Just a few years ago, computing was simple and inflexible. In offices, people punched a button on their desktop and tapped their fingers on the desk waiting for it to start.   

Even though the computers were slow and people weren’t much comfortable with the process they eventually got familiar.  

However, this was a great headache for the enterprise. Because, in addition to paying for desktop workstations for each employee, enterprises spend considerable time maintaining and updating software, updating security measures, and access to protected data.  

Unfortunately, this is not just limited to small and large companies but other institutions such as hospitals, schools, and government agencies also faced this problem.  

Around 15 years ago, Virtual Desktop Interface (VDI) came to the rescue, and today, it is a part of the larger End-User Computing (EUC) ecosystem.   

1. What is Virtual Desktop Infrastructure?  

Virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) is a form of desktop virtualization. Within virtual machines (VMs), specific desktop images run on VDI and are delivered over a network to end clients. It’s a desktop operating system that runs and is managed in a data center.   

The endpoint device allows the user to interact with the OS and its applications locally. These endpoints may be a traditional PC, laptop, or mobile device.  

The term Virtual desktop infrastructure or VDI was originally coined by VMware. Linux virtual desktops are an option while Windows-based VDI is the most common workload.  

Access to VDI depends on the organization’s configuration. This configuration can range anywhere from the automatic presentation of the virtual desktop to requiring the user to launch it.   

Once the user accesses the virtual desktop, it looks and feels like a local workstation. Afterward, the users can select the appropriate applications and perform their tasks.  

2. What is VDI and How it Works?  

Virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) is the creation and management of desktop environments. This environment allows employees to work and access computer applications from the office, or remote locations.   

Virtualization solutions support VDI deployments by creating virtual machines (VMs), a virtual computing system. VMs allows organizations to simultaneously run multiple applications and OS on a single physical server.   

Virtual desktops live within VMs on a centralized server and are enabled through hosting a desktop OS, such as Microsoft Windows Desktop.   

By using the desktop operating system hosted on VMs, IT can manage to deploy their corporate data, desktops, and applications to users in a virtual data center. They can then go on to deliver them as a service via the internet unlike traditional PCs, where a user utilizes a physical endpoint from an on-premises location.   

A connection broker finds a virtual desktop when implementing a VDI solution, within the resource pool to connect to, for each employee, when accessing the VDI environment.   

Some of the examples of connection brokers include VMware Horizon, Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops, Microsoft Azure, Amazon Workspaces, and Nutanix.   

Employees can securely connect to their desktop images through any device or location. it gives you the ability to access your applications from anywhere because it doesn’t require you to be at your physical desktop.  

3. What are the Benefits of VDI?  

Virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) has the following benefits including:   

• Increased Scalability   

Cloud computing has leveraged scalable infrastructure by making VDI more enticing to consume resources. Since users can access their environments from any device, it reduces the hardware requirements and purchases by consolidating all of the VDI infrastructures on a host server.   

• Centralized Management  

Virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) provides a centralized management structure. This structure allows administrators to update, patch up, and change all virtualized desktops. Hence, there is no longer a requirement to fix the entire organization individually. This gives allows for a complete desktop disaster recovery strategy as all components are backed up in the data center.  

• Security  

Since the applications live on the host server, the virtual desktop infrastructure helps businesses maintain their complete confidentiality. In case a device is stolen or corrupted, to protect the businesses’ data, the connectivity of that device can be terminated. However, the OS images must be properly managed and updated, and the remote workers must be authenticated.  

• Accessibility  

VDI allows end-users to use their devices to gain remote access to their files, and cloud services from any location. This creates a digital workspace providing a better user experience and making work from home significantly easier as employees can utilize PCs, smartphones, tablets, and others.  

• Cost savings  

Since, with VDI, IT does not need to keep purchasing new hardware, organizations’ expenses on hardware are significantly reduced. The consolidation on the server helps decrease IT expenditure.  

4. What are the Main Features of Virtual Desktop Infrastructure? 

• Virtualization  

Virtualization divides the VDI system architecture into different layers. Then the hardware is bound to the OS at the time of installation before virtualization. Thus, the OS also crashed in the case of a hardware failure, and you would lose all the data.  

In virtualization, the OS and the underlying hardware are separated by hypervisor where users can install multiple OS on a hypervisor-installed server.  

• Hypervisor  

As states above, the hypervisor separates the OS from the underlying hardware to creates a virtualized environment. Then the hardware is divided into VMs and each VM can have its unique configuration, OS, and applications.  

In VDI, the hypervisor creates desktop instances and each desktop can act as a separate desktop. Also, High Availability (HA) in the hypervisor allows it to connect to multiple servers even if a physical server fails.   

• Connection Broker  

Connection broker, a software program, is responsible for the authentication of the users and connecting them to the desktop. It also keeps track of active and inactive desktops.   

Furthermore, it provides the user with an idle desktop instance when they send a request to connect to a desktop. It updates the status to inactive when a user disconnects the desktop.  

• Desktop Pools  

The desktop pool is similar to desktops that can be configured according to a specific function. For instance, accounting and IT departments might use desktops with different applications and configurations.   

With the desktop pool, users can create a desktop pool with a similar configuration for these departments.  

• Application Virtualization  

Application Virtualization makes application deployment easy and hassle-free by creating a virtualized application and replicating it to all the VDs in a desktop pool. For example, VMware ThinApp creates an executable file of the application before and after the installation of the software. This file can then be used in any system without going through the installation process repeatedly.  

5. How does VDI Support Digital Workspaces?  

Digital workspaces are application-driven and offer a straightforward way to access multiple types of applications. In addition, they offer security to end-users and organizations.  

In today’s increasingly mobile and remote teams, the VDI solution offers reliable and economical ways to help scale key applications and services. It delivers a consistent experience across devices, including PCs, smartphones, tablets, giving employees a high degree of freedom while working. This, in turn, allows for more streamlined workflows in any organization.  

Moreover, with data breaches becoming more costly with each passing year, VDI improves cybersecurity and reduces IT overhead. By isolation and centralization of the VMs in a multilayered security strategy. Lastly, it spares the complications of having sensitive data stored locally for IT departments.  

Conclusion: 

Traditionally, physical desktops had high procurement costs and they lock in a fixed allocation of resources. Software licensing for machines then drive up the per-unit cost of a desktop. Technologies including virtualization and hyper-converge are essential to avoid these drawbacks.   

VDI brings virtualized desktops using its infrastructure as a cost-effective option. However, this happens only when an organization has enough desktop users to warrant the infrastructure and support staff.   

In the case of small organizations, they may want to adopt virtual desktops due to limited IT support. However, they may lack the resources to procure and maintain the infrastructure.   

Concerning desktop infrastructure, the key benefits of VDI include compliance operations and streamlined security. Besides, it’s easier to apply security patches and deploy secured desktops because desktops are centrally managed. This removes legwork for the IT staff and ensures they install correctly and address errors in the patching. 

Author Bio:

Shreeya Chourasia is an experienced B2B marketing/tech content writer, who is diligently committed for growing your online presence. Her writing doesn’t merely direct the audience to take action, rather it explains how to take action for promising outcomes.

The post How Virtual Desktop Infrastructure Trends Shaping Digital Transformation  appeared first on Tech Research Online.

The year 2020 has only accelerated the wheels of Digital Transformation Trends with the global pandemic. Last year alone was able to produce more digital transformation than the last decade.    

Image Credit: research.aimultiple.com   

The transformation effort of business organizations is already underway at scale. Here, are some statistics on how the digital reformation industry is taking moving:   

• Despite the pandemic situation, the global spending on digital transformation technologies and services is estimated to have grown 10% in 2020. (IDC)  
• As of 2019, direct digital transformation investment was expected to grow at a CAGR of 18% from 2020 to 2023. By 2023, it was expected to approach $7 trillion as companies build on existing strategies and investments, becoming digital-at-scale future enterprises. (IDC)   
• The digital transformation market is expected to grow at a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 23% from 2019 to $3.3 trillion by 2025. (Research and Markets)   

However, this shift is displaced by more urgent needs such as 24/7 security and connectivity.    

What does this mean for 2021? and Will we see previously emerging technologies will take the lead? To answer all these questions, we are going to discuss the top ten digital transformation predictions for 2021.   

1. 5G    

We have all heard about been hearing about 5G will go mainstream for years now. However, the telecom sector has taken an interest in 5G only now as remote work, videoconferencing, and digital collaboration became core parts of our lives and require reliable connectivity.    

In the past year, we have also increased our reliance on phones, tablets, and other devices for connectivity. This is partly because businesses cannot afford to be disconnected.    

Finally, 5G deployments have become a vital part of the solution as we collectively continue to live in the connected environment for work and school.    

Even though the initial 5G network deployments were interrupted due to the pandemic earlier last year. However, the efforts have been resumed markets and they are already on target to meet their deployment goals for 2020.    

Meanwhile, every major handset manufacturer is releasing 5G phones at every price-point. Furthermore, Qualcomm is helping make 5G affordable to almost every smartphone user possible.    

2. CDP    

Customer Data Platforms (CDP) have already exploded in the last few months. Fragmented data can be difficult to organize which isn’t ideal for companies relying on well-curated data to operate optimally.    

IBM estimates that bad data costs U.S. businesses nearly $3 trillion annually. Hence, addressing this challenge on a large scale has become a priority for organizations.    

This is where CDP comes in. They help organizations solve the problem by collecting data, organizing it, tagging it, and making it usable. Companies such as Oracle, Adobe, Treasure Data, SAP, and Microsoft are already invested in providing powerful new CDPs.    

In 2021, the rise of the CDP is going to catch fire and business operations have, now, become somewhat more fragmented. In this year, CDPs will become more and more relevant in 2021.    

3. Hybrid Cloud   

We know that businesses today are moving toward a hybrid cloud infrastructure. Hybrid cloud strategies help them strike balance for necessary cloud infrastructure.    

Over the past year, we have also seen investments in this sector from large corporations such as Google, Azure, AWS, IBM, and Oracle. We have also seen OEMs such as HPE, Dell, and Cisco investing in building tools for better connectivity.    

Such investments help the organizations connect to the customer where they are at the moment. This addresses the challenges of exponential data growth and proactive issues such as security, privacy, and compliance.    

We have also seen the modernized approach to hybrid clouds. It is expanding from traditional IT to support industrial applications. For instance, Honeywell built its IoT platform, Forge using an open-source and hybrid cloud approach. This helped them integrate the industrial data more seamlessly with traditional cloud datacenters.   

Hybrid cloud was growing rapidly with or without the threat of this pandemic. However, disruptions caused by the coronavirus have highlighted the agility and adaptability of cloud infrastructure.    

4. Cybersecurity   

 Cybersecurity has always been important, but with the pandemic, it has become very relevant again.    

In the last year, we have seen hackers exploit the coronavirus pandemic to expand their campaigns. The attacks on large and small businesses worldwide are enormous. Estimated says that they have seen a 238% rise in attacks on banks and 600% attacks on cloud servers from January to April 2020.    

With employees working from home, companies need to shore up their networks and upgrade their cybersecurity strategies.   

AI and Machine Learning will become especially crucial for this trend as we will continue to see the increase in nefarious activities that will require sophisticated tools. For instance, Microsoft has poured its resources into security areas such as software, active directory, and cloud.    

Many companies are playing in this area; however, software, cloud, and hardware makers will amplify efforts to make their products and services secure.   

5. Privacy and Confidential Computing   

Privacy and confidential computing have become another great approach to shoring up cybersecurity. This is particularly true when addressing communications and data privacy.    

Confidential computing is encrypting in the entire process of computing. Organizations must not just focus on the data but creating additional layers of security around other sensitive information.    

For instance, Google, IBM, Microsoft, Alibaba, and VMware are developing new protocols and practices. They all believe that the tech is still in a state of relative infancy and we need to see confidential computing slide into the mainstream in 2021.   

6. Separate Front-End and Back-End Data Presentation Layer   

Today, businesses can separate their front-end presentation layer from their back-end data functionality. This helps them create a custom shopping experience.    

For instance, this being telling your Alexa to replenish your coffee and being able to instantly purchase it from social media.    

But, why is it important?    

The way people are doing commerce has changed. Research says that 86% of businesses say their customer acquisition costs have increased last year. This means two things: organizations need to maximize their ROI and it has become important to also focus on customer development and retention.    

Companies in 2021 could become more efficient by moving beyond the omnichannel experience to connect everything ranging from storefronts to online services. The more they streamline the process it becomes possible to get ahead of competitors.   

7. Remote Working   

Workforces require increased work flexibility. With the pandemic, companies have to allow remote work. But even as the economies are on track towards reopening and employees are allowed to return, companies are continuing to let them work remotely.   

There are 2 reasons behind this: the companies want to protect employees from a possible outbreak resurgence or they are seeing remote working as a viable option.    

Big tech companies including Google and Facebook have already extended their remote working policies for 2021. Other companies are also keeping this flexibility as an option.   

This is possible due to the rapid deployment and development of smart work from home technologies. Companies such as Zoom, Webex, and Microsoft Teams are some places that have seen explosive growth.    

This is also resulting in unintended population migration. With more people working remotely, we will likely see migration from larger cities to more locales. This migration will drive greater investment in connectivity which will then enable even greater productivity.   

Hence, in the year 2021, as c0mpanies have become better equipped with remote working technology required to be more productive, they will be running after this Digital Transformation Trends.   

8. Artificial Intelligence (AI)   

The pandemic has helped in the democratization of AI and data. Overnight, companies and governments have found themselves in dire need to work together and create faster solutions.   

Naturally, AI, Data, and machine learning were the available tools that they turned to. The work expanded to a breadth of pressing opportunities that these types of groups become uniquely equipped to tackle problems on global and market.    

While many feel that AI is the future, it is actually very much a part of our daily lives. This is because it impacts what we see on social media to movies recommended on Netflix or product personalization on Amazon.    

Companies will be able to benefit from AI as computing power continues to be more affordable and the cloud enables access to it.   

Chipmakers including NVIDIA, Qualcomm, Intel, and AMD continuing to innovate on semiconductors for AI deploying their CPUs, GPUs, FPGAs, and ASICs to the cloud. Companies can either gain access directly or through third-party applications to democratize AI.   

The proliferation of AI will impact everything from how we shop to what we eat. As it will be powered by masses of data for powerful computing capabilities, AI will continue to require monitoring. But there is no doubt its use continues to grow rapidly in the coming years.    

We will also see that the resources are becoming less expensive and more available which makes digital transformation trends for 2021.   

9. Device Form Factors Become Interesting Again   

Things have changed rapidly and customers perspective has changed along with it. Today, the new focus is on being always connected. Customers also want their primary devices to be lighter, smaller, better connected than before, and versatile.    

They are showing their increasing interested in hybrid devices instead of carrying several devices. For instance, the Microsoft Surface Duo and the Samsung Galaxy Fold 2 can both double as phones or as tablets. They have attracted a lot of attention from users as they can fold and unfold depending on their needs.    

In 2021, we will be seeing the return of folding smartphones. However, this time they will provide the same high quality and connectivity. The idea behind such phones is to allow the phone to unfold into small tablets when a user needs a bigger screen and then fold back into a small unit for storage or phone use.    

Aside from that, we are going to see the always-connected PC gain more momentum. They are powerful notebooks that are super lightweight and equipped with full connectivity. With these, users will be able to connect on their laptops the same way as cell phones. Hence, it gives the remote work another reliable connectivity.   

Though it only started gaining momentum last year, however, this is a key digital transformation trend.    

10. Quantum computing   

Quantum computing has taken a backseat in the past year. However, we have seen unprecedented growth in this area all thanks to IBM, Honeywell, and others.    

Quantum computing has come to the forefront to manage the spread of the pandemic. It has also helped in the development of therapeutics and vaccines. There are other industries that quantum computing has to offer such as the ability to easily query and monitor and analyze data from any source at any time.   

Conclusion:    

The coronavirus pandemic has impacted the trajectory and the velocity of digital transformation. With the current circumstances, we feel that it will continue to do so well into 2021.    

In this blog post, we have tried to the new trend lines and new priorities that organizations of all sizes will face in 2020. They will require focus, decisions, and technology investments to drive digital transformation strategies for 2021. We still hope that it recovers from the Coronavirus pandemic.   

So, what did I miss in the post? Are there any other technologies that should be listed on the list? What are the other trends that will drive the discussion in 2021?    

2021 is a big year that we hope comes with better health and stability. Either way, digital transformation will continue to be the focus of organizations worldwide.   

Author Bio:

Shreeya Chourasia is an experienced B2B marketing/tech content writer, who is diligently committed for growing your online presence. Her writing doesn’t merely direct the audience to take action, rather it explains how to take action for promising outcomes.

The post Top10 Digital Transformation Trends Shaping 2021   appeared first on Tech Research Online.

All these trends are primarily workplace-related.

What we are missing from this picture is that the impact the exponential development of the digital world had on industries like the Oil & Gas and manufacturing industry maybe even more profound.

So, much so, that in a couple of decades from now, the centuries-old cycle of legacy industrial facilities may finally be broken.

Let us examine this technological evolution in greater detail.

The higher level of automation brought by the internet of things

This development became inevitable ever since the corporate world recognized the unlimited potential of IoT.

To put it simply, not allowing the machines to collect the relevant data, pass the information between each other, and self-regulate their production processes ramps up operational costs, and leads to lower production efficiency.

This operational gap will become even wider as the IoT technology continues to develop and evolve. So, it is safe to predict that the legacy industrial tools will be gradually replaced with newer equipment produced with smart capabilities in mind.

The ongoing development of machine learning

Deep machine learning has always been considered one of the most promising AI trends. What does this technology bring to the table in terms of industrial production?

Well, the AI will inevitably hijack the management of IoT-powered facilities. Processing the abundant data collected in such an environment simply requires the speed and efficiency that can’t be achieved by human beings. This efficiency gap will only continue to grow in the following years.

Finally, human involvement in industrial production will be relegated to the following duties:

• Data analysis
• Critical and creative thinking
• Product development
• Sales and marketing
• Software engineering
• IoT development
• Programming for robotics for and automation

The e-commerce expands to the big industry sector

This trend may look insignificant at first glance, but it has the potential to move the mountains as time goes by. One of the main advantages the smaller industries had over their big clunky brothers was their nimbleness. For instance, the speed at which they can acquire the business assets.

The current expansion of e-commerce to the big industry sector is making this difference disappear. These days, for instance, the big O&G companies can find new oilfield equipment online and make large-scale purchases just as easily as small companies can restock printer cartridges.

Rise of cutting-edge employee tech

In the previous sections, we have painted a somewhat grim picture of the future involvement of human labor in the industrial sector. But, as we could see, human involvement will remain very relevant in areas like data analytics, decision-making, etc.

This focused employee participation opens up the doors for the rise of dedicated digital tools whit the sole purpose of improving the efficiency of these limited human resources.

What kind of tech are we talking about? Primarily the platforms aimed at optimizing workflows, data processing, mutual communication, and oversight of the on-site equipment.

Seamless communication leads to high-quality customer service

The on-site production may be one of the most important sectors of various big industries. However, all companies that are pushing some form of product on the market need seamless customer service to stay relevant.

Fortunately enough, recent breakthroughs in the areas of Artificial Intelligence and machine learning have made this job far simpler and more efficient as well.

As a result, the industrial conglomerates will be able to deliver personalized customer experience, automate most of the tiresome CS processes and move the focus of the customer experience to emerge grounds like Virtual Reality.

We hope these five developments gave you some general idea about tectonic changes the industrial enterprises are undergoing in this supposed heyday of the digital transformation. When this transition is over, the way we look at the industrial sector may be completely different from the outlook we have now.

The roles of humans in the production will, inevitably, continue to lose ground, but the adoption of new technologies will create new job opportunities for a qualified workforce. How fast we will come to this point, yet remains to be seen.

Author Bio: 

Mike Johnston is an avid blogging enthusiast and experienced content writer with a focus on business, technology, entrepreneurship, and real estate.

The post Digital Transformation : The new Face of Big Industrial Sectors appeared first on Tech Research Online.

IoT starts with connectivity; however, digitization has opened up more opportunities for big and small enterprises. Digitalization is being led by some of the biggest companies which has created pressure for traditional Fortune 500 companies to digitize to some extend. Additionally, as they are aligned with culture transformation becomes more understandable and exciting enough to motivate employees.

How Can Business Leverage IoT Data?

Data collected with help if IoT is mainly of the product itself. It is usually bifurcated in terms of the product’s usability, utility, and performance. This data can be modeled and compared with its actual usage which can result in innovations that improve products and leads. Other than the obvious the data generate and collect can be useful for different departments of the company. These departments include manufacturing, marketing, sales, support, business development, human resources, and legal.­­­­

Benefits of the Internet of Things for businesses:

IoT technologies provide traditional companies to become digital-based companies. Through digitalization, businesses can experience faster innovation, new business models, better efficiency, increased competitiveness, and enhanced customer experiences. Hence, the benefits of digital transformation are getting closer to the customer and using that information for customer proximity.

This will help businesses improve the way companies market, sell, engineer, and support their customers. Businesses gain a closer vantage point that results in tremendous competitive advantages. These advantages have now attainable to all big and small businesses that can harness the power of IoT to achieve digital transformation for their products.

• Opening up new business opportunities

Data generated by IoT devices can be utilized by businesses to understand customers’ changing needs and adjust their product offerings. Additionally, they can also introduce new products/services to cater to their broader audience.

• Delivering meaningful, tailored customer experience

The new data provided by IoT can be used to capitalize on new sources of customer data, i.e. IoT devices. This will help businesses gain deeper insights into customer behavior and accordingly tailor their customer experience. Through advanced personalization and increased accessibility, they can have better control over how their customers view the product.

• Boosting business efficiency

IoT has the potential to increase business efficiency by combining rich data insights and autonomous sensors through process automation. Some of the notable processes that can be streamlined include logistics, inventory management, energy management, security, and others.

• Reducing operating costs

IoT allows automation across several processes which lead to cost savings and allows businesses to use resources wisely. For example, IoT energy solutions can help businesses manage their utility consumption and eliminate waste. This approach can be applied to ventilators, heating and air conditioning systems, water supply, lighting, and others.

• Improving employee productivity

Similar to the cloud and mobile technologies, IoT can help businesses empower staff by offering them better agility and making business systems easily accessible anywhere and anytime. For example, smart sensors are capable of keeping employees connected around the clock while delivering real-time insights for better productivity.

Digitalization has become one of the crucial elements of business operation. Additionally, to serve the growing population of digital natives they have to transform and embrace it. IoT has become an important tool in this transformation and is helping businesses connect with their target audiences. IoT tools are also helping them to stay ahead in the completion which is growing every day.

The post Businesses are Embracing Digital Transformation with IoT appeared first on Tech Research Online.