Today at VMworld® 2012, VMware, Inc. (NYSE: VMW), the global leader in virtualization and cloud infrastructure, previewed the alpha version of the VMware Horizon™ Suite, a new platform that will offer a flexible corporate workspace in the cloud for mobile workers to connect from anywhere using any device. VMware also demonstrated how the combination of VMware View® and Wanova Mirage™ will enable customers to transform the legacy Windows desktop for the cloud era.
“Migration to Windows 7 and 8, bring your own device (BYOD), and the cloud are challenging IT organizations with new complexities and risks,” said Boaz Chalamish, senior vice president and general manager, End-User Computing, VMware. “VMware’s continued investment and innovation in end-user computing will help IT organizations free the desktop, redefine the corporate workspace and embrace a new way of working in the post-PC era.”
Introducing the Horizon Suite: The Platform for the Mobile Workforce
As IT organizations struggle to manage devices, applications, data and users in the post-PC era, they need solutions that will help them evolve from managing devices to managing user experiences across multiple devices. Today, VMware demonstrated the alpha of the VMware Horizon Suite, showcasing how it will help customers deliver the multi-device workspace and give end-users secure access to applications and data from anywhere.
The VMware Horizon Suite will bring together technologies from Project Octopus, Project AppBlast, ThinApp, VMware Horizon Application Manager™ and VMware Horizon Mobile™ into a truly integrated management platform for the mobile workforce. The VMware Horizon Suite will provide a flexible platform that uniquely combines the principles of identity, context and policy to separate personal and business workspaces, enable consistent access to applications and data across any personal device.
Through a central Web management console, the VMware Horizon Suite will allow IT to customize a service catalog for all company data and applications. Horizon Suite will understand a user’s attributes and environment (device, location and connectivity level) and enforce policies across applications, data and desktops. This will allow IT to deliver Windows, Android, iOS, Web and SaaS applications in a single workspace and give end-users self-service access to applications and data from anywhere. Horizon Suite alpha will also allow end-users to securely access and share their data and files from any device.
“The dramatic influx of mobile devices and applications is quickly subverting existing IT policy and management,” said Brett Waldman, Senior Research Analyst at IDC. “Modern solutions will need to have an integrated approach that holistically manages users, applications and devices to satisfy radically changing requirements to be well accepted by today’s IT organizations.”
VMware View and Wanova Mirage: Centralized Desktops for the Mobile Workforce
As workers become increasingly mobile, IT must provide anywhere, anytime access to the traditional Windows desktop.
With the recent acquisition of Wanova, VMware and its partner community can now offer centralized desktop management solutions that address the requirements of IT organizations to help them transform legacy Windows desktops into a service:
- Managing virtual and physical desktops – Hosting desktops in the datacenter using VMware View comes with many benefits including simplified systems and application management, increased security and control, and higher availability and agility. The addition of Wanova Mirage extends the benefits of managing desktops in the cloud by also allowing local system execution on physical desktops and laptops. Mirage clones the images of the endpoints in the datacenter and runs them locally. This gives customers all the benefits of centralized management and recovery while allowing users to work offline and preserve an uncompromised user experience. Together, these two solutions can support enterprises comprised of any combination of task or knowledge workers.
- View “Rapid Desktop” program gains momentum – Today, Cisco, Dell, HP, and Intel join the growing eco-system of OEM, technology and channel partners that are helping to develop and sell VMware View appliances. These easy-to-deploy VDI appliances host between 25 and 500 virtual desktops that can be provisioned quickly, making them ideal for small and midsize businesses (SMBs) and scalable for larger organizations.
- New VMware View solutions – VMware today introduced two new solutions designed to help IT administrators best architect their environment and ensure all components selected work together for quick managed desktop deployment. VMware View Business Process Desktop and Branch Office Desktop have been tested in labs to ensure product interoperability and performance and are supported with reference architectures, tools and services from VMware and VMware technology partners to minimize guesswork around VDI.
“Delivering desktops as a cloud service from the data center using VMware View® makes centralized endpoint management simple and easy,” said Prasad Calyam, research director of networking and virtualization, Ohio Supercomputer Center/OARnet, Ohio State University. “VMware’s expanded desktop capability using central image management for local execution with the acquisition of Wanova Mirage™ will offer another way to support mobile workers in an organization.”
Pricing and Availability
The beta version of Horizon Suite is expected to be available in Q4 2012.
VMware View Business Process Desktop is available immediately and Branch Office Desktop will be available in Q4 2012.
VMware View appliances are available immediately through the Rapid Desktop Program.