Virtualization and Cloud Part 2
In my last post I talked about how Virtualization is one of the key underlying technologies that will be used to build a Cloud. (https://blogs.msdn.com/b/briancombs/archive/2010/09/10/virtualization-and-cloud-part-1.aspx) I then covered Hyper-V and SCVMM as they are the main products that people think about when it comes t virtualization from Microsoft. In this post I would like to talk about the following
- Application Virtualization (App-V)
- Presentation Virtualization - Remote Desktop Services (Terminal Services
- Desktop Virtualization - VDI and Virtual PC
App-V
App-V previously known as SoftGrid provides the ability to deliver applications to end users without actually installing the applications on the client computers. It allows you to package applications so that they can run within a self-contained virtual environment or “sandbox” on client computers.
Pros:
· No need to install application on local computer.
· Package is self-contained which allows application to run in environments that may cause app compatibility issues if application was installed local.
· App –V application package runs local on the box
· Easy deployment and updating of application.
· Can deploy seamlessly to virtual machine when client logs on.
Cons:
· Requires MDOP and SA
· Not all applications can be sequenced
ISV play:
Allows ISV to provide easy delivery of applications to different environments without customers needing to do local install. ISV can easily deploy update as package can be configured to check for update every time it starts. May remove the need to create complex setup programs to install application and also allow application to run in environments that were previously unsupported.
Presentation Virtualization
Remote Desktop Services (Terminal Services)
Presentation virtualization allows you to separate an application’s user interface from the physical computer where the application is physically running. Some folks also use the term “Server Based Computing” to describe this.
Pros:
· Allows securing of applications and data in the Data Center as application and data are not run or stored on the end-users box.
· Allows easy deployment of applications, allows control of what applications end-user has access to based on location of user.
· Easier to manage then individual desktops.
Cons:
· No offline use.
· Performance may suffer if running on slow connection.
· Not all application are compatible running in terminal services environment
· End-Users share computing resources between sessions
ISV Play:
The ability to run desktop or applications in the data center with terminal services has been around for many years. Many customers currently use this model and partners such as Citrix have extended our terminal services offerings. ISVs that create LOB applications should test to make sure that they work in this environment.
Desktop Virtualization
VDI and Virtual PC
While VDI and Virtual PC have some major differences I have put them in the same section as they both mainly deal with Client OS and ways of deploying desktops to end-users. Both VDI and Virtual PC use virtual machines to allow the deployment of standardized desktops. The key difference is that with VDI the virtual machine is deployed to a server and runs as a guest OS on top of Hyper-V. (Thin client) This allows the desktop OS to live in a corporate data center and use a Remote Desktop Protocol to connect the user to their virtual machine. With Virtual PC the virtual machine is deployed to the user’s laptop or desktop and run local. This allows end-users to use a standardized desktop even if they are not connected to a network. Both VDI and Virtual PC allow easy deployment and update of a standard desktop and allow each end-user to have their own dedicated desktop that can be personalized.
Pros:
· A master VM can be deployed to many different end-users.
· You only need to update the master VM and not individual desktops
· VDI OS and data lives in the corporate data center.
· For Virtual PC corporate VM can be locked for better security and control when user is not connected to corporate network.
· Easier to manage (MED-V for Virtual PC on Windows 7)
Cons:
· Not all client applications run in a virtual environment.
· May require new hardware to support MED-V
· VDI (thin client) may utilize more network bandwidth.
ISV Play:
ISVs will need to start testing LOB applications to make sure that they run properly when running in a virtualized Guest OS. For complex LOB applications ISV may be able work with customers around designing standardized virtual machines that will have their application installed on the base VM image.
Enjoy!