Desktop Virtualization adoption

Posted by Michael Keen on May 21, 2008. send this link to your friendsprint this post
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With the big annoucement yesterday around XenDesktop and VMware's quick turnaround of a Competitive Marketng newsflash, I started to think about how many enterprises are really pushing towards this type of virtualization.  We all know that server virtualization is here to stay and that storage virtualization is starting to really pick up steam, but it seems to me that desktop virtualization is still lagging.

There was a survey a while back that was conducting by CIO.com that really brought this fact out.  Out of all the CxO's interviewed 25% were using destkop virtualization, 13% planned on doing so within a year, and 21% planned to do so within one year to three years.  What alarmed me in this survey was that 37% of respondents have no plans to use desktop virtualization.  Really?  What are CxO's waiting for?

I have been taking the approach to virtualization for the past few years that virtualization is the "how" to cut costs out of the data center, the "how" to provision servers and PC's on demand and "how" to putting together a solid DR plan.  Now I think it's time to take this "how" to the real big cost in the enterprise today; desktop PCs.  These still cost way to much in time and money to manage.

So tell me folks, what is holding up your organizations from moving to virtual desktops?

The one thing that really needs to be worked on now is the automation and management of virtual servers and desktops.  I think once this really gets put together we will see a sudden upswing in the adoption curve for virtual desktops. 

Reader Comments
Can you ellaborate on "automation and management of virtual servers and desktops"?
Wednesday, May 21, 2008 2:24:35 PM

Guest
What do you mean exactly by "automation and management of virtual servers and desktops"?
Automation and Monitoring
Wednesday, May 21, 2008 4:19:20 PM
my main point here was one tool to rule them all basically.  There are some good tools out there, but nothing that I'm too impressed with yet that will give me the all-seeing and all-knowing view of my whole infrastructure.
Funny you write this...
Wednesday, May 21, 2008 4:28:15 PM

Guest
There's another story/blog on DABCC today about virtual desktop adoption "Why VMware VDI and Citrix XenDesktop Adoption will be Slow"  http://www.dabcc.com/blogs/Jason-E-Smiths-Hype-Advisor/post/Why-VMware-VDI-and-Citrix-XenDesktop-Adoption-will-be-Slow-
Re: Funny you write this...
Wednesday, May 21, 2008 4:46:27 PM
Great minds think alike I guess.... ;-)
VDI requires lot$ of money and bandwidth...
Wednesday, May 21, 2008 8:36:42 PM

Guest
enterprises with lot$ of money and lot$ of bandwidth, not SMBs, are doing this...
Re: VDI requires lot$ of money and bandwidth...
Wednesday, May 21, 2008 9:51:16 PM

you make a good point.  What would you consider too small for virtualized desktops to make financial sense.  Obviously if you only have 10 PCs in your company it wouldn't, but let me know and then I'll tell you my findings.

Thanks for the reply

VMWare's News Flash
Thursday, May 22, 2008 1:22:56 AM

Guest

We are VMWare and Citrix Partner. When I received the the VMWare Competitive Marketng newsflash I was nearly about to pee in my pants. VMWare Marketing talks about inmuture product, poorly integrated etc. but the given examples were not reflecting reality. Indeed VMWare stated that they don't know anything about competition and ethics. Example ? XenDesktop is poorly integrated ! Is it ? No, it allows my customer to have a choice which hypervisor to take and if the customer is not happy with his hypervisor (e.g. paying for features he dont need) to change the product without affecting the VDI solution. VMWare VDI bounds the customer around VMWare products. VMWare VDI is mature - is it ? VMWare VDI came out in February / March - based on ESX Server. XenDesktop is Version 2 the kernel is from Presentation Server and ICA is a well market proven technology. So VMWare VDI mature ?

I dislike the fact that VMWare starts to compete without ethics and telling lies to us VMWare partner. We really consider to end the partnership with VMWare. Finally, it seems that VMWare doesn't believe in the success of their own VDI solution, otherwise they don't have to publish so much rubbish.

P.S. We tested both solutions - the management of the Citrix VDI solution is more mature then VMWare VDI is. So we advise our customers to use (for the time being) ESX as hypervisor and XenDesktop as VDI to keep independence.

 

Re: VMWare's News Flash
Thursday, May 22, 2008 7:03:33 AM

I am a partner of both companies as well and when I saw that release hit my inbox, I knew it had started.  Even the VMware guy sitting in the audience during Mark T's keynote and the XenDesktop demo didn't work right (now I wasn't there unfortunately so correct me if I'm wrong) he was beside himself giddy and wetting his pants because it didn't work.  These are the games that companies play and someone has to be the bigger "person".  Both of these companies can't see the forest for the trees at times.  They are swimming in a "red ocean" of competition and no one is looking for the smooth, "blue" water for making the competition irrelevent. 

All of us that are architects, engineers and administrators have to temper the marketing blitz by both companies.  We can't be drinking the kool-aid all the time.  We have to think for ourselves and understand that there are best use cases for any technology.  Thank you Shawn Bass for standing up and putting it out there.  You rock my friend.

This is why we don't use VDI
Thursday, May 22, 2008 8:24:38 AM

Guest

Multimedia, flash performance, webcam support with OCS 2007

Today we use fat clients who can watch on demand video at 4000kbps and video in multicast.  We use webcams and OCS 2007 to talk to collegaes and have interactive support with costumers through OCS2007 on the web i 175 locations. You simpel do not do that to 4000 users i 175 locations. So network is the isue.

 Regards

Lasse 

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 About Michael Keen
Michael Keen is the Director and Senior Solutions Architect in the Enterprise Architecture group at Alliance Technologies in Des Moines, Iowa. He is an innovative, results-oriented architect and executive with over a ten years of experience using technology to reach business objectives and eliminate barriers to business growth. Before his career in IT, Michael was a professional alpine climber. He spent over seven years on and around the highest peaks of the world. He has learned what it takes to prepare oneself for large challenges and has taken those experiences and translated them into his successful career in IT. Today, Michael spends most his time speaking in front of C-level executives and other business groups around the U.S. on the how to integrate IT and business. He brings his experience in strategy and execution from alpine climbing to the world of strategic IT automation and execution using dynamic IT concepts and virtualization and application delivery.