So by now everyone knows that VDI is being adopted at a rapid pace, but often without enough due diligence by IT.  Server virtualization offers amazing return on investment, and is often implemented without end user ever knowing.   Users still access the same file servers, exchange servers, web servers… they just don’t know or care that the physical servers have been virtualized and consolidated.

Desktop virtualization sounds fantastic to the people that successfully completed a server virtualization project, and to the CIO & CFO that are looking to save even more money with virtualization.  Things that are often overlooked are the end user requirements. Just because one can deliver a remote display to a PC or thin client, doesn’t mean that it will be accepted by end users, and doesn’t mean that it will meet end user’s operating requirements.

So what are some of these “end user” requirements that IT should consider when designing a virtual desktop infrastructure.

1. Display performance - this is a no brainer, but more often than not IT is deploying virtual desktops without testing each of their customer’s applications to make sure they are responsive over the chosen remote display protocol.  It should also be noted that just because the application works fine across the LAN, does not mean that it will perform the same across a bandwidth limited, shared WAN pipe with significantly more latency than the LAN.
2. Printing - another “duh!, eh”, but for IT professionals without Server Based Computing experience, as it relates to application delivery, this is often overlooked.   IT may not understand that the Terminal Services printing infrastructure is quite different than that of normal client server computing.  Users will expect to be able to print to the same printers they used to, without having to call the helpdesk and without sacrificing functionality that they had on their physical PC.
3. Local devices - most clients support USB storage, but support for devices like TWAIN & WIA Scanners, webcams and VOIP headsets is not something that Microsoft delivers out of the box to remote desktops.

So what is EOP, and how does it relate to all of these statements?  EOP stands for both “Experience Optimized Protocol” and “Experience Optimization Pack“.  The Provision Networks division of Quest Software licenses and has been extending the feature set of the Microsoft RDP Protocol since 2004.  The following are core features of Quest’s Enhanced RDP Protocol that exist for Windows Terminal Services and VDI:

• Seamless Windows - remote applications look and act like local applications without being encapsulated by the Explorer Shell or the Remote Desktop Client window.  They minimize to the taskbar like local apps and retain the proper Z-order (when you alt+tab thru apps).
• Session Sharing - multiple seamless windows remote apps share the same Windows Session on a Terminal Server or VDI/Physical Remote Desktop, instead of being spawned in additional sessions.  This allows applications to interact with each other, i.e. different Microsoft Office applications.  Additionally, if a non-seamless desktop session is launched, and seamless windows remote apps exist, the seamless windows remote apps share the session with the desktop, and will be moved into the desktop session.
• Enhanced Multi-monitor support - this forces the Windows Taskbar and start menu to be confined to the primary monitor, allows users to maximize applications on the monitor of their choice and the applications remember these settings.  This was introduced in Virtual Access Suite 5.10 that was released in July.
• Universal USB Device Redirection - this is a new feature that allows clients to use virtually any USB connected device, i.e. VOIP headset, TWAIN/WIA Scanner, webcam…
• Universal Printing Virtual Channel - this has existed in Provision Networks’ products since 2001, we were a Citrix Platinum Partner, and we sold add-ons for Citrix and Windows Terminal Services.  This feature allows users to print to any client defined printer without having to install or have installed the printer driver on the Terminal Server or Virtual Desktop.  In addition to this Virtual Channel for client printers, Quest also supports use of the Universal Printer driver for Windows Network Printers (Session Printers in Citrix terminology) and Remote Print Relay printers (gateway printing).

Quest’s “Experience Optimization Pack” adds the following “User Experience” features to the previously mentioned core features:

• Graphics acceleration - this compresses and optimizes how graphics are rendered on the remote display, so Terminal Services and VDI can support graphical applications and animation that typically did not perform well over RDP.  This also dramatically reduces the bandwidth requirements of the RDP protocol, typically by 400 to 800%. I have seen some websites that consume 18 times more bandwidth when rendered via the standard Microsoft RDP client or VMware VDM client, than when using Quest EOP.
• Multimedia Redirection - this seamlessly redirects Microsoft DirectShow content (anything that can be played in Windows Media Player) to the client CODEC where it is rendered in full fidelity, insted of being rendered by RDP.
• Latency Reduction - when a lateny network is detected, client keystrokes are rendered on the client device so the end user can see them before they are transmitted to the remote RDP host.  This enables remote workers to use word processing application that typically suffered over a latent network connection.
• Bi-directional audio - this allows for support of microphones, even those that are not USB connected, which would be supported by the Universal USB Device Redirector.

So the combination of Quest’s core RDP enhancements and the optional “Experience Optimization Pack” features equals Quest Software’s ”Experience Optimized Protocol” (EOP).  Enhanced RDP has been referred to in many ways by industry analysts, and our own employees, so now we have an actual name for our RDP enhancements, “EOP“

rdp61_eop_live

QuestEOP

Provision Networks Multimedia Redirection Demonstration

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