Question 1

What does Professional add over Starter?

Accepted Answer

Cost Intelligence, Smart Disk Tiering, and DrainGuard, plus priority support. Everything Starter includes (automation, autoscaling, the full Atlas Advisor, unlimited technician seats) carries forward.

Question 2

Will DrainGuard disconnect users?

Accepted Answer

No. Draining stops new sessions from landing on a host and waits for existing ones to end before the host is reclaimed, so capacity comes back without interrupting anyone mid-session.

Question 3

Does Cost Intelligence need access to my billing data?

Accepted Answer

It reads cost and usage data from your own Azure subscription. Atlas AVD runs inside your tenant, so that data is never copied out of it.

Question 4

How many people can use the end-user portal here?

Accepted Answer

As many as you like — Professional places no monthly limit on distinct active portal users. Portal usage is billed at one unit per active user per month on every plan, counted once per user per month.