What is VDI? According to CDW, at its most basic incarnation, virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) is the practice of hosting a desktop operating system within a virtual machine (VM) running on a centralized server. The desktop images can then be accessed by different types of devices such as desktop, laptops, thin clients and mobile devices.
For a larger group of users, like one would find at any given small to midsize business, it makes sense to create a large number of virtual desktops on a cloud that operators can connect to using a thin client system.
How does it all work?
In the typical VDI, a special software application called a hypervisor sits between the physical hardware and the operating system where the virtual desktops run. Because there are many moving parts involved in successfully running a virtual desktop environment, ensuring peak performance is an vital consideration.
Virtual desktops offer greater security because no data is stored or saved locally. All data is stored centrally under the control of the cloud services administrator, enhancing the overall security. Users can login from anywhere and experience the same desktop with all applications in the same state as they were when the user last logged out. This allows great flexibility in workspace creation. In addition to being able to work from anywhere, businesses also value the disaster recovery features that a virtual desktop environment gives them.
When you really think about it, going virtual is often a cost-effective solution for most small to midsize firms. According to Microsoft’s Jorge Orchilles, using VDI can help businesses save time and money, provide greater defense against catastrophic failure, improve update speeds, and provide an easy way to customize desktops for certain users or groups of users.
While there are multiple options available, an evaluation of your needs and work requirements should be considered before deciding which specific cloud solutions are right for your business. Rarely will an in-house IT staff have this kind of consulting expertise.
If you think that virtual desktop is a solution that you’d like to explore for your business, come speak to us. At MDL Technology, we have the expertise and the experience to guide you through this complex domain.
