Q&A with Dan McCall of Virtual Computer

VSM: What’s the difference between server-hosted VDI (Virtual Desktop Infrastructure) and distributed desktop virtualization?

DM: There are some important differences between server-hosted and distributed desktop virtualization. Distributed, or intelligent, desktop virtualization offers better manageability than server-hosted VDI without the cost or infrastructure investments. Also, server-hosted VDI offers centralized management and centralized execution, while intelligent desktop virtualization combines centralized management and local execution.

Employing a distributed desktop virtualization solution can make managing thousands of desktops and laptops as easy as managing one, while offering new levels of flexibility and productivity to end-users.
It radically expands the capabilities of PCs while slashing management costs. Also, by leveraging the compute power on the end-point, users get a better experience, and there are significant savings in server, storage and network costs. It also allows enterprises to deliver ultra-fast native PC performance, complete mobility and better manageability than server-hosted VDI for a fraction of the cost.

VSM: What desktop virtualization challenges are users still facing?

DM: Many companies are excited by the promise of desktop virtualization but do not want to make the huge investments in infrastructure required for server-hosted VDI; as a result, these companies are not able to tap into the benefits of desktop virtualization.

Some of the companies that have started implementing server-hosted VDI have found that they are not getting an ROI from it due to the high infrastructure costs, that their end-users are complaining about the performance and user experience, and that there are significant challenges with being able to support laptops.

Mobility is also going to be a growing challenge for organizations. The biggest growth in end-user computing these days is in the mobile area, and laptops continue to be the primary growth driver for PCs.  While mobile users are starting to use tablets for reading and consuming information, they are still using laptops for their core work. That means it’s critical to be able to support laptops and deliver great end-user performance both online and off.

VSM: How does your latest technology help users overcome these challenges?

DM: Virtual Computer provides centralized management with localized execution, and it also offers the security and policy controls that organizations want with the mobility capabilities that end-users want.

Recently, we released Virtual Computer NxTop Version 3 Service Pack 1, which offers better manageability than VDI without the cost or infrastructure investments. The new release provides full IT control of the end-point through advanced management capabilities in NxTop Center while at the same time enabling greater end-user flexibility. The feedback we’ve gotten from customers so far is that they love the additional capabilities to centrally manage desktops and to set policies for end-user personalization. By allowing local users to inherit properties as their initial settings, IT administrators save time for themselves and the users by eliminating the need to set up certain options or settings manually.