10 reasons hosted desktop services are a good idea

There is quite a bit of hype about Hosted Desktop Services (HDS) these days and for many businesses it makes a lot of sense. It may not initially look so good to some businesses and IT help desks, but if adopted in the right way, it can be a benefit to them as well.

HDS, sometimes called cloud services or software as a service, isn’t really such a new idea. Before people started using PCs as their primary device, most computer systems had servers and smart workstations that we now call thin clients. Unix users will be very familiar with this concept.

Smart workstations, like today’s thin clients, had some memory and processor power, but mostly accessed software from a server. Now that good broadband supplies are available, the same type of system can be accessed over the Internet. It has always been a good system!

In a nutshell, a hosted desktop service is “your PC” that is managed remotely and can be accessed anytime, anywhere, and from any device without all the maintenance headaches or performance loss that comes with it. often obtained with Windows-based PCs.

Here are 10 reasons why it’s a good idea for many businesses!

1 – A consistent experience everywhere in everything

Putting the software on a central server means everyone can access the same software from anywhere. No more worrying about which versions, which licenses, version upgrades, etc. Many HDS services will provide access to software through apps that will work on almost any device, such as Citrix, which works on Windows, Android, Apple OS, Linux, Unix, phones, tablets, and other popular platforms you may have missed. It will also work on different versions of different operating systems!

2 – Backups and security, all taken care of for you

Backup and security are a necessary pain. May be a concern when considering HDS; after all, how good is the provider’s backup and security system? The answer is that it has to be good! Certain companies will undoubtedly store sensitive and valuable data, so HDS providers need to ensure that everything is backed up in or near real time, often on different server locations in different countries.

The security has to be really good because if someone were to hack the HDS systems it would be a problem for both the customer and the provider. That goes for uptime too, which should be 99.99% of the time!

Because software and data are stored on HDS servers, if a device is lost or stolen, there is no problem, especially with HDS session timeouts.

Similarly, all anti-virus and anti-malware services are covered.

Backup, security and availability will be better than what most companies have in their own systems.

3 speeds

If you’ve used Windows-based machines, you’re familiar with how they can slow down over time. Maybe because there is too much software on a PC, because of a virus, maybe the hard drive is failing, not enough memory, or maybe the computer is generally underpowered. This is not a problem with HDS where the servers are high quality, fast and maintained for you. The servers are doing all the work for you, all your device has to do is run the software that allows you to access the servers that don’t tax a device or use a lot of internet bandwidth.

It’s like having a new PC every day. People can work faster, be more productive, and won’t have the frustration associated with slow computers.

Just as an example, I tried loading Microsoft Word and a few other Microsoft products and the load times were between half a second and 2 seconds.

4 – Proactive support

Another headache with software and hardware maintenance is keeping everything up to date, often across many devices. Most of that won’t apply with HDS, as support staff keep everything up to date for their customers and monitor systems for failures.

HDS users will still have questions and sometimes things can go wrong, so it’s important that support is available during business hours and maybe even 24/7 support. This is a level of support available with HDS as it is used by many companies and some 24/7.

5 – Improved cash flow

HDS is a scalable subscription service where different people can use different programs at different times. This provides flexibility that can be controlled. The cost can be set to be the same each month or capped at how much a customer is willing to spend each month, allowing flexibility without loss of control. There are few unexpected expenses to accommodate. HDS is an easy service to incorporate into a company’s monthly and annual budget.

6 – Mobility

Because it works anywhere in the world where there is an internet connection and on almost any device it can be used in London, Sydney and Delhi or maybe even in space (one day). No special connections are needed. If a company moves offices it doesn’t matter, if someone has to work at home it doesn’t matter. Use a PC, tablet, laptop, or even a phone!

People can use their own hardware or simple thin clients* with any suitable display.

*A thin client is a small box used to connect everything, such as a display, keyboard, and mouse. It can be simply configured to access an HDS service. Thin clients usually have a built-in card reader, sockets for USB devices, headphones, etc. They rarely have disks in them and don’t need a lot of processing power. They are usually about 8 inches square and 2 inches deep. They use much less power than a PC, so they cost less to run.

7 – Fewer hardware and software worries

A company running its own system might have a list of IT concerns that go something like this:

• Hardware to maintain and replace
• Software to maintain, update, fix, replace
• Provisioning of new hardware and software
• Security
• Backups
• Software version control
• License
• operating system support; possibly across different versions or even different types of operating systems.
• System Availability
• IT support, in-house or outsourced
• And more…

At the time of this writing, Windows XP has recently been removed from Microsoft’s support regime, but many businesses still have it and have the headache of what to do next, since they can’t keep XP forever. This is not a problem with hosted desktop services as everything is kept up to date on an ongoing basis.

Most of the hardware and software that once had to be taken care of is no longer a concern with HDS.

With HDS, there is often a basic set of software that everyone gets, like Microsoft Office, Chrome, Adobe Reader, etc. Other standard free or optional paid software can be chosen. Other commercial or custom software can be ordered and placed on the system for selection or as part of a customer’s standard HDS configuration.

The purchase and use of software by individuals or groups of individuals can be controlled through an approval system so that a business has control over what it is paying for.

The data of the used software can be kept even if it is not used or paid for all the time.

With HDS, people can’t just download the software they want. Miscellaneous software may come with viruses or malware or compromise the work environment. This is another built-in method of monitoring the integrity of the company’s IT systems.

8- More time for your business

Depending on how much IT infrastructure a business has and how it uses it, a significant amount of time can be spent planning and implementing IT strategies. In turn, a business may have to spend time communicating with their IT support department or vendor. Some of this time will be spent on day-to-day IT issues such as security, backups, cleanup, etc. If too much of this is offloaded to HDS, the IT support function may be reduced or diverted to other important IT projects in the business.

9 – Integrate with your own special systems

A company may have some software and data that they want to transfer to HDS servers and for most programs this can be done. It is sometimes called incorporation. There may be one-time costs for this, but once it’s done, the company won’t have to worry about taking care of it again.

A company may have some systems that are simply not suitable for HDS, for example; A film company may have editing suites with specialized hardware and software that perhaps 25% of the company uses. Systems like these can be kept as they are and HDS can still be used in conjunction with those systems when needed. Where the necessary data can be shared, synchronized and local data can be accessed directly from HDS!

10 – A low carbon footprint

Last but not least, you and your company will be doing your bit for the environment. Servers used with HDS are typically high-quality business servers that use less power than others and have a low carbon footprint overall.

If you and your business use thin clients, you’ll use less energy in the office, reducing your own carbon footprint.

Each user takes 100k to 200k of internet bandwidth per session, which might be less than is normally used. Less internet capacity may be needed and can be reduced or used elsewhere.