Cisco and Citrix Demonstrate Value of Converged Infrastructure
Is converged/ integrated IT infrastructure valuable to top IT professionals? Will businesses change their IT infrastructure consumption model?
I addressed the answers to these (and other) questions in a recent ESG Brief, Server Virtualization: Beyond IT-owned Workloads. There has also been plenty of industryspeak on reference architectures, converged infrastructures, and coalitions, but what is the real value?
Let’s use the recent Cisco & Citrix solution as an example. I recently spoke with a VP of Emerging Solutions and her excitement for such a solution centered on:
- A turn-key solution that helps avoid risk and complexity and streamlines the procurement process.
- A single support model that expedites the troubleshooting process and takes the burden off her team.
She also fully understood the value of desktop virtualization and recognized the urgency to extend its value to a much larger user population. Cisco has been challenged with positioning the UCS inside the enterprise that has a well entrenched server footprint from IBM, HP, or Dell. The Cisco & Citrix solution is exactly what’s needed to demonstrate an architecture and management role in a greenfield opportunity. Desktop virtualization is an ideal use case: it requires new IT infrastructure, it is typically run on a completely different set of gear inside the data center, and ESG research clearly shows that desktop virtualization is a top IT priority. The challenge ahead lies with creating a message that resonates with senior IT and business leaders; they are the top advocates of desktop virtualization. Additionally, it looks like Cisco and Citrix have built the CVD (Cisco Validated Design) with NetApp. Now each of the industry leaders has to educate the channel, its partners, and customers on the value of the combination of all three solutions; how it helps drive costs down; how it improves operational efficiency; how it enhances security; and how it clearly differentiates itself from the competition. This is the first example I have seen of an integrated infrastructure that has the potential to resonate with IT professionals, demonstrate the value of Cisco UCS where it is not necessarily going head to head with the incumbent, and create a great opportunity for Citrix to extend its thought leadership position in a market that is about to be set ablaze.
