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What is VDI? Virtual Desktop Infrastructure And How Does It Work?

Everything you need to know about VDI

Due to the coronavirus epidemic in 2020, many businesses decided to work remotely. In the same way, for example, employees do the company’s work at home using their computers. VDI is one of the new technologies that provide this capability

What is Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)?

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure or VDI technology is a great way to run virtual desktops on virtual machines hosted on a dedicated server.

VDI provides a secure environment for each user and the same user experience as a regular physical desktop. In such an environment, users have virtual machines running separate operating systems.

You can access your virtual machine with any device and anywhere through a secure network. One virtualization tool is VMware VDIvCloud, which emphasizes scalability and quick startup.

What cases is VDIaresed?

Many companies and businesses use VDI technology for one or more of the following reasons:

Remote work

Remote work has become the norm for many employees during the coronavirus pandemic. Because VDI technology allows you to run virtual desktops on home devices from a centralized location, employees can easily access and work with their work files. Virtual desktop infrastructure ensures everyone can do their work while data is well protected.

Access the system with any device

One of the great benefits of VDI technology is that it allows users to access their desktops from any device, including laptops, tablets, and mobile phones. Regardless of the device, users have full access to the desktop. Some companies find this feature useful for ensuring accessibility. Some business managers find this feature useful because employees do not need to use a computer to connect to the desktop.

Shift work

Employees who work shifts or do specific work usually do not need a personal computer. In most cases, they can use any available device and log into the virtual desktop. In such cases, it is recommended to use non-persistent VDIs. Virtual desktops are managed from a centralized location and share the same programs and tools. Non-persistent VDI is the best choice for use cases that require high availability, such as contact centers.

VDI components

Certain software and technologies are essential components of a virtual desktop infrastructure or VDI.

Virtualization platform

A virtualization platform divides the system architecture into layers and separates the operating system from the underlying hardware. A software called Hypervisor creates the virtualization layer. Doing so simulates physical resources and allows you to create multiple virtual machines on a single server. Therefore, virtual desktops on virtual machines are separated from the hardware and not connected. Server virtualization also ensures that operating system information is not damaged if a problem occurs for an operating system.

Display Protocol – Display Protocol

The display protocol is the component that allows users to see and access their remote desktop. You can also access a USB, printer, and other connected devices.
Connection Broker – Connection Broker

A connection broker, also known as a session broker, distributes sessions between clients and virtual machines and ensures that users connect to the correct virtual desktop. Users can connect to their desktops with this component.

Application virtualization

Instead of installing an application in the normal way, you can use application virtualization in a VDI environment. This technology provides easier and faster execution by creating a virtualized application image and replicating it on the virtual desktop.

Access points

The final component in setting up VDI technology is access points. It means devices from which users access their virtual desktops. Depending on what the VDI infrastructure is designed to support, customers can use various devices, including web browsers, mobile devices, and personal laptops.

How does VDI technology work?

Users connect to the virtual desktop through the Connection Broker. It authenticates each user and redirects them to a virtual desktop instance. When logged in, users use a copy of the original desktop. The main desktop stores all the required applications and distributes them through application virtualization.

All virtual desktops are hosted on virtual machines. Virtual machines are created and managed by the Hypervisor. That is the main component that provides virtualization of the entire system.

To understand this better, look at the following image carefully:

Advantages of VDI

The main benefits of VDI are:

Create access – The main reason for setting up VDI is to provide easier access for users. No matter where a company’s employees are located, they have access to the programs and information they need whenever they need access.

Device flexibility – users do not need special hardware to access and use their virtual desktops. One of the advantages of VDI technology is that it allows any device to be connected to the system. This means users can use mobile devices, tablets, laptops, or home computers to work on virtual desktops.

Increased security – Centralized management and data storage provide additional security benefits in a virtual desktop infrastructure. For example, if a user’s hardware fails, there is no threat of data loss. All information is stored in the virtual machine server’s data center.

Lower cost – If users use VDI from their own devices and work on it, the company does not have to provide specific physical hardware for each employee.

Improved user experience – These settings ensure that users have all the resources they need to perform their tasks regardless of whether they are working in a virtual environment. Users can work conveniently from any location and on any device without additional costs. Additionally, they have the power of physical VDI host resources without purchasing or maintaining hardware.

VDI software providers

Many companies offer virtual desktop software. Each of them has special features, and they differ from each other in areas such as price or support.

These companies provide special VDI virtualization software with many features and capabilities. Like VMWare and Citrix.

Cloud VDIs are also a quick and easy way to set up virtual desktops. Vendors offering cloud VDIs include Amazon Workspace and Azure Windows Virtual Desktop.

Size of VDI providers:

  • VirtualBox
  • Fusion
  • Hyper-V
  • Workstation Pro
  • Vagrant

What are vdi and its uses

Conclusion

Virtual desktop infrastructure helps with your remote access needs. Employees can access their virtual desktops anywhere and with any device.

After reading this article, we hope your knowledge about VDI technology has increased.