Posted by Tom Rose on Tue, Jun 23, 2009 @ 11:30 AM
Gartner just issued a research note explaining how new approaches to persistent personalization will enable enterprises to implement hosted virtual desktops (HVD/VDI) for a much broader population of workers. Unidesk is listed as one of the promising new vendors that will make this possible.
The note - Why, How and When to Personalize Hosted Virtual Desktops - explains how techniques such as pooled images that seek to reduce HVD storage requirements and simplify operating system (OS) management also have the nasty side effect of destroying user-installed apps, data, and changes in desktop settings and preferences whenever the image changes. Which forces IT to either limit VDI rollouts to the relatively small number of structured task workers who don't need personalization, or pay the heavy storage price to create thousands of non-pooled desktops for the larger worker population.
Gartner differentiates between the 2 main types of persistent personalization products that seek to address this problem:
- those based on user profiles
- those that virtualize the entire user work space.
The issue with the first category - often referred to as profile management/scraping products - is they don't address user-installed apps or add-ins/plug-ins on top of IT-delivered apps. As Unidesk CTO Chris Midgley explains in What Does Persistent Desktop Personalization Mean to You, that's not going to cut it for most of today's tech-savvy desktop users.
Gartner includes Unidesk in the second category - newer products that use virtualization technology to isolate the entire user work space, and capture user settings, preferences, data, and locally installed applications for truly persistent, 100% personalization.
While Unidesk Composite Virtualization does more than just persistent personalization for HVD/VDI, we're certainly glad Gartner recognizes us for having an innovative solution in this area.
-Tom Rose
Unidesk Chief Marketing Officer
Posted by Nicole Reineke on Thu, Jun 18, 2009 @ 02:16 PM
Unidesk's value is so clear and compelling, 8 year-old Cooper can explain it in just 60 seconds. Hear straight from the boy genius’s mouth why Unidesk will be the company that finally rids IT of its desktop management woes.
Posted by Nicole Reineke on Tue, Jun 16, 2009 @ 03:47 PM
I recently spoke with the lead desktop architect at a large, public pharmaceutical company. They are hosting 2,000 full-copy virtual desktops on expensive Fibre Channel (FC) storage, and want to expand their desktop virtualization implementation to 10,000+ employees over the next 2 years. Guess what's holding them back?
The 8,000 additional full-copy virtual desktops on expensive FC storage.
InfoStor recently published a deep story on storage-optimized VDI that touches on all of VDI's storage problems, including the physical footprint challenges as well as the I/O boot storm issues. The article reviewed a lot of the solutions available to IT today, including "server-centric" options such as linked clones and profile management tools, and "storage-centric" options such as array-based de-duplication. InfoStor concluded that you can't implement VDI in a storage-efficient way with the existing tools if you require personalization and the ability to frequently send out Gold image updates in a 1-to-many fashion.
InfoStor's conclusion was certainly echoed by the customer. I could hear the pain in their voices as they described why they had to implement full desktops on FC storage for their project, and why linked clones, profile management, array-based de-duplication, application virtualization, or some combination of the above weren't viable:
- Every desktop had to run complex, internally-developed applications that could be customized;
- Every employee needed to generate presentations with the output of the custom apps, and they couldn't always save data to a network share;
- Workers were running graphics-intensive modeling programs that didn't work well with application virtualization and streaming technologies.
They investigated linked clones, but found that personalization was lost whenever the base Windows image changed. Same problem with the de-duplication solutions from the storage array vendors. They looked at third party profile management tools, but while they offered some ability to isolate “personalization," they often missed important settings and data, and didn't at all capture user-installed applications or add-ins.
Unidesk CTO Chris Midgley will soon be posting a series of blogs on how Unidesk solves the VDI storage problems, including both the physical footprint and I/O performance issues. If you don't want wait to learn how Unidesk cuts VDI storage CapEx up to 80% and eliminates the need for de-duplication of Windows images and shared applications, pick a time to see the Unidesk demo, and we'll show you.
-Nicole Reineke
Director of Product Management, Unidesk
@NicoleReineke
Posted by Chris Midgley on Mon, Jun 01, 2009 @ 08:00 AM
When we started Unidesk at the end of 2007, we knew our core invention was unique and would solve a major market need. We also knew that to maximize our opportunity, we needed a world-class CEO. But to attract the best, we first had to build our technology, and validate our vision with customers. So, for the last 18 months, I’ve been both CTO and acting CEO, waiting for the day when we would begin our search. Earlier this year, we decided the time had come.
After meeting with dozens of highly qualified candidates (someday I’ll write a blog on how to use a CEO search to get the best free consulting advice), we were introduced to Don Bulens. Don’s track record speaks for itself, and after spending time with him, we soon realized why he has been so successful throughout his career. Intellect, go-to-market savvy, innovative channel strategies, laser-like focus on customer satisfaction, outstanding team-builder, high character, genuinely nice person. Those were our impressions, and they were confirmed by those who have worked with him.
It also became apparent that his most recent role as CEO of EqualLogic was very relevant to our space. EqualLogic storage is often bundled with Dell servers and VMware virtualization infrastructure as an integrated virtualization solution, so he has great relationships with many of the partners, integrators, and customers who have laid the groundwork for VDI, and who are now starting to implement hosted virtual desktops.
Of course, this means he also has many trusted advisors he can call upon for advice, and Don made us present to a lot of them as part of his due diligence! Fortunately, we passed their tests, and they helped convince Don that Unidesk was the best opportunity for him.
So today, I’m beyond excited that we’re announcing Don as Unidesk’s President and CEO. In today's media release and video, you can hear directly from Don why he decided to join the Unidesk team.
I can now do what I really love – drive our technology vision, spend time with customers and partners, and ensure that our virtual desktop management solutions thrill all. That's what I’m passionate about, why I founded Unidesk in the first place, and why I’m so happy that Don is now at the helm leading our company.
-Chris Midgley
Unidesk Founder and CTO
Follow me on Twitter - @cmidgley
Posted by Tom Rose on Fri, May 22, 2009 @ 04:30 PM
It was great to hear the news from Citrix Synergy that XenClient, Citrix's Type 1 hypervisor being built in partnership with Intel, will be offered free of charge.
Back when the news of the Citrix/Intel relationship and Project Independence (the code name for XenClient) first broke, we agreed with the experts who said embedding the bare-metal client hypervisor in the chip would accelerate mainstream adoption. We were also excited, given Unidesk is building a new class of desktop management software that's designed to leverage server-side and client-side virtualization. But we also recognized it would take a few years for the Type 1s to hit the market, given the dependency on hardware refresh cycles, and the time it will take for PC OEMs to build them into their product lines.
What Citrix just announced at its annual conference improves the picture. By making XenClient free, existing notebooks and PCs can become virtualized as soon as XenClient is available, enabling Unidesk to manage notebooks and PCs in addition to hosted virtual desktops (VDI). This, in turn, will accelerate our ability to make "thick" as easy and inexpensive to manage as "thin," and make enterprise desktop buying decisions purely a question of CapEx ("do I go with the thin client, or pay a little more for that notebook or PC to have local processing and off-line capabilities?").
There's another important angle here. By offering XenClient at no charge (to go along with its earlier announcement of not charging for basic editions of XenServer), Citrix is helping make virtualization infrastructure a commodity.
We hoped this would happen. We believe the path to monetization and the true customer value are “up the stack” in the management of virtual desktops, not in the desktop virtualization infrastructure itself. It’s why our patent-pending desktop management technology assumes the existence of client-side and server-side hypervisors. And it’s why we believe Citrix’s announcement is another important step along the path to desktop management software reinvention.
-Tom Rose
Unidesk Chief Marketing Officer
Posted by Chris Midgley on Wed, May 13, 2009 @ 10:23 AM
Application virtualization is a great example of how desktop management can be radically improved with virtualization technology. It works by isolating a single instance of an installed application into a package and automatically distributing that package to endpoints, often based on provisioning policy. The application is then run inside a protected “bubble” to isolate it from other applications. Imagine never having to worry about application conflicts, or patching thousands of end points! It's easy to see why so many enterprises are looking at application virtualization as their new method of application packaging and delivery.
But while the promise is great, it doesn’t take long before you realize the current solutions make creating a fully virtualized application environment difficult, if not impossible, to achieve. There are 2 main challenges:
- Applications can be too isolated. Isolation is great when an application runs all by itself. But when it needs to integrate with other applications, isolation becomes a problem (see Nicole's humorous holiday take on this subject). Suddenly, that hyperlink in your PowerPoint deck doesn’t start Internet Explorer, or the embedded spreadsheet object doesn’t launch Excel.
- Not all applications can be virtualized. Some types of applications just don’t accept being virtualized very well. For example, applications that require access to all files (such as antivirus scanners and indexers) often break because the "bubbles" don't let them have this access. And programs that have kernel modules (such as quota managers, VPNs and antivirus) often break because isolation is unable to protect kernel level operations.
Both of these problems stem from the same root cause – isolation (bubbles). So while isolation is highly desirable for supporting old or badly behaving applications, it also adds its own challenges. What are enterprises doing to get around this?
In order to get most of your applications successfully virtualized, you need to start with a detailed analysis of your desktop use cases, understand all of the application interactions and integration points that your users depend on, and then build your isolation strategy around these requirements. This is a complex, time-consuming, and error-prone process that has spawned an entire consulting industry. And even the best planned projects still can’t predict what users may try to do in the future ... resulting in frustration and service desk calls.
Why introduce all this complexity? For many enterprises, only a small subset of their applications require the benefits of isolation, like needing to run multiple versions of a JVM, or needing to use an old version of Word to run reports. I visited a bank recently where the CIO said “We are running a few applications that are older than your developers!” Applications like that are clearly candidates for isolation. But that's the point - it's usually only a few.
What about the rest of your applications? Do you really need all the complexity of isolation when what you really want are the other benefits of application virtualization - single point of patch, automated provisioning, and endpoint delivery?
The best answer may be to offer application packaging and delivery separately from isolation. This gives you all the benefits of managing a single instance of the application, patching it once, and automatically distributing it across the enterprise – without the headaches of isolation. Users will be happier because their applications will be fully interactive, without any limits on integration. And since there is no isolation, all application types can be packaged and delivered (such as antivirus applications). You can then continue using your favorite application virtualization solution to selectively "turn on" isolation just for those applications that truly need it.
Lower cost of deployment, lower cost of support, greater application coverage, and happier end users. That's what application packaging and delivery, sans isolation, can do for you. And, no surprise – another great set of capabilities you can expect from Unidesk soon.
-Chris Midgley
Unidesk Founder and CTO
Posted by Tom Rose on Tue, May 05, 2009 @ 03:03 PM
In his recent interview with Leostream CEO Eric Hanselman, Scott Lowe asked Eric to pick the top three challenges that must be addressed for VDI projects to succeed. Eric said you must first win over the end users by making the VDI experience as much like a traditional desktop as possible. He then proceeded to discuss the usual list of features the connection broker vendors are waging war over - user authentication process, screen layouts, display performance, etc.
I think Eric is right, the user experience is the biggest VDI challenge. But I also think the VDI vendors are neglecting the most important aspect of the user experience: personalization. IT tells us this is the biggest pushback they get when rolling out VDI pilots to end users. Here's how their conversation typically goes:
IT: We know you like your PC, but we're going to give you this new desktop that's almost as good. We'll be able to manage it a lot easier, and you'll be able to run the latest and greatest corporate apps sooner. The only real change is you'll have to be on-line to use it.
User: Hmm. My job requires me to be connected most of the time, but I do need to work off-line occasionally. Any other changes I'll notice?
IT: Well, you won't be able to install your own apps or plug-ins. It would cost us too much in data center storage.
User: Take a hike.
No surprise end user rejection is stalling VDI rollouts. Getting users to accept change is hard, even when they stand to benefit. When I worked for the leader in self-service password management, one of our biggest problems was convincing users to reset their own passwords instead of calling the help desk. It wasn't until we started collaborating with the IT Security, Desktop Ops, and Service Management teams to market the obvious benefits - no waiting on hold, no risk of sharing personal authentication info with an unknown call center rep, instant desktop access, faster return to productivity - that end users finally got on board.
Similarly, for VDI to succeed, the experience must be better than the traditional desktop. Imagine if IT's conversation with users went more like this:
IT: We know you like your PC, but we're going to make your desktop even better. We'll be able to manage it a lot easier, and you'll be able to run the latest and greatest corporate apps sooner.
User: Will I notice any changes?
IT: Yes. You'll be able to access your personal desktop from any thin terminal, notebook, or PC in any of our offices around the world, whether you're on-line or off-line. You'll still be able to install any apps or plug-ins you want, but now if you install one that breaks your desktop, we'll be able to fix the problem in minutes, without any data loss. And your data - even the stuff you store on your local C: drive - will be continuously protected.
User: Do I have to wait for production, or can I be in the first test group?
That's our goal here at Unidesk - make the VDI experience better than a traditional desktop so IT and end users becomes allies. Fully addressing the personalization issue is a major requirement in making this happen, and unlocking the full potential of VDI.
-Tom Rose
Unidesk Chief Marketing Officer
Posted by Nicole Reineke on Thu, Apr 30, 2009 @ 06:49 PM
An extended version of this article has been published by Pragmatic Marketing: http://tinyurl.com/qjnnrz
____
I am constantly looking for new ways to ensure we fully understand the market, users, and competitors for the products that we build. It is critical that every piece of information we gather is based on real-world data. This gives us the power to make intelligent, well-informed decisions.
Over the last 5 years, I have been using social media outlets as one method of collecting data. One outlet I use extensively is Twitter.
“Oh no, not another article about Twitter!” I love wagon rides as much as the next guy, but this is a little different, so hold your horses.
"...Twitter is not about # of followers you have, but quality of tweets of those you follow..." -@highrockmedia
I use Twitter as another way to engage and understand the people who matter – You. My Twitter account has become a hybrid of a personal communication tool and advanced RSS feed to “collate” relevant people: the experts, the analysts, and the customers.
By reading your tweets, you are the first to tell me about competitive announcements, bugs, analyst predictions, user problems, and often, how you feel about each of them.
Tweet-on
So, I guess Twatching all of you may make me a bit like Twitter-azzi, but I am having fun while learning a great deal. Because of you, there is an amazing amount of information at our fingertips, and we are really grateful.
Are you an expert or user I haven’t found yet? Tweet me, so I can follow you, too!
Thanks Tweeple!!
-Nicole Reineke, AKA http://twitter.com/NicoleReineke
Posted by Nicole Reineke on Thu, Apr 30, 2009 @ 05:05 PM
If you're a topnotch candidate looking to get in on the ground floor of what is quickly becoming the next great software company, send us your resume . We are looking for sharp, passionate, multi-faceted developers and quality assurance professionals to work in a dynamic, collaborative environment that supports a healthy balance between professional and personal objectives.
You'll be hard-pressed to find another opportunity that matches Unidesk's strong financial backing, A-list investors, proven executive leadership, leading-edge technology, explosive market, and fun, unique, and exciting culture.
Posted by Chris Midgley on Tue, Apr 28, 2009 @ 10:01 AM
I’ve read a number of articles and blogs lately that tout one form of desktop virtualization infrastructure over another. Some say thin terminals running against desktops hosted on virtual server farms (VDI/HVD/CVD) is the most obvious solution. Why would you want the complexity of a desktop on the edge when you can centralize everything?
Others claim that the best solution is to run a desktop within a desktop – to use a “Type 2” hypervisor to host a secure corporate desktop within a less secure personal desktop. This lets me use my home computer at work (the “BYOC”, or Buy Your Own Computer model) even though my personal computer is untrusted.
Yet others say that the best solution is a “Type 1” hypervisor (also called a bare metal hypervisor), giving you the benefits of managing only one desktop operating system and gaining the benefits of a common and manageable infrastructure.
IMHO, they are all correct. There are valid use cases for each of these models, and they really depend on a wide range of factors that are specific to each and every enterprise. For example, how long has it been since your last desktop hardware refresh? If it has been awhile, then likely your PCs/notebooks aren't going to be able to run a Type 2 very well (too much CPU and memory required). Maybe then a Type 1 or VDI is best? Does your company have a green culture? Then maybe you want to go with VDI and thin terminals to reduce your energy footprint. But what about your road warriors? Maybe best is the corporate desktop on a USB stick (using a Type 2 hypervisor), or more likely run a Type 1 on a laptop to reduce the footprint but keep all the manageability.
The real problem to me isn’t which type of hypervisor infrastructure to use. It is instead how to manage the operating system and applications across your entire virtual infrastructure, while retaining all of your employees personalization and productivity. I should be able to have my personal desktop available no matter what desktop virtualization model IT implements. Maybe I need to travel and would like to take my desktop on a USB stick? Or maybe I need to log into a thin terminal at one of my companies “hotel cubes” for a few hours. Maybe I want to work from home inside a secure desktop that runs on top of my personal (unsecured) machine. Or maybe I just want my notebook to be a fully functional, fully personal desktop even when traveling at 35,000 feet and disconnected from the network.
I want it all. And why not? With Unidesk, I will be able to have it all. A desktop that is free from the confines of the physical box, free from the infrastructure that contains it. Let me work when I need to work, and in the most cost effective/green/portable/secure/connected/personal way that meets my individual consumer and business productivity needs.
-Chris Midgley
Unidesk Founder and CTO