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As organizations move IT systems to the cloud, the question arises as to how the user’s cloud-based desktop will function. Will the user access a virtualized instance of a Windows desktop? Or will applications be accessed directly from within a web-browser? Both approaches are feasible and associated with various benefits and drawbacks.
The Windows operating system is by far the most widely used operating system today, second only to the web browser in its universality. Windows-based desktops in the cloud are typically provided via Terminal Server (TS) or Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) methods, which are then presented to remote users via Microsoft’s Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) or Citrix’s ICA protocol, among others. Users and technical support staff are familiar and comfortable with the Windows environment and are able to easily transition to Windows-based desktops in the cloud. Moreover, many widely used Windows-based applications can be integrated with Windows-based desktops in the cloud with relatively low effort and technical risk. Web-enabled applications can be accessed directly by the user’s browser, or by browser sessions running in the virtualized Windows desktop. Windows-based cloud desktops, while easy to understand and use, are subject to a number of limitations and drawbacks: In short, Windows was originally developed to be the “thick” client of a client-server LAN infrastructure and as such is not optimized for remote access in the cloud.
Browser-based desktops in the cloud The web browser is truly a universal interface, available on nearly every device that accesses the internet, including systems that use Windows as their operating system. So the browser becomes the “common denominator” between all devices. It is the browser where enterprise IT and Independent Software Vendors (ISV’s) are increasingly focusing development and delivery of applications and services. Given that the transition to web-based applications is well underway, the browser is positioned to displace Windows as the primary desktop environment for many users. It then becomes natural to ask why one should remotely access a virtualized Windows desktop once one is no longer running a local instance of Windows. It is technically feasible today to present a browser-based desktop that runs in the local browser and provides centralized access to applications and data, in a secure and personalized manner. Such an approach potentially provides universal access to any device with an Internet connection and web browser. It can eliminate desktop management, allowing the device to remain personal while enterprise services and applications remain securely in the data center and accessed via the internet. It controls back-end hardware costs by leveraging the scalability of web technologies. For example, a single processor server with a 32-bit operating system can support over 1,500 concurrent users in this configuration. The cost of a browser-based desktop is typically one-tenth of the cost of a traditional VDI solution. Given the economics and technical feasibility of browser-based desktops, why haven’t they largely displaced Windows-based desktops? The answers may have to do with the inertia of established legacy systems and their ecosystems: In short, the apparent attractiveness (low cost) of the concept of browser-based desktops is the barrier to its adoption. Only the end-users would benefit, and they have neither the resources nor the will to fundamentally reengineer systems that do not provide a competitive advantage but in which they have significant investments sunk. The non-adoption of free Linux on the desktop similarly illustrates this principle. Therefore, it would seem that the notion of browser-based desktops in the cloud could be destined to obscurity – another great idea that won’t work. Or so it might appear. There are three key trends and distinctions that differentiate browser-based desktops from other technically elegant but untenable approaches – 1) the corporate acceptance of cloud-based IT solutions that are diminishing the current IT ecosystems, particularly internal IT support organizations; 2) the explosion of non-traditional client devices such smart phones, which provides financial rewards to vendors that develop browser-based applications. Most of these vendors will likely never develop Windows-based applications; and 3) the financial incentives that public cloud vendors have to reduce the cost in licensing and computing resources of the solutions they provide. In other words, a vibrant, profitable new ecosystem has been born that is poised to grow and displace the established Windows-based legacy ecosystem.
Conclusion We believe that the Windows interface will initially dominate the market for cloud-based desktops, but that it will face increased competition and be eventually displaced by more cost-effective browser-based desktops. Which leads us to the obvious question: how will Microsoft evolve Windows in response? Dempsey Bluevar Position Paper by Dave Cunningham, June 2011
Dempsey Bluevar 3002 Dow Avenue, Suite 108 Tustin, CA 92780 (949) 943-3450 (800)-888-2000 www.bluevar.com
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