Intelligent Tech Channels Issue 30 | Page 65

FINAL WORD Application virtualisation aside, delivering desktops via BYOD can be a great solution for end users as well as IT. As organisations across the Middle East look to quickly enable and scale remote working environments, there has been an uptick in the adoption of Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI). This is not surprising given the benefits of VDI for remote working. For one, integrating new users, user devices, businesses and even applications is made easier with VDI. Secondly, developers can respond faster, users can utilise a rich desktop environment and organisations can truly enable the business by incorporating a completely virtual desktop ecosystem. Last but not least, VDI scales from the data centre and into the cloud as well. This means users can access intelligent systems monitoring their performance, utilisation and even licensing while still pushing out a rich VDI environment. However, the benefits of VDI extend far beyond just enabling a remote and mobile workforce. Here are eight more reasons why you should consider VDI. Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) Application virtualisation aside, delivering desktops via BYOD can be a great solution for end users as well as IT. Whether they’re working from home, internally or even internationally, users can access a desktop with all of their settings intact. Increased demand for mobility and IT consumerisation has led to a rise in BYOD. This is where VDI can help. The endpoint never retains the data and both the desktops and applications are always secure and controlled at the data centre level. Providing access to third parties Some organisations have numerous contractors working within an organisation. A great way to control contractor access is through a private cloud VDI platform. This gives users access via controlled active directory (AD) policies and credentials and allows them to connect to a virtual desktop. From there, administrators can quickly provision and de-provision desktop resources as needed for a given contractor. Testing and development There is no better way to test out an application, service or new product than on an efficiently provisioned VDI image. Administrators can deploy and test out new platforms within ‘live’ environments without having to provision hardware resources. Once the testing is complete, they can simply spin down the VDI instance and rollout the new update, application or desktop environment. Application compatibility and delivery Recent updates within organisations have forced some applications to adopt 64-bit technologies. Some apps, however, won’t run on these platforms, forcing administrators to get creative. This is where VDI can help. For those select, finicky applications, VDI within a private cloud environment can be a lifesaver. Virtual desktops can run within 32-bit or 64-bit instances and allow administrators to continue to support many older apps. Accelerating heavy desktop compute workloads New technologies are allowing for powerful resource sharing while still optimising the user experience. Solutions with 100% NVMe all-flash storage systems accelerate virtual desktops and applications with sub- INTELLIGENT TECH CHANNELS INTELLIGENT TECH CHANNELS Issue 30 65