Time for a New, Mobile-Cloud Desktop Architecture

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In a Consumer Tech-Dominated Landscape, a Traditional Approach to Desktop and Apps Doesn’t Cut It

We’re in the end days of apps and data that are tied to devices and locations. Users are declaring their

independence from rigid client-server architectures.

That’s primarily because users have become accustomed to communicating and transacting the way they

have in their personal lives, where they can:

• Access the newest and most innovative devices, with an ever-growing variety of choices

• Take advantage of new operating systems and applications the day they are released

• Add, manage, update, and remove applications easily at will

• Access personal information, preferences, files, and data stored in the cloud from any device in their

growing portfolios of devices

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IT Has Become Something for Users to Circumvent

By comparison, the corporate desktop environment

continues to follow a traditional PC lifecycle management

model. Even as users demand the ability to bring their own

devices, the majority of IT organizations have not been able

to match the ease, flexibility, and freedom of the consumer

environment.

.

The result? Users are stuck with a traditional desktop

architecture that prevents them from utilizing the latest

cloud and mobile innovations. Productivity and efficiency

suffer as users struggle through an outdated approach

to computing.

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A Shifting Desktop Landscape

Although the Microsoft Windows PC has dominated the corporate PC

environment for decades, the diversity of the current desktop landscape is

changing irreversibly.

Within the desktop market, Macs have become a popular and even preferred

option, with user preferences (65 percent) driving organizations to support

Macs. Today, more than 45 percent of organizations officially support Macs as

a corporate standard. In addition, Chromebooks continue to climb in many

key markets (see chart). Of course, mobile devices are also carrying some of the

workload that once was the exclusive domain of PCs.

The implication? IT must be flexible. 2013

2.9million

5.2million

14.4million

units

units

units

2014 2017

Source: Gartner

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The traditional desktop environment falls short across multiple key areas:

• Management remains costly and cumbersome

• Architecture remains tightly coupled from the device to the operating system for applications, preferences, identity, and security

• The architecture doesn’t take full advantage of cloud-computing initiatives

• The traditional desktop environment suffers from an outdated user experience

• It fails to support multi-device use models that are increasingly common

An Unsustainable Desktop and App Delivery Model

Source: Pew Research Center America Trends Panel Survey, October 2014, http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/04/01/us-smartphone-use-in-2015/

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Redefining the Idea of an End-User Device

Today, applications and data are increasingly delivered as cloud services,

rather than as distinct assets attached to a specific single device.

Even as users continue to adopt smartphones and tablets, these devices are

acting as part of a portfolio of devices that they use at different times based

upon their preferences and needs of the moment.

That the device is increasingly mobile is a fact (see chart). A recent study

of 2,810 global CIOs conducted by Gartner found that in 2015, 62 percent of

customer-facing IT investments and 48 percent of employee-facing IT

investments will be mobile focused.

That means that now and in the future, IT should increasingly orient its

investments—whether in applications, security, networks, or other components

of its infrastructure—toward mobile models. Applications, and files must move

with users, even as they upgrade, change platforms, or adopt new devices.

90% of American adults own a cell phone

42% of American adults own a tablet computer

64% of American adults own a smartphone

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

Source: Pew Research Center America Trends Panel Survey, October 2014, http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/04/01/us-smartphone-use-in-2015/

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With mobile-cloud architecture, applications, data, key services, and identity can be stored and managed centrally in the cloud, while

delivered and implemented locally at each device the user owns and utilizes.

This architecture:

• Drives a consistent experience across all devices

• Securely stores confidential data in the cloud, and immediately wipes it from devices if necessary for security reasons

• Automatically updates and refreshes applications to reflect the most advanced security protocols

• Allows personal and professional data to reside on the same device without compromising security—of either the user, or the business

• Enables real-time application delivery with fluid and automated infrastructure

• Improves workplace productivity while allowing IT to respond more quickly

• Reduces both cost of storage and capacity required

• Ensures highly available services with limited downtime

Advantages of the Mobile-Cloud Architecture

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Benefits for Both IT and the Business

IT reaps myriad benefits from the mobile-cloud model. It

allows IT to manage all applications, data, and files centrally,

provisioning to users and groups of users via policies and

updating and automating key management functions that

today consume considerable IT resources.

From a business perspective, the mobile-cloud architecture

makes things possible that were never feasible before. This is

creating new models for how industries like manufacturing,

healthcare, or retail can operate and be successful with a

distributed workforce, contractors, and partners.

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Actions to Take

Here are 3 immediate actions to take to leverage the mobile-cloud revolution:

Establish a new, modern desktop

architecture

Invest strategically in BYOD

Manage your mobile environment as a foundation for

innovation

1 2 3

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Establish A New, Modern Desktop

Even with all of the excitement regarding mobile platforms,

smartphones, tablets, and even smart watches, the desktop

form factor will remain a core piece of the business.

However, the new generation of the desktop is “inspired by

mobility” in that it is:

• Device independent

• A disaggregation of the OS, apps, persona

• Managed simply from the cloud

• Paid for using utility pricing

• Much lower TCO

1

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The New Desktop Will Leverage the Cloud-Mobile Combination

This has two primary implications.

First, core services such as identity and personalization along with data and applications will remain in the

cloud, and will be hosted and managed centrally, while delivered locally to users’ portfolios of devices.

Second, by moving considerable processing power to the cloud, the market will push the limits of modern

devices, taking advantage of the power of the cloud to deliver workstation-quality 3D imaging and graphics

to any device. Organizations will be able to leverage lower-cost hardware to perform what was previously

limited to specialized—and very costly—high-end hardware.

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Seventy-five percent of IT organizations already offer some type of BYO device

program, however, this is just the beginning.

• BYO practices are enabling different ownership models, including consumer-owned,

corporate-owned, choose your own, Macs in the enterprise, non-PC form factors,

and more

• BYO practices are also driving a new approach for contract workers, enabling

organizations to create secure, managed workspaces within contractor-owned

devices, with complete access to corporate information, VPN, and secure content,

while remaining completely secure and managed. That environment can also be

deactivated and wiped from the device at the end of the contract period without

loss of confidential information

• Across all of these models, and especially as the volume and variety of devices

continues to expand, security will remain a top priority for all IT organizations

Invest Strategically In BYO2

Source: 74 percent using or adopting BYOD, Teena Hammond, ZDNet, January 5, 2015. http://www.zdnet.com/article/research-74-percent-using-or-adopting-byod/

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A managed mobile environment is the foundation on which a new, more

agile business model can be built.

This model can change the way a business interacts with customers and

partners, and can open up new revenue opportunities or allow it to outpace

competitors.

And over time, higher intelligence will be added to devices that are common

in the workplace and in the home. This broader trend, known as the Internet

of Things, will have a significant impact on the enterprise as data finds itself

to these devices within a security model or infrastructure.

Leverage Your Mobile Environment as a Foundation for Innovation3

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The Ultimate Payoff: Become More Competitive with VMware Horizon

• Use a more flexible architecture to transform

business processes and business operations

• Empower employees, partners

• Connect with and nurture customers

• Get the most return on mobility

• Serve customers, empower employees in new

and innovative ways

Extending the power of virtualization from the data center to devices, VMware Horizon®

delivers virtualized or hosted desktops and applications through a single platform to users.

These desktop and application services—including RDS hosted apps, packaged apps with

VMware ThinApp, SaaS apps, and even virtualized apps from Citrix—can all be accessed from

one unified workspace across devices, locations, media, and connections.

Leveraging closed loop management and optimized for the software-defined data center,

Horizon helps IT control, manage and protect all of the resources want, at the speed they want.

Defined in your cloud, our cloud, or your partner’s cloud for ultimate freedom of choice.

Horizon

Extend the power of desktop and application virtualization

with VMware Horizon.

To dive even deeper, read this free White Paper,

Cost Leadership in End-User Computing: Virtual Desktops, Real Savings