how to jump-start the migration to microsoft windows vista · will migrate to microsoft windows...
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virtualization
DELL POWER SOLUTIONS | May 200794
For many organizations, the question is not if they
will migrate to Microsoft Windows Vista and the
2007 Microsoft Office release, but when. When will
all their mission-critical applications support Windows
Vista? When will their clients be upgraded to meet system
requirements?
What if the same applications in use today could be
delivered to Windows Vista users—without requiring native
Windows Vista support? What if clients that did not meet the
system requirements for new applications such as 2007
Microsoft Office could still access those applications?
Application virtualization and application streaming,
used together, can remove many obstacles to early adoption
of, and migration to, Windows Vista and 2007 Microsoft
Office. Individually, each technique has strengths and limita-
tions. Combined, they provide well-balanced options to accel-
erate migration and help lower total cost of ownership.
Windows Vista includes significant changes that can
affect application compatibility. This 64-bit OS does not sup-
port 16- and 32-bit drivers. New system application program-
ming interfaces (APIs), User Account Control, Windows
Resource Protection, and reduced rights for the Microsoft
Internet Explorer® Web browser can cause compatibility
issues. The 2007 Microsoft Office release, meanwhile, intro-
duces new file formats, making it highly desirable for all users
to run the same Microsoft Office version so that they can col-
laborate and share information effectively.
Separating applications from operating systems In virtualized environments, desktop applications run on a
server, and the user interface is virtually delivered to the end
user over the network. These applications are not dependent
on the local OS or device drivers, have minimal hardware
requirements, and help reduce maintenance.
Although solutions such as Citrix Presentation Server 4.5
software offer advantages in control, security, and cost-
effectiveness (see the sidebar on the next page), some trade-
offs exist with application virtualization. Clients must be logged
on to the network, limiting notebook users. Very long-distance
connections may exhibit lag time. In the past, graphics-intensive
3D applications were challenging to deliver over networks.
Application streaming can deliver applications to clients
for use anytime, even when they are not connected to a net-
work. Applications are cached locally in an isolation environ-
ment rather than installed on the device. This approach helps
eliminate application conflicts and reduce the need for exten-
sive regression testing to certify applications. As a result,
applications can be offered as an on-demand service,
updated quickly, or de-provisioned just as quickly.
Application streaming helps make users independent with
many of the manageability and cost-efficiency benefits of cen-
tralized applications, but there are some trade-offs. Potentially
heavy bandwidth usage can occur when large applications are
first streamed. Applications that require a real-time connection
to a back-end database or are tightly coupled to the OS are not
Related Categories:
Citrix Systems
Microsoft Windows Vista
Virtualization
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How to Jump-Start the Migration to Microsoft Windows Vista
IT groups can accelerate migration to the Microsoft® Windows Vista™ OS and 2007 Microsoft Office by using Citrix Presentation Server™ 4.5 software. Virtualizing applications allows delivery of legacy and new applications to existing clients and those running Windows Vista, while streaming applications enables local and offline operation to help eliminate compatibility issues.
By Chris harget
reprinted from Dell Power Solutions, May 2007. Copyright © 2007 Dell inc. all rights reserved.
95www.dell.com/powersolutions
good candidates for streaming. Combining
application virtualization and application
streaming can give IT groups the flexibility to
dynamically define how to deliver applications
under various scenarios.
Planning strategies for fast rolloutOrganizations typically migrate to a new OS
either all at once or in stages coinciding with
hardware refresh cycles. Migrating all at once
can require a substantial up-front investment
of personnel and budget and can increase
strain on IT staff as users abruptly change to
new applications, but the overall transition is
shorter than a gradual migration.
For a simultaneous migration, virtualiza-
tion can serve applications that do not yet sup-
port Windows Vista, allowing an early migration
date. Old and new applications can be offered
concurrently to help smooth user transition.
For applications that should run locally, appli-
cation streaming can facilitate reliable auto-
matic updates for patches.
Organizations that migrate in planned
phases face different opportunities and chal-
lenges. For example, gradual migration can
maximize the value of older client systems
before retirement, and can help reduce budget
spikes. However, it can also create delays when
a large fraction of users have migrated to
Windows Vista. A common challenge is support-
ing multiple versions of the same applications
across multiple operating systems.
For gradual migrations, application virtual-
ization can serve new applications to old cli-
ents and old applications to new clients. This
flexibility allows end users to migrate applica-
tions at their own pace, independently of the
OS on the client. Virtualization helps maximize
business continuity. Streaming helps simplify
deployment and updating of locally run appli-
cations, as well as helping prevent application
conflicts on old and new operating systems.
Many organizations are expected to transi-
tion users to the 2007 Microsoft Office release
all at once because of the new file formats.
Virtualization and streaming allow client sys-
tems that do not meet the minimum system
requirements or that run a previous-generation
OS to use 2007 Microsoft Office, helping orga-
nizations migrate sooner and at a lower cost
than they could without virtualization and
streaming.
Smoothing the way to Windows Vista IT organizations should develop a comprehen-
sive strategy for migrating to Microsoft Windows
Vista and the 2007 Microsoft Office release that
takes into account application compatibility,
budgets, and other resources available for their
particular environments. Regardless of the spe-
cific strategy, by separating applications from
operating systems, application virtualization
and application streaming can help remove
many obstacles to early adoption of Windows
Vista and 2007 Microsoft Office.
Chris Harget is a product marketing manager
at Citrix.
IT planners exploring how to migrate to new applications such as 2007
Microsoft Office and operating systems such as Microsoft Windows
Vista are looking at application virtualization and application streaming
as strategies to help simplify and accelerate this migration, reduce
administrative burden, and lower costs. Citrix Presentation Server 4.5
combines application virtualization and application streaming into a
single, end-to-end application delivery solution. It provides flexible
policies designed to dynamically choose the best delivery method
based on the user, device, application, and network.
Virtualized applications run in the data center, helping reduce
deployment time and costs. This approach allows legacy clients to
access the latest applications, and Windows Vista clients to access
legacy applications. When users are disconnected from the network
and need a local version of an application, streaming allows applica-
tions to execute locally in a desktop isolation environment without
installation. This approach helps eliminate compatibility issues,
helps reduce regression testing time and cost, and allows centrally
managed applications to run offline. Citrix Password Manager™ soft-
ware provides enterprise single sign-on access to help streamline
secure migration to new application versions.
Figure A shows how Presentation Server 4.5 helps ensure business
continuity during Windows Vista migration by virtualizing and stream-
ing Windows Vista–incompatible applications to Windows Vista cli-
ents, and streaming Windows Vista–compatible applications such as
2007 Microsoft Office to clients running the Microsoft Windows® XP
or Windows 2000 operating systems. For more information, visit
www.citrix.com/presentationserver.
hOW citRix PREsEntatiOn sERvER accElERatEs thE migRatiOn PROcEss
Figure A. Microsoft Windows Vista migration using Citrix Presentation Server 4.5
reprinted from Dell Power Solutions, May 2007. Copyright © 2007 Dell inc. all rights reserved.
Citrix Presentation Server systemsHosting: All applications being streamed or virtualized
Migrated workstationsOS: Microsoft Windows Vista
Running locally:Windows Vista–compatible applications
Running through Presentation Server:Windows Vista–incompatible applications
Non-migrated workstationsOS: Microsoft Windows XP or Windows 2000
Running locally:Windows Vista–incompatible applications
Running through Presentation Server:Windows Vista–compatible applications