specialized thin clients instead of just adding more hardware. You can’t simply connect extra graphics cards, hubs, or cables into one tower and call it a project. There’s no simple method to separate inputs from HID devices or ensure each monitor operates independently on the same system. The core idea behind a thin client is it’s a minimal computer that boots up and connects remotely to a virtual machine elsewhere. For example, you might use an affordable low-power PC like a Dell Inspiron Zino and set it up to connect to a remote desktop session running in a VM. These clients keep their own Windows installation but interact with the remote VMs via RDP. In a genuine thin client configuration, they usually run a lightweight Linux distribution rather than a full OS, making the connection straightforward through Hyper-V or similar solutions.
Windows only allows one keyboard and one mouse per machine. It also restricts you to just one application at a time. For each virtual machine, you'll need a dedicated device—preferably a low-spec thin client—to run your main desktop once it starts up. Then connect remotely via VNC or similar to access it. You can choose a Linux-based thin-client OS and save costs by using a less powerful thin client instead of Windows, avoiding licensing fees.
It seems your assumption was incorrect. You won’t need Windows PCs; there are RDP-compatible thin clients available. For example, the HP t510 Flexible Thin Client (H2P23AT) is suitable. Check the "Protocols" section for Microsoft RDP support. Once configured, the thin client connects to a VM and shows content instead of running a local OS. Keep in mind, RDP and thin clients aren’t ideal for heavy 3D tasks like gaming. My experience with thin clients used VMware View and Sun-based clients that use alternative display protocols—seems like things have evolved since then.