SINGAPORE--Virtualization software provider VMware has unveiled a technology consortium of hardware, software and service providers, with the aim to jointly-develop virtual desktop products.
Called the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure Alliance, the new consortium counts several technology vendors as members including Altiris, Atos Origin, Check Point Software Technologies, Citrix, ClearCube Technology, Fujitsu-Siemens, Hitachi, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Sun Microsystems and Wyse Technology.
With a virtual desktop infrastructure, IT administrators will be able to host and centrally manage virtual machines from their data center, while enabling end users to access a full desktop system in real-time and from wherever they are located.
Virtual desktop products will appeal to organizations that need to protect data privacy in an outsourcing and offshoring arrangement with third-party service providers, as well as ensure desktop standardization, security and compliance for remote workers.
As part of the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure Alliance, EMC-owned VMware plans to collaborate with each member to create, test and integrate desktop hosting offerings based on VMware virtual infrastructure and the partner's hardware or software product.
Altiris, for instance, is looking to offer application-level virtualization for hosted desktops, while Check Point Software will provide its end-point security know-how to secure systems such as servers and desktops, within the virtual infrastructure.
VMWare current offers a virtual desktop infrastructure product comprising VMware ESX Server software, which runs virtual machines containing desktop environments, and VMware VirtualCenter, which manages the library of virtual machines and ESX Server software.
Mike Clayville, the company's Asia-Pacific vice president and general manager, noted that VMware's virtual desktop alliance is not new in functionality but with the announcement, "we've formalized a product offering [that] we've been shipping and customers have been using for some time".
Play video
There are currently no comments for this post.