Citrix has retired the Citrix Branch Repeater and released the new Citrix CloudBridge this week. Read more:
Citrix is pleased to announce the new WAN-optimization appliances: CloudBridge 2000 and CloudBridge 3000. These appliances come loaded with our WAN-optimization and XenDesktop acceleration technologies including rich protocol optimization, advanced TCP flow-control, adaptive compression and smart acceleration.
For those of you looking at the new Amazon Kindle Fire Tablet, Citrix is actively looking for feedback below or at their Synergy event in Barcelona next month, on whether you plan on using it to help them drive additional Receiver development for the device.
Very cool browser toolbar that keeps you clicks away from your favorite Citrix Virtualization Resources! Give it a try here...
Just wanted to let everyone know that Citrix Released XenDesktop 5 Service Pack 1 on 5/13/2011.
The two main features added include:
Other improvements include:
Very good 30 minute video by Brian Madden, Gabe Knuth and Bridget Botelho discussing VDI in 2011. See description below:
VDI experts Brian Madden and Gabe Knuth sit with SearchVirtualDesktop.com editor Bridget Botelho to discuss the VDI technologies that are sure to be hot this year, the hurdles to desktop virtualization adoption and trends to keep an eye on.
Short Notice: Definately worth checking out--there will be an on-demand replay after the event...
Desktop virtualization is rapidly being adopted as the best way to deliver Windows® desktops to business users because it offers significant benefits, including user flexibility, desktop management cost reduction, and enhanced data security and access control. At the same time, laptops are fast becoming the desktop of choice in corporate environments, and while they meet the need for a great user experience and the ability to work from anywhere, anytime, they also introduce more complexity and greater risk for corporate data loss.
Now, organizations can extend the benefits of desktop virtualization to mobile laptop users for new levels of portability and security. Citrix® XenClient™ delivers the no-compromise control and security that IT demands and the performance and flexibility mobile laptop users expect.
XenClient is a high-performance, bare-metal hypervisor that enables users to run multiple instances of an operating system simultaneously, side by side, and in complete isolation. To ensure the highest levels of performance for the user, XenClient builds on Intel vPro hardware virtualization technology. XenClient leverages capabilities of Intel vPro technology to improve the user experience with their virtualized desktop.
Attend this webinar and learn how XenClient:
Want to give Citrix XenApp 6 a test drive but don't want to build out a server to do so? Download the Citrix XenApp 6 Evaluation Virtual Appliance (EVA) and setup using Microsoft Hyper-V or Citrix XenServer virtualization. You will be evaluating Citrix XenApp 6 running on Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 in no time!
Watch out iPhone! Citrix has released Citrix Receiver for the BlackBerry! This has been a long time coming! See below:
In the short amount of time since announcing the availability of the Citrix Receiver for BlackBerry Tech Preview (May 7, 2010), we've received thousands of downloads to support select touch and non-touch BlackBerry devices - further allowing Citrix customers the ability to securely access their Windows apps and business information from any smartphone.
- BlackBerry users or IT Admins wishing to install Receiver for BlackBerry 1.0 can download now (see URL listed below).
- For BlackBerry users or IT Admins still evaluating the Tech Preview release, the Online Support Forum will remain available to address questions.
Download Receiver for BlackBerry 1.0.
Read "Receiver for BlackBerry is Now Available" blog.
Citrix XenServer 5.6 Delivers Enhanced Virtualization Management Capabilities in Free, Advanced, Enterprise and Platinum Editions
SANTA CLARA, CA » 6/2/2010 » Citrix Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CTXS) today announced the immediate availability of Citrix XenServer® 5.6. Unveiled earlier this month at Citrix Synergy™ 2010, the latest release adds new features across the entire product line, enhancing the enterprise-ready, cloud-proven virtualization platform with all the capabilities needed to create and manage a virtual infrastructure at a fraction of the cost of competing products.
Last year, Citrix introduced the Free Edition of XenServer, setting an entirely new standard in the industry by offering an enterprise-ready, cloud-proven server virtualization platform for no cost. Since then, XenServer has been activated for production use in more than 45,000 enterprise datacenters worldwide, including 45 percent of the Fortune 500.
"We started with the free version of Citrix XenServer and went on to deploy the Enterprise Edition in favor of competing products," said Rutger Pannekoek, Manager of Services and Application Engineering, TomTom. "Of course, the cost and quality were important, but we were especially attracted to the open source basis of the product combined with the commercial support by Citrix. Now we have hundreds of virtual servers running on XenServer, which has enabled us to have an always-on and dynamic datacenter, with the ability to easily move workloads between physical servers when needed."
Key Facts and Highlights:
- XenServer 5.6 delivers enhanced virtualization management capabilities for both the free XenServer, as well as the more advanced Enterprise and Platinum editions. The new low-priced XenServer Advanced Edition makes it easier and more cost-efficient for enterprise and cloud customers running free XenServer to add more advanced high availability and management capabilities. A full list of features in each edition can be found here.
- XenServer 5.6 is available immediately. The new XenServer Advanced Edition is $1,000 per server, or $30 per month for cloud service providers. The Enterprise and Platinum editions are $2,500 and $5,000 per server, respectively.
- The XenServer Free Edition or a 30-day trial of the Platinum Edition can be downloaded here.
Came across a twitter post form Brian Madden regarding a company called Stratodesk. Stratodesk allows you to repurpose PC and Terminal Clients so they can be easily managed. This could be a major breakthrough with companies having various desktop and thin clients from numerous manufacturers. I have not yet testd the software--but plan to in the near future. Here is a snippet from Stratodesk's website regarding their product:
Stratodesk - The first SaaS endpoint provisioning and management
Stratodesk is a unique cloud-based service that cuts your IT costs by desktop provisioning and desktop management. The SaaS approach allows to repurpose any PC or TC hardware and to manage these devices with integrated web-based, hosted management. This solution instantly converts a mess of different platforms into a uniform set of "client devices"-forming the desktop cloud. Each terminal is capable of connecting to VDI installations, server based computing (SBC) environments, the Web and cloud services and/or running Stratodesk's unique "Deskside VDI", a local VM on the enduser's device.
Stratodesk consists of the Stratodesk OS and Stratodesk Management Tool
Stratodesk OS - A Linux based host OS, which can be installed on any desktop device.
Stratodesk OS is using "Deskside VDI". Deskside VDI allows installing a local virtual machine directly on the repurposed device.
Stratodesk Management Tool: This absolutely unique Management Tool unifies Server Based Computing (SBC), Hosted Virtual Desktop (HVD) and Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) and takes them all to the cloud - The Desktop Cloud. An intelligent management system now controls assignment of VMs to devices. Even more the Stratodesk Management tool monitors all devices, traditional thin clients (SBC) as well as devices using Deskside VDI. The tool controls the usage of peripherals , and configures remote connection parameters.
No installation is necessary. Stratodesk Management is available globally as a hosted service and is the first hosted management solution for desktop devices worldwide.
Experience these Benefits with Stratodesk:
- Cost saving by less administration. Compared to a standard PC network, SBC and HVD actually increase the overall complexity of your IT structure as long as the desktop devices do not become "thin". The Stratodesk solution is software based, maintenance-free and secure. Administration is limited to roll-out of desired feature updates.
- Cost saving by less hardware purchases. Stratodesk not only allows to better utilize and extend the life-cycle of existing desktop hardware, it also saves cost on the server side: Why buy expensive server-side CPU and storage power for HVD when you can do HVD with your desktop PCs at a fraction of the cost?
- Flexibility. Changing from SBC to HVD or vice-versa is a matter of a mouse click. Traditionally you might have suffered from a vendor-lock-in when buying e.g. specialized Thin Clients - a cul-de-sac with no return.
- Peace of mind. With all your desktops under tight control by the management system, it is easy to adapt to new requirements and provide up-to-date information at the push of a button.
