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desktop virtualization

Citrix Acquires “VDI-in-a-Box” Company Kaviza

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Citrix Systems recently announced that it has acquired Kaviza, makers of an all-in-one “VDI-in-a-Box” solution for small and medium business. It complements the company’s XenDesktop product line for enterprise-class desktop virtualization.

Kaviza VDI-in-a-Box is not just a scaled-down enterprise product, but instead gives SMB customers everything they need to “go virtual” with VDI in a single, easy-to-deploy software virtual appliance.

Customers can continue to purchase VDI-in-a-box from Kaviza resellers. Starting July 1, 2011 customers will also be able to buy from Citrix Solution Advisors.

Rackspace To Offer Hosted Virtual Desktop Platform

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Rackspace Hosting announced at Citrix Summit 2011 today the availability of the Rackspace hosted virtual desktop platform.

It utilizes Rackspace’s hosting services and may be paired with industry leading desktop virtualization solutions from Citrix and other joint channel partners. The offering enables customers to host their virtual desktops on their choice of dedicated and/or cloud solutions.

The Rackspace hosted virtual desktop platform combines RackConnect and partner solutions to deliver an unmatched solution in the marketplace.

With RackConnect, customers can deploy a virtual desktop solution that utilizes Private Cloud to help address security and compliance concerns and to manage and control servers while benefiting from the scale and cost effectiveness of the CloudServers for XenApp environments.

The Rackspace hosted virtual desktop platform can also allow customers to reduce deployment times of upgrades and new infrastructure deployments while reducing CAPEX.

By working with Rackspace, channel partners and VARs can add the Rackspace hosted virtual desktop platform to their portfolio of offerings, without the additional expenses associated with purchasing the hardware and hiring resources to manage the environment.

The Rackspace offering will also be available directly to resellers through the Rackspace Partner Program.

Virtual Bridges Launches Teacher’s Pet Program, A Free Virtual Desktop Offering

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Virtual Bridges has announced the launch of the Teacher’s Pet Program, an exclusive opportunity for K-12 school districts to receive complimentary desktop virtualization licenses.

The program is designed to support educators facing severely reduced budgets by providing technology that eases desktop management, reduces labor costs, extends PC lifecycles and reduces security risks.

The Teacher’s Pet Program is open to K-12 organizations at accredited institutions in the United States. In addition to 50 free licenses of VERDE VDI Gen2, the program offers:

– Single server deployment
– Remote install and troubleshooting
– E-mail support 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. CT, Monday through Friday
– Annual maintenance of only $2,000 for all 50 seats
– A 50 percent discount on additional licenses purchased within 60 days

VERDE eliminates the need to track, maintain, upgrade, repair and keep virus-free all desktop and notebook computers scattered across the district. Additionally, VERDE provides flexibility, allowing teachers and students to securely access desktops regardless of whether they are in the class room, working from home or studying in the library.

The Teacher’s Pet program is running through June 30, 2011.

Desktone To Leverage Platform Equinix For Cloud-Hosted Virtual Desktop Infrastructure

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Equinix, a provider of data center services, today announced that Desktone, which markets Cloud-hosted Desktops-as-a-Service, will leverage Platform Equinix to launch the next generation of its cloud-hosted virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI).

Desktone selected Equinix for its proximity to existing customers and target markets, flexible global infrastructure, and ability to scale to support rapid growth in end-user utilization and adoption.

Desktone will initially deploy in North America, and has plans to expand globally across Platform Equinix.

Cloud-hosted VDI requires unique infrastructure to support end-user performance requirements and lower service delivery costs. When latency targets aren’t met, end-user applications are significantly impacted and compromise the customer experience.

As such, proximity of the VDI cloud deployment to the end-user communities is one of the crucial requirements when choosing a data center provider. Desktone says it is committed to delivering sub-20 millisecond latency for all of the markets it serves to ensure a differentiating, high-quality customer experience.

NComputing Launches Vertical Market Solutions To Further Desktop Virtualization Adoption

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Desktop virtualization company NComputing today announced a series of vertical market solutions designed to simplify and accelerate adoption of desktop virtualization in Europe.

NComputing Office In a Box and Classroom In a Box are pre-tested and validated virtual desktop solutions including all necessary hardware, software, peripherals, OS and services.

NComputing In A Box solutions support both Windows and Linux platforms and come with all peripherals, virtual desktops and software pre-tested for compatibility and integration. They include NComputing virtual desktop devices and vSpace virtualization software which transform the typical virtual desktop structure from one user per virtual machine to thirty users per virtual machine.

NComputing In A Box solutions are available from IT distributors and resellers throughout EMEA.

Quest, Virtual Computer Unveil Integrated Server and Client-Hosted Desktop Virtualization

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Quest Software and Virtual Computer today announced a technology alliance to deliver a desktop virtualization and management solution meeting the end-to-end computing needs of large enterprises.

This technology provides anywhere, anytime access to both centralized and distributed end-user environments through the integration of Quest vWorkspace client and Virtual Computer NxTop 3.0 enterprise platform.

The combined solution will dramatically reduce the cost and complexity of deploying and managing corporate desktops, while improving desktop delivery options for stationery and mobile users.

The offering will provide consolidated management across server- and client-hosted virtual desktops, enabling IT teams to build a single virtual desktop image for deployment to stationery and mobile users. Regardless of the deployment model, IT administrators can efficiently execute updates once in a secure environment. Master image updates are synchronized with linked user desktops—running centrally or locally—while preserving end-user personalization.

Stationery users in corporate offices or an Internet/VPN connection can access server-hosted desktops and applications remotely using the broker technology and high performance Experience Optimized Protocol (EOP) in Quest vWorkspace. Mobile users can use NxTop Engine, Virtual Computer’s unique “bare-metal” client hypervisor and remote management technology, to maintain full access to their desktop when disconnected from the network. NxTop Engine enables easy access to server-based resources while online via the integrated Quest vWorkspace connector.

The joint solution will also feature tight integration with Hyper-V and System Center Virtual Machine Manager for virtual desktop creation, management and execution. NxTop Engine’s two-way Hyper-V compatibility will allow virtual desktops to execute on local PC hardware, and users of server-hosted desktops will benefit from Quest’s EOP enhancements for the RDP protocol, including emerging Microsoft technology such as RemoteFX.

As business becomes increasingly mobile, Quest and Virtual Computer will offer a one-of-a-kind capability for users to remotely access their desktops and applications, including desktops running on PCs equipped with NxTop Engine. From a remote PC with a specialized client, a thin client, or a tablet-computing device, users will be able to access their desktops and applications in a secure manner for an unprecedented level of freedom and convenience.

The initial vWorkspace/NxTop integration, including a NxTop Engine and the Quest vWorkspace connector, will be available as a release candidate beginning Aug. 30, with general availability in October.

Additional integration points and enhancements will be delivered in phases through 2011.