DATE ISSUED: SEPTEMBER 7, 2006
Virtualization of PC Computing
Blades, Partitioning, and Shared Resources
TABLE OF CONTENTS I. Opening Premise II. Citrix Presentation Server III. VMware IV. HP CCI V. ClearCube VI. IBM Virtualized Host VII. Dell-Ardence VIII. Conclusion PAGE 2 5 6 7 9 10 11 12
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I. Opening Premise – Evolving PC Computing Strategies
One of the most significant changes in this decade is that Information Technology (IT) must align with the demands of business and there must be a link that focuses on developing products and services that are more in keeping with business needs. Companies large and small have come to the realization that every business decision triggers an event in IT, making IT either an enabler or an inhibitor. The good news is that the IT industry is in the midst of a radical restructuring to support this need. Vendors are rapidly evolving strategies that transform IT from being complex, rigid, and unmanageable to being more simplified, manageable, and flexible. The one remaining area that trails the traditional IT space is PC computing -- the powerful but cumbersome environment known as the deskside. For years, IT groups have been testing new ways to consolidate and make PCs more manageable, secure and reliable. There are a number of solutions, including implementing strict guidelines for PC usage, inventory, deployment, security, image management, helpdesk support, license policing, and reporting. But, even with all of this, the cost of managing the PC network continues to skyrocket. IDC, Gartner Dataquest, and others have concluded that 70% of IT spending today is for labor. And of that amount, managing the PC network is more than half of the total. PCs are the most underutilized and difficult to manage IT assets in the enterprise! Why is the PC network so challenging? Unlike data center servers and storage, which are all housed, secured, and managed in a locked-down data center, PCs are proliferated throughout the front office of the business. Every person in every department has their own computing station. Each PC needs its own image, software, security updates, configuration, etc. The list goes on and on. Each PC also has to connect to backend servers, manage mail, and run whatever specific business applications are needed. In addition, users often don’t follow IT’s guidelines/rules and install additional Fig. 1.1 - IT Budget Consumption. Source: IDC, Gartner Dataquest, Alinean software (legal and illegal), listen to music, plug in new hardware devices, etc. All of this has the potential to make the PC unstable. And let’s not forget the challenge of security against email viruses and worms. Lockdown is a great concept, but sometimes it has political ramifications. Departments that carry P&L responsibility carry a lot of power. The people in these departments tend to be power users and don’t always agree to the terms IT desires. The more senior the manager, the more pushback the IT team will get. So, what comes next? Virtualization of PC Resources Virtualization is one of those concepts with many definitions. In fact, the definition in Webster’s dictionary barely touches on what we speak of today as virtualization. The most important definition is that virtualization provides the ability to share resources. Physical devices become logical devices that are addressable from many applications, with the result being that you gain more utilization of the physical devices. Types of PC Virtualization There are three basic models for virtualization in the PC market that will be discussed in this paper: shared application resources, partitioned virtual servers, and blade PC solutions. The good news is that under Microsoft’s new plan for Vista, the client’s Windows Graphical User Interface (GUI) will be dynamically rendered, essentially separating the Windows presentation interface from the underlying operating system. This coincides with the release of Windows Terminal Services and could be part of Microsoft’s push for Web-based, pay-as-you-use applications. When combined with-third party solutions, this will further extend what is possible today. In April 2006, VMware formed a Virtual Desktop Alliance to standardize the virtualized desktop infrastructure. The current
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membership in the alliance appears to include all of the virtualization software, management, and hardware vendors. Conspicuously absent from the alliance is Microsoft, which may have abstained because of competing products and services planned for Longhorn. 1. Shared Application Resources The first big wave of solving the under-utilization problem is to return to the days of shared resources or shared application environments, with the most popular of these being Citrix server. The concept is that companies have more resources available in their servers than they are actually using. By installing a piece of software, along with the Microsoft operating system, it becomes possible to time slice the server, supporting multiple users at the same time. Basically, the application space is virtualized and the hardware is shared. This was the preferred model for years prior to the PC. It was first introduced in the mainframe, and then in the Digital Mini computers of the ‘60s-‘80s. It actually works quite well, and still lives on in UNIX and other multi-user operating systems. However, the PC world didn’t initially adopt a shared resource model. PCs were about the freedom of creativity and personal computing power that did not have to be shared. The typical shared environment was slow to respond to business, while a PC could be used to quickly respond to a need. The challenge over the last two decades has been that data center disciplines have suffered and data and information have become vulnerable. Why Microsoft didn’t initially adopt a shared resource model one can only speculate. But today, Microsoft has recognized the value in this and has made efforts to correct the situation. Whatever the reasons why shared resource or shared application environments were not adopted initially, they have now become popular for data centers in the PC market. The performance and reliability of the platforms, the success of products such as Citrix Presentation Server (discussed in detail later in this paper), and the need to lower the costs of managing PCs have caused this solution to ascend once again as a viable alternative. 2. Partitioned Virtual Servers Another solution that has become popular is partitioning the server into many smaller (virtual) servers. This is similar to the shared resource model, where a piece of software is loaded onto the server prior to loading the Microsoft operation system. Other operating systems, such as Linux, also support this. Partitioning, or virtual resource sharing, was first introduced to the mass market by IBM with its VM operating system for the mainframe. Partitioning enables the data center to logically partition a single system and load either multiple copies of the same operating system or different operating systems, depending on the need. Physical resources can then be shared, or in modern terms, virtualized. This model has become very popular for industry-standard servers, as it allows companies to create virtual instances of Windows or Linux on the same server. The leading provider of this type of virtualization is VMware, although Microsoft also provides similar virtualization capabilities. This model is just beginning to get serious notice in the PC market as a virtual desktop. With this model, each user is assigned a virtual machine that is, in effect, a logical partition on a powerful server. The user’s deskside PC is no longer the computing hardware, nor is it even necessary. This can be a great solution and will mature over the next couple of years for PC computing. The Drawbacks of Shared Resources and Virtual Partitions Both shared resources and virtual partitions have some drawbacks. First, there is the issue of server availability. With one server serving multiple users, if, for any reason, the server becomes unavailable, all users would be offline. Second, it requires a very well configured server, which can be costly. And third, heavy workloads by one user can potentially affect the performance of other users. Most software providers offer solutions for the physical limitations, but that can raise the cost. All in all, the benefits of shared resources and virtual partitions could outweigh the downside because they directly address the utilization of resources and the high cost of managing PCs. 3. Blade PCs Blade PCs are another alternative for virtualizing PC resources. This is probably the simplest model to understand. A blade PC replaces the system unit at the deskside and installs in an enclosure in the data center. Each blade PC is a system unit in a small form factor. Graphics, keyboard, and mouse control are sent over the network to a terminal device called a thin client. The user sees the same PC they did when it was at
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the deskside, only now the system unit is in the data center. It is most often a one-to-one relationship, like the deskside, with each user having his/her own system. The advantages of this are that the user experience is almost identical to a deskside, except it is managed in the data center and it lowers the cost of PC support. Additionally, this model requires the least amount of training for data center mangers. There are two alternatives for this type of solution -- one from HP called CCI and another from ClearCube. These models differ slightly and will be discussed in detail later in this paper. User Experience In each of the above three virtualization models, the user experience is either going to be through a PC, using a remote desktop protocol (RDP) client enabled by Microsoft, or through a thin client. Using Microsoft’s RDP client allows the desktop to access the virtualized server like a terminal. This is beneficial because it keeps the desktop user costs low. However, one of the main reasons to go to a virtualized server is to remove the PC from the frontoffice environment and get it to the data center. So, while RDP will reduce the severity of front-office problems, the problems can still exist. A thin client is a solid-state device that communicates with all three virtualization models through the network. It controls video, sound, the keyboard, and the mouse. It has few if any moving parts and offers a very secure environment. It resembles the terminals of the past, but with modern graphics, mouse, and sound functionality. One of the greatest advantages of using this model is that users can move between thin clients and still retrieve their profile. This is called “roaming” and incorporates Microsoft’s Active Directory services. This will be discussed in more detail later in this document. It is the opinion of Virt2go that the thin client is the wave of the future, no matter which virtualization model makes the most sense for a company. Savings All three virtualization alternatives (shared application resources, partitioned virtual servers, and blade PC solutions) are going to have an upfront cost for setup and configuration in the data center. This means the initial investment in technology, software, and training will likely be more than just staying with the current PC infrastructure. However, all three alternatives can be accessed via any type of client device, including older PCs and thin clients. This could extend the useful life of existing PCs for three to five years and provide an easier transition to the data center, although there will still be maintenance required for those PCs while they are at users’ desks. As PCs are retired, the thin client is the most cost-effective replacement. The biggest savings are going to be in labor costs, support, image deployment, data security, and power requirements. Over a two- to three-year period, these savings will easily make up for the initial deployment costs. In areas such as remote branch management, there will be faster and even greater savings. Reduced travel time and remote management will be the largest components of these savings. Each virtualization vendor has published the estimated savings from implementing their virtualization solution. Of course, these savings will vary depending on each organization’s needs and infrastructure. Simple savings assessments are available for each alternative. Summary Virtualization of PC resources is coming. It has the potential to create huge savings in labor costs and infrastructure management costs by allowing the organization to get more done with fewer resources, as well as increase availability and enhance security. Organizations will need to be progressive in their thinking when planning a virtualized PC environment. There are multiple options for implementation, and a single option or a combination of options may provide the best solution for an organization.
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Vendor Profiles II. Citrix
Citrix Presentation Server The Citrix solution is a shared resource or shared application environment solution. The company recognized the need for a Windows solution in the late ‘80s. With the introduction of its MetaFrame product line, the company started to reshape desktop computing into the more traditional shared resource model. Initially, Microsoft resisted the trend toward sharing Windows and office applications, but eventually came around to the concept by approving Citrix as a strategic ISV. Microsoft and Citrix collaborated on extending Microsoft’s support by offering Windows Terminal Services, while Citrix leveraged and enhanced the solution by adding additional security, accessibility, etc. In April 2005, Citrix dropped the MetaFrame name and evolved the company with a revised strategy for enhancing access, security, and ease of use. The flagship Citrix product is Presentation Server, which is a software solution that loads synchronously with Windows to provide secure access to applications residing on a server. It can be used for local, remote, and mobile users. Applications such as Microsoft’s Office suite, accounting solutions, publishing solutions, etc. will run on Citrix Presentation Server and allow users to access the applications from their current PC or, even better, a thin client. This takes the processing and maintenance problem off of the desktop and moves it to the data center. Citrix also offers premium services, allowing the data center to lock down and secure application access, resulting in improved security and data management. Since the applications run on a server in the data center, the data also resides in the data center, where it can be secured from intruders. The Citrix product line also includes a suite of enhanced products, such as Citrix Access Suite, Firewall, Gateway, etc. All of these could be essential to the business and how it operates; however, these solutions are not reviewed in this paper. Strengths Since Citrix has been in the market since the ‘80s and has had a long-running relationship with Microsoft, it is a very viable solution. The company claims to have 100% penetration in the Fortune 100 and 98% in the Fortune 500. It is a safe bet. With its close working relationship with Microsoft, companies can rest assured the majority of applications written by Microsoft will run well on a Citrix platform Citrix Presentation Server presents companies with the opportunity to consolidate and virtualize PC services to the data center. This will have the benefit of lowered costs for support, maintenance, license management, etc. While Citrix offers a quick snapshot analysis tool of cost savings on its Web site, Virt2go does not suggest that a company use this tool for its decision to buy Citrix. It should only be used as a reference since it is a marketing device intended to give a lower cost result every time. Challenges The biggest challenge for Citrix is application compatibility. During the research for this paper, Virt2go interviewed many IT professionals that absolutely loved the Citrix model, but expressed some disappointment that applications, both homegrown and off-the-shelf, sometimes didn’t run on Presentation Server. They had wanted to deploy all thin clients, but in some areas, were unable to do so and had to leave the PCs in place. This defeated their initial goal of removing the PCs from the front office. One company opted to enhance the Citrix environment with a blade PC solution. Shared resource solutions have the potential negative of all resources depending on a single server. While this problem can be minimized by having other servers acting as failovers, the potential is always present. This is especially true during planned maintenance, when human error provides the most significant potential for failure. Also, with shared resources, one user can affect the performance of the entire server by over-taxing the services. While this can be controlled through security settings, it is often difficult to block users that are determined. To really test an application, just let the users hammer away at it. Another challenge is that the cost of servers will be higher. PCs have become very inexpensive, while servers have continued to be higher in initial costs, memory, disk, etc. To run a Citrix solution, the server has to be well
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equipped with memory, processing power, and disk storage. Adding in the thin client, the total cost can be higher than an individual PC. The biggest savings will be with support, but this must be weighted over time and not at the initial purchase. Additionally, training is going to be critical. Running a shared resource solution requires highly educated data center mangers. The quality of the people in the data center has to be matched with the solution being deployed. This was another area that was raised during our interviews. The cost of training and the quality of people tend to be higher with a shared resource solution than in a traditional PC environment. While Citrix is one of Microsoft’s largest ISVs, it is always vulnerable to moves by the company. Microsoft has been hesitant to adopt a shared model because it potentially takes away from license revenue. There have been numerous articles about how Microsoft is falling behind companies like Google and Yahoo that are providing services via the Web, which work more like a utility than software that is loaded on each system. This could become a weakness for Citrix if Microsoft decides to enhance its current competing solution. Virt2go feels it is inevitable that Microsoft will move in this direction, although this would not affect Citrix for a long time. In the user space, there is the challenge of a general resistance to the consolidation of PCs and the use of thin clients. The concept of thin clients has been around for years and some of the experiences users have had in the past with Citrix and other products are that performance was slow and less than acceptable. Users do not want to give up their PCs and are wary of data center managers’ ambitions to control their environment. This is especially true in the more creative departments such as Sales, Marketing, and Engineering. Depending on the company, political battles could become a stifling factor. Who will win depends on the company and the management team. Summary Citrix is a strong solution for virtualization of the PC infrastructure. It is already installed and operating in data centers globally. It solves a great deal of the problems related to support and maintenance, but comes with some drawbacks, such as compatibility and the cost of people and servers. Virt2go recommends Citrix as a solution that may be best considered in combination with other solutions.
III. VMware
VMware Virtual Desktop As described in the opening premise of this paper, VMware is a virtual partitioning solution. This product was initially introduced in the late ‘90s to allow PC users to logically partition their servers. This is different than PC disk partitioning, which involves splitting up the disk into several physical sections and should not be confused with true virtualization. VMware has become the de facto standard for server virtualization. At the time of VMware’s introduction, the biggest opportunity for partitioning was within the server environment, although customers of VMware have been doing PC virtualization for years. The racks of servers that are often underutilized offered a huge opportunity for the customer to gain better ROI from their investments. Users of VMware are huge proponents of the solution. Every IT manager Virt2go interviewed couldn’t say enough good things about the product. On the PC front, VMware reintroduced its products under the label of “Virtual Desktop Infrastructure” to help facilitate the management of the front office and virtualize the desktop. The company has also introduced products like ACE (Assured Computing Environment), which gives data centers the ability to lock down PCs, secure confidential data, and create a manageable and supportable PC infrastructure. While this is not virtualization, it is a way to lower the costs of PC infrastructures. The Virtual Desktop Infrastructure formalized the virtualized PC desktop for VMware and enabled the server to be partitioned and deliver a true PC desktop environment. It enables multiple PC images to exist within a single server. Like the shared resource model, it utilizes a single server to serve many users. What is dramatically different is the approach. Each user has their own Microsoft operating system running in a virtual partition, which means all of the operations in that partition are dedicated to that user. This is a great model for gaining better utilization of servers, while consolidating the desktop.
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VMware covers the physical layer with a virtual layer, allowing all hardware resources to be abstracted into a virtual view. This allows resources such as the processor, memory, I/O, and disk to be shared, while they appear to be dedicated to the user. A number of the IT managers we spoke with used the term “segregating resources” to describe this functionality. Claims are made that up to eight users per processor core (industry standard microprocessors such as AMD Opteron have two processor cores per chip) can be operating simultaneously, but VMware cautions that the types and quantity of applications running could affect this number. Strengths The virtual desktop offers an almost seamless experience to the user since it appears to them that they have their own desktop. It benefits from the ability to share resources in the data center and offers better manageability and control. VMware is the de facto standard for servers, so customers are already familiar with VMware’s software and support. The company claims VMware server is installed in 99 of the Fortune 100 data centers. VMware Server also offers the customer a more secure environment, better manageability, better license management, and the ability to run most applications without modification. It shares the other virtualization alternatives’ advantage of lowering IT support costs in front-office applications. Additionally, it is said to be easier to manage because of its excellent management systems and simple one-to-one appearance. Challenges VMware appears to have done a great job with the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure. However, like the shared resource solution, the downside of running all resources from a single server is that one user can affect another user’s performance. There is also the need for very powerful servers to run the partitions, as well as large amounts of memory and disk. This can push the price per user above that of a traditional PC. It is not clear how compatible this model is with various applications. Even VMware admits it believes that most applications will run, but not all. So, there is the potential for incompatibility issues. Noticeably missing from much of VMware’s Virtual Desktop Infrastructure and its new Virtual Desktop Alliance is support by Microsoft. It doesn’t appear that Microsoft is all that interested in supporting this movement. Microsoft has competing products and plans for more advanced server virtualization in its next server release. This includes centralized management, rapid provisioning, and integration with hardware manufacturers, which could potentially challenge VMware in its core business. Like most Microsoft solutions, it will take time for the market to adopt the technology, but over time, Microsoft usually wins the battle. However, this should not be a major concern at this time. Summary VMware is an outstanding solution. The company really understands virtualization and resource utilization. It is a well known, proven solution that offers a substantial savings over traditional desktops. Compatibility is strong and the skill sets are already in place to manage a VMware installation. Virt2go recommends VMware to its clients as a viable alternative for virtualizing the PC infrastructure.
IV. HP Blade Computing – Consolidated Client Infrastructure (CCI)
HP Consolidated Client Infrastructure (CCI) The HP CCI blade solution is a full-blown PC system with memory, disk, and I/O. It is housed in a blade chassis that sits in the data center. Power, cooling, and the network switch are provided by the enclosure, which is large enough to support 20 PC blades in a mere 3U form factor in a rack. Each PC blade acts as a fully functional personal computer complete with its own licensed copy of Microsoft Windows XP for Blades. PC blades are based on AMD processors and come standard with memory and a 40GB disk. It is recommended that storage be on either a NAS or SAN device that is also housed in the data center. As with a standard PC, applications are installed on the blade. HP provides management software that assists with provisioning. The blade device communicates with any PC running Microsoft’s Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) or a thin client. The thin client can be HP’s or any vendor conforming to RDP. The thin client communicates via a network or over
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the Internet to access the blade. There are two options for allocating a blade to a user – static or dynamic configuration. The static implementation is the more straightforward of the two options. It offers a one-to-one relationship between a blade and a client, with each blade assigned to a specific client. There is no dynamic allocation of blades in a pool with this option. A static implementation is often used in the early stages of deployment or in circumstances where a user needs a dedicated piece of equipment. The more advanced implementation option is dynamic configuration. In this model, Microsoft’s Active Directory is installed to manage pools of blade PCs. This has some significant advantages, as Active Directory will allocate a blade as needed within a specific group of blades. Dynamic configuration will allow a user to roam to other thin clients and still be able to be function immediately with their standard configuration. This can be a huge benefit to companies that have roaming employees such as salespeople or telecommuters. A dynamic configuration implementation is also fault resilient since Active Directory can very quickly determine if a PC blade has failed and reallocate another one from the pool of resources. HP has invested in its management system to make the PC blade easy to manage and provision. HP offers a Rapid Deployment Pack that automates deployment and provisioning of the blade software. Included in this is a “rip-and-replace” feature that allows new blades to automatically assume the personality of previous blades based on their location within the enclosure. Management tools are common for HP between its blade PCs, thin clients, and other mainstream HP products, such as workstations, servers and storage. HP reports that some customers of blade PCs are using Microsoft’s SMS, but it is not supported. HP is also investigating certification of Radia with CCI. Strengths A PC blade is a similar model to a PC deskside. Its huge benefit over the PC is that the system unit is housed in the data center, enabling provisioning, management and support to occur there. Another benefit is that the time required to add a new user or troubleshoot a problem in a PC blade environment should be significantly shorter than in a PC deskside environment. Additionally, in the dynamic configuration model, the PC infrastructure picks up a new level of availability not common with the deskside. The user experience is nearly identical to users having a PC at their side. The thin client can access the PC blade over the local network or over the Internet. IT managers who have deployed this solution found it to be easy to install and manage with existing staff since it requires the least training of all of the virtual solutions. On a political front, this might be the easiest solution to sell to users since the blade PC is essentially the same as what they have with their deskside PC; it’s just not at their desk. Provisioning new blades is very easy. Pools of blades can be assigned to different departments based on performance, security, or changing population needs. HP management tools enable the data center to lock down the technology available to users based on what they need and the policies that IT implements. Challenges Blade PCs tends to be more expensive than traditional PCs since they require the purchase of the enclosure and the blades and because they are usually targeted for replacing an existing environment. As with the other virtualization solutions, the start-up costs are going to be higher before realizing the support savings. Rolling budgets could become a challenge. Since a blade infrastructure requires a commitment to replacing PCs, it may take time to fully realize all of the benefits. While this is true of all virtualization alternatives, the blade is more visible to management as it is being deployed. While Active Directory is a target of most IT departments, there are still many that have not fully implemented it. This could pose a problem if the dynamic configuration option is chosen. With a cost of about $795, the HP blade is about the same price as a fairly well configured PC, plus the additional cost of the enclosure. HP claims that the average PC could run approximately $1,100 to $1,200 when configured,
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imaged, and deployed, and that a configured blade PC with a thin client can run from $1,500 to $1,600 depending on the thin client chosen. Summary The blade solution is the simplest one-to-one replacement. It is compatible and sanctioned by Microsoft as a preferred method to virtualize the front office. HP has built a complete system that complements the installed base of PCs. Additionally, HP’s experience in this market is well understood. Another advantage of HP is that because it is also a hardware vendor, its offerings include the servers, storage, and most important, the PCs and PC blades. HP has extensive experience with and is very active in innovation in all these areas. No matter which solution or combination of solutions is chosen among the three options, HP is the leading provider for Citrix, VMware, and PC blades. Virt2go recommends HP for both its PC blades as well as its expertise in each of the server virtualization models.
V. ClearCube
ClearCube describes the blade PC as a “total business solution,” which means that everything involving the deskside PC is completely removed from the customer site and replaced with blade hardware. The backend consists of a centralized 3U chassis cage that houses eight (8) Intel-based PC blades. Up to 14 cages can be mounted in a standard 42U rack, for a total of 112 blades. There are two forms of networking available – standard Ethernet and ClearCube proprietary networking. Each networking option uses standard Ethernet cables, but the proprietary option also allows for a Fibre interconnect if desired. For the desktop, ClearCube offers an equivalent to thin clients, which it refers to as “user ports.” The C/Port and Fibre C/Port are used for the proprietary networking option and the I/Port is used for the standard Ethernet option. Each user port has connections for a monitor, mouse, and keyboard. The user port also has two USB ports, a port for audio input, and a port for stereo output. Also available is a Multi-Video eXpander (MVX) that connects to the video port of the C/Port and allows for up to four monitors to be used. This is a valuable feature for applications such as trading floors. ClearCube PC blades are based on Pentium and Xeon processors from Intel. ClearCube claims that by using dedicated mapping and Microsoft Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP), up to four users can be assigned to a single blade. This makes the user density similar to the HP blade, which houses 20 blades versus ClearCube’s 8 blades. ClearCube has invested considerably in the ClearCube Management Suite, which allows for remote management of all aspects of the ClearCube solution. The Control Center is the central management console. It allows the IT Manager to manage blades, view health status, configure alerts, and build and deploy agents. It is graphical in nature and has extensive agents that can be deployed to monitor and take action when certain events occur. The Blade Manager proactively monitors the health of each blade remotely. The Switch Manager allows the IT Manager to switch a user to another blade if a blade goes down. It also allows for blade pooling and enables the IT Manager to take control of a specific blade. Data failover helps back up all user data. All in all, this is a very comprehensive management package. If a user's blade crashes, the system can automatically and transparently swap the session over to a new blade within seconds. ClearCube also offers the R2100 PC blade, which has dual Xeon processors with HyperThreading. These blades are used for workstation applications where the ultimate in power and speed are needed, such as for engineers or artists. Strengths The ClearCube model resembles the more traditional PC deskside model, but involves moving the resources to the data center. ClearCube has taken a slightly different approach than other blade manufacturers, but offers a viable solution. The benefits of using a ClearCube solution are that it virtualizes the PC and provides huge savings in support costs. ClearCube has invested heavily in making its management solution a differentiator.
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The ClearCube C/Port and Fibre C/Port could offer significant performance advantages over standard Ethernet, especially for power user applications. The use of Pentium and Xeon processors in blades could be considered a plus. HP uses AMD processors, which are generally accepted, but there are still a few that prefer Intel. Challenges ClearCube has some impressive management tools, but there is a significant learning curve involved in mastering them. Unlike other alternatives, the management system is not something already familiar to IT managers. It is likely that extensive training will be required. The advantages of a proprietary network option may be offset by the need to have a proprietary network installed within a business. Even though standard cabling is used, it is necessary to manage a separate network for the PC base versus the user ports. Since ClearCube uses Intel processors (both Pentium and Xeon), it gains the benefits of standard Intel, but at the cost of increased power and cooling requirements. AMD has been traditionally more efficient in power usage and cooling. The ClearCube PC blade system could be one of the more expensive virtualization solutions. The average price for a desktop PC blade is $1200, not including the enclosure or the rack. Once the user ports, monitor, mouse, and keyboard are factored in, the cost grows to an average of $2700-3700 per seat. Summary ClearCube has created a strong offering. It has the advantage of being a small, venture-funded company that can move rapidly based on market demands. ClearCube has been successful in many markets, including financial and government, and has earned a strong reputation for a small company. Based on external sources, it appears to be viable into the future. Virt2go recommends consideration of ClearCube as an alternative.
VI. IBM Virtual Hosted Client Infrastructure
The IBM Virtualized Hosted Client Infrastructure is not a product like the other products in this paper, but rather a service. IBM introduced this service in late 2005. It consists of an IBM BladeCenter serving desktop images to either thin clients or PCs. The service is a cooperative venture between IBM, Citrix, and VMware. Citrix Access Suite delivers the desktop capabilities from the back-end server to the client and VMware ESX Server virtualizes (partitions) the individual blade server. The service is a customized solution. All of the computing takes place on the blade servers, so only graphical data, keyboard information, and sound are transmitted to the desktop. Like other alternatives, the desktop can be a PC running RDP or a thin client. A standard Ethernet network is used for the Virtualized Hosted Client Infrastructure. IBM currently claims that up to 12-15 users can use a single blade based on single processor core. As with other alternatives, the actual number is highly dependent on each user’s workload and utilization. The IBM solution has many similarities to any other VMware and/or Citrix solution, validating that each solution has a solid architectural underpinning. Strengths The IBM solution uses industry-recognized software and IBM services to build the solution. As discussed earlier in this paper, VMware and Citrix are solid solutions. IBM can provide customers the same ability as the other solutions to reuse PCs or thin clients. IBM servers and blades are tier-one products, so from a hardware standpoint, IBM is solid choice. Additionally, IBM has a history in virtualization with its mainframe and now with its industry-standard servers. Overall, IBM is able to provide a solid solution.
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Challenges The IBM Virtualized Hosted Client Infrastructure is really just the bundling of other products on IBM servers. IBM is basically out of the front-office business after selling the PC division to Lenovo. This is probably why this offering is a service rather than a product package. Running VMware and Citrix together could potentially have issues. These are two products that both attempt to share the hardware. The advantage might be better utilization of the hardware, but the wild card of running two solutions as well as the applications could become challenging. Since IBM did not design this product, it was forced to use many of the management tools supplied by VMware and Citrix. These tools, although excellent as point products, are likely minimally integrated. Essentially, they are a collection of individual products. The products won’t cause problems and crash when used together, but they are not integrated, which means training could become complex. Every server has to be very well configured to support this model. Server memory and disk requirements could add up, making this an expensive solution. People who have tried Citrix running in VMware claim that the screen refresh rate is slower than expected. This has not been a serious problem, but it does remind users that the IBM solution is not as transparent as a PC on the desktop. Licensing could also become a difficult thing to manage. Each virtual server requires a license of either Citrix and/or Windows. Then, Citrix needs a license for Windows applications. It can become confusing and difficult to manage. Summary In this area, IBM has very little advantage over any other vendor. It is simply repackaging other solutions. Without a focus on the front office, this solution will likely be a lower priority for IBM. However, IBM is solidly in the server business and this could potentially sell servers. Virt2go recommends IBM for its servers, but cannot recommend this solution over other options because it has little to no differentiation.
VII. Dell–Ardence (Citrix & VMware)
Dell’s strategy is similar to other hardware vendors in that it partners with VMware and Citrix for virtualizing the data center and the desktop. This section will focus on the Dell–Ardence alliance. Dell has an alliance with Ardence Software for providing a streaming desktop environment. Ardence streams the operating system image and applications over the network from a central repository on the server. There is no local disk with an operating system on it. The image on the server is a “golden image” because it is defined/set by IT and cannot be changed by the end user. Essentially, this solution comprises a diskless PC that boots from a server. The operating system image is loaded each time the PC is started. If a PC crashes or becomes infected with a virus, a new, clean image can be streamed to the PC, eliminating previous problems. The advantage for Ardence is that this is an ‘all-software solution’ that allows the customer to maintain their existing desktop PCs and back-end servers. Essentially, Ardence is a virtual disk over LAN/WAN. This solution can plug directly into any existing desktop environment. Customers remove the disk drives from the existing PCs and plug the PCs into the network. Ardence's auto-discovery capability automatically discovers the PCs and begins streaming the golden image. Because these PCs have no disk drives, they have fewer moving parts to fail. They also do not need individual operating system upgrades on a periodic schedule. These two features can potentially help to extend the useful life of a PC by an average of two years.
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Strengths The Dell-Ardence solution allows the customer to maintain the PC desktop in the front office, but removes much of the one-to-one maintenance necessary to manage multiple copies of Windows at each station. The golden image on the server can easily be upgraded or patched and the PCs immediately gain the advantage of the update. This solution is lower in cost to implement due to the absence of disruption to the PC population and migration required for other options. Plus, customers gain the advantage of maintaining a single operating system image in the data center versus distributing images throughout the network. Ardence claims 100% compatibility. And since it runs on any PC, not just Dell, it can be deployed to any machine. This works for Dell because it keeps PCs on the desktop and big servers in the back room. Challenges Dell doesn’t appear to support this product; it is a recommended partner solution. Additionally, this is not really virtualizing the front office, at least not in terms of the definition described earlier in this paper. It is a diskless PC solution, which has been tried over the years without huge success. It is a step in the right direction, but still leaves many of the PC vulnerabilities at the desktop. This solution will result in significant overhead. Because so much data is being streamed to multiple desktops, it is safe to assume the networks must have a high bandwidth capability. Ardence suggests that this is not the case, but Gigabit Ethernet is preferred. Many companies who implement Ardence could find their existing network infrastructures are inadequate, and could require a large-scale and expensive network upgrade to provide acceptable performance. This could overshadow the advantages of the solution. Because there is no longer any local disk storage, many desktops could require a memory upgrade in order to function properly. Otherwise, even more data is traversing over the network to a virtual swap disk on the server. Most customers who implement Ardence will do so using existing desktop PCs. In most cases, the majority of these PCs will be older hardware that is rapidly approaching end of life. These PCs will require a much higher level of support than the new solid-state thin clients. Desktop support costs may exceed the cost of new thin clients within a few years. Summary This is a band-aid solution for virtualization. It could potentially work well at first, but over time, it is not going to solve the greater problem. The goal is removing the PC from the front office and replacing it. Dell likes solutions like these because it saves the desktop and grows the servers. In 2006, Dell has for the first time seen a slowdown in PC sales based on saturation and the movement toward virtualizing the front office. So, Dell has covered its flank by also offering VMware and Citrix with thin clients. Virt2go does not recommend this solution for virtualization. It is a diskless PC, and while it does solve some of the problems of local disks, it does not move the PC out of the front office. Companies that absolutely need Windows running on a local system would be better off with a thin client with embedded Windows XP so that the operating system does not have to be loaded remotely.
VIII. Conclusion
This paper has covered several ways to virtualize the front office, with at least four different solution choices. Virt2go’s advice is for companies to start the process and evaluate the alternatives based on their ability to solve real business needs. It is time that the PC find its place in the data center, not proliferated around the workplace. As far as which model is best, there are really only two choices -- share a server using either shared resources or virtual partitions, or consolidate the system units into a blade PC structure. Each choice will have pros and cons, but Virt2go believes that the simplest and most compatible solution would likely be the blade PC. It is also the one that is most supported by Microsoft for desktop solutions. As far as which vendor is best to help with this process, VMware and Citrix partner with everyone. HP is the only major vendor to supply a blade, plus it has a huge base of Citrix and VMware installations, as well as a full-blown
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PC business. Dell has a very strong offering in the PC base, but doesn’t seem to really endorse the virtualized model with much vigor. Dell’s solutions keep the PC on the desktop, which is its business. IBM is out of the PC business. It has made virtualization of the front office a service and doesn’t offer any unique differentiation in this area. With IBM, the choices are limited. ClearCube has a nice product, but lacks coverage in the virtualized server model. We didn’t discuss Sun in this paper based on our focus on the Microsoft desktop and applications, but its virtualized front office is based on its own thin client, which is dependent on Sun software and Solaris. Below are a few metrics that may help companies in the process of deciding which vendor is the right choice: • • • • • • • Does the vendor have a complete vision/message for front-office solutions? Does the vendor have a history of providing solid technology solutions? Does the vendor have deep experience in the company’s specific industry, working with its type of business model? Does the vendor offer a reference base to review its successes and how it will affect the company’s decision? Does the vendor have a history of both making and delivering on promises to customers? Does the vendor have a solid partner base to leverage? Can the vendor be leveraged to accomplish the following: o Assess the solution’s capabilities to help the company decide on the right architecture? o Lease and finance the solution? o Migrate the user base from front-office PCs to data center-based, virtualized solutions? o Raise user productivity through training and re-thinking the process? o Track and measure ROI in a timely manner? o Mitigate any risk of failure?
In Closing Our closing thought begins with a look at the strategic value of virtualizing the front office. This is the consolidation and simplification of the PC infrastructure. It has huge potential to fix an enormous number of the problems facing companies today. Over the next few years, businesses are going to be faced with new challenges in security, maintenance, upgrades, etc., which are going to become more difficult to manage every day. Every time Microsoft fixes a potential threat, a new one arises. The Securities and Exchange Commission is on a hunt for companies that don’t comply with its latest standards, and PCs are a huge threat. Legal firms are looking for opportunities to create litigation around loss of data or worse, personal information that has been stolen. The biggest benefits of a virtualized front office are security, data center disciplines, management, and cost savings in labor resources. It just makes sense and the solutions are available to make it work. Virt2go’s opinion is that HP or its partners have the most complete vision for the front office and should be evaluated by any company that is considering ways to a) seamlessly transform the front office and the underlying PC infrastructure and b) remove the guesswork from the process of making a technology-aware business decision.
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Definitions
Operating System: The main software that controls a computer’s processing, memory, disk, etc. It is the interface to application-specific software. Windows, Linux, MacOS, and UNIX are examples of operating systems. Front Office: The front office includes operational departments such as Finance, Sales, Marketing, and Distribution. Front office IT includes PCs, thin clients, and printing devices.
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