There are some use-cases in which traditional, thin-client based VDI solutions make perfect sense, such as LAN-based task workers, or roaming users with no personal desktops who need access to key applications, like hospital staff personnel. On the other hand, it is widely accepted by now that there are many other use cases – in fact the majority of use cases in the enterprise – for which a centralized VDI model breaks down.

Most notably, laptop users, who outnumber fixed desktop users in most enterprises, require the ability to work offline. They also need a predictable response time for each mouse click or keyboard stroke they make, regardless of network bandwidth or latency.  However, when such users are away from their laptops for some reason (e.g., they lost their PC, or are traveling without it), access to their desktop using a thin-client protocol would be an ideal alternative.

So, how can we reconcile between thin and thick requirements ?

We propose that the future of desktop virtualization lies in “the flex desktop” where the logical desktop is untethered from its physical hardware. This desktop can be centralized and uniformly managed in the data center, but can also be dynamically mobilized, quickly, to the proper endpoint according to business requirements.

We’ve heard from many customers and prospects that this agility would, at minimum, create some valuable use cases, and from some who believe it could fundamentally change desktop management altogether. What do you think?