Desktop Virtualization Adoption Trends

1. Desktop Virtualization Adoption Trends John Grossmann IT Consultant Report 5/3/10

2. IT Professional • Senior Account Executive at Insight Integrated Systems –Division of Insight Investments Corp. • Simply put, he makes sure companies are employing and retiring assets appropriately and design solutions to meet their needs. • Sells companies virtualization solutions so they can do more in the realm of IT with less capital or operational expenditures.

3. Topic • Desktop virtualization and its adoption trends • Asked me to look at desktop virtualization and find out whether companies are moving towards it or whether the signs of its adoption are just hype • Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) – • Involves stripping down the basic computer infrastructure to a thin or zero-client infrastructure. • A thin-client infrastructure is a “stripped-down keyboard/screen pair,” and the processors are all away in the main data center. • VDI “moves desktops to the data center by virtualizing those machines and then giving each user access to those desktop images over either a LAN or WAN network”

4. Results • Benefits • Cost optimization • Lower maintenance costs • Lower ongoing management costs • Hardware by switching to thin-clients • Increased security • Central data storage • Increased staff efficiency • Single administrator handles thousands of servers

5. Results • Drawbacks • Large capital expenditures • Licensing costs for additional software • Mobility issues • Smartphone users can’t access desktops if there is not Internet • Performance issues • “Some of the most trivial uses of computers - watching YouTube videos, for example - are among the hardest to replicate on a virtual computer, since intense graphics need to be transmitted instantly over the network” (Gomes & Buley, 2009).

6. VDI Adoption Trend Results • Interest is high, but adoption is low • Can be successful if implemented correctly based on customer’s needs (George, 2009). • Drawbacks of the technology need to be sorted out before VDI can take off (Valovic, 2009). • Also, the youth of the VDI market and the lack of knowledge about it make it difficult to achieve high implementation rates (Valovic, 2009: Bowker, 2010). • Until then, companies will hold off on adopting until they evaluate the risks and rewards of the early adopters (“Desktop Virtualization Interest,” 2010).

7. Feedback • “The paper was well written and to the point.” • “Your research and sources have concluded what I have found true in the market” • People love the idea but are holding off as it matures. • “…this is a real IT issue that is being faced today in corporate settings as well as educational settings” • “Some drawbacks to the technology have been overcome with PcoIP (PC over IP) which enables streaming video to virtual desktop” • “I have an event in NYC on Tuesday on Desktop Virtualization…It may be of value if you could get extra credit to attend.”

8. Relevant Sites • George, R. (2009). Desktop Virtualization. InformationWeek, (1238), 18-21. Retrieved on April 11, 2010 from Academic Search Premier database. • Valovic, T. (2009). "The Disappearing Desktop: How VDI Is Changing the Game -- Virtualization Review." Google. Retrieved on April 11, 2010 from http://virtualizationreview.com/articles/2009/01/01/the-disappearing-desktop-how-vdi-is-changing-the-game.aspx • Gomes, L., & Buley, T. (2009). The death of the PC. Retrieved on April 24, 2010 from http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2009/1228/technology-virtualization-vmware-wyse_2.html • Very well-rounded articles in terms of their coverage of the benefits, drawbacks, and future outlook. Outlines important information regarding what desktop virtualization actually is, possible markets, size of the VDI market and also information about the major vendors in the market.