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Virtual Desktops for the EnterpriseSuccessful Strategies to Guide Project Planning and Decision-Making Using AdminStudio Virtual Desktop Assessment

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Virtual Desktops for the EnterpriseSuccessful Strategies to Guide Project Planning and Decision-Making Using AdminStudio Virtual Desktop Assessment

Virtual Desktops for the EnterpriseThe enterprise desktop has evolved from a singular concept of hardware, software, and operat ing system, into a comprehensive solut ion of technologies. Today’s users require a flexible work environment wherever they are, on any device, and with the same personalized and consistent experience they are used to on a tradit ional desktop. This increased demand for desktop virtualizat ion originated from the consumerizat ion of IT, addit ional security and regulatory compliance requirements, blending of work lifestyles, and an increased scrut iny of IT spending. Based on these needs, software and hardware companies responded by creat ing new technologies and merging them with exist ing technologies to develop virtual desktops available to users wherever they need them and on any device while maintaining security, manageability, and cost-effect iveness.

The desktop of today is a combination of tradit ional and virtual desktops. In this new model, the desktop is separated into individual layers (operat ing system, applicat ions, and data), transforming these layers into resources that can be combined to meet the needs of users, wherever they choose to work and on whatever device they are using. Virtual desktop solut ions incorporate a combination of server-hosted, session-hosted, and client-hosted desktops, all with applicat ion virtualizat ion, user data, and sett ings management.

These solut ions require software, hardware, and resource t ime to build and maintain, all of which have associated costs. At the same t ime, organizations are reducing their spending, which means virtual desktop implementat ion must be done correct ly the first t ime. Companies experience challenges deploying virtual desktop solut ions due to a variety of factors including insufficient knowledge required for deploying the combination of technologies, lack of internal experience and data support ing planning and implementat ion, and limited industry guidance across the support ing technologies.

Beginning a Successful Virtual Desktop Solut ionSuccessful virtual desktop projects begin by ident ifying which technologies should be ut ilized for each category of user and mapping their required desktop features. The cost difference between implementing 1000 VDI desktops versus Session-based desktops is quite large. However, implementing Session-based desktops that do not support users’ needs, although init ially less cost ly, will potent ially reduce user product ivity, and present a poor user experience when targeted at the wrong group of users. Current inventory tools are built around asset compliance and do not typically record the data needed to decide which technologies represent the best long-term strategy. In order to make informed planning decisions, IT needs usage and consumption data of targeted desktop resources and features analyzed into consumable reports.

Since virtual desktops are required to support businesses today, companies are striving for successful deployments. However, companies are also struggling to understand what defines a successful deployment. Successful virtual desktop solut ions take into account users, desktop management, and applicat ions; the primary factors that have a high impact on solut ion development. Users want a rich computing environment available anywhere they are, through a wide range of devices, without compromise. Virtualizat ion has great ly improved the manageability of desktops but has not eliminated management requirements. Applicat ions enable user product ivity, and applicat ion virtualizat ion can be ut ilized to improve flexibility and reduce delivery complexity and costs in a virtual desktop solut ion.

UsersA typical user expects any upgrades or new technology to maintain the performance level of their previous desktop incarnation. An extremely manageable virtual desktop may be beneficial to IT, but if the upgrades cause markedly slower applicat ion start t imes, they will not be well received by users. However, most companies do not have data

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detailing their users’ current expectat ions. Without data for comparison, IT may unknowingly implement a solut ion result ing in low levels of user sat isfact ion and product ivity. Poor user experiences and a lack of understanding of the before and after states are two of the primary reasons why past implementat ions of VDI and virtualizat ion have failed.

On the other hand, a solut ion may provide users with the same or better performance than previous desktop solut ions but may prove out of budget or out of scope of the current resources for management.

ManagementOne of the primary reasons organizations look toward virtual desktops is the perceived reduct ion of management costs. Although cost reduct ion is a benefit, it only occurs with proper virtual desktop implementat ion. Moving the desktops from the endpoints to the datacenter centralizes management efforts with a reduct ion in desktop management, but at the same t ime, it increases management needs with the addit ion of infrastructure. The current technologies for virtual desktops provide benefits for managing the desktop in a server infrastructure, but st ill require combination with tradit ional desktop management solut ions.

Applicat ionsApplicat ions are the core drivers of user product ivity. Improving the management lifecycle of applicat ions has a posit ive impact on product ivity whether ut ilizing tradit ional or virtual desktops. Virtual applicat ions provide many benefits throughout the lifecycle, including packaging, delivery, support, compatibility, and termination. Separat ing applicat ions from the desktop with applicat ion virtualizat ion enables a more flexible and supportable delivery model for both tradit ional and virtual desktops. Virtual applicat ions enable flexible delivery, as applicat ions are not installed on the desktop (virtual or tradit ional) which reduces the deployment efforts and overall support costs. Realizing benefits from applicat ion virtualizat ion technologies requires packaging the applicat ions into the new format. Current ly, companies are invested heavily in their exist ing packaging processes, which may range from manual installat ion, script ing, or full MSI deployment. In order to package applicat ions into the new format, the current applicat ion catalog must be inventoried and rat ionalized. Rat ionalizing the applicat ion catalog will reduce the number of applicat ions requiring conversion into virtual formats. Next comes convert ing the applicat ions from the current format into an applicat ion virtualizat ion format.

The result of applicat ion virtualizat ion for virtual desktops is a resource delivered to, but not installed on, any type of desktop (tradit ional, session, or VDI) from one common package. Applicat ion virtualizat ion enables the packaging team to create a single package across all endpoints from one process while providing a reduct ion in support costs associated with applicat ion conflicts due to the isolat ion

in applicat ion virtualizat ion. During the planning process of virtual desktops, applicat ion virtualizat ion should be considered as a solut ion for applicat ion management in the transformed desktop.

Virtual Desktop AssessmentAssessing an organization’s current environment and providing guidance in planning and implementing virtual desktops is crit ical to choosing the correct technologies that will shape the desktop in the future. Current ly, most companies work with individual vendors to try out their specific piece(s) of the virtual desktop stack, which requires resource t ime to evaluate each technology and then combine the results to meet the organization’s specific needs and processes with limited or no guidance.

Flexera Software® created a complete, vendor-agnost ic assessment tool called AdminStudio® Virtual Desktop Assessment that enables administrators to capture the data required to make decisions when select ing virtual desktop technologies. Flexera Software has a deep desktop history with their solut ions for applicat ion readiness, including MSI and applicat ion virtualizat ion packaging, self-service software delivery with App Portal, test ing and compliance with Workflow Manager, as well as software licensing, entit lement management, and delivery of applicat ions. Flexera Software’s desktop knowledge translates to advantages for organizations from business decision makers to IT administrators understanding the operating system, application usage, and user consumption critical for making decisions prior to capital expenditures and resource allocation.

Features of AdminStudio Virtual Desktop AssessmentAdminStudio Virtual Desktop Assessment enables organizations to make informed decisions when planning a virtual desktop solut ion strategy, whether the strategy includes Microsoft®, VMware®, Citrix®, Symantec™, or Quest®, by capturing and analyzing crit ical data into act ionable reports suited for each part of the project. The results are a well-designed infrastructure that will ensure high-levels of user sat isfact ion while minimizing management efforts and overall costs.

Capture Virtual Desktop ReadinessVirtual Desktop Assessment captures an accurate and comprehensive picture of virtual desktop readiness by collect ing inventory that includes hardware resources (CPU, RAM, storage, disk I/O, graphics, IOPs, and externally attached devices) used by each applicat ion and the usage profile of each applicat ion, including user count, load t ime, and total use t ime. Administrators can tailor Virtual Desktop Assessment by specifying which computers, users, and applicat ions to assess, from the ent ire company as a whole, or a subset of targeted virtual desktop candidates. They can specify the t imeline, from a short t ime window to track peak usage, to a longer t imeframe to capture trending information, and send the data collected to a central locat ion for analysis and report ing that captures important usage information for the organization.

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The data capture is performed by a lightweight agent on the selected desktops targeted by the Profile Collector. The agent runs completely in the background, ut ilizing minimal resources and unnoticed by users during the monitoring process. The agent sends data to the Virtual Desktop Assessment Manager, which is available as a virtual appliance for most hypervisors, or it can be installed locally. Administrators can tailor the assessment for their environment, specifying not only the “what” — that is, which computers, users and applicat ions to assess —

but also the “when.” They can specify a sample that accurately represents the environment or they can monitor all computers, users and applicat ions. Administrators can specify the t imeframe, which typically runs from two weeks to 30 days, and can even configure the agent to uninstall after the monitoring period, eliminating the manual effort of removing agents. The results can be exported and reports are available from a high-level view, mid-level analysis model, and low-level granular view.

Figure 1: Assessment Dashboard

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Perform analysisAfter the data is collected, Virtual Desktop Assessment analyzes and reports inventory of computers including attached devices and applicat ion usage (count, load t ime, and total use), as well as required services and drivers for each applicat ion. Flexera Software Virtual Desktop Assessment creates a profile for each user/computer. The profile provides easy to use information for each profile’s virtualizat ion suitability by using simple color codes, from green (good candidate), to yellow (fair candidate), to red (poor candidate). The suitability rat ings are based on factors ranging from consumption of memory, storage and other resources to performance requirements and infrastructure limitat ions, and allow for custom weight ing for specific needs of the organization or business units.

The Virtual Desktop Assessment analysis provides insight into the effort required to migrate specific users based on the complexity of their desktop environment (specific hardware requirements) and maps the ident ified categories of user/desktop with the best-fit virtual desktop technologies. Virtual Desktop Assessment analysis also provides data on infrastructure capacity (aggregated CPU t ime, RAM requirements, storage volume and I/O load) enabling right-sized hardware purchases to reduce company spending for virtual desktops.

The Virtual Desktop Assessment analysis enables IT to select which technologies fit (e.g. XenDesktop™ vs XenApp™) and to perform capacity planning, which ensures right-sized spending on the appropriate support ing technologies, both hardware and software. IT can also accurately est imate the resources necessary for areas that require more attent ion, from pilot to product ion. Performing a one-t ime analysis that ident ifies specific technologies across virtual desktops eliminating running mult iple Proof-of-Concepts or test ing that requires resource t ime and dedicated hardware to support. Companies need an understanding of what specific solut ions will cost prior to making hardware and software purchases for test ing, pilot programs, and product ion, and before providing training on each technology.

Combining Flexera Software’s AdminStudio Virtual Desktop Assessment and AdminStudio Virtualizat ion Pack enables organizations to evaluate needs and automate the conversion of applicat ions to virtual applicat ions. AdminStudio Virtualizat ion Pack provides the path to applicat ion readiness by providing packages in all formats (MSI, App-V, ThinApp™, XenApp) from one workflow, with consistent cost-effect ive results for the targeted Virtual Desktop solut ion, regardless of vendor or endpoint.

Report ingVirtual Desktop Assessment offers both out-of-the-box and custom report ing with high, medium, and low-level reports targeted at specific audiences including business decision makers, technical decision makers, and IT Administrators. Administrators and other users can select the most relevant reports and run them on an ad hoc or scheduled basis. IT can create custom reports from scratch or tailor one of the many built-in reports. The solut ion provides an overall suitability assessment, ranking computers and users into low, medium, and high complexity groups based on usage patterns and environmental condit ions. The ranking is calculated by taking an average of key metrics captured by Virtual Desktop Assessment. The weight ings can be adjusted to align the results more closely with your environment.

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The suitability assessment helps IT determine which users or user groups to migrate first — for example, an administrator may choose to migrate the best candidates first to gain experience with virtualizat ion, while minimizing costs and user disrupt ion.

High-level Report ingHigh-level reports provide summary information for business decision makers to gain insight into the scope of a virtualizat ion project and give them a quick view of the

technology problems that need to be solved. Summary reports are an excellent start ing point for understanding the current desktop environment and laying out the details of a virtualizat ion strategy. Filtering enables IT to tailor reports based on a variety of attributes to gain richer insight into the data. High-level reports help IT discover desktops, applicat ions, and users with high resource requirements. This information assists with capacity planning for virtual desktops by providing an aggregated total of all computers, users, and resources required for a virtualizat ion project.

Number of machines: 27 Number of users: 22 Total CPU Allocated: 183.5 GHz

Total Memory Allocated: 160.3 GB

Total Disk Allocated: 10,513.8 GB

Peak Average CPU Used: 30.9 GHz

Peak Average Memory Used: 103.1 GB

Peak Average Disk Used: 6,015.7 GB

Figure 3: Summary Report

Figure 2: Virtual Profile Weight ing

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The Machine Age report provides information on which users might need new computers or upgrades prior to virtualizat ion. This can impact the number of machines virtualized, as keeping a machine in service for a user may require moving their workload into a virtualized desktop, or facing the consequences of upgrades of the current desktop hardware. Addit ional reports that have an impact on the virtualizat ion project include: Operat ing system, System CPU Load (%), Memory Used (MB), Disk Used (GB), Graphics Intensity, User CPU Load (%), Network Latency (ms), and Disk IOPs. The data provided in these reports allows the business to understand their virtualizat ion needs from core components, beginning capacity planning by understanding the work load that will be required to move from a tradit ional desktop to a virtual desktop solut ion.

Analysis Models (Mid-level Report ing)Mid-level reports provide the next level of detail so that IT managers, architects, and others can gain addit ional insight into the data collected by Virtual Desktop Assessment. Filtering enables IT personnel to analyze data in a variety of ways, creat ing a better understanding of virtualizat ion suitability and complexity. The mid-level report ing presents data that ident ifies specific computers and groups of users that are more and less suitable for virtualizat ion. Based on the sett ings for the Virtual Profile analysis administrators can use the Virtual Profile Scatter Plot showing groups of computers that are a better or worse fit based on specific criteria defined in the Virtual Profile.

Figure 4: Virtual Scatter Plot (CPU and Memory versus IO)

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Next Steps:For more information, visit www.flexerasoftware.com/vda or contact a Flexera Software representat ive.

Free Trial:An AdminStudio Virtual Desktop Assessment free trial is available at www.flexerasoftware.com/vda-trial or contact a Flexera Software representat ive.

The mid-level reports take the data past the totals and present information grouped for specific users, computers, and resource requirements, enabling select ion of the best technology. This enables administrators to choose between the list of technologies that are a better fit while maintaining the user experience, and management overhead. Taking the conceptual capacity planning from the high-level reports and mapping it to specific technologies takes the next step towards delivering a virtual desktop solut ion.

Detailed (Low-level Report ing)Detailed reports provide granular data for pinpoint ing data that finalizes capacity planning. This includes ident ifying specific applicat ions that cause higher resource consumption, current applicat ion footprints on targeted devices, and specific requirements for virtual desktop solut ions. This data is designed to expose limit ing factors of specific devices and user types. Companies can take the applicat ion inventory data and rat ionalize to ensure that they are only supplying applicat ions to the users that use them. With this addit ional level of detail, administrators can cross-reference the data with usage and provide only the applicat ions that are consumed frequent ly in a VDI solut ion, and provide access to infrequent applicat ion via Session based solut ions.

Cross-Platform SupportAdminStudio Virtual Desktop Assessment supports many platforms, providing analysis for hypervisors from VMware, Citrix, Microsoft Windows® operat ing systems for physical and virtual desktops, virtual desktop technologies from VMware, Citrix, Symantec and Quest, as well as applicat ion virtualizat ion technologies from VMware, Citrix, and Microsoft.

Removing the vendor-specific analysis enables IT departments to run a single assessment where resource t ime is allocated to a single project that provides data to select technologies based on management effort, migrat ion efforts, capacity planning, while ensuring that the user experience is at levels that meet or exceed expectat ions.

ConclusionVirtual Desktop strategy has changed from a discussion to an act ionable project. Organizations that are planning a successful Virtual Desktop strategy can ut ilize AdminStudio Virtual Desktop Assessment to capture and analyze the data required to make key decisions. Virtual Desktop Assessment results empower the IT, finance, and legal departments with reports based on data captured from their desktops and users that provide the guidance to build a successful virtual desktop strategy.

Virtual Desktop Assessment results enable project planning prior to purchasing hardware and software for trial or test solut ions. Organizations can take the data generated and create cost est imates for comparisons of the software and hardware required for the solut ion. IT can feel confident that the solut ion will deliver the expected user-experience during the project by comparing data from the captured sample during the process and ensuring that the infrastructure will support the solut ion.

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Flexera Software LLC1000 East Woodfield Road, Suite 400Schaumburg, IL 60173 USA

Schaumburg (Global Headquarters):+1 800-809-5659

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For more office locat ions visit:www.flexerasoftware.com

Copyright © 2012 Flexera Software LLC. All other brand and product names ment ioned herein may be the trademarks and registered trademarks of their respect ive owners. AS-VDA_WP_VirtDesktops_Sept12