In the weeks following Citrix Synergy 2017, I’ve been letting some thoughts coalesce in my head. Yes, gentle reader, I’ve been thinking a lot. And if you have read my other blog posts, you know my long-term rumination can sometimes be a dangerous prospect. But I digress.

My thinking is this: in spite of the emergence of cloud-based deployments, on-premises deployments of Citrix software are still a relevant and useful means of delivering applications and desktops to users.

Now, I love going to Citrix Synergy — it’s one of my favorite industry events. This year marked my tenth time attending (hey Citrix, do I get a ring or something? Just saying…). I’ve been quoted many times as saying that Synergy is absolutely worth my time (and it’s worth yours, too): training, networking, product updates, and generally geeking out with everyone that attends. Trust me, if there was time to interact with all of you, I would do exactly that. Everyone has a unique story and everyone has great experience and insight into the thing that is Citrix.

Hearing first hand, too, about Citrix announcements and product updates is always exciting, too. This year was no different. The keynotes were chock full of enticing and scintillating announcements (one the most exciting takeaways from the keynotes was the about Citrix managed security services, an offering that should be raised up and shouted from the mountaintops). Amongst all of these bits of awesome, however, there still was an elephant in the room.

Do you see the elephant?

Avert your gaze… maybe the it will go away. Is it gone? Nope, still there. But wait! That elephant has something tattooed on its side; what does it say? ON-PREMISES! Oh, of course, how could we have missed that?! On-prem deployments weren’t talked about much during the Synergy keynotes and demos, and I absolutely get it. Cloud is the future; we all know this to be true. However, while many businesses are now moving to the cloud, it’s very important to remember that many are not; they are simply not ready, and that’s okay

I’ve noted before that I’m an independent consultant. In talking with my peers, we’ve noticed a downturn in consulting and we’re not sure why. I spoke with others at Synergy and the issue soon became clear. I heard the following from MANY attendees, “Cloud is great, and we know we have to go there, but we’re not just not ready; are there still options for us?” I’m really hoping some of the session feedback reflects that, because that’s an extremely important point.

Citrix is still supporting on-premises deployments and will be for a very long time to come. Cloud is cool, but don’t think that your local deployment is irrelevant. It’s working for you, please continue. Citrix has such wonderful things now like the Long Term Service Release (LTSR) of all of its products. If you prefer newer features, then the Current Release (CR) branches are for you. If you need help, your friendly local Citrix consultants (hint, hint) are there for you.

Upgrade that old environment to the newer code and experience the best that Citrix has to offer. You don’t HAVE to go to the cloud. It may not make sense at all for you. But don’t let that stop you from exploring newer things. The cloud will be there when you are ready, but for now, on-premises is just fine. Dust off those servers in your datacenter (hopefully not too much dust in there) and show them some love with a shiny new CR installation. Let us know if you need help. We’re here to support you, no matter what your Citrix needs are.

It’s a great time to be involved with Citrix, no matter what your relationship is. Embrace the old, embrace the new, and just do what works for you.

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