Desktop virtualization

Desktop virtualization By

Aiman Athambawa (000591100 / aa955)

CONTENTS Cover page................................................................................................................... ...1 Contents........................................................................................................................2 INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................3 Citrix desktop virtualization......................................................................................3 Citrix_XenDesktop.....................................................................................................4 VMware desktop virtualization.......................................................................................5 VMware vSphere............................................................................................................6 Microsoft desktop virtualization.....................................................................................7 Virtual Desktop infrastructure (VDI) .............................................................................7 Enterprise Desktop virtualization (MED-V) ..................................................................8 CONCLUSION...............................................................................................................9 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................10

INTRODUCTION Desktop virtualization is a concept that replaces the traditional physical desktop environment to a remotely controlled computing environment. It replaces the time life management of desktop computers. It comes up with the most effective solution to meet today's demands for reduced costs, improved security and more flexibility. It will suit any size of organisation from home usage to multinational companies. The Virtual desktop uses the storage in the virtual space called as virtual disk. It resides on virtual server (Data centres). When the users work from their virtual desktop, all the programs, applications, processes, and data used, kept and run centrally. This situation allows users to access their desktops on the virtual environment on any capable device, such as a traditional computer, laptop, iPad, Smartphone etc... There are many desktop virtualization vendors providing services across the world with different techniques. However, this report and discussion come up with three main leading vendors Citrix, VMware and Microsoft.

Citrix desktop virtualization Citrix is a multinational virtualization company founded in 1989. It is providing desktop and server virtualization. Citrix states “A world where people can work and play from anywhere” as their corporate vision. The Citrix starts the revolution of desktop virtualization with a product called XenDesktop. “Citrix XenDesktop transforms Windows desktops into an on-demand service that can be accessed by any user, on any device, anywhere, with unparalleled simplicity and scalability. Whether workers are using the latest tablets, smart phones, laptops or thin clients, XenDesktop can quickly and securely deliver virtual desktops and applications to them with a high-definition user experience”1

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Available from: http://www.citrix.com/English/ps2/products/feature.asp?contentID=2300341 [Accessed on09/12/2010]

Citrix XenDesktop XenDesktop helps to enable the company desktop environment quickly and efficiently. Instead of installing operating system, application, user profile in hundreds of computers, it will packet them in a single image in datacenter and dynamically assemble virtual desktops on each user. It uses single instance management that helps to install patches and update ones. Also provide centralise data control to enable higher security. Users can access their desktop remotely from anywhere at any time on any device. XenDesktop provide maximum flexible delivery with FlexCast delivery Technology to enable different type of users to provide different type of service. It supports every desktop virtualization model in a single integrated solution. Citrix HDX technology provide fast and reliable performance and High Definition user experience to support flash, multimedia content, webcam, audio and 3D graphic application with FlexCast delivery. It also provides the freedom to access the desktop. XenDesktop Delivery process is very straightforward and secure. Users only need to type the username and password. XenDesktop assemble the personalised desktop on-demand depend on his/her profile, assigned applications and operating system. Thereafter it delivers the desktop through the delivery controller via secure remote access and WAN optimization. The process will flow as shown in image below.

Figure-1 2

VMware desktop virtualization

VMware is a global leader in virtualization and cloud infrastructure. It found on 1998 and started the business with a release of VMware workstation in 1999. In addition, VMware is a part of EMC. VMware deliver wide range of virtualization techniques to its customers with the goal of improving business continuity by using their virtual desktops and applications. VMware virtual desktop technique used to increase efficiency, reliability, and availability when its deliver virtual desktops from the datacenter. The VMware virtualization “Deploy desktops faster and improve business continuity and disaster recovery while reducing capital and operating system costs through desktop and application virtualization. Migrate and upgrade operating systems and applications with less downtime, eliminate the need to recode, retest and recertify applications, and get more out of your existing desktop assets.”

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Image Available from: http://www.thinkvirt.com/?q=node/134 [Accessed on 09/12/2010]

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In order to achieve a virtualization approach that is more productive VMware introduced VSphere

technology.

VMware vSphere VMware vSphere is centralised private cloud technique designed for highest level of availability and responsiveness for all application and services for the business infrastructure.

The automated

datacenter build with VMware vSphere platform that delivers resources, application and servers when needed. The vSphere architecture states below.

Figure- 2 4, Figure-3 5

VMware vSphere comes up with essentials kits to work with key components. There are:

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Accessed From: http://www.vmware.com/products/desktop_virtualization.html, [Accessed on 08/12/2010] Image Available From: http://www.vmware.com/products/desktop_virtualization.html , [Accessed on 10/12/2010]

Image Available From: http://www.vmware.com/products/vsphere , [Accessed on 10/12/2010]

1. VMware vSphere Hypervisor – a virtualization layer allows multiple virtual machines to share the computing from a single physical server. 2. VMware VCenter Server – it is providing centralised management of physical to virtual machine conversion 3. VMware VCenter Update manager – providing automated patch and update management 4. VMware High Available (HA) – manage hardware independent failover for virtual machines 5. VMware Data Recovery – provide backup and recovery for virtual machines. VSphere Adopt existing Applications and future Applications to give the high level of service through VMware VCenter Suite. VSphere used for gaining elasticity and flexibility through public and private cloud by providing bridge to public cloud.

Microsoft desktop virtualization Microsoft is a leading software company founded on April 1975. It is initially started virtual structural PC environment with the software called virtual-pc in 2004 and latest version in 2007. It was very useful to run a number of operating system in a single PC environment. It uses virtual elastic disk storage technique to store the data of virtual PCs. Microsoft now offers a combination of virtual pc technique and cloud computing technique to deliver excellent virtualized desktop environment to the customers called Virtual Desktop infrastructure (VDI) and Microsoft enterprise Desktop virtualization (MED-V) Virtual Desktop infrastructure (VDI) VDI technology is a desktop delivery model that allows users to access full desktop environment including operating system, applications, user settings and data, which reside in virtual machine running on centralised servers within the datacenter. It gives significant benefits such as delivering secure desktop to any virtually connected device since desktops, applications and user data reside in the datacenter.

Figure 4 6

In addition to that Hyper-V, Microsoft virtualization platform help to optimise the hardware resources to consolidate multiple operating system in a single server. And remote Desktop services (RDS) provide the complete remoting and desktop delivery infrastructure for VDI. Image Description detailed below..

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Image Available From: http://www.microsoft.com/hk/windows/enterprise/solutions/virtualization/improve-

lexibility.aspx?pf=true [Accessed on 10/12/2010]

Figure 5 7

Enterprise Desktop virtualization (MED-V) MED-V technology is an adoption service for windows migration. It removes the barriers of application incompatibility when the operating system upgrades. “MED-V delivers applications in a virtual PC that runs a previous version of the operating system (for example: Windows XP). It does so in a way that is completely seamless and transparent to the user. Applications appear and operate as if they were installed on the desktop, so that users can even pin them to the task bar. For IT administrators, MED-V helps deploy, provision, control, and support the virtual environments”8

MED-V resides on virtual PC, when the user is running and accessing the application on the virtual PC, MED-V communicates with the client machine, when the incompatible situation occurs MED-V acting on that and resolves quickly without any delay. However, MED-V uses the virtual pc as the main virtualized engine.

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Image Available From: http://blogs.technet.com/b/iftekhar/archive/2009/07/08/implementing-microsoft-vdi-with-

server-2008-r2-rds.aspx [Accessed on 10/12/2010]

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Accessed From: http://www.microsoft.com/virtualization/en/us/products-desktop.aspx [Accessed on 10/12/2010]

Figure 6 9 The image shows that the way of cloud structure functioning with MED-V to solve the application inter operability by combining host machine and virtual machine. It is a very good model for those who are planning for windows migration.

CONCLUSION Desktop virtualization mostly needed solution for every company in terms of cost, security and flexibility. It will suit any size of organisation from SME to multinational companies. Nowadays there are several companies providing desktop virtualization solution in different techniques and different aspects of the usage. The report describes only three leading vendors’ current leading technology out in the market. They are Citrix XenDesktop, VMware vSphere, Microsoft VDI and MED-V. The cloud structure based technology running on trust basis. Because, the data not physically controlled by the owner of data. It is stored somewhere unknown place to him/ her. The users of the cloud services must believe that their data is secure and protected from viewing it by others. The network management solution must be overcome to control and protect own user data. REFERENCES [1]. http://www.citrix.com/English/ps2/products/feature.asp?contentID=2300341 [Accessed on09/12/2010]

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Image Available From: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/enterprise/products/mdop/med-v.aspx

[Accessed on 10/12/2010]

[2]. http://www.thinkvirt.com/?q=node/134 [Accessed on 09/12/2010] [3]. http://www.vmware.com/products/desktop_virtualization.html, [Accessed on 08/12/2010]

[4]. http://www.vmware.com/products/desktop_virtualization.html , [Accessed on 10/12/2010] [5]. http://www.vmware.com/products/vsphere , [Accessed on 10/12/2010] [6]. http://www.microsoft.com/hk/windows/enterprise/solutions/virtualization/improvelexibility.aspx?pf=true [Accessed on 10/12/2010] [7]. http://blogs.technet.com/b/iftekhar/archive/2009/07/08/implementing-microsoft-vdi-with-server2008-r2-rds.aspx [Accessed on 10/12/2010] [8]. http://www.microsoft.com/virtualization/en/us/products-desktop.aspx [Accessed on 10/12/2010] [9]. http://www.microsoft.com/windows/enterprise/products/mdop/med-v.aspx [Accessed on 10/12/2010]