Desktop Virtualization’s Data Center Impact

Don't believe the VDI hype

Desktop virtualization’s impact on the data center is being over-hyped. Anyone who thinks desktop virtualization is only VDI (virtual desktop infrastructure), however, would be correct in saying that its impact is massive. Think about what happens in a VDI implementation in which each employee has a dedicated persistent image. The operating system, applications, user settings, and data that were once stored on a relatively inexpensive endpoint are now consuming high-end, expensive data center gear. Deploy VDI to thousands, or even tens of thousands, and you have something pretty big going on inside your data center.

But I say hold your horses. VMware, with its linked clones, and Citrix, with its provisioning server, have already built software to significantly reduce virtualization’s impact on the data center. For instance, one copy of the operating system can be stored and maintained and leveraged by all. The same holds true for applications. Why maintain a copy for each user? Citrix XenApp, VMware ThinApp, Microsoft App-V can all help here with single copies of applications deployed to many.

So be careful. VDI deployments will have a giant impact, which is why a companywide VDI deployment is rare. Desktop virtualization deployments that incorporate OS streaming, application virtualization, and folder redirection can have great advantages with much less negativity. Sure, you still need new gear and probably the harder piece will be finding the expertise, but get ready–because it is coming fast.