Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)

What is virtual desktop infrastructure? Virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) refers to using virtual machines to manage instances of virtual desktops. A virtual machine is a computing system made using software instead of physical components. For example, a virtual machine may have important computing functions performed using software instead of hardware, such as its processing and memory functions. In the context of this VDI meaning, each virtual machine is referred to as an image.

IT admins and engineers use virtual desktop infrastructure to deliver these images to endpoints using a network. In this way, end-users can access their desktop environments no matter where they are. They just need an internet connection that ties them into the network the VDI runs on.

What is VDI, and how does it work? A VDI setup is relatively straightforward. There are three basic components: a hypervisor, virtual machines, and virtual desktops.

A hypervisor is a program that runs and manages virtual machines. And a virtual machine, as mentioned above, is a computer made with software as opposed to physical components.

In a VDI solution, the hypervisor divides servers into as many virtual machines as you need. Each virtual machine can then host a virtual desktop. You can think of a virtual machine as a computer without anything running on it. But after you install a virtual desktop on it, your virtual machine can look and behave almost exactly like a regular computer.

Once a virtual desktop has been set up, employees can then log onto it and use it to do their jobs. In most situations, you will install all of the applications employees need to get their work done on their virtual desktops. Then, whenever they need to do work, they can connect to it using a thin client, which is a computer with very little hardware resources, just enough to connect to a virtual machine and run a virtual desktop. Employees can also use a regular computer or a mobile device to connect to your VDI.

The two basic approaches to deploying VDIs include persistent and non-persistent VDI.

With a persistent desktop setup, each user gets the same desktop they used during their previous session every time they connect. In this way, if they make changes to files or applications, these adjustments get saved on the virtual machine.

A non-persistent VDI system is the opposite because every time someone connects to their virtual computer they get a fresh desktop. This means that any work they do doesn't get saved, so every user gets the same blank slate whenever they connect.

Even though VDI can be a convenient solution for many organizations, it also has a few disadvantages:

• It depends on a strong internet connection. If an employee has to connect to your VDI using a slow internet connection, for example, they may experience performance issues while using your business applications.
• VDI can get expensive. Even though you save money on hardware components, as you add many instances of software, your licensing costs can climb. Also, you may have to invest in more bandwidth as more users access your VDI and do their work.

When thinking about VDI vs VM, the key difference is very simple and straightforward. VDI is IT infrastructure while a VM is a computer. In other words, a VDI can have VMs running on it while a virtual machine is just a computer.

The differences between DaaS vs VDI are also significant. Here are the five most important differences:

1. VDIs use a single-tenant model, which means only one company uses a VDI at once. But with a DaaS, the DaaS provider may serve many organizations at the same time.
2. With a VDI, you manage the installation and maintenance of your infrastructure, but with DaaS, your provider installs and manages everything.
3. VDIs require you to invest in servers or upgrade your data center. But with DaaS, those kinds of expenses are taken care of by your DaaS service provider.
4.  With VDI, you control how your environment operates and its configuration. On the other hand, with DaaS, your DaaS provider controls the infrastructure and its management.
5. It can take considerable time to set up your VDI because you have to make sure you have the right servers and computational resources to support all of your virtual machines and desktops. But DaaS is faster because your provider has already taken care of getting the hardware set up and configured for you.

Because you can control the security features that protect your VDI, you can reduce the chances of remote workers introducing malware to your system. On the other hand, if a worker were to use their own computer as they connected through remote access, they could download malware onto it, and that could be shared with the rest of your network if they came into your office and connected.

According to the most recent analysis by Global Market Insights Inc., the (VDI) market size will reach a valuation of $55 billion by 2028. The most likely reason for this growth is the widespread use of mobile devices for business computing. More and more users, especially remote workers, want to do the work on mobile devices, and VDI is an ideal solution for this kind of arrangement.