In these days of limited resources – often both staff and budget – IT shops are looking for technology that offers more flexibility and ease of management. Enter the virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI). VDI is the practice of hosting a desktop operating system within a virtual machine (VM) running on a centralized server. The desktop images can then be accessed by different types of devices such as desktop, laptops, thin clients and mobile devices.
Virtualization can look just like an everyday Microsoft Windows-style desktop or just show a simple environment that includes applications pushed to users via policies. These environments go further into flexibility by being fully available every time login occurs or rebuilt with each login to show a fresh environment.
The Benefits of VDI
Here are some benefits of using VDI:
VDI – Utilization of Same Image
The first benefit of VDI is that desktops can use the same image. The OS (Operating System), as well as applications that are installed, decreases organizational and support costs. Images will need to be tested as new applications are introduced, and either additional images will need to be created or adjustments will have to be made to the current build. Also, depending on your model, if you use persistent desktops, incremental storage space will be needed for VDI servers since user needs vary, i.e. saving private settings if users are allowed to install their own applications.
VDI provides More Options for Expensive Desktop Upgrades
While an investment in server hardware and storage infrastructure may be required, all of these items will be hosted in the data center, therefore, there may not be a need for a huge collection of standard PCs in the office.
If the staff is working within a mobile, bring-your-own-device environment, you can run the same environment on tablets as you would experience on high-end desktops, allowing for less expensive machines to be used.
These options will deliver the required environment to all users uniformly and give flexibility to administrators to adjust the environmental variables such as memory allocation and storage per environment on the fly.
The Management of a Single OS Can Reduce Costs
Since everything is hosted in the data center, admins will have to install drivers, patches and applications only once and every user – depending upon that image – benefits from the update. Also, it’s important to make sure all the administrators learn everything about the VDI software.
Troubleshooting Problems is Easier
Today, support staffs have a tedious task of running out to physical PCs. This has been reduced by different models of VDI. As images can be accessed from any linked workstation, any user facing hardware trouble on their usual systems can go to another one and access their data and applications simply by logging in and having their policy based apps and rules pushed to them.
Your Data is More Secure
Another important benefit is that data and images will be in the safe zone in the data center. You can now utilize standard data center tools to manage the security, keeping information confined within a secure environment.
Let OptfinITy help you with VDI
To learn more about how virtualization can help simplify your company’s IT needs and increase ROI, contact us by completing the form or calling us at 703-790-0400.