Techniques are disclosed for allowing a virtual application and a virtual desktop to interact. In one embodiment, the virtual application is moved inside the virtual desktop to eliminate the need to switch between user interfaces for the virtual desktop and for the virtual application. In response to a user dragging the user interface of a first virtual desktop interface (VDI) client connected to the virtual application into the user interface of a second VDI client connected to the virtual desktop, information is collected about a first virtual machine (VM) in which the virtual application runs, and the information is transmitted to the second VDI client. The second VDI client passes such information via a virtual channel to a second VM in which the virtual desktop runs, and a remote launcher in the second VM launches a third VDI client that connects to the first VM based on the information.