By Jay McCall, Business Solutions magazine
Virtualization is the foundation for your cloud services offering.
What are the primary types of virtualization services you sell?
- Virtual DaaS [desktops as a service], which we call private cloud personal computing or PC2
- BYOD [bring your own device]/BYOC [bring your own computer] assessments
- Application virtualization
- Private cloud assessment, deployment, and optimization
- Server virtualization
- Storage virtualization
- User virtualization
- Virtual data recovery and disaster recovery
Is DaaS the same as VDI?
There are actually three forms of VDI, which causes a lot of confusion with end users as well as vendors and channel companies. Here is an explanation of the three forms of VDI:
Server Based Computing [SBC] — SBC gives users the ability to run multiple desktop sessions on one server. Most commonly associated with Windows-based server technology, this method increases ROI and reduces TCO [total cost of ownership] through economies of scale by increasing the device-to-user ratio. For example, 1 server hosts 50-plus users instead of the traditional ratio of 1 PC to 1 user. Technologies such as Citrix XenApp or Microsoft Remote Desktop Service [RDS] can be used in SBC implementations.
Hosted Virtual Desktops [HVD] — This virtualization setup gives you the ability to run a virtual PC [vPC] device within a host hypervisor or on a blade. It provides greater computing power for more complex apps that are not suitable for an SBC desktop [e.g. situations where you don’t want to break the client/server model]. Provisioning technologies can enable one disk image to be used for multiple vPCs, saving on storage costs and minimizing updates. It also provides alternative solutions for remote access, high availability, and disaster recovery [DR] needs. Citrix XenDesktop and VMware View are two examples of virtualization software used for HVD implementations. One of the upsides with HVD is that it pushes the ratio of virtual PCs to hosts to 150:1, which creates a significant cost savings compared with the traditional client/server model.
Application Virtualization — This is used to decouple an application from the client operating system into a package, which allows for incompatible applications to coexist on the same client endpoint. It removes the requirement to install each application on each client endpoint and enables delivery of a single package to multiple desktops or server operating systems. Citrix Streaming, Microsoft App-V, and VMware ThinApp are examples of applications used in application virtualization.
Where does the cloud fit into your virtualization model?
Cloud inevitably is a process or cultural change in the way we leverage and deliver virtualized assets. When we sell PC2 solutions using HVD infrastructure, for example, our clients have the option of deploying DaaS as a private cloud in-premise service delivery model or a hosted private-cloud service delivery model within our infrastructure as a service [IaaS] data centers. In short, our clients can choose which location of their private cloud personal computing delivery model makes the most sense for them. We help integrate the customer’s HVD infrastructure and manage it with private cloud management suites from either Embotics V-Commander or VMware’s vCloud Director.
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure [VDI] is, simply put, desktop virtualization. Desktop [or client] virtualization is like server virtualization but for end-user machines. The end user’s desktop environment is separated by virtualization from the physical machine where it appears. Desktop virtualization is an instance of client-server computing. This is because the virtualized desktop is stored on a central server and not on the machine being virtualized.
Virtual desktop infrastructure [VDI] is defined as the hosting of desktop environments on a central server. In fact, VDI is a desktop virtualization technology wherein a desktop operating system [OS] – typically Microsoft Windows – runs and is managed in an on-premises or cloud data center. The virtual desktop image is delivered over a network to an endpoint device, which may be a traditional PC, thin client device or a mobile device. It is a form of desktop virtualization, as the specific desktop images run within virtual machines [VMs] and are delivered to end clients over a network.
How to implement VDI and how to use it? A hypervisor segments physical servers into virtual machines that in turn host virtual desktops. Users can access these virtual desktops from any device or location, and all processing is done on the host server. Users connect to their desktop instances through their PCs or their thin-clients.
There are three major products in the VDI market:
- Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops [formerly called is XenDesktop]
- VMware Horizon
- Microsoft Remote Desktop Services [RDS]
It’s time to point out what protocol each vendor uses to set up and manage the session between end users and the virtual machine:
Citrix
- Independent Computing Architecture [ICA]
- Enlightened Data Transport [EDT]
VMware
- Blast Extreme
- PC over IP [PCoIP]
Microsoft
- Remote Desktop Protocol [RDP]
Source: vmware.com citrix.com and negarehia.com
VDI Basic Components
- Virtualization: Read about Virtualization in here.
- Hypervisor: Learn about hypervisor in here.
- Connection Broker: When a user sends a request to connect to a desktop, Connection broker provides the user with an idle desktop instance. When a user disconnects desktop, Connection broker updates the status to inactive.
- Desktop Pools: These pools are a group of similar desktops that can be configured according to a specific function. For instance, departments like accounting and IT in an office might use desktops with different applications and configuration.
- Application Virtualization: VMware ThinApp is an example of Application Virtualization. These applications are the technology used to create a virtualized application image and replicate it to all the virtual desktops in a desktop pool.
Source: purecloudsolutions.co.uk
Why Use VDI?
The following are some of the needs of many organizations in the process of doing their work and projects:
- User mobility
- Ease of access
- Flexibility
- Greater security
In the past, its high-performance requirements made it costly and challenging to deploy on legacy systems. VDI is a solution for these needs. VDI facilitates secure and convenient remote access that helps boost employee productivity.
Source: tetherview.com
Types of VDI
VDI can be classified as:
- Persistent: This type of VDI is customized for a specific user, and the user can log in to the same desktop each time. At result, user is able to personalize the desktop for his/her needs since changes are saved even after the connection is reset.
- Non-persistent: This type of VDI consists of desktops that revert to their initial state after the user logs out. Non-persistent VDI usually simpler and cheaper, since there is no need to maintain customized desktops between sessions.
Source: vmware.com
Benefits of VDI
- Extending the lifespan of otherwise obsolete PCs by repurposing them as VDI endpoints.
- Purchasing less powerful end-user computing devices, including thin clients When the time comes to purchase new devices
- Users can quickly access a virtual desktop and use enterprise applications with no additional configuration.
- Advancing security because all data lives in the data center, meaning that if the endpoint is ever stolen, there’s nothing to exfiltrate from its local storage.
- Whether that user is accessing VDI from a laptop, thin client, kiosk, traveling workstation or mobile device, the user experience is exactly the same.
- Where an organization expands temporarily, such as seasonal call center agent contractors, the VDI environment can be expanded quickly.
- Ability to more easily support remote and mobile workers
- The VDI environment is fully and centrally controlled from a data center. Administrators can apply software patches and updates, change configurations and enforce policies for all virtual desktops across the deployment.
Source: searchvirtualdesktop.techtarget.com
———————————
Source:
citrix.com
negarehia.com
purecloudsolutions.co.uk
vmware.com
tetherview.com
FacebookTwitterRedditLinkedInWhatsAppTumblrPinterestVkEmail