Thin-client helps the organization

In the mid-1990s, a multi-user version of the Windows NT operating system was developed by Citrix Systems, Inc., a Florida-based publisher of remote access software. Seeing an opportunity in facilitating remote access from branch offices to central office-based Windows NT servers, Citrix licensed the Windows NT operating system from Microsoft and combined it with its own multi-user software. To complete the setup, Citrix developed a low-bandwidth communications protocol called Independent Computing Architecture, or ICA® 3, to speed the delivery of display data and input/output commands between the remote client and the Windows NT server. Since ICA 3 is configured to perform at a peak rate of 19.2 kilobits per second, it has been able to deliver LAN-like performance over phone lines using 28.8-baud rate modems.t was only a matter of time before the benefits of the multi-user Windows NT approach - inside a single location on a local area network, became apparent. Multi-user Windows NT computing entered the LAN and WAN environments of many companies worldwide. Citrix continued to add value to the Windows NT operating system by developing server tools, encryption tools, and other features that aided the installation and management of Win Frame in larger and larger businesses. Citrix has built a hugely successful business based on the installation of nearly 1.5 million seats connected to its Win Frame server software. 

 

In 1997, rather than license the next version of the Windows NT operating system (based on Windows NT 4.0) to Citrix, Microsoft reversed roles. It licensed the multi-user software from Citrix, and began developing its own version of a multi-user Windows NT operating system. This was released in June 1998 as Windows NT Server 4.0 -Terminal Server Edition. The first edition of this operating system is enhanced by the enterprise tools and features developed by Citrix for its new MetaFrame product. The multi-user Windows NT operating system enables a return to traditional centralized IT management and administration, but with the added flexibility and user empowerment of the personal computing revolution. Software applications are centrally managed, allowing greater control and security, and vastly easier bug fixing and upgrades since all work is done on the server. Desktop service and support is greatly reduced, due to the centralized architecture and to the opportunity to place a simpler, long lasting, more reliable machine on the desktop—the Windows-based terminal (Like WINBee). 

 

In addition, integrating the Windows NT operating system capabilities into the architecture of devices that connect to legacy applications can mean better integration with Web-based, Windows-based, and legacy based applications. 

 

Further to Windows NT 4.0 TSE edition, to make thing easier Microsoft came out with a new blend of OS which can act either as a Back office server or as a Terminal server (Multi-user environment). With the advent of Windows 2000 Server Microsoft made Terminal services as a Service, rather than having a separate Terminal Services OS, thus enabling the administrator to use the enable Terminal services and make it Multi-user if required. This has now become the de facto standard in all current and future Windows Operating systems. 

 

The big trend in the thin client device market is the Move towards “chubby” Thin clients has always had local browsing, local terminal emulation support and local ICA and RDP clients. But with today’s chubby clients, now have local streaming media, local Acrobat reader, MS file viewers and more importantly can run localized applications. Customers making purchase decisions will have to balance simplicity with the ability to offload work from their servers onto their clients. 

 

With respect to management software, people are not willing to pay too much for management software. Thin clients have always been about ease of management and customers are turned off by high “a la carte” ad-ins such as management. HCL’s full range of WINBee Thin clients are offered with Bee-Control-Management s/w based on the industry standard - SNMP protocol. 

 

It is primarily due to demographic reasons and non-awareness reasons. In the west, predominantly in countries like US, the employees have well defined job-roles and they are expected to do only their defined job roles and the mind frame of the employees too is to ask for the requirements exactly for the work that they need to accomplish. They seldom ask for anything extra than what their work asks for. Hence it is easy to position Thin Client and satisfy the customers there. Where as in India many a times customers ask for too many add-ons and some even expect every thing of that of a PC function in a Thin Client, which makes things very cumbersome. Where as in the west, knowingly well - the advantages and limitations of the Thin Client, they prefer Thin Clients to PC for reducing their costs in different ways. And ensure that their employees get an access only for all that they need to work-upon but nothing more or less than that; to avoid any room for their distraction or mischief with their computers. Thus enhancing the productivity too. 

 

The other reason is of course due to lack of awareness on Thin Clients. But off late many IT Mangers, Corporate CTOs and even some Internet-Pub runners are becoming aware of the significance of Thin Clients and their better TCO and ROI. 

The advantages of thin-client over stand-alones (cost advantage (RoI & TCO factors), security, heterogeneous platform and other tangible & intangible benefits. Increasing numbers of companies and government establishments have realized that conventional desktop PCs put so much power and influence in the employees’ hands that they can do all kinds of mischief, from wasting time on unnecessary Web browsing to accidentally downloading viruses. In the interim, fleets of PCs are expensive to upgrade and maintain. So organizations are taking PCs off people’s desktops and replacing them with Thin-Client systems. Every worker gets a computer screen, keyboard and mouse. But a central computer room - stores all the data and does most of the processing - slashing support overheads and making it much simpler to track and restrict how workers utilize their machines. The Thin-Clients are specific application devices, which are deployed effectively in the N/W, where ever typical mundane transactions/data processing are done and which doesn’t warrant for a full-fledged PC. By doing this the effective TCO for a specific requirement can be worked out wherein the recurring savings to the organizations are ensured.

 

There are numerous benefits both tangible and intangible by implementing the Thin-Client solutions. These can be very clearly proven wrt customer needs and requirements. Few important advantages are:

® It occupies less space

® Cost effective and better ROI

® Consumes less power

® Energy Saving (As the heat dissipated by the Thin Clients is very less compared to the PC and thus there is a substantial savings on the AC expenses too)

® Works in heterogeneous environment

® No virus hassles

® Optimizes the employees productivity

® No need to change the system after every 3 yrs.

® Very less / No maintenance costs

® Investment protection and et-al. Thin-Client variants have come and gone during the early IT evolution. Now the renewed Thin-Client enjoys a revival as the cost of maintaining networks is escalating steeply and employers are inundated with demands for stiff security and record –keeping for tracking and validation purposes.