Utilizing Terminal Services Summer, 2001 ver. 6.1.3 a d v a n c e d s y s t e m s WinMan Quick Results 12
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TTW WinMan Utilizing Terminal Services Advantages of having WinMan and Terminal Services WinMan and Terminal Services 3
Notice: TTW Incorporated has made every effort to ensure that the information in this document is correct and accurate but reserves the right to make changes without notice. Companies, names, and data used in examples herein are fictitious unless otherwise noted. No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, for any purpose, without the express written permission of TTW Incorporated. Copyright: 2001 TTW Incorporated. All rights reserved. TTW Incorporated acknowledges all trademarks and the rights of the trademarks owned by the companies referred to herein. 4 TTW s WinMan
Contents Introduction... 7 What is Terminal Services... 7 Key Benefits to Utilizing Terminal Services... 7 Central Deployment and Management... 7 Anytime, Anywhere Access... 8 Security... 8 Data Reliability... 9 Speed... 9 Test Run... 10 Total Cost of Ownership... 11 Thin Clients... 11 Introduction... 11 Savings as defined by Wyse... 11 Executive Overview... 13 WinMan and Terminal Services 5
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Introduction Imagine being able to add another WinMan user to the network as simply as plugging in a phone. Or how about giving access to WinMan from anywhere there is an internet connection. Ever dreamed of giving TTW s Support department the ability to perform services whenever necessary without having to turn on and off remote access. Giving users WinMan access through Microsoft s Terminal Services and Wyse s Thin Client machines offers numerous advantages and these were just a couple. This white paper provides an introduction to the advantages of using Terminal Services and WinMan together; including the ease of upgrading, accessing data outside of work, as well as advanced support. Additionally this paper will discuss the thin client machines currently being sold by Wyse. What is Terminal Services The fastest and easiest way to remotely access WinMan is through the use of Microsoft s Terminal Services. Microsoft Terminal Services can deliver independently (ie - to each user), the Win2000 desktop operating system and the necessary Windows applications to any computer running a version of Windows 3.11 or higher and a tcp/ip connection. Terminal Services works by having the server run the application locally and only transmitting the keyboard, mouse and display information to the client. Each user s virtual desktop is independent of any other user and retains all their settings, my document files, etc. Because each session is an independent virtual system, a user can start an application (such as WinMan s mass utilities), exit the terminal services session, go to another computer and rejoin the session as if they never left! This gives the flexibility of being at work, at home, out of town, etc. and still retaining all of the current desktop settings, files, and programs. Key Benefits to Utilizing Terminal Services Microsoft and others have many white papers at their web site regarding key benefits and utilization of Terminal Services. We have looked at these papers and have selected those benefits that are likely to be seen by our clients regarding the usage of WinMan on this platform. Central Deployment and Management A server running Microsoft s latest operating system hosts everything necessary which makes it easy to setup and deploy WinMan (and other applications) to a large number of users. Any changes to user desktop settings, such as a new WinMan icon, can be made centrally with immediate accessibility to all users. System administrators also have access to individual desktops in order to make personal configuration changes that again can be used immediately by the end user. Such configurations may be a special printer for use by WinMan. The important aspect to understand is that the WinMan and Terminal Services 7
system adiministrator no longer needs to physically make themselves present at the user s workstation, but instead can perform these tasks through Terminal Services from any tcp/ip connection! Anytime, Anywhere Access The power of Terminal Services comes from its ability to utilize the tcp/ip protocol. The tcp/ip protocol in its most simplest form is a standard way for computers around the world to communicate with the most common environment being the world wide web. Terminal Services uses this protocol to deliver pictures of the virtual environment to a client machine. The client machine having a tcp/ip connection may be anywhere in the world on the internet or in the same building on the local network. The possibilities of accessing WinMan through Terminal Services is endless. Suppose a company has an off-site warehouse located across town, or out of state, or even out of country. Simply give the warehouse internet access. Once on the internet, the user base at the warehouse can have a Win2000 desktop along with WinMan. They can be supported virtually without having to physically be there. The concept is the same for all your local users as well. Everyone at some time wishes they could access work without being at work. Maybe a sales representative would like to place an order at a client site, a production control manager wanting to take a look at the production schedule over the weekend, or the company controller is on vacation and needs to take a quick look at some of the numbers, or a system administrator wants to run a set of special utilities after the second shift goes home. All these situations and more can be handled simply by utilizing WinMan through Terminal Services and the internet. The end result is that access to WinMan and the company data is as easy as jumping on the internet anywhere at anytime. Perhaps the best use of Terminal Services is by the WinMan Technical Support team. Utilizing Terminal Services allows our support team to easily access your WinMan system at anytime. The convenience of Terminal Services means there is no waiting to turn on remote access. If given administration rights, we can even take control of another Terminal Service user and give them the help they need - right on their desktop! Security Someone, somewhere wants your data. That s why data security needs to be maintained. Terminal Services computing shifts user login, application processing, and data storage from desktops to centralized and secure servers. The desktop becomes a display window instead of operating applications locally. During a session, only mouse clicks, keystrokes, and screen updates travel across the network (or internet). No data is transferred over the network (or internet) to be intercepted. User login is secured using the standard Microsoft security. 8 TTW s WinMan
Data Reliability Most data problems occur when accessing data through degraded hubs, network cards, wiring, etc. or from incorrectly configured operating systems. Degradation in network equipment can happen for many reasons. First would be bandwidth - simply too much data flowing through the currently available pipeline. The fundamental concepts of Ethernet networks is one where everyone is shouting at the same time. Massive database systems, large cad files, internet access - all place a great amount of strain on the amount of bandwidth available. When the strain gets too great, data packets tend to get lost which leads to data corruption. The second source of degradation is the physical device. At some point in time a network card, hub, wire cable, etc. is going to start to fail. It might be a missed packet here or there prior to an all out failure. Once again, the end result of those bad packets is data corruption. Terminal Services eliminates the possibility of data corruption due to networking issues because the data never goes through the network! Terminal Services never sends the actual data across the network, instead it sends screen shots of the virtual operating system. Most of the WinMan screen shots are cached (stored) at the client and only the data field picture is being sent across (thereby reducing total bandwidth). The actual WinMan data simply stays within the file server and never goes over the hubs, cards, wires, etc. The best part is that if the user loses their connection to the server in a Terminal Services situation due to power outages, wire damage, hardware problems, etc.; the virtual session and WinMan keep on running. The next time the user logs on, they will find their desktop in the same state it was prior to having the problem The second most likely cause of corrupted data occurs from incorrectly configured operating systems or a mix of different operating systems. Microsoft is continously modifiying their product. Each release (and service pack) contains slight variations. These slight variations are ok when performing minimal network tasks (such as saving a Word file on the network), but cause data corruption when working with WinMan. Again the use of Terminal Services eliminates this source of data corruption as all users will be using the same version of Windows which has been configured (and then locked) by the system administrator for all users. Speed Combining Microsoft s Terminal Services and File Services on a single server dramatically improves the speed of WinMan as there is no outside network interferance to slow data access and file locking. As user size increases, the amount of processors may be increased on your server as well. This is extremely important to those attempting to reduce their nightly mass utility runs into a tight user schedule. WinMan and Terminal Services 9
In general, it is important to understand when utilizing Terminal Services that the power is in the server. The more server processing power and server memory, the more WinMan clients the server will be able to handle. Actual usage requirements by our clients are going to vary according to their size and the demands that they place on the WinMan system (as well as the usage of other programs such as Word, Excel, and Outlook). The following presentation is simply to be used as a guideline: A 20 user site: Dual Pentium III at 1GHz or higher, 1GB ram memory, 64mb cache controller capable of RAID 5, 10k RPM drives (at least three). A 50 user site: Quad Pentium IV at 1GHz or higher, 2GB ram memory (or greater), 128mb cache controller capable of RAID 5, 15k RPM drives (at least three). Test Run Here at TTW we decided to put Terminal Services to the test. We wanted to test the processing time of a few basic WinMan operations using Terminal Services against running these same operations through the network. The results thoroughly impressed us, here is what happened. Server Specifications: 2 Pentium III 1 Gigahertz processors 2 Gigabytes RAM RAID 5-5 drives - 10,000rpm - 128mb caching controller Terminal Services Test: We loaded WinMan and Superbase onto the server and accessed it via Terminal Services. Running tests from an out of date computer or a state of the art computer will not effect the times using Terminal Services as the processing will be done by the server and not the workstation. The following times is what we came up with: The old Mr. speedy test - 0.72 The yes selection - 159 routines for an average of 9 seconds The no selection - 42 routines for an average of 4 seconds Network Test: We then shared the WinMan program on the server and ran it through the network. The workstation used was a Pentium III 650 Megahertz. All hubs and network cards within the network are 100 meg. Here are the results: 10 TTW s WinMan The old Mr. speedy test - between 2.8 and 3.5 The yes selection - 20 routines for an average of 18 seconds The no selection - 16 routines for an average of 8 seconds
As can be seen the Terminal Services times are half that of the network times. These times can be reached with no need for state of the art equipment (except for the file server). Traditionally, to keep times reasonable throughout the network requires that all workstations must be state of the art and be upgraded regularly. Total Cost of Ownership TCO is a term that many managers utilize to describe the summation of all the accumulated costs of ownership including the intitial price and then subsequent maintenance and disposal costs. Utilization of Terminal Services dramatically cuts the TCO because the company no longer needs to reinvest capital in continuously upgrading user workstations. Instead users retain their old workstations which essentially become shells in which to access the Terminal Server. The investment of capital is spent on a single machine (the server) instead. The maintenance costs are significantly decreased as the system administrator is no longer maintaining a multitude of computers. The end result is that the company simply needs to invest in a good server. The workstations can be just about any old computer as long as it can run a version of Windows 3.11 or higher. The Terminal Services client disk is a Windows application that can be either 16 or 32 bit. That means you can even use that old 386 machine sitting out on the obsolete inventory shelf. Thin Clients Introduction A discussion of thin clients is necessary when discussing Terminal Services. Thin clients are machines that attach to the network that include only a terminal, keyboard, and a mouse. There is no hard drive, cd-rom, floppy drive, etc. The most experienced manufacture of thin client machines is Wyse. These machines do not require any of the standard computer parts which enables them to withstand the harsh environment of the shop floor. TTW has had the opportunity to test one of their machines and we have been completely impressed. System administrators should consider making their next computer purchase a thin client machine. Savings as defined by Wyse Installation: A Terminal Services thin client can be set up in five minutes by a nontechnician, from opening the box to logon. This eliminates the need to pay high priced technicians to come in and install and set up a networked PC. Maintenance: There are benefits of having networked PCs but there are also downsides: the rapid upgrades due to technology, the struggle to maintain data integrity and security throughout the network, the endless chain of user-induced problems and resultant down-time, broken hard drives, floppy drives, fans, and viruses. All these WinMan and Terminal Services 11
problems are obsolete with a Terminal Services thin client. A thin client machine has no moving parts which significantly reduces breakdown. Thin clients have nine times the hardware reliability of a networked PC. Downtime: The resiliency of Terminal Services thin clients has been tested at more than 175,000 hours Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF), compared with only 25,000 hours for the average PC. The thin clients can also withstand the rugged shop floor environments where PCs would fail. They are more useful for at least two-to-three times the useable life of a PC and require less regular maintenance or emergency repair. Energy: A Terminal Services thin client with an integrated 15-inch monitor uses approximately 25 watts of power, whereas a desktop PC with 17-inch monitor uses about 171 watts of power - a savings of 146 watts. Significant savings occur when multiplied by the number of units over time. Savings Summary: Thin clients quickly pay for themselves. Thin clients deliver a return on investment (ROI) of 300-800 percent, or more, every year you use them. Thin clients on average will pay you back their purchase price in savings within two months, and will repeat that savings every two months, for up to five years. Analysts estimate that thin clients reduce your cost of desktop computing by 35-57 percent per year over a typical networked PC. Savings based upon WYSE s Winterm, go to www.wyse.com for more information. 12 TTW s WinMan
Executive Overview Utilization of Microsoft Terminal Services with WinMan offers numerous advantages. Central deployment and management. One computer houses everything and makes it easy to setup and deploy WinMan to a large number of users. Anytime, anywhere access capability. Examples: ~ Ability to simply link an off-site warehouse or distribution center. Nothing complicated necessary. Just an ip address and a connection to the internet. ~ Ability to enter sales orders and inquire from the field. Travelling sales personnel can link their laptop onto the internet and enter in their orders. ~ Gives TTW support desk faster and easier access to your WinMan system allowing for quicker resolutions to problems. Security. User login, application processing, and data storage from desktops to centralized and secure servers. Data Reliability. Eliminates the possibility of data corruption due to networking issues and incorrectly configured operating systems. All users utilize the same Windows operating system and the WinMan data never goes through the network hardware. Speed. Combining Microsoft s Terminal Services and File Services on a single server dramatically improves the speed of WinMan as there is no outside network interferance to slow data access and file locking. Decrease in the total cost of ownership. The price is in the cost of the server and can be upgraded when the needs arise. Ability to use older hardware, yet still run newer operating systems such as Win 2000. The power is in the server - just about any old computer will work as long as it can run Windows 3.11 or higher. Centralize management allows changes to all virtual workstations from one physical location. Thin clients. Machines such as the Wyse Winterm can significantly decrease costs by providing a low cost, reliable, and energy efficient solution for accessing Microsoft s Terminal Services. The important point to understand about Microsoft s Terminal Services is that the power is in the server. The more server processing power and server memory, the more clients your server will be able to handle WinMan and Terminal Services 13
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12 WinMan TTW Incorporated 2138 Owls Cove Lane Reston, VA 20191 www.winman.com Phone: (703) 860-0004 Fax: (703) 860-3104 Email: support@winman.com 16 TTW s WinMan