This is a guest post by Joseph Anderson, Content Creator and Digital Marketing Manager, at Stratodesk.
Innovation has come to education, and it is here to stay, bringing with it benefits like the ability to deploy virtual desktops onto both student and teacher devices and to host those virtual desktops in the cloud as well as on-premises. It’s even brought the internet of things into the classroom and beyond. But these innovations can pose significant challenges to educational institutions looking to deploy a cutting-edge VDI.
- The endpoint obstacle — Educational institutions face several obstacles as they struggle to find a balanced approach to endpoint management. Their first challenge is overcoming the endpoint issue. To allow for VDI, institutions must house an OS on each of their endpoint devices. This means extra IT resources must be spent maintaining and patching endpoints. Not to mention, IT must also provide antivirus and malware protection to ensure their digital perimeter is secure. To make things worse, different devices house different operating systems or different versions of that operating system, which creates even more complexity for the institution.
- Security challenges — Another challenge IT faces is security. System admins must not only maintain a high-security standard while also decreasing login times, they also need to enable teachers and students to access apps and data from any device. This causes great concern for IT admins, who now have an equally high demand put not only on budget and security but also on ensuring convenient access for end users.
- Reliability — This is the third great challenge and cannot be stressed enough. Without an endpoint solution in place that is hassle-free and offers a seamless user experience, workers cannot function at peak performance. If there is any hassle at all, put on the end user, the benefits of VDI are quickly lost as resources are redirected towards aiding and assisting workers.
- Managing User Roles — Lastly, education faces difficulty scaling their network to fit their growing student body, managing endpoints across multiple sites, and separating networks between faculty and students.
Stratodesk Software Solves Challenges Facing Higher Education
Stratodesk NoTouch Desktop is made up of NoTouch OS and NoTouch Center. Our OS is Linux-based, which means that it’s impervious to common security threats that target or exploit x86 and ARM-based devices. It can be installed via various installation methods like network (PXE) boot or MSI installer. And unlike competitors that require a specific piece of hardware to enable BYOD, NoTouch can run on any flash drive to let your end-users access NoTouch or their native operating system side by side.
When using Stratodesk software, educational institutions can expect these benefits:
- Standardized endpoints — NoTouch OS effectively standardized the endpoints in your environment. In most cases, it is installed directly onto the hard drive. For evaluation purposes or to enable BYOD, NoTouch can be booted live from a USB without touching the underlying OS. For diskless deployments, boot NoTouch with the integrated PXE server in the management VA.
- Boosted security — NoTouch OS installs directly onto all your hardware, bare metal, transforming them into NoTouch Thin Clients. Cancel your malware and antivirus contracts and save money. Because NoTouch OS is Linux-based, it is impervious to common malware or security exploits.
- Hassle-free — Stratodesk NoTouch OS is ready to use directly out of the box. Once deployed onto endpoints (ARM and/or x86), end users can access the apps and data they need to get their best work done from anywhere. They benefit from a desktop-like experience, while IT managers and system administrators benefit from hassle-free management from one location.
- Powerful, centralized administration — Set user roles, enable live inheritance of settings, benefit from real-time monitoring, asset tracking and more. Stratodesk NoTouch Center is the one-stop shop for every single endpoint in your education VDI environment. It runs on-premises or in the cloud and manages both x86 and ARM devices.
How Stratodesk Works with Citrix VDI to Unlock the Full Benefit of Education VDI
Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops helps to power the future of work by delivering everything teachers and students need to get their best work done, anytime, anywhere. Stratodesk is the ideal complement, removing endpoint-management hassle, easily connecting to Citrix Workspace directly out of the box (with the latest version of Citrix Workspace app included) and removing the need to update, patch, and maintain Windows on the endpoint device.
A recent white paper from Citrix and Stratodesk highlights the unique and long-standing relationship the two companies have while also showing how, through a combination of Stratodesk software and intelligent digital workspace solutions from Citrix, enterprises around the world can better set themselves up for the future of work.
Additionally, NoTouch supports multi-monitor (dual-screen) operation, USB device forwarding, local printers, smart cards, multimedia with Citrix HDX features including Flash redirection, and Skype for Business/HDX RTME.
Stratodesk and the Citrix Ready Workspace Hub
Stratodesk is the pioneer of the Citrix Ready workspace hub. The central piece of Citrix Workspace IoT, the Citrix workspace hub solves advanced and innovative use cases business face every day. This Raspberry Pi-based device comes with full HDX capability including Flash redirection, Skype for Business, dual monitor support, and H.264 decoder. It’s fully remotely manageable with NoTouch Center or Citrix Endpoint Management, and its unique roaming and casting features are highly appreciated by teachers and instructors and make it easy for them to share their desktops with students.
The Citrix Ready workspace hub highlights Stratodesk and Citrix’s dedication to enabling better solutions for educational institutions — the low cost, high-performance endpoint antiquates desktop PCs and allows institutions to cost-effectively scale their VDI.
Stratodesk Live Demonstration and Booth Demo at EDUCAUSE
Stratodesk’s team of knowledgeable tech professionals looks forward to visiting with our customers and attendees at EDUCAUSE 2019 in Chicago. Industry veteran Rich Severson will give presentations on NoTouch Desktop and the Citrix Ready workspace hub at our booth (#1817). Presentation times are to be announced!
