Enterprise Rent-A-Car plans to deliver Microsoft Office and
internally developed car-rental applications to 5,000 branch
locations equipped with Windows CE-based terminals.
Thin-client devices will access the applications through the
enhanced terminal services as featured in Microsoft's upcoming
release of Windows .net Server 2003.
For more than 10 years, branch employees have rented out cars using
5250 terminals that link back to the company's AS/400 servers. But
Enterprise wants to replace the limited-function screens with a
more graphical interface and give its users a more PC-like
environment that will support new features and capabilities, says
Mark Adams, an assistant vice-president of information systems at
the company.
Enterprise wanted to retain its existing support model for its 5250
terminals because it knows well the effort required to support
full-blown PCs. Enterprise settled on Windows CE-based thin clients
because it found them easier to manage and configure and considered
them more consistent across vendor lines than Unix- and Linux-based
devices, says Derik Reiser, Enterprise director of platform
solutions.
The Windows CE terminals launch Microsoft Remote Desktop Protocol
(RDP) 5.1 client software and establish sessions either through a
LAN to a server in the branch office or through a shared
frame-relay circuit to servers at Enterprise's headquarters.
As part of Microsoft's Joint Development Program, Enterprise has
been testing terminal services at 18 branches that have
two-processor servers running locally and at two branches that
connect to four-way boxes.
During the next 24 months, Enterprise plans to roll out Windows
.net Server 2003 to 2,500 of its larger branches and connect the
remaining 2,500 to its central servers.
The sheer scale will set the Enterprise project apart from the
typical Microsoft terminal services deployment, according to
Gartner analyst Mark Margevicius. He said 250 to 300 clients has
been the "magic number" for terminal services. Beyond that, most
companies have gone to a more scalable product, such as MetaFrame
XP from Citrix Systems.