VDI vs. Desktop as a Service (DaaS)

Short for Virtual Desktop Infrastructure, VDI, to quote Wikipedia, is a “desktop-oriented service that hosts user-desktop environments on remote servers. Users access the desktops over a network using a remote display protocol. A connection-brokering service connects users to their assigned desktop sessions.”

What all that means is that users can access their desktop from any location, without being restricted to one single computer, smartphone, tablet or other device. Since the resources are centralized, users moving between work locations can still access the same desktop environment with their applications and data. It’s a great way to stay productive.

Nuvestack’s DaaS is a superset of VDI, improving upon VDI and adding key additional features, the most important of which is “service.” This makes DaaS essentially “VDI plus” or even “VDI on steroids.”

For example, the DaaS provider handles hosting and maintaining the computing, storage, and access infrastructure used to provide the virtual desktops to users. The DaaS provider also provides applications and application software licenses used for the desktop service. All this comes in return for a monthly fee, usually charged on a per-user basis. At Nuvestack, we also include full end-user support within our monthly subscription price – and that includes all application support, too.

VDI, on the other hand, is a little more difficult and expensive to implement. Customers might be asked to buy hardware and run VDI from their own data center. Plus, what’s needed to implement different vendors’ VDI solutions can vary widely. There is no single VDI implementation that is standard across multiple vendors.

Implementing DaaS, at least the way we do it at Nuvestack, is pretty simple – after WE migrate a client over to Nuvestack, users’ desktops run on our servers, so there’s no special technology needed. And setting up users is plug-and-play through NuveCenter – it just takes a few mouse clicks and a little information to set up each user’s desktops. Applications and tech support are all included with our DaaS. Further, Nuvestack licenses simultaneous users, not “named users” so our customers have flexibility and are paying only for what they use, which is great for companies with staffing across global time zones.

Most companies find that switching to DaaS gives their IT teams more time to work on big IT projects rather than focusing so much time and effort on managing users and desktops. IT teams using Nuvestack set up user accounts through NuveCenter – a few clicks and they’re done. They don’t have to get involved with the technical details of how their desktops are being delivered.

The result for the IT administrator is a centralized, efficient client environment that’s easier to maintain and facilitates changing user or business needs. At Nuvestack, we also assumes all end-user applications support, so both the IT staff and its budget get to focus on other tasks and project.

Nuvestack’s DaaS solution includes all licensing – so our customers are completely shielded from licensing issues. Licensing is included as part of our subscription fee, not as a separate line item. This sets Nuvestack’s DaaS apart from VDI offerings that expect users to provide their own licenses.

Yes, VDI and DaaS should both be secure, although the security provided still depends upon who hosts the virtual desktops, applications and data. At Nuvestack, for example, we use industry-leading hosting companies for our DaaS that enhances our customers’ data security. Data is actually more secure than it would be if the user were running apps resident on a desktop computer because, with Nuvestack DaaS, data no longer resides on the user’s devices. Say someone in HR loses a computer or smartphone or tablet. In the Nuvestack DaaS world, corporate data doesn’t live on that device so the data isn’t compromised.

I see it like this: our number one goal at Nuvestack is simplicity – simplicity plus service. We’ve made our DaaS easy to purchase, setup and use, and we deliver it only one way: fully supported.

To me, Nuvestack DaaS is VDI done right. While the topic can seem pretty complex at times, using DaaS doesn’t have to be. Plenty of vendors in the marketplace will try to tell you otherwise – when you make a service seem complex, you can sell it for more. But this is simply something we don’t do at Nuvestack. We want to simplify DaaS for the user. Because if DaaS is easy to use and if it makes financial sense, companies WILL adopt it.