VDI and DaaS: Desktops In The Sky

With VDI, your team’s desktops live in the cloud. They run on best-in-class servers and include everything your team needs to do its work — the operating system, applications, and also the files and work product your team creates. So rather than updating and securing Steven’s computer, Gwen’s smartphone and Jamie’s laptop, you manage one advanced, secure platform that your team logs into remotely.

So much better than the old days

But VDI is so not like the 80s. Even though the computing is centralized, VDI is not a shared general purpose platform — it’s completely customizable. Steven can choose his own desktop background, Gwen can update her screensaver whenever she wants, and Jamie can continue to use the quirky layout that no one understands but him. Except the data is in the cloud – either on your own private cloud, the public cloud, or cloud space you rent from an expert like Leapfrog.

The pay-as-you-go version of VDI is called Desktop as a Service (DaaS). And both VDI and DaaS are smart because they can solve a pond full of IT problems.

With VDI and DaaS, you get desktop and device computing that’s:

• Super secure. Your data never leaves your secure platform.
• Super flexible. For quick growth. Or quick downsizing. Or see-sawing between the two.
• Device-agnostic. No more BYOD management issues.
• Operating system-agnostic. No more Windows, Apple or OS version issues.
• Contractor and seasonal-worker friendly. Temporary workers can hop on your network then hop off permanently when the job is done.
• Flexible. Hybrid options offer extra options for workers with different needs.
• Popular with employees. They can use their favorite devices.
• Popular with IT staff. They can focus on business instead of BYOD.
• Popular with bosses. Not only is it more secure, it’s easier for everyone to work from home at night, while traveling and, yes, even while on vacation.

Why VDI and DaaS are more secure than device-centric computing

Managing all of your company’s critical data in one super-secure, high-performance platform is like managing one cat instead of a herd. You know where everything is and who’s accessing it, and when something goes wrong, you know it and can fix it fast.

And none of your data can leave the platform. Repeat: Your data cannot leave the platform. It stays securely on your server and your server only.

Cloud server locations: yours, ours or the public cloud

1. Your own private cloud
Some companies have policies that require them to own their infrastructure. If yours is one of them, Leapfrog can build you a private cloud for VDI that’s completely owned by you, from hardware to rack space. We can manage it and also manage a VDI you already own.

2. Leapfrog’s private cloud
You can rent space on Leapfrog’s cloud. We built it to be amazing. We host for smaller environments where dedicated or public cloud does not make sense.

3. The public cloud
If you have 50 or more users or don’t want to own or manage technology or deal with big capital expenses, leases and depreciated assets, the public cloud may be for you. Amazon, Microsoft and VMware are popular choices and Leapfrog can easily integrate them into your managed IT services.