This is the age of hybrid work.
More and more enterprises are moving to virtual desktops (VD) for enhanced security and manageability. With mobility and data storage, virtual desktops word offer a new architecture for improved business efficiency. Yet, every business has different needs that have to be addressed.
While virtual desktops offer many benefits, businesses get confused about how they can get a competitive advantage. To know which is the more effective solution for your firm, examining virtual desktops and physical desktops is best.
What is a virtual desktop?
A hosted virtual desktop is based on an infrastructure that creates a virtualized environment in a central server. The virtual desktops run within virtual machines (VM) delivered over a secure network.
With virtual desktops (VD), the user’s operating system—probably Windows, Linux, Chrome OS— run on a centralized server. The user gets an experience similar to what they get with software running on a physical desktop. This infrastructure is designed to address today’s workforce challenges and enterprise needs.
What is a physical desktop?
A physical desktop or a PC is hosted on a physical machine. It takes up a lot of IT bandwidth to set up individual desktops for every new employee. Maintaining and updating physical desktops also take up the IT department’s day.
For delivering access to employees for a physical desktop, whether physically or via remote connection (RDP), IT has to keep the host computer turned on. Practically, leaving in-office devices on even when employees are not in the office can be troublesome. It also has limited storage and can downgrade the user experience when many employees access a limited number of physical devices for an increased time.
In contrast, virtual desktops are based on game-changing technology available anywhere, anytime, and on any device.
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Virtual Desktops Vs. Physical Desktops: Making the Right Choice
Discover the ultimate desktop solution for your business: Virtual desktops or physical desktops? Unleash the power of virtualization for seamless flexibility and cost-efficiency, or embrace the tangible reliability of physical infrastructure. Choose wisely to optimize productivity and meet your business needs.
1. Virtual desktops are accessible anywhere, anytime; physical desktops are restricted to one location.
Virtual desktops are well suited for businesses demanding high-level accessibility anywhere and anytime. It empowers the workforce to operate in a secure desktop environment on any device; with an internet connection. In contrast, physical desktops restrict your workforce’s productivity only from where it is kept, which can’t be the scenario in today’s competitive environment.
2. Virtual desktops centralize IT management, whereas physical desktops do not.
Imagine IT administrators spending their day configuring and provisioning individual desktops without a backend infrastructure. That’s what a physical desktop is. Administrators must configure a new desktop every time that a new employee joins.
Alternatively, virtual desktops offer a completely managed environment where everything is in a centralized server. Virtual desktops allow firms to configure business applications more quickly and reduce the time it takes to set up individual physical desktops.
Read More: Gone are the days for local desktop: Its time for hosted desktops!
3. Virtual desktops have multi-layered security, but physical desktops are vulnerable.
Hosting business data on centralized servers creates multi-layered security for your virtual desktops, much more than storing it on local endpoints. Housing your business data in vulnerable endpoints can lead to data loss.
60% of businesses deploy cloud technology majorly to store confidential data as cloud-hosted desktops ensure that confidential data is kept in isolation with standard security protocols.
Virtual desktops are end-to-end encrypted, eliminating the need for VPNs to access data. Another benefit IT leaders get is that VDI laptop data permanently resides in the cloud that is unattainable with a physical PC on a hostile network.
4. Virtual desktops are cost-effective, but physical desktops are expensive.
When employees worked only from the office, they were confined to their office devices, where limited processing power, RAM, and malware were quite common. Now, there’s no more worrying about a slowdown in the costly hardware as employees can access virtual desktops on any device or thin client.
Physical desktops demand maintenance from time to time, whereas virtual desktops eliminate the need to acquire hardware. VDI laptop works on a centralized desktop management footprint that enhances device lifespan. Additionally, hosting virtual desktops could get you an extra two years without vast hardware investment.
With the virtual desktop business model, IT administrators can allocate and scale resources as per business needs. VD infrastructure works on a pay-as-you-go model that reduces excessive expenditure on office PCs for the needs of an expanding workforce.
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5. Virtual desktops are fully managed, but physical desktops drain IT resources.
The centralized model of virtual desktops enables IT administrators to upgrade and patch virtual OS images instead of fixing individual machines. Also, virtual desktops allow end users to enjoy a personalized experience, just as if they had actual physical desktops or laptops running in front of them. This customer-ready solution can integrate preferred applications into a customized desktop environment.
In contrast, physical desktops demand IT administrators time to configure and patch them from time to time. Virtual desktops eliminate that by providing firms with a managed model where providers are responsible for ensuring exceptional user experience and best-in-class security.
Read more: What is cloud PC? What is its benefits and use cases? – Know with us
6. Virtual desktops prepare businesses to face any kind of disruptions, while physical desktops do not offer business continuity.
A critical concern of any firm is to keep business operations running in any situation and protect data if a disaster occurs. Virtual desktops create an abstract layer to offer remote access and keep data isolated. Therefore, firms don’t need to worry about data loss. Virtual desktop infrastructure implements security protocols to avoid instances of data duplication on insecure endpoints.
Alternatively, physical desktops store data in hardware, which are prone to cyber-attacks, breaches, or damage.
Read more: How Does Virtualization Helps Data Protection and Disaster Recovery?
Initiate Your Digital Transformation Journey with ACE Hosted Virtual Desktops
By 2023, 50% of workloads will be running in the cloud. Are you also planning to join this 50% of firms in the market?
Virtual desktops are a future-oriented solution designed to address specific business needs. This solution enables on-demand access to the hybrid workforce while controlling costs.
ACE virtual desktops are accessible on any device with an internet connection – a browser, a phone, or even a Windows PC. You no longer need a server administrator to manage the IT infrastructure. Additionally, you’ll have access to the latest versions of all applications and websites at any time via automated alerts and notifications.
Virtual desktops offer more than just essential personalization and features, such as automatically renewing licenses or adding new host names. It also provides advanced data protection such as automatic backup and restores, disaster recovery, failover, redundancy, and file synchronization.
You can use ACE virtual desktop services without paying an upfront fee for hosting services like storage or database management. With ACE, you can run multiple cloud deployments in parallel without acquiring dedicated servers anymore.
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