Provisioning Hosted Desktops for Centralized Access, Management, Improved Security, Compliance, and Disaster Recovery

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1 Provisioning Hosted Desktops for Centralized Access, Management, Improved Security, Compliance, and Disaster Recovery Peter Ghostine CTO and Co-Founder

2 Virtual Desktop Infrastructure What it is An emerging desktop management paradigm. Leverage VMware virtualization technology. Delivers increased levels of desktop manageability and security.

3 VDI Benefits Increased levels of manageability and Security Desktop as a service The desktop OS (i.e., Windows XP) and applications are encapsulated inside virtual machines (VM) that are: Centrally managed by the underlying VMware virtual infrastructure residing in the data center. Provisioned within minutes from a predefined library of templates. Upgraded, patched, and backed up without user intervention. Accessed as a service using a presentation layer protocol (i.e., Microsoft RDP)

4 VDI Benefits Strict compliance with corporate security guidelines Fact!!! Companies are decentralizing and outsourcing critical business functions to reduce operational costs and remain competitive OUTSOURCING should NOT necessitate DECENTRALIZATION!

5 VDI Benefits Strict compliance with corporate security guidelines (continued) VDI enables companies to Bring back previously decentralized applications and data into the corporate data center. Centrally control and manage all off-site access to these sensitive applications and data. Extend their corporate network security levels to off-site facilities.

6 VDI Benefits Tight adherence to regulatory compliance requirements Sensitive applications and data are no longer stored on off-site computers. Data integrity is more easily maintained. Regulatory compliance requirements are more easily adhered to. HIPAA Sarbanes-Oxley Gramm-Leach-Bliley

7 VDI Benefits Standard desktop environment A server-based solution that uses standard desktop operating systems (i.e., Windows XP, Linux, etc). A potential alternative to other server-based solutions. Does not require additional (complex) IT training. Applications are installed and executed without modifications. Managed using standard desktop management tools. The hosted OS can be accessed in the form of a full desktop (familiar to end users) or individual published applications.

8 VDI Benefits Total isolation and disaster recovery Each desktop environment is encapsulated inside a separate VM, completely independently of other VMs. If one user s VM crashes due to a faulty OS or application, other VMs remain fully operational. There are no application servers to be rebooted in the event of an anomaly. Virtual machines are hardware-independent; they are image files that can be instantly recovered and redeployed.

9 VDI Benefits Additional benefits Not just for off-shore users and contractors, but for mobile workers and branch office employees, too.

10 Physical Desktop Challenges Difficult to manage PC management is difficult to centralize due to the broadly distributed nature of PC hardware. Users often require access to their desktop environment from anywhere. PC desktop standardization is difficult in the face of hardware discrepancies and the wide variety of brands and models. End users often require customized desktop environments.

11 Physical Desktop Challenges High total cost of ownership Ongoing PC management is costly and labor-intensive. Multiple PC hardware configurations need to be tested and validated prior to deployment. Support costs are further exacerbated by the need to support a geographically dispersed PC infrastructure.

12 Physical Desktop Challenges Data security challenges Backing up and restoring PC-based data in the face of a hardware failure or data loss is a challenging task. When PCs are stolen, so are the data assets stored on them.

13 Physical Desktop Challenges Squandered computing resources PCs are severely under-utilized. PC resource usage is typically around 5 percent. Pooling of PC computing resources to improve utilization and reduce costs is difficult, if not impossible. Mobile workers require additional solutions to satisfy their remote access needs.

14 Desktop Management Solutions

15 Desktop Management Solutions

16 Desktop Management Solutions

17 Provision Virtual Access Suite for VMware

18 What it is A broker-based management platform for VMware Virtual Desktop Infrastructure. A set of last-mile features delivering an enhanced enduser experience.

19 User Experience

20 Broker Anatomy Highly scalable Windows service. Interacts with the VMware VirtualCenter to perform all VM pool management tasks. For high availability, up to three brokers are allowed per virtual infrastructure. Can be installed inside a virtual machine appliance. Responds to client connectivity requests and redirects the client to the appropriate VM.

21 VM pool management tasks Wizard-based VM pool creation allowing the VDI Administrator to specify the following parameters: Number of VMs in the pool. Number of VMs to create at once. Target VMware ESX host or resource pool for creating VMs. Auto-answer file. Date and time to start the VM pool creation process.

22 VM pool management tasks (continued) VM pool deletion VM pool suspension / un-suspension VM pool power-up / power-down VM status reporting: Powered up / down Suspended / Un-suspended Resource utilization

23 VM pool management tasks (continued) VM session status reporting: Logged-on user Logon time Running processes

24 VM pool policies VM Assignment Type: Temporary Permanent

25 VM pool policies (continued) Grant the user special privileges to the VM: Power User Administrator

26 VM pool policies (continued) Allow the user to take and revert to VM snapshot.

27 VM pool policies (continued) Conserve resources by performing one of the following actions when the user logs off: Suspend VM Power down VM

28 VM pool policies (continued) When the VM pool expires, perform the following action: Suspend VMs Power off VMs Delete VMs

29 VM pool policies (continued) Specify allowable access hours (by day and hour):

30 VM policies VM Pool policies may be overridden on a per VM basis. Example:

31 Virtual channel policies Grant access to the following client resources: Drives Printers Handhelds Serial Ports Smart cards Audio

32 Application publishing Full desktops and/or individual applications may be published. Desktops and applications are published to VM pools. Access is granted or denied to applications via ACLs.

33 Access control lists Containers of user accounts, groups, and organizational units. Used to grant or deny access to VM pools and published resources.

34 Resource management and high availability The Virtual Access Suite leverages the resource pooling and high availability foundations of the VMware virtual infrastructure.

35 Fault management If for any reason the user s permanent VM fails to start, the user is temporarily assigned a free VM from the same pool. Should the original VM become available again, the user is redirected to it on subsequent logons.

36 Client connectivity Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) RDP-over-SSL

37 Client device support Windows 9x/Me/2000/XP Windows CE Java client (Q1 2007) Linux-based PXE client (Q1 2007)

38 Additional Features Full-featured Desktops USB PDA Redirection Published Applications Environment Lockdown Seamless Windows Web Interface 4096 x 2048 resolution SSL Connectivity Multi-Monitor Support Remote Password Reset Universal Print Driver

39 Short Demo Movies Launching VDI-Based Published Applications from the Local Desktop Connecting to the Full Desktop of a Hosted VM Launching VDI-Based Published Applications Using AppPortal Launching VDI-Based Published Applications Using the Web Interface

40 Thank you!

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