Desktop as a Service - DaaS: The new era of work
Raising Workforce Productivity and Security
As we shift into a new world of work — hybrid work – organizations need to adopt digital solutions to keep their people connected and collaborating, whether they are working from home, at the office, or anywhere in between. Employees need access to corporate data, applications, and resources from anywhere and anytime, since more than 38% of people are already working hybrid and another 52% are considering a transition to remote or hybrid work in the year ahead. According to “The Work Trend Index” from Edelman Data & Intelligence, 80% of managers expect more flexible work-from-home policies, which combined with the 50% of workers using a personal device for work, can result in increased security breaches, regulatory compliance issues, difficult device management, and high infrastructure costs for organizations. In turn, employees are increasingly looking to work with a better user experience that makes their work easier and increases their productivity. This leads us to a problem that combines adverse situations from data leaks, vulnerable access, to loss of productivity.
To face these challenges, many organizations are choosing to adopt the desktop virtualization model, turning this transition into a trend. This process of separating software from the hardware that it runs on, frees the software from needing to be run on a specific device, and enables workers to access a remote version of their work desktop on a different or personal device. This model has been increasingly used; These are some of the figures around desktop virtualization:
- According to a report by Markets and Markets, the desktop virtualization market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 10.3% between 2021 and 2026.
- According to Citrix’s 2022 survey report, 92% of companies surveyed had implemented some form of desktop virtualization in their organizations.
- According to an IDC survey, some of the top benefits cited by companies that implemented desktop virtualization include reducing IT costs (52%) and improving data security (46%).
In contrast, according to various research and reports, the following are some of the disadvantages that companies may face by not adapting to desktop virtualization:
Without desktop virtualization, users are limited to working from a specific physical location and on a particular device. This can be problematic in a world where mobility and work flexibility are increasingly important.
Physical desktops require individual maintenance, software and hardware upgrades, which can result in significant operating costs over time.
Keeping all physical desktops up to date with the latest security patches and software updates can be a logistical and time challenge.
Physical desktops can be more vulnerable to security attacks if adequate security policies and updates are not applied consistently
In the event of hardware failures or disasters, data recovery and business continuity can be more difficult to achieve in environments without virtualization.
In organizations that do not virtualize desktops, hardware and software resources may be distributed unevenly among users, which can result in inconsistent performance.
If a company needs to quickly add or reduce the number of workstations, desktop virtualization makes this process easier. Without virtualization, expanding or shrinking IT infrastructure can be more costly and time-consuming.
Managing individual desktops, implementing security policies, and monitoring compliance can be more complicated without the centralized management tools offered by desktop virtualization.
Physical desktops consume more energy compared to virtualized solutions, which can increase operating costs and have a negative environmental impact.
Downtime due to hardware or software issues on physical desktops can be longer and impact user productivity.
In short, a lack of desktop virtualization can result in an IT infrastructure that is less efficient, less secure, and more expensive to manage. Desktop virtualization offers advantages such as flexibility, cost efficiency, and the ability to manage centrally, which can help address many of these issues.
What is Desktop as a Service and how does it work?
DaaS is a high-performing, secure, cost-effective type of desktop virtualization. DaaS frees businesses from tethering their computer operating systems and productivity software to any physical hardware. Instead, businesses can use DaaS to access virtual desktops over the internet from a cloud provider. Cloud providers that offer this service distribute and manage virtual desktops from their own datacenters.
Key features and components of DaaS:
- Virtual desktops: DaaS offers virtual desktops that can be customized to meet the specific needs of users or organizations. Each user typically has their own isolated virtual desktop environment.
- Cloud hosting: The virtual desktops and associated resources are hosted in the cloud, typically by a cloud service provider. This eliminates the need for organizations to maintain and upgrade physical hardware.
- Scalability: DaaS solutions are scalable, allowing organizations to easily add or remove virtual desktops as needed to accommodate changing user requirements.
- Accessibility: Users can access their virtual desktops from anywhere with an internet connection, making remote work and mobility more convenient.
- Device agnostic: DaaS solutions are device-agnostic, meaning users can access their virtual desktops from a wide range of devices and operating systems.
- Security and Compliance: DaaS providers often implement security measures and compliance standards to protect data and ensure that sensitive information remains secure.
- Managed services: Many DaaS providers offer managed services, including maintenance, updates, backups, and security, reducing the administrative burden on organizations.
- Cost-efficiency: DaaS can be cost-effective for organizations because it reduces the need for extensive on-premises hardware and simplifies IT management.
- High availability: DaaS solutions typically provide high availability and disaster recovery options, ensuring minimal downtime in case of hardware failures or other issues.
- Licensing and software: DaaS providers often include software licensing as part of their service, making it easier for organizations to manage software costs.
DaaS is particularly valuable for organizations that want to streamline their IT infrastructure, reduce hardware and software management complexity, and support remote work and bring-your-own-device (BYOD) initiatives. It enables users to have a consistent computing experience across different devices while giving IT departments greater control and management capabilities.
Microsoft, leader in DaaS solutions
Microsoft has developed a comprehensive offering that allows its customers to facilitate the management of devices in hybrid work models and accelerates the closing of security gaps associated with them, while providing an enriched user experience to employees, through 2 solutions:
Provides a full, personalized Windows experience, and the best ways to facilitate hybrid work models:
- Versatile and productive by delivering users their personalized content, settings, and applications.
- Simple to deploy and manage from a single console.
- Secure by design, leaving no data on the device.
- Available on any device and optimized for the best experience.
- Scalable and resilient to support changing workforce needs and new business scenarios.
Is a desktop and app virtualization service that runs on the cloud:
- Multi-session Windows 11 or Windows 10 deployment with full Windows experience and scalability.
- Present Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise and optimize it to run in multi-user virtual scenarios.
- Bring your existing Remote Desktop Services (RDS) and Windows Server desktops and apps to any computer.
- Virtualize both desktops and apps.
- Manage desktops and apps with a unified management experience.
