Outsourcing the virtual client

Ferenc Szelenyi looks at management of virtualised PCs

Ferenc Szelenyi: Application integration is one difficulty

Enterprise desktop environments are under scrutiny because of the growing cost of support and maintenance, compounded by the necessity for frequent security patching and software upgrades. At the same time, desktops have become increasingly difficult to manage, as remote working becomes more popular.

Remote users may require immediate access to sophisticated organisational systems from a diverse range of client devices. In addition, IT departments must contend with time-consuming client-management tasks, such as deploying and patching images and managing hardware transitions. They must also support the needs of all employees while complying with security policies.

I believe many organisations are now exploring the possibility of outsourcing their virtual client technology. I believe outsourcing would help simplify operations and get client assets under control. Done well, customers no longer need to manage physical desktops and hardware devices across various locations themselves.

And it should also enable administrator access to data, settings, applications, operating systems and IT policies. End-user digital identities can reside in a central location on the network, allowing end users to access and work with their data from any supported device.

A third-party provider must also have equivalent access to the customer's desktop environment. All applications, including custom or legacy applications, need to be tested and working at the service provider's facility. This is not easy if the applications need to run on a different IT infrastructure.

Unfortunately, the difficulty of application integration is often overlooked when businesses outsource their virtual clients. This is, I believe, because most businesses have custom or legacy applications that are critical but not easily integrated into other IT environments. Businesses can also incur unforeseen costs and delays trying to get these applications working with server-based computing technologies.

Sending corporate desktop assets outside customer infrastructure can have repercussions if customer data or company IP is compromised. Instead of maintaining entire PCs in the field with their own operating system, applications and configurations, virtualised PCs can be maintained in the customer's datacentre, more easily supported and securely managed.

End users can then access their virtual desktop PCs from anywhere, from any system.

I believe outsourcing virtual client technologies can reduce customers' unforeseen maintenance costs, improve service level agreements and eliminate delays when trying to get business-critical applications working alongside server-based computing.

Ferenc Szelenyi is vice president of EMEA public sector services at Dell Services