It can be argued that VDI is a one-off use case that VMware invented many years ago for its ability to host a virtual copy of a desktop operating system in the datacenter. In other words, taking what the company had already proven for server operating systems and attempting to recreate the same magic (and assumedly ROI) for the desktop operating systems.
Since then, Citrix has also entered the space for the hosted virtual desktop (HVD), arguably what VDI is all about, and there are other offerings from other organizations such as Quest that are also driving home the concept of HVD.
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Posted by Simon Rust on 04/14/20117 comments
The term DNA may conjure images of everything from "CSI" to Dolly the sheep or the Human Genome Project. In the context of this column, it refers to that
je ne sais quoi
that makes each user unique and causes challenges for wide-scale virtualization deployments.
As in genetics, the DNA of every user is singular to him or her, no matter how similar it may be to someone else's. That DNA plays a fundamental role in determining the success of enterprises' virtualization efforts.
User DNA should not be confused with personalization of the user profile, which is currently possible across Microsoft platforms. To me, the real DNA of the user comes into play when we consider other platforms and application types, like software as a service (SaaS) or cloud-based applications. In a couple of years, it will be essential for the makeup of "me" and the makeup of "you" to be found in a multitude of business applications that are not solely Windows-based.
Clearly Windows applications are the ones that most operators use today. Tomorrow, we shall see things like native applications for tablet PCs, iPads, the new TouchPad, the Pre, whatever device you can imagine.
At present, the focus is on ensuring that a user's information from Outlook (for example) will work in the virtual desktop environment; however, those personal settings are not transferred onto a different e-mail client. An e-mail you have sent using your desktop Outlook client will have your personalized signature emblazoned across the bottom, but the e-mails you send through the Web-based version of that same application will not. The reason is that they are very different platforms and so must be managed differently.
Soon it will no longer be about making sure that Outlook works correctly but that my personal information management (PIM) works correctly overall. To make this possible, there needs to be some form of extrapolated language that is mutual and that therefore will allow PIM settings to plug in anywhere, giving users their choice of applications in the same way that they have the choice of mobile devices or tablets they use. We will need to have platforms able to convert that data.
In short, we must catch up to the expectations that users already have. If I send some emails and create some data through Microsoft Office on my Mac whilst I'm sitting on my couch at home tonight, I would like my settings and all of that data I created--part of my user DNA--to be available on my PC tomorrow in the office or on my iPhone, TouchPad or whatever device I am using. This will not be the case today of course, because even though Microsoft Office works similarly on both the PC and the Mac, each platform stores its underlying user information in a very different way. The user data is dictated to the application by the platform on which it is running.
In fairness, we users are attempting to cram a load of incompatible items into the same space, and clearly that is not going to work.
We do expect it nonetheless.
Developing a DNA Standard
User DNA ultimately will need to be some form of ISO standard, and there will need to be a plethora of vendors involved in the definition of the user DNA standard--how the user's email address is stored, the user name, their time zone and so forth. Inevitably, the applications we use will have settings translated into this standard, though it is still some distance away from realization.
For a high-level example, think of Google Translate. When you type in a phrase to translate from English into French, the first step in the process is for Google to translate the English phrase into Google language. The translation from Google-speak into French comes next. There is always an intermediary: English-Google-French. Obviously there is a lot more done in the background with regards to understanding how sentences are constructed in the various languages, but the point is simple--there needs to be an intermediary step.
Or, let's say there are people from all different backgrounds--someone from the UK, another from Belgium, one from Kenya, someone else from Japan, etc.--that have been shoved into the same room. A couple of them will be able to communicate with each other, but they will not all be able to communicate and understand everyone else in the room. Some form of intermediary language is required in order for them to all communicate together.
Technologically speaking, it is fundamentally all about the interoperability of using applications. People want to use an application to perform a specific function without needing to worry who built it or how it is being delivered. All they are concerned with is being able to use the application easily and access all of their data.
For the foreseeable future, there will continue to be multiple platforms and devices. Apple iOS is a market leader, Google's Android will become a leader, and Microsoft Windows 7 is not disappearing any time soon. There is no way that within the next four to five years we will see only one platform and one developer of that platform and have everyone decide to use it. Some may die, but we are not going to have all but one of them disappear. Combine that with the fact that our personal and professional lives continue to become more enmeshed on the technology front, and it becomes increasingly important to have all of these applications stitched together via this universal user DNA.
There is clearly a long way to go, but we know we must form the digital DNA in order to interoperate across any device at any time to allow our professional lives and personal lives to function at a digital level as they already do in our body and mind.
Posted by Simon Rust on 03/01/20115 comments
As a culture, our minds have changed about how IT should be used. No longer do we think of it only as a necessary evil or a handy tool to make a few tasks simpler in the workplace. Information technology is an essential part of doing business.
Along with this mindset and reliance on technology come high expectations. We expect always-on access and all of our personal settings to be available on every device we use whenever we use it. We don't care who does it, what technology lies underneath or how it is made possible. We only care about where (everywhere), when (now) and why (because we want it).
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Posted by Simon Rust on 02/08/20113 comments
The number and effect of Web-based applications has not yet grown big enough to directly affect VDI. However, they are a relevant topic for discussion because they do significantly lessen the impact of the administration model and desktop delivery for the enterprise, and ultimately will deliver cost savings.
The rise of Web-based applications will make a huge difference in how applications are delivered to users and, more importantly, how they are managed. In effect, all an end-user needs with his desktop computing device is a browser, making the composition of the desktop significantly simpler, since a browser is typically available by default on any current computing platform.
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Posted by Simon Rust on 01/21/20110 comments
As the year winds down, it seems appropriate to clear out a few myths in order to start the New Year with a fresh understanding of Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI).
Let us look at four of the most prevalent myths and how, when VDI is implemented properly, they are revealed as baseless fears.
Myth 1: VDI is storage-heavy and therefore cost-heavy.
Truth: One reason these myths exists is the belief that, in order for VDI to run successfully, an organization has to rely on a surplus of storage, which quickly adds to the cost of the infrastructure required to support VDI. Both of these myths really come down to the fact that early adopters of VDI needed to adopt a one-to-one approach when it came to the virtual machine images held in the datacenter, in order to receive user acceptance.
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Posted by Simon Rust on 12/22/20100 comments
We humans have a fascination with benchmarking progress, evaluating development, and determining success or failure along the way. Case in point: the undying popularity of "Where are they now?" television shows.
The same can be said for the IT world, with its numerous product and technology launches that are touted as revolutionary, game-changing innovations. Such hype begs for retrospection to see whether it was much ado about nothing or whether the product/technology/company/wunderkind really did start a revolution and change the game.
Just over a year ago and with much fanfare, Microsoft introduced Windows 7, so it's only natural to compare it to its predecessor, Windows Vista.
A year after its launch, Windows Vista had less than 10 percent adoption. It is therefore natural to expect that 12 months in, Windows 7 would also be around the 10 percent adoption mark. Surprisingly, it is actually double that, with Windows 7 clearly demonstrating itself to be the platform that Windows Vista should have been.
Perhaps even more surprising than Windows 7's speedier adoption--which is significant in itself--is its dominance in desktop virtualization projects. Most of the desktop virtualization projects currently taking place are using Windows 7, which enforces the belief that Windows 7 is the way forward and a significant driver of desktop virtualization.
What I've seen from customers is that those adopting Windows 7 are also pressing ahead with application virtualization, and most predominantly (circa 90 percent) with App-V. These companies are not only changing the desktop paradigm with desktop virtualization but are realizing that application virtualization enables better application management and maintenance, at lower deployment cost.
As stated, the majority of customers I've seen make use of the App-V solution today, further enforcing my own belief that App-V is quickly becoming the de facto standard for application virtualization. Additionally, my experience is that application virtualization is being used in more and more enterprises for general application delivery across the broader desktop due to the benefits that are being realized during desktop virtualization projects. This leads me to believe that App-V is not only the upcoming de facto application virtualization technology but also application delivery technology.
A few months ago, many in the industry thought that componentization was the end goal, yet as the market has evolved we've learned that desktop virtualization is but another desktop delivery model, not the holy grail itself. The heterogeneous desktop is rapidly becoming accepted as the model by which most enterprises will be delivering service to users, with a need to ensure that all user experience remains well-performing and consistent regardless of which model is being used by the user.
Interestingly, not only are we seeing customers using Windows 7 together with an application virtualization technology on their virtual desktops, but those selfsame customers are also using physical desktops running Windows 7 (together with the application virtualization solution), with a desire to pull them together in terms of user experience. So, Windows 7 seems to be the key trigger that brings together areas of the business that were previously segregated--desktop and/or server virtualization and the physical desktop. User virtualization is clearly pulling these areas together, making for a more user friendly solution to running desktop computing in the enterprise.
Now, let's look ahead to the next 12 months and my predictions. I don't see any reason why market adoption won't be 30 to 50 percent within the next year, and it won't be solely Windows 7 either. App-V together with Windows 7 is a powerful combination that will doubtlessly be driving the upgrade process over the next 12 months.
Companies may well have to perform physical hardware upgrades in order to run Windows 7 on laptops, but that pain will be alleviated somewhat by their ability to simultaneously upgrade the application set with application virtualization technologies, improving on application delivery and reducing desktop management costs. At this time, the enterprise will also concentrate on the user experience by managing user virtualization as part of the migration management.
As we navigate our path out of the economic meltdown of recent times, all organizations are looking to maximize efficiency and reduce cost. Application delivery remains an expensive part of the IT cost center today, so application virtualization has already begun to demonstrate the potential to dramatically reduce packaging and testing time while improving application compatibility and enabling an enterprise to manage software assets far more efficiently.
So, in a sense, Windows 7 and App-V are perfectly aligned and timed to hit home where it counts--the enterprise IT budget.
From observing the introduction, adoption and implementation of Windows 7, it's clear to me that the operating system's popularity is not wholly due to its superiority over Windows Vista--though that certainly helps--but that it's also due to Windows 7's potency when combined with application virtualization. What will be interesting to see is how this reciprocal relationship matures and evolves in the coming year and what other changes it might influence in the enterprise IT environment and the user experience itself.
Posted by Simon Rust on 11/15/20105 comments
The cloud has exploded as the next breakthrough technology most people are considering for their IT service delivery. An
IDC report
released in June 2010 estimated that in 2009 cloud-based services accounted for $16 billion of the approximately $2.5 trillion in global spending on IT, and that number would rise to $55.5 billion by 2014--representing 12 percent of all spending on IT. While still in its infancy, cloud computing shows extreme promise in providing IT departments with a more flexible and cost-effective way of delivering services to their enterprises.
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Posted by Simon Rust on 10/26/20106 comments
No one can ignore the fact that desktop virtualization adoption is on the rise, but for all the benefits it promises to deliver I would think that deployments would be rolling out a lot more quickly.
After all, this still new technology promises a significant decrease in desktop TCO and fewer headaches for IT managers. By centrally managing each desktop, enterprises can dramatically save on desktop management costs and decrease help desk calls. Desktop virtualization can also be extremely helpful in the event of server or client hardware failures.
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Posted by Simon Rust on 10/15/20100 comments
Ever wish you could take your home computer to work because it has all of your personal settings saved, not to mention the multitude of pictures of your pets, family and latest vacation? With the continued restraints on IT budgets, organizations are looking for innovative ways to save money, and Bring-Your-Own-PC (BYOPC) is the latest cost-cutting idea. Some recently released research has suggested that a BYOPC model can achieve around $300 per employee per month in cost savings--but is employee PC ownership the way to go?
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Posted by Simon Rust on 10/01/20107 comments
IT is increasingly being faced with the problem of users having administrative rights on their personal desktops. Giving them the ability to access all areas of the desktop is an accident waiting to happen, often leading to high support costs and a compromised user experience. One of the worst-case scenarios comes if security is compromised through the loss of data or an attack from malicious software that can be sitting and waiting on the network.
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Posted by Simon Rust on 08/26/20102 comments
Yes, it is already that time again. We are already full blown in the middle of 2010 and before you know it, we will be counting down to the New Year. It's always a good idea to do a midyear check/reflection just to make sure the years don't blend together. In the technology field, this is very common since the market seems to change as fast as the predictions change for our economic rebound. Here are a few comments on some up and coming technologies and what I have been seeing in the market.
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Posted by Simon Rust on 08/06/20103 comments
In an effort to reduce the cost of managing user desktops, enterprises have begun to think about delivering virtual desktops that can be generated on-the-fly and enable standardization to make desktop management easier.
On the market today, we see a number of solutions in various stages of development being designed to enable a single disk image to be used to support thousands of user desktops, thus minimizing the cost of the desktop. We are also seeing an excess of application virtualization technologies that enable enterprise applications to be easily layered on top of the operating system. These two technologies have had a tremendous amount of thought and development put into them over the past few years and are, by far, the most obvious solutions for enabling lower cost delivery of applications to end users.
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Posted by Simon Rust on 07/29/20106 comments