Essential Guide
Essential guide to desktop virtualisation
VDI has become an increasingly popular option for IT leaders
Introduction
Desktop virtualisation technology was around for many years before it began gaining significant adoption. Common challenges formerly cited included complexity, storage costs and the impact on network bandwidth. But today’s virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) products have addressed those issues, and VDI has become an increasingly popular option for IT leaders who want to deliver mobility, security and ease of management for their users across multiple devices. In this guide, we look at the latest trends in desktop virtualisation.
1Best practice advice-
Virtual desktop strategy
Is VDI right for you? Read experts' advice on choosing the right strategy for your desktop virtualisation projects
Focus: Mobility, virtualisation and desktop
CIOs are now accustomed to letting employees access company information on their mobile phones and tablets, and using these devices to carry out business-critical tasks on the go. But that wasn’t always the case. Not that long ago, many IT leaders scoffed at the idea of letting their staff store and access commercially-sensitive information in this way because of credible concerns about what would happen to their data should the device be lost, stolen or hacked. Since then, mobile security technologies have come on leaps and bounds, but enterprises have also turned to virtualisation to protect their data, and ensure their infrastructure can cope with the growing number of end-points connected to it. In this e-guide, we share details of how mobility and virtualisation has helped organisations in the publishing and manufacturing industries meet their business objectives, while taking a look at some of the broader industry trends playing out in these technological areas. Continue Reading
Buyer's Guide to desktop virtualisation
In this eight-page buyer’s guide we look at desktop virtualisation and identify some of the options IT directors must consider when planning a virtualisation project. Continue Reading
Desktop virtualisation dilemmas: Solving the VDI blame game
In this guest post, Kevin Cooke, product director at desktop virtualisation software provider Liquidware Labs, explains how CIOs and IT departments can avoid playing the blame game when working out ... Continue Reading
2VDI in action-
VDI case studies
How are organisations using desktop virtualisation and what benefits are being achieved? We talk to VDI users to find out
Case study: German protein supplier Gelita uses MDM to boost global workforce mobility
Collagen protein supplier Gelita picked up the award for best desktop virtualisation or mobility project at the 2016 Best of VMworld Awards. Find out why here Continue Reading
Busy Bees nursery virtualises desktops and servers to improve users' IT experience
UK nursery chain Busy Bees has made its IT scalable, mobile-friendly and easy to use by deploying Citrix products. Continue Reading
Northern Trust banks on hyper-converged appliance for VDI
A global bank struggled with performance and scalability for its virtual desktop infrastructure until replacing a SAN with a Nutanix hyper-converged platform. Continue Reading
Gloucester City Homes embarks on VDI-led tech transformation
Social housing firm taps into Exponential-e's Ethernet capabilities to make it easier for its staff to work flexibly. Continue Reading
Auto Trader boosts its VDI with user environment management
With help from AppSense, Auto Trader UK got on the road to desktop efficiency with tools to make VDI faster and more user-friendly. Continue Reading
Decentralising datacentres: The new challenges of security at the edge
In September 2020, the Computer Weekly Security Think Tank, our panel of information and cyber security experts, considered the challenges inherent in decentralising the datacentre, and set out to answer the question, how can security professionals ensure such setups are just as secure as the traditional centralised model? Read more in this e-guide.
3Technology choices-
Hardware and software considerations
Decisions around storage, software and desktop hardware can have an important bearing on the success of your desktop virtualisation project
Beat VDI deployment challenges; find the best VDI storage
Companies that want to stand up a VDI deployment can choose from a variety of storage options, from traditional storage technologies to more creative approaches, such as layering. Continue Reading
Edge computing technology holds VDI potential
Edge computing is finding its place in the enterprise to handle data growth. IT may use that same advantage to help address problems in a VDI deployment. Continue Reading
VDI values hyper-converged infrastructure benefits
The ability to scale out hyper-converged systems is one of the main reasons HCI is such a good fit for virtual desktop infrastructure deployments. Continue Reading
Virtualisation and storage: Five ways to do it better
Server and desktop virtualisation bring many savings, but you have to work smart to ensure storage performs efficiently. We survey the top five pitfalls and how to avoid them. Continue Reading
VDI hardware evaluation checklist
Picking the right hardware for your VDI deployment is critical, but it doesn't have to be difficult. To start, check to see if your VDI software vendor has a list of compatible components. Continue Reading
4VDI technology issues-
Tackling common desktop virtualisation problems
VDI projects often raise questions around performance, systems management, and the role of the PC - but answers are at hand
Three VDI best practices you need to know
VDI comes with challenges around graphics support, user personalization and more. Administrators should keep in mind these tips for deployment success. Continue Reading
Travel down the nonpersistent or persistent VDI road
The difference between nonpersistent and persistent virtual desktops is more than just three letters. From deployment to storage, IT pros need to know the available options. Continue Reading
Come on down! The VDI price is finally right
Many IT pros used to view VDI as too expensive, but now with technologies such as hyper-converged infrastructure and all-flash arrays, everything is changing. Continue Reading
A look into the VDI capacity planning crystal ball
Planning for VDI capacity is daunting. There are certain measures IT can take to better prepare, such as estimating resources and determining workflows. Continue Reading
Comparing three options for VDI endpoints
There are a few ways admins can provide users with the hardware that makes it possible to access their virtual desktops. Get to know the three major options. Continue Reading