Presented by Nutanix

Desktop-as-a-Service (DaaS) is disrupting end user computing and virtual desktop infrastructure, with solutions that run applications and desktops remotely on any device. Learn how it improves user experience and the lives of your IT department when you catch up on this VB Live event.

Access for free on demand right here.

“One of the major advances and one of the major developments in end user computing is around cloud services,” says Ruben Spruijt, senior technologist at Nutanix and former CTO at Frame. “The beauty of cloud services is that functions are getting better on demand, automatically. You can access them from anywhere. If you’re a digital nomad, work is not a place.”

It means you can do your job on any device, any app, any identity, anywhere in the world, if you have a network connection to get work done. For most consumers, who use a wide variety of devices and applications, it’s the new normal.

“It’s the new normal to access applications and data from any device everywhere,” Spruijt says. “And that should include classic — or what some people call legacy, Windows applications. Workers expect to be able to access these apps from anywhere, like you do with web and mobile applications and data, in a secure way.”

Spruijt is excited about end user computing because it’s about caring about the intersection of people and IT.

“It’s about you and me, about getting work done,” he says. “We’re all consumers of IT services, in both the private and public spheres. It’s a very diverse industry with a lot of innovation.”

And there are so many things happening in the space, he says, including virtual reality, augmented reality, security, privacy, management of platforms — not to mention just ‘getting stuff done.”

But too many enterprises and businesses aren’t taking advantage of this services on demand trend for virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) and desktop as a service (DAAS), even with the wider implementation of 4G, and the rapidly approaching advent of worldwide 5G.

“There are many Windows applications today in businesses, in education, in government agencies and local governments, which is why VDI and DaaS are relevant today,” he says. “We still need to deal and cope with Windows applications, because they’re a crucial part of the end user computing space, besides web, SaaS, and mobile applications.”

The goal of VDI and DaaS is to deliver Windows applications and Windows desktops to any device with a 4G, 5G, or fiber optic connection. An extremely fast connection isn’t necessary to get applications and access to data up and running, but as applications are becoming more and more rich and graphics-intensive, improvements in bandwidth and latency are opening up new opportunities, like sensors and IOT.

Companies that want to capture the benefits of the VDI and DaaS landscape need to consider the application landscape, and how it is changing. It’s taking into account not only what applications you use today, and what the requirement are, but what will the application landscape look like in the near future and moving forward. Access, security, management, cost, and user experience are all vital considerations.

“Twenty years ago everything ran on Windows,” Spruijt says. “Now we have Windows, mobile, web, and SaaS applications. The most simple applications are already transformed into mobile or web applications. Extremely complex applications or deeply integrated Windows applications are still there, and they’ll be there for years to come.”

Another advantage of the service world is that you can start small, if you’re interested in investing in a DaaS strategy, and begin with a handful of of users on DaaS and see how things progress. As your investment gains traction and you start to see results, from increased productivity to easier IT management, you can move fast from there.

However, user experience should always be your north star, from what users’ needs are now to what they expect tomorrow, and create a baseline for what a great user experience means right now.

When you’re developing a strategy, it’s also important to consider the on-premises versus public cloud debate, he adds, and there are pros and cons around both. On premises offers predictable, constant workloads, fixed costs, local region, fixed capacity, but require intensive capital expenditure.

Public cloud is a great choice for businesses with variable workloads, because the costs are usage-based. If you have a global workforce and you want to support that workforce with application access in multiple regions globally, the beauty of public cloud is that, for instance, you can easily spin up 300 machines in Sydney, Australia and run whatever kind of Windows application you need around the world.

Remember, however, that cloud is much more than just a computer or a server — it’s an operating model. There are best practices when choosing to go with a cloud vendor, and the traditional “devil’s triangle” proverb to grapple with as well. Good, cheap, or fast — a solution can only be two of the three.

“Do your own reality check, ask the question, ‘What is not so great about your solution? What are the caveats, the downsides, the things that don’t work well today?’ and see how a vendor responds,” he urges. “Challenge vendors, and challenge your colleagues, as a practice, on these kinds of topics. That’s what I would do, both on the strategy level and on the hands-on technology level.”

To learn more about how end-user experience is evolving, a deep dive into the bottom-line benefits of VDI and DaaS, a look at the pros and cons of public vs. private cloud and more, catch up on this VB Live event!

Access here on demand for free.

Key takeaways:

  • Tips and advice for VDI and DaaS success in 2020
  • How DaaS and VDI is evolving, and how to prepare your IT department
  • Pros and cons for Desktop-as-a-Service vs. VDI
  • Best practice for DaaS in public clouds and on-premises

Speaker:

  • Ruben Spruijt, Senior Technologist at Nutanix and former CTO at Frame
  • Stewart Rogers, VentureBeat