• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Virtualization.com

Virtualization.com

News and insights from the vibrant world of virtualization and cloud computing

  • News
  • Featured
  • Partnerships
  • People
  • Acquisitions
  • Guest Posts
  • Interviews
  • Videos
  • Funding

Thinstall

VMware Formally Releases ThinApp 4.0 Into The Wild

July 16, 2008 by Robin Wauters 1 Comment

Only a few days later than anticipated, VMware has released ThinApp 4.0, its first application virtualization solution (formerly called Project North Star) after snapping up Thinstall earlier this year.

ThinApp 4.0 (build 2200) is the next major release of the former Thinstall solution called Application Virtualization Suite 3.2, and has certain new features, such as:

  • Application Sync: enables you to deploy application updates. Application Sync automatically checks for and installs updates to your packaged applications. Updates might include changes such as a new version, service pack updates, or configuration changes in the package.ini file
  • Application Link: connects deployed applications. For example, you can establish a relationship between a deployed instance of Microsoft Office 2003 and a new Microsoft Office plug-in. Application Link enables you to establish a link between applications without having to encapsulate them into the same executable package

A trial download is available here.

ThinApp comes bundled with VMware Workstation under the name ThinApp Suite. The company offers a starting package for 50 concurrent clients at $6,050 (including a 12×5 Gold Support yearly subscription), with additional clients starting at $47.19 (including a 12×5 Gold Support yearly subscription).

VMware

Filed Under: News Tagged With: application virtualization, Application Virtualization Suite, Application Virtualization Suite 3.2, Project North Star, Project Northstar, ThinApp, ThinApp 4, ThinApp 4.0, Thinstall, Thinstall Application Virtualization Suite, Thinstall Application Virtualization Suite 3.2, virtualisation, virtualization, vmware, VMware ThinApp, VMware ThinApp 4, VMware ThinApp 4.0

VMware Set To Release ThinApp 4.0 In 30 Days

June 11, 2008 by Robin Wauters 1 Comment

VMware yesterday announced the upcoming availability of VMware ThinApp 4, an application virtualization solution based on technology the company acquired to its takeover of Thinstall and with it their Application Virtualization Suite.

VMware

ThinApp requires no pre-installed software on physical or virtual PCs and no new deployment infrastructure or management tools. ThinApp packages applications in familiar formats (.MSI or .EXE) that can plug into existing infrastructure for software license management, deployment, audit and compliance.

According to the press release, VMware ThinApp 4.0 highlights include:

  • Application Link (NEW) – Application Link allows interdependent applications to communicate with one another (such as Java, .Net, IE, Office) to eliminate conflicts, reduce application size, and maintain continuity and tracking of software licenses.
  • Application Sync (NEW) – Application Sync streams byte-level updates to users’ critical applications inside and outside the enterprise using HTTP/HTTPS, and on managed and non-managed PCs running virtualized applications.
  • “Package once, deploy anywhere” ThinApp uses Thinstall technology, which pioneered agentless application virtualization allowing applications to be deployed on virtually any Windows OS across virtually any device (kiosks, PCs, laptops, thin clients, virtual desktops).
  • Works with existing management tools to streamline costs and maintain compliance. ThinApp plugs into existing processes and desktop management tools to reduce the costs and complexity around managing the physical and virtual desktop.  According to Gartner**, “Virtualized applications can reduce the cost of testing, packaging and supporting an application by 60%.”
  • Conflict-free applications eliminate risks to business continuity. Applications are isolated from the underlying OS, eliminating costs of conflicting resources and allowing different versions of an application to run side by side (such as different versions of Internet Explorer).
  • Regain control of the desktop. ThinApp, along with VMware’s desktop virtualization family of products (ACE, Fusion, Workstation, and Virtual Desktop Infrastructure) enables IT to segment their applications, operating systems and migration deployments to speed time to value while decreasing complexity of managing the desktop.

The VMware ThinApp offering, which includes a copy of VMware Workstation and 50 client licenses, is priced at $5,000.  The client licenses are priced at $39 per endpoint. ThinApp will be available for purchase within 30 days through VMware’s network of distributors, resellers and OEMs.

Filed Under: News Tagged With: Application Virtualization Suite, ThinApp, ThinApp 4, ThinApp 4.0, Thinstall, Thinstall Application Virtualization Suite, virtualisation, virtualization, vmware, VMware ThinApp, VMware ThinApp 4, VMware ThinApp 4.0, VMware Thinstall

VMware Releases Virtual Desktop Manager 2.1, ThinApp 1.0 And Server 2.0 Coming Up Next

May 28, 2008 by Robin Wauters Leave a Comment

VMware has released a minor update for its connection broker Virtual Desktop Manager, technology it aquired by snapping up Propero about a year ago. VDM – download a trial here – has now reached version 2.1 (build 596) and includes the following addition features:

  • Multiple sessions per user within a pool
  • Pools spanning datastores in order to better manage resources
  • VDM Configuration Backup (command-line only)
  • Integrate MMR multimedia extensions DLL with VDM Client (Windows XP)
  • Allow blocking of incoming RDP connections that are not from VDM Clients
  • Allow end users to change password
  • Allow end users to restart their VM

Also, the company expects to ship ThinApp 1.0 (former Thinstall, of which the beta 2 was announced recently) as well as Server 2.0 (currently also in beta 2) during the course of this Summer.

Filed Under: News Tagged With: release, server, Server 2.0, ThinApp, ThinApp 1.0, Thinstall, virtual desktop manager, Virtual Desktop Manager 2.1, virtualisation, virtualization, vmware, VMware Server 2.0, VMware ThinApp 1.0, VMware Virtual Desktop Manager, VMware Virtual Desktop Manager 2.1

VMware Formally Releases Project Northstar (Previously Thinstall) Beta 2

May 8, 2008 by Robin Wauters Leave a Comment

VMware has today formally announced the release of Project Northstar Beta 2, the immediate result of its acquisition of desktop & application virtualization startup Thinstall earlier this year.

VMware Project Northstar

New features include:

  • Application Link: allows administrators to dynamically link Thinstall packages to one another, making it possible to create separate packages for interdependent components (such as Java or .NET) and use them across multiple Thinstall packages.
  • Application Sync: allows customers to execute updates to virtual applications through a secure Internet connection, increasing application portability while reducing security and patch risks to offline and out-of-network machines

Edwin Friesen has a great preview write-up with a helpful step-by-step guide.

Filed Under: News Tagged With: application virtualization, desktop virtualization, Project North Star, Project Northstar, Project Northstar Beta 2, Thinstall, virtualisation, virtualization, vmware, VMware Project Northstar, VMware Project Northstar Beta 2

Video: Demo from Tommy Armstrong, Product Marketing Manager Enterprise Desktop with VMware (VMworld Europe 2008)

March 4, 2008 by Robin Wauters 1 Comment

The interview below is part of our Virtualization Video Series, a recurring theme we want to implement on Virtualization.com featuring interviews with key players from the industry, event reports, etc.

This interview was recorded at VMWorld Europe 2008 in Cannes, France, and features a demo by Tommy Armstrong, Product Marketing Manager Enterprise Desktop with VMware.

DivX HD 1280×720 3.5mbit/s: Play (pop-up)
WMV HD 1280×720 3.5mbit/s: Play (pop-up)

Flash versions: Blip (embedded below), Dailymotion, Myspace, Putfile, Revver, Sevenload, Vimeo, Youtube

Interviewer: Tarry Singh
Video blogger: Charbax

Filed Under: Interviews, People, Videos Tagged With: desktop virtualization, enterprise desktop, Genius bar, Green IT, TCI, Thinstall, Tommy Armstrong, virtual desktop, virtual desktop technology, virtualisation, virtualization, vmware, VMWare Fusion, VMware Virtual Desktop Manager, VMWorld, VMWorld 2008, VMWorld Europe 2008

VMWare Picks Up Desktop Virtualization Startup Thinstall

January 15, 2008 by Robin Wauters 2 Comments

Virtualization may well be considered non-sexy in some parts , VMWare’s announcement that it is set to acquire Thinstall , a San Francisco-based desktop virtualization technology provider, should be able to change that view. Bringing virtualization to the desktop is a natural evolution that is destined to become a huge opportunity in a thriving market, and Thinstall’s remarkable progress over the past few years have obviously captured the attention of the 30,6 billion $ gorilla, who made the acquisition move for an undisclosed amount.

virtualization-vmware-thinstall.jpg

When you install a Windows program or an upgrade of a previously installed program on your PC, it messes with just about everything, including the registry that stores all of the settings, options, and configuration files for the Windows OS. That, in turn, opens up opportunities for security breaches and vastly increases other headaches for the IT staff who have to deploy software in organizations with lots of PCs. It all makes the idea of software-as-a-service—serving up applications on-demand over corporate networks or the web— look quite appealing. But if companies could give their employees a way to run traditional desktop programs like MS Word and PowerPoint over a corporate network without actually having to install them, they could keep using these powerful programs with less hassle—and might not be so tempted by web-based alternatives like Google Docs.

That’s exactly what Thinstall allows. Using its system, companies can create special, compact Thinstall versions of programs like PowerPoint. When a worker accesses one of these executable files over a network, it loads within a virtual operating system that communicates with the resident operating system, but doesn’t modify it in any way. A “thinstalled” application runs in “user mode” only, meaning that the user can start it, but can’t fiddle with the machine’s other settings.

For VMware, this deal pushes them deeper into the software side of virtualization, which is a good thing considering the company’s dominant market share on the server side. To feed that huge market cap, VMware needs to grow. That’s exactly what makes buying Thinstall, an application virtualization product much similar to Microsoft SoftGrid, Citrix’s Application Streaming, or Symantec / Altiris’s SVS technology, a very logical step. The move also follows on the heels of VMware’s purchase of small independent software integrator Propero . The company will likely make additional buys to stay ahead of its competition.

For additional analysis, you might want to give The Brian Madden Company‘s piece a good read.

VMware also disclosed its acquisition of services-related assets from Foedus , a Portsmouth, New Hampshire-based provider of virtualization technologies and services. From the press release:

VMware intends to leverage Foedus’s application and desktop virtualization services expertise to help VMware partners expand their virtualization services business.  Foedus’s remaining assets, including the company’s sales and marketing organizations, were acquired earlier this month by GreenPages Technology, a national, consultative IT solutions provider and VMware Authorized Consultant (VAC) partner.

Filed Under: Acquisitions, News Tagged With: acquisition, application virtualization, desktop virtualization, Foedus, Thinstall, virtualisation, virtualization, vmware

Primary Sidebar

Tags

acquisition application virtualization Cisco citrix Citrix Systems citrix xenserver cloud computing Dell desktop virtualization EMC financing Funding Hewlett Packard HP Hyper-V IBM industry moves intel interview kvm linux microsoft Microsoft Hyper-V Novell oracle Parallels red hat research server virtualization sun sun microsystems VDI video virtual desktop Virtual Iron virtualisation virtualization vmware VMware ESX VMWorld VMWorld 2008 VMWorld Europe 2008 Xen xenserver xensource

Recent Comments

  • C program on Red Hat Launches Virtual Storage Appliance For Amazon Web Services
  • Hamzaoui on $500 Million For XenSource, Where Did All The Money Go?
  • vijay kumar on NComputing Debuts X350
  • Samar on VMware / SpringSource Acquires GemStone Systems
  • Meo on Cisco, Citrix Join Forces To Deliver Rich Media-Enabled Virtual Desktops

Copyright © 2025 · Genesis Sample on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

  • Newsletter
  • Advertise
  • Contact
  • About