Now you see it, now you see it

From NetworkComputing Magazine Vol 17 Issue 01 - January/February 2008

Chris Mayers chief security architect at Citrix, explains why Application virtualisation is fast, scalable and secure, with only positive user impact

Virtualisation is about the delivery of experience without reliance on physical resources. A flight simulator, for example, delivers the experience of flight to trainee pilots without the need for them to physically fly a plane. Application virtualisation provides the experience of a desktop application to users without the need for it to physically sit on their PC, laptop, PDA or other personal device. With the applications housed on a central server, only a virtual interface is sent over the network to
the user.
The past year has seen a tremendous increase in the number of businesses adopting application virtualisation. The driving force for such uptake has been the benefits virtualised environments provide, both in terms of IT efficiency and business performance. For example, as applications and associated data are managed and maintained centrally, access to data can be more easily monitored and protected from theft or other attack, while bringing new users online can take minutes rather than months.
Another great attraction is the ability to access information in a secure manner away from the traditional office environment. This offers major gains in terms of business continuity. Contingency planning is at the forefront of many IT director's minds as all businesses, in the wake of recent events as diverse as floods and terrorist attacks, must assess the risk of disruption to their own working patterns and structure.
By replicating centralised applications on a back-up server, companies are able to provide every employee with a desktop experience identical to the one they use in the office, regardless of where they are located or which computer they are using.
Virtualisation also gives businesses the freedom to grow, enabling new users to be switched on irrespective of their number or geographic distribution.
Opening a branch office traditionally required a new IT infrastructure to be created. However, delivering applications virtually means that remote workstations can be managed, upgraded and controlled from the central server, ensuring standardisation of business-critical applications and reducing the total cost of ownership, as new regional locations are developed.
Similar IT management benefits can be seen from virtualisation for mobile working. Here IT managers can keep a tight rein on what software runs on mobile devices, easing the headaches caused by users personalising their devices outside of the corporate environment. For remote workers, the ability to upgrade and update applications centrally can reduce delays related to support staff making home calls or field workers waiting for a convenient time to visit the office.
Yet with so much information going to mobile devices, it is essential that all data is secured and protected. As devices delivering virtual applications do not actually hold data, the information can be secured centrally, always keeping it behind the corporate firewall and removing the risk of leakage associated with rising numbers of laptop thefts. Furthermore, should the device be lost or stolen, the only hardship is the replacement cost. More importantly, it doesn't matter whose hands the device falls into, as there is no threat of data loss or theft.
But what of the future? Over the next few years, virtualisation will lead to the automation of IT management. IT managers will no longer need to proactively install applications at the desktop for users, or configure the user's personal devices to meet their needs. Neither will they need to allocate servers to specific applications. Rather, resources consumed by an application will be provided on-demand, and according to pre-agreed policies.
But in order to achieve a state of automated IT management, you need to have established a reliable operating layer on which the virtual applications can sit. With these foundations in place, businesses can deploy virtual applications knowing that they will have all the benefits of centralised management and control, while still guaranteeing the end-user experience. NC