Build your own GCC High environment or choose Castilix?
Compare a managed workspace with the full cost of licensing, desktops, implementation, tools, and the people running an internal environment.
Compare the full operating cost
Castilix Secure Enclave combines Microsoft 365 GCC High and dedicated Windows 365 Government Cloud PCs with enclave management, user support, and provider documentation. An equivalent internal budget needs to account for that same work.
An internal build can suit a team with established government-cloud operations, available staff, and requirements that call for direct control. A managed subscription can suit a team that wants a defined per-user service and an outside operating team. The right financial comparison includes both cash expenses and the time your employees spend running the environment.
Line up the cost categories
| Cost category | Internal environment | Castilix Standard / Premium |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft licensing and cloud desktops | Budget the required Microsoft 365 GCC High licenses and comparable desktop capacity. | Included in the published per-user subscription. |
| Implementation | Estimate design, initial configuration, deployment labor, and project coordination. | A $2,500 one-time setup fee; migration and custom work are quoted separately. |
| Ongoing management and user support | Include staff or provider time for administration, security operations, support, and documentation upkeep. | Enclave management, security management, user support, and provider documentation are included. |
| Supporting tools and services | Include any separately purchased security, management, backup, or recovery services in your chosen design. | Compare the agreed service scope with your required tooling, retention, and recovery needs; include any quoted additions. |
| Work outside the cloud workspace | Budget physical devices, network support, custom applications, migration, and customer-specific readiness work. | These services are separately scoped. Add them to the comparison when your project needs them. |
Calculate the first 12 months
Use current supplier quotes and your own labor estimates for the internal option. Castilix totals use published subscription pricing: Standard at $349 or Premium at $449 per user per month, a five-user minimum, a $2,500 setup fee, and a 12-month commitment billed monthly.
12-month comparison
Before taxes. Includes one-time costs.
5 Standard users: $1,745 per month + $2,500 setup.
Enter each internal-build estimate to compare the 12-month totals.
Request a scoped quote ↗Your internal budget stays private. Only your plan and user count carry into the quote request.
Make the assumptions visible
Internal build: one-time project costs + 12 × (monthly licensing + desktops + tools + other recurring costs + monthly labor hours × loaded hourly cost).
Castilix: users × monthly plan price × 12 + $2,500 setup + entered one-time extras + 12 × entered recurring extras.
Use the same users, desktop capacity, applications, support coverage, retention, and recovery requirements for both options. Standard provides 2 vCPU, 4 GB RAM, and 256 GB storage per Cloud PC; Premium provides 2 vCPU, 8 GB RAM, and 256 GB storage, plus video conferencing. Custom compute requirements belong in a separate proposal.
Include shared costs such as physical devices and customer-specific SSP work in both budgets when they apply. Existing employee time still has a cost: choose whether you are evaluating incremental cash spending or the full cost of ownership, and apply that approach consistently. Review renewal costs separately because one-time setup costs do not recur.
The totals reflect the scope and amounts you enter. Request a scoped proposal to validate the service comparison.