Flank Speed — the Navy's Microsoft 365 Cloud Environment

Flank Speed is the Department of the Navy's enterprise Microsoft 365 (M365) and Azure cloud environment — the secure, accredited tenant that delivers Navy email (Outlook), Microsoft Teams, OneDrive, SharePoint, and the Office apps to the naval workforce, plus an Azure cloud for hosting Navy applications. It is the Navy's permanent, single enterprise environment for daily collaboration and productivity, and the system the Navy consolidated onto in place of the pandemic-era Commercial Virtual Remote (CVR) service and legacy NMCI O365. Flank Speed was designed and developed by the Program Executive Office for Digital and Enterprise Services (PEO Digital) in partnership with U.S. Fleet Cyber Command, operates at DoD Impact Level 5 (IL5) for Controlled Unclassified Information, and is authenticated with a Common Access Card (CAC) and DoD PKI. This page is the canonical reference for what Flank Speed is, why it exists, how the rollout unfolded, what you get in it, and — in depth — how approved users reach it from a personal, non-government device through Nautilus Virtual Desktop (NVD).

At a glance

• What it is: The Navy's enterprise Microsoft 365 cloud environment — email (Outlook), Microsoft Teams, OneDrive, SharePoint, and Office — plus an associated Azure cloud for hosting Navy applications.
• Operated by: Program Executive Office for Digital and Enterprise Services (PEO Digital), in partnership with U.S. Fleet Cyber Command (FCC).
• Why it exists: To give the Navy one secure, enterprise cloud for collaboration and productivity, replacing the interim Commercial Virtual Remote (CVR) service and legacy NMCI O365.
• Accreditation: DoD Impact Level 5 (IL5) for unclassified Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), including PII/PHI and mission-critical information; associated Azure services extend to IL5/IL6.
• Scale: Flank Speed and its associated Navy cloud services collectively support more than 680,000 users worldwide.
• Access: CAC / DoD PKI authenticated. Not a public site.
• From a personal (non-GFE) device: Reach it through Nautilus Virtual Desktop (NVD) or a registered Microsoft passkey (rules effective January 2025).
• Help desk: NAVY 311 (1-855-NAVY-311) routes Flank Speed support; the Flank Speed Hub is the enterprise documentation site.

What it is

Flank Speed is the Navy's implementation of Microsoft 365 in the DoD cloud. Functionally it is the same family of tools a modern office runs on — Outlook for email and calendar, Microsoft Teams for chat, meetings, and calls, OneDrive for personal cloud file storage, SharePoint for team sites and document libraries, and the Office apps (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) — but delivered inside a secure, government-accredited tenant rather than on the commercial internet.

Beyond the productivity suite, Flank Speed also includes an Azure cloud — "Flank Speed Azure for Business" — that provides Infrastructure-as-a-Service (compute, storage, and network) and platform services for the Navy to host its own applications in the same accredited environment.

The defining characteristic is that it is one enterprise environment for the whole naval workforce. Where the Navy previously ran collaboration in a patchwork — the temporary CVR Teams service stood up during the pandemic, plus separate NMCI O365 mailboxes — Flank Speed is the single, permanent tenant those services were folded into.

Why it exists

Flank Speed exists to give the Navy one secure, enterprise cloud for collaboration and productivity, and to retire the interim and fragmented services that preceded it.

The immediate driver was the pandemic. In 2020 the DoD stood up Commercial Virtual Remote (CVR) — a temporary Microsoft Teams environment — to let a suddenly distributed workforce keep working. CVR was explicitly interim. The Navy's answer for a permanent replacement was Flank Speed: a Navy-owned, accredited M365 tenant that could carry not just chat and meetings but email, cloud storage, and Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) — things CVR was never accredited to hold.

The second driver was consolidation and security. Running collaboration in one enterprise tenant — rather than across CVR and legacy NMCI O365 — lets the Navy apply one security model, one identity system, and one set of controls. Flank Speed was built to a Zero Trust design from the start: the DON has reported that the Flank Speed service achieved full compliance with all 91 Target Zero Trust activities — three years ahead of the DoD CIO's fiscal year 2027 deadline — while also meeting 60 of the 61 Advanced Zero Trust activities.

History and rollout

Flank Speed's rollout was staged, and its early milestones are well documented in Navy and DON CIO material.

• 2020 — CVR (the interim service). The DoD stood up Commercial Virtual Remote (CVR) Teams as a temporary pandemic collaboration tool. It was never the permanent answer.
• 1 June 2021 — first Flank Speed access wave. The first users gained access to Flank Speed. The initial group was roughly 266,000 personnel who were active CVR users or already-transitioned NMCI O365 users, with approximately 472,000 users targeted to have access by the end of FY21.
• 15 June 2021 — CVR Teams sunset. CVR Teams was retired for all DoD users, moving Navy collaboration onto Flank Speed's Teams.
• 1 October 2021 — legacy NMCI O365 ceased. The older NMCI O365 environment was scheduled to end, with email transitioning onto Flank Speed over time and users receiving new Navy email addresses.

• 2024–2025 — Azure for Business and scale. The Navy opened Flank Speed Azure for Business (the IL5 Azure hosting environment) and expanded services. The DON has reported that Flank Speed, together with the classified Hyperion environment and associated services, collectively supports more than 680,000 users worldwide.

The throughline: Flank Speed began as the permanent replacement for CVR, then grew into the Navy's single enterprise M365-and-Azure cloud — one accredited tenant for email, collaboration, storage, and application hosting.

What you get

Inside Flank Speed, a Navy user has the standard Microsoft 365 toolset, delivered securely:

• Outlook — Navy email and calendar in the Flank Speed tenant.
• Microsoft Teams — chat, meetings, calls, and channel-based teamwork (the successor to CVR Teams).
• OneDrive — personal cloud file storage.
• SharePoint — team sites, document libraries, and shared workspaces.
• Office apps — Word, Excel, PowerPoint (desktop and web).
• Flank Speed Azure for Business — for commands and programs that need to host applications in an accredited IL5 Azure environment rather than only use the productivity apps.

For a logistician, the practical value is that these are the collaboration surfaces on which a supply or logistics shop runs its day-to-day: a Team for the shop, a SharePoint library for the SOPs and status boards, a Microsoft List as a lightweight tracker. Guides on building those logistics tools inside this environment are cross-linked below.

Nautilus Virtual Desktop (NVD)

The single most-asked question about Flank Speed from a distributed workforce is: how do I reach it when I do not have a government laptop? The Navy's answer is Nautilus Virtual Desktop (NVD) — and because it is what unlocks Flank Speed for anyone without government-furnished equipment (GFE), it deserves a full treatment here. (A focused, step-by-step how-to lives in the Nautilus Virtual Desktop guide.)

What NVD is

Nautilus Virtual Desktop is a Navy virtual-desktop service — a Windows desktop that runs in the cloud, which you connect into from your own device. It was built by PEO Digital on top of Microsoft's Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD), the commercial desktop-and-app virtualization service that runs on Azure.

The point of NVD is that the government controls the desktop, not your personal computer. Your device is just a window into a Navy-managed Windows session; the Navy's data, apps, and email live in the cloud desktop, not on your machine.

Who it is for and why it matters

NVD exists for the large part of the naval workforce that does not carry a government laptop. The clearest example is the reserve component: the Navy Reserve does not issue GFE to each of its roughly 55,000 sailors, so drilling reservists historically had to travel to a DoD workplace just to reach their accounts. NVD lets them work from a personal device instead.

Eligibility and provisioning

Beginning 11 January 2025, all users with an active, licensed Flank Speed account are provisioned an NVD account. In other words, NVD eligibility follows your Flank Speed license — if you have a licensed Flank Speed account, you have (or can get) NVD.

How you connect

There are two ways into an NVD session:

1. The Windows App (native client). Install Microsoft's Windows App on your device and connect through it. On macOS, the Windows App is available directly from the Mac App Store.
2. A supported web browser. Connect to the NVD session through a compatible browser using the Azure Virtual Desktop web (HTML5) client — no installed client required.

You sign in with your Common Access Card (CAC) and CAC PIN. A key convenience is that NVD does not require a passkey even from a non-DoD internet connection — the CAC is sufficient to reach the desktop — and once inside NVD you can also reach CAC-enabled Navy websites.

NVD vs a passkey (the two remote-access paths)

Since 10 January 2025, reaching Flank Speed resources from a personal device on a non-DoD internet connection requires one of two phishing-resistant methods:

• Nautilus Virtual Desktop, signed in with your CAC — the full cloud desktop; or
• A registered Microsoft passkey, which lets you sign in to Flank Speed apps directly (the passkey typically pairs a recent smartphone with your computer as the authenticator).

Passkey is required for direct Flank Speed access from a personal device; it is not required for NVD. The two are alternatives, not a stack.

Access: CAC and DoD PKI

Flank Speed is an authenticated DoD environment, not a public website. Sign-in is built on your Common Access Card (CAC) and DoD PKI certificates — the same credential that authenticates you to other DoD systems. From a government machine on a DoD network, you sign in with your CAC. From a personal device on a non-DoD network, you use NVD (CAC) or a registered Microsoft passkey, as above.

If your CAC will not authenticate, the problem is usually one of the ordinary CAC/PKI issues — an expired certificate, missing middleware, or a reader problem — rather than something specific to Flank Speed. For CAC and PKI certificate issues, see the ID-card and RAPIDS resources in the related tools below.

How to get onboarded

1. Confirm you have a licensed Flank Speed account. Flank Speed access is provisioned by the Navy; your command or IT confirms you have an active, licensed account. NVD provisioning follows that license.
2. Have a working CAC and reader. Ensure your CAC and DoD PKI certificates are current, and (on a personal device) that you have working CAC middleware and a reader.
3. Choose your access path. On GFE on a DoD network, sign in with your CAC. On a personal device on a non-DoD network, either connect through Nautilus Virtual Desktop (CAC) or register and use a Microsoft passkey.
4. Install what your path needs. For NVD, install the Windows App (or use the supported web client); on macOS, get the Windows App from the Mac App Store. For a passkey, set up the passkey app and (where required) the phone-to-computer pairing.
5. Get help if sign-in fails. Contact the Flank Speed help desk through NAVY 311 (below) or your command IT.

Common tasks

• Reach your Navy email and Teams — sign in to Flank Speed (Outlook and Teams) from your GFE, or from a personal device via NVD/passkey.
• Work from a personal device without GFE — connect to Nautilus Virtual Desktop with your CAC (Windows App or browser) and work in the cloud desktop.
• Store and share files — use OneDrive for personal files and SharePoint document libraries for shared team files.
• Stand up a shop workspace — a Team plus channels, a SharePoint document library, and a Microsoft List tracker (see the logistics-workspace guide cross-linked below).
• Get support — route Flank Speed issues through NAVY 311.

Common gotchas

• Flank Speed is the cloud tenant, not the network. It rides on top of NMCI/NGEN infrastructure. If your GFE machine or network is the problem, that is an NMCI/NGEN issue, not a Flank Speed one.
• Personal-device access is not a plain password login. Since January 2025, remote access from a personal device on a non-DoD network requires NVD or a passkey — not just a username and password. Plan for one of those before you need remote access.
• NVD needs your CAC, not a passkey. A common point of confusion: the passkey requirement is for direct Flank Speed access from a personal device; NVD is reached with your CAC and does not require a passkey.
• The passkey path has device prerequisites. Passkey sign-in typically depends on a recent smartphone and a specific pairing setup; if it was not configured ahead of the cutover, you may need the help desk to enable it.
• CAC problems look like Flank Speed problems. An expired certificate, missing middleware, or a bad reader will block sign-in. Fix the CAC/PKI issue first — see the ID-card resources below.
• Email addresses changed in the transition. The move to Flank Speed came with new Navy email addresses; make sure correspondents and distribution lists use your current Flank Speed address.

When to use Flank Speed vs alternatives

• Use Flank Speed for the Navy's day-to-day collaboration and productivity — email, Teams, files, and Office — and to host Navy applications in its IL5 Azure environment.
• Use Nautilus Virtual Desktop when you need to reach Flank Speed from a personal, non-GFE device — it gives you a Navy-controlled Windows desktop in the cloud. See the Nautilus Virtual Desktop guide.
• Use your NMCI/GFE machine on a DoD network when you have one — it is the most direct path into Flank Speed and other DoD systems.
• Use the business systems, not Flank Speed, for transactions of record. Flank Speed is collaboration and productivity. The Navy's financial and supply system of record is Navy ERP — different world, different access.

Training and authoritative references

Flank Speed guidance, policy, and support live on the Flank Speed Hub, the enterprise SharePoint documentation site, and the DON CIO CHIPS magazine and PEO Digital news pages carry the authoritative background on the environment, its accreditation, and its rollout. For how the underlying virtual-desktop technology works, Microsoft's own documentation for Azure Virtual Desktop is the primary reference. For the DoD impact-level framework that governs what data Flank Speed can hold, the authoritative reference is the DoD Cloud Computing Security Requirements Guide (SRG).

Key public references:

• Navy.mil / DON CIO CHIPS — "Flank Speed – Navy's Transition to Improved Microsoft 365 Cloud Collaboration": https://www.navy.mil/Press-Office/Press-Releases/display-pressreleases/Article/2602863/
• Navy.mil — "Department of the Navy Opens Flank Speed Azure for Business": https://www.navy.mil/Press-Office/News-Stories/Article/3432370/department-of-the-navy-opens-flank-speed-azure-for-business/
• DON CIO CHIPS — "Department of the Navy's Flank Speed service sets new standard for Zero Trust in DOD": https://www.doncio.navy.mil/CHIPS/ArticleDetails.aspx?ID=18004
• PEO Digital / DON CIO CHIPS — "Nautilus Virtual Desktop is a game changer": https://www.peodigital.navy.mil/News/Article/3431566/nautilus-virtual-desktop-is-a-game-changer/
• Microsoft Learn — "What is Azure Virtual Desktop?": https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/virtual-desktop/overview
• NAVY 311 Flank Speed support: https://www.navy311.navy.mil/flankspeed

Getting help

Flank Speed support is routed through NAVY 311: call 1-855-NAVY-311, use https://www.navy311.navy.mil/flankspeed, or email navy311@navy.mil, and NAVY 311 routes your inquiry to the appropriate service desk. Your command IT is the other first stop, especially for account provisioning and CAC issues.

Related environment guides

• Nautilus Virtual Desktop — the step-by-step how-to for reaching Flank Speed from a personal device.
• The DoD Microsoft 365 environment for logisticians — how the DoD cloud, impact levels, and the Microsoft toolset fit together, framed for a logistics shop.
• Power Apps and Power Automate for logisticians — building a supply/status tracker in the Power Platform.
• Teams, SharePoint, and Lists for logistics — standing up a logistics workspace on the collaboration stack.

Last verified

This page was last reviewed on 2026-07-04. The following are confirmed against public primaries: Flank Speed as the DON's IL5 M365/Azure cloud environment operated by PEO Digital with U.S. Fleet Cyber Command (Navy.mil, DON CIO CHIPS); the CVR replacement and 2021 rollout waves and sunset dates (1 June 2021 first wave, ~266,000 then ~472,000 users; 15 June 2021 CVR sunset; 1 October 2021 NMCI O365 cessation); the IL5/CUI accreditation and 91 Target / 60-of-61 Advanced Zero Trust figures; the >680,000-user scale for Flank Speed and associated services; Nautilus Virtual Desktop built on Azure Virtual Desktop, its ~55,000-reservist non-GFE rationale, 11 January 2025 license-driven provisioning, Windows App / browser connection methods, and the CAC-for-NVD / passkey-for-direct-access rules effective 10 January 2025; and the NAVY 311 support path. Items stated conservatively or flagged for human check: whether the enterprise-wide email migration to Flank Speed is fully complete as of 2026 (the 2021 primaries describe it as future-dated); the exact current onboarding/provisioning steps and any command request form; and the specific device/OS/Bluetooth prerequisites for passkey (attested in Navy-community secondary guidance rather than a single .mil primary). Confirm these against the Flank Speed Hub, current PEO Digital / DON CIO sources, or your command IT before treating any specific procedure as authoritative. To suggest a correction, use the site's correction path.