The VDI solution

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) is a powerful solution where the desktop operating system is hosted on a centralized server within a virtual machine. The VDI solution facilitates full personalization of the user's desktops and allows access to the virtual desktops anywhere, from any device at any time. The VMware Horizon View product provides the components needed to implement this solution. Companies are realizing the flexibility, efficiency, and other benefits that Horizon View can provide. View enables administrators to manage desktops from a central location and provide the end users with the ability to access their environments remotely from any location. View is maturing into a reliable way for IT to maintain security and manageability while still accommodating employees' desires to be mobile and connected.

Proper planning can mean the difference between a successful VDI deployment and an unhappy end user. Some of the popular reasons to provide a Horizon View solution include:

• Workforce mobility: Mobility and accessibility is a major driving force today; users everywhere are on the go, and providing them with convenience is the key. When you use View to separate the software (OS, applications, and data) from the PC hardware, the actual hardware device becomes the connection point and is capable of connecting that user to the software. This allows any device to access the information on your virtual desktops.

  There is a shift in technology where the user's desktop lives in a data center (or the cloud) instead of the device being used. The user desktop can appear on almost any device with connectivity to the Internet. Today, virtual desktops are accessible from iPads, smartphones, thin/zero clients, laptops, home computers, work computers, kiosks, and business centers… just about from anywhere.

• Security: There is no question that one of the top concerns is security for today's IT environments. Data can be the organization's lifeline, and if that information is lost, corrupted, or stolen, a company's existence can be in danger. With a VDI solution, the OS, applications, and data are separated from the physical device that is being used to access the environment and are on the servers in the data center. This also allows simplified management and better utilization to keep the virtual desktop up to date with security patches, and as mentioned, the actual data resides in protected rooms.

  With View, sensitive data is protected on a company's server rather than sitting on unprotected desktops or roaming around in public spaces such as the airport, a coffee shop, or a hotel room. This can be a powerful motivator for moving to VDI for the cost reduction benefits.

• Centralized management: View provides the end users with a complete virtual desktop that behaves just like a physical desktop. The virtual desktop also allows administrators to deploy new desktops in minutes rather than days or weeks, using automatic desktop-provisioning tools. This gives users their own personalized desktop environment without the need for sharing applications or retraining the end user. Administrators can also manage these deployed virtual desktops from any location and perform the necessary upgrades, patches, and desktop maintenance without requiring the device to be "brought in". This allows a quicker response to the ongoing need of keeping the desktops up to date based on business needs.
• Windows 7/8 migrations: Organizations that are looking to reduce the complexity and frustration of moving to a new operating system can use virtual desktops to lessen the pain. Using the proper persona-management tools, the user's profile can be brought into the new virtual desktop. The ability to try/test the new operating systems before they are deployed is possible by creating new pools with the new OS. Going to a new OS is never easy, but View can ease the transition.
• Technology/hardware refresh: The daunting task of replacing outdated desktops during a hardware refresh cycle can create significant operational costs and reduce productivity. This is an opportunistic time to migrate users to a VDI solution. After the users are moved off the physical desktop, the old desktops can be repurposed as thin or thick clients, extending their usable life.
• Bring Your Own Device (BYOD): View allows for the current movement of users to bring their preferred device and allow it to connect back into a managed VDI. The Horizon Client, which has versions for several types of devices, would be needed, or the View desktops can be accessed directly with an HTML5-compliant browser.
• Remote connectivity in times of crisis: Pandemics, mass-influenza cases, border-crossing contagion—all bring thoughts of fear to the company. What about snow storms and other natural disasters that can prevent you from traveling to work? If you ask yourself, "Are we really prepared to effectively continue operations in emergency situations?", and are not sure of the answer, then VDI can help. View allows workers to continue to work when they can't physically get to their place of work. These same solutions that allow a BYOD solution can also help with an emergency situation that keeps workers out of the office.

Regardless of your driving reason, VDI is a technology that has gained a lot of traction across many verticals worldwide. This book will guide you through the necessary steps to begin your VDI/View journey and provide a solution that can address some or all the issues mentioned based on your needs.