Research decision making online and your search engine will shoot back pages of articles on how to reduce the number of choices we make, why we struggle with decisions, and decision fatigue. To save you some of the brainpower you might expend considering a virtual desktop software solution, this article provides an overview with pros and cons too.

What is Virtual Desktop Software?

Desktop virtualization is on the rise globally. Secure and affordable, virtual desktop software provides users access to their individual desktops separate from the actual personal computer. Users no longer need to be at their physical desktop computers to access their applications, folders, widgets, and toolbars. The software virtualizes the user’s unique desktop environment at any workstation or computing device while all the data and applications are stored on a central server.

Virtual desktop software is seen in virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) or solutions Desktop as a Service (DaaS) solutions. While the VDI is deployed on-premises, the DaaS solution is fully outsourced. Before comparing the two, let’s first outline the benefits of virtualization overall.

Advantages to Virtual Desktop Software

Mobility is a big advantage that virtual desktops offer the current business environment. The virtual workforce is expanding, and even your office denizens want to be able to access their desktops when away from their desks. With virtualization, all users can experience business as usual with their desktop ready, whenever they want, wherever they are, if there is an internet connection. It is expected that mobile workers will comprise nearly three-quarters of the total U.S. workforce by 2020.

A virtual solution easily supports business with a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) culture. Your users can access a source, consistent computer infrastructure from their smartphones, tablets, laptops and other mobile devices.

Virtual desktop software makes upgrading operating systems easier. If you are a Windows 7 user looking at end of support on January 2020, you’re going to have to migrate your data to ensure cybersecurity. As virtualization is a software-based solution-based solution, your organization can upgrade more easily and quickly scale up or down for seasonal peaks and valleys in your staffing or other business needs.

The financial advantages of virtual desktop software can’t be overlooked either. Rather than relying on maintenance-heavy and costly physical desktop computers, the business can support its users with virtual desktops. In the face of tighter IT budgets, this solution also provides a consistent budget line item to plan around.

Additionally, your organization gains access to a disaster recovery solution. Cloud-based virtual desktops can be implemented easily and rapidly outside of the disaster areas to mitigate impacts on end-users and your business.

Possible Pitfalls

A virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) is a promising alternative for many businesses. At the same time, as it is implemented on-premises, your business continues to bear the brunt of the costs. Your IT team is also in charge of the complexity of the infrastructure and most continue to monitor, maintain, and upgrade the VDI (in addition to all their other tasks.)

That’s why, ultimately, we recommend cloud-based virtual desktop software. A DaaS offers you all the advantages of virtualization but lets you hand over the hard work to your external partner. You’ll be signing a Service Level Agreement (SLA) with your provider to secure your network and support your users.

Research shows that having more choices hurts our motivation to decide. This article does you the favor of pointing your business in a specific direction.

Turn to Communications Deployment Partners to smoothly integrate virtual desktop software into your business environment. Contact us today to schedule a meeting at 215.343.5580 or solutions@cdpartnersllc.com