October 2nd, 2009

Thin Client Questions - some reader replies

Posted by Dan Kusnetzky @ 1:53 am

Categories: Access virtualization, Consumer use of Virtualization, Desktop virtualization, Virtualization

Tags: Hewlett-Packard Co., Network, Thin Client, Wyse Technology Inc., Thin Clients, Hardware, Dan Kusnetzky

Back on September 15th, a ZDnet reader posed a few questions about network bandwidth requirements imposed by HP’s Thin Clients. As mentioned in the post Thin client questions? Still waiting for HP’s answers, the reader had trouble obtaining answers from HP. Wyse, on the other hand, was happy to provide answers for their environment (see Thin client questions? HP still quiet, but Wyse replies). Since that time, HP has responded and we’re to speak later on today.

Several ZDnet readers took the time to add their comments and insight to the discussion. Although I’ve not been authorized to copy their comments here, I have taken the liberty of summarizing some of the comments I’ve received.

• Both Citrix’s ICA or Microsoft’s RDP are bursty protocols making it difficult to project what network bandwidth will be needed moment by moment. ICA might be a better choice if bandwidth is limited because it is optimized to use less bandwidth at the expense of the quality of the user experience.
• The numbers Wyse offered are likely to be reasonably accurate when considering a large number of thin clients taken in aggregate. It is likely to be inaccurate for small numbers of Thin Clients.
• Each organization’s use of the network will depend upon the applications being used, the use of media (video and audio) and several other factors. In other words, your mileage will vary depending upon how heavy your foot is on the accelerator.
• Rather than asking HP, why didn’t you ask Citrix and Microsoft to suggest how much network bandwidth they would recommend? HP is happy to support either network protocol.

Thanks everyone for taking the time to present your thoughts on this topic.