VMware Horizon 8 Adds Instant Cloning, More Cloud Support

  • By Dian Schaffhauser
  • 08/24/20

VMware has introduced updates to its flagship virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) platform with the introduction of Horizon 8, as well as new additions to its VMware Workspace ONE, its digital workspace platform.

VMware Horizon 8 is designed to help IT organizations more efficiently manage and scale virtual desktop and application delivery across public and private clouds from a single control panel. The company said that new capabilities would include:

  • More hybrid and multi-cloud deployment options, covering Google Cloud VMware Engine, Horizon on VMware Cloud on Dell EMC and Horizon on Azure VMware Solution.

  • New instant clone capabilities previously only available in pricier editions of Horizon 7. This kind of provisioning helps IT directly provision "instant" clones without requiring a parent virtual machine, thereby freeing up memory resources and increasing the number of desktops possible per host, reducing costs.

  • New RESTful APIs, to help IT in automating capabilities of Horizon 8, including monitoring, entitlements, and user and machine management.

  • Optimized support for Microsoft Teams video and audio, and continued support for Zoom and Cisco WebEx, to deliver a better user experience from virtual desktops.

  • The ability to publish Linux applications directly from a Linux server in the Horizon platform, reducing the costs associated with licenses from other operating systems.

The company said that Horizon 8 would help IT "deliver more secure virtual workspaces," by letting them establish and verify end user identity with built-in multi-factor authentication and enabling conditional access policies for virtual desktops and applications.

IDC Research Manager Shannon Kalvar said in a press release that "unifying physical device management (including PCs, Chromebooks and phones), digital workspace creation/operations and client workspace security into the overall platform is an attractive proposition for customers that are already invested in it."

At West Windsor-Plainsboro Regional School District in New Jersey, which is using VMware Horizon for virtual desktops for remote learning, students, faculty and staff can get "the same experience at home as they would have on site," said Harry Doctor, technology manager. "In response to COVID-19, it was crucial to support 1:1 computing with Chromebooks for every student in grades 5-12," he noted. "With Horizon, we’re able to keep students engaged with a robust array of teaching and learning tools that would be difficult to access using Chromebooks alone."

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • hand touching glowing connected dots

    Registration Now Open for Tech Tactics in Education: Thriving in the Age of AI

    Tech Tactics in Education has officially opened registration for its May 7 virtual conference on "Thriving in the Age of AI." The annual event, brought to you by the producers of Campus Technology and THE Journal, offers hands-on learning and interactive discussions on the most critical technology issues and practices across K–12 and higher education.

  • teenager interacts with a chatbot on a computer screen

    Character.AI Rolls Out New Parental Insights Feature Amid Safety Concerns

    Chatbot platform Character.AI has introduced a new Parental Insights feature aimed at giving parents a window into their children's activity on the platform. The feature allows users under 18 to share a weekly report of their chatbot interactions directly with a parent's e-mail address.

  • laptop screen displaying a typed essay, on a child

    McGraw Hill Acquires Essaypop Digital Learning Tool

    Education company McGraw Hill has announced the acquisition of Essaypop, a cloud-based writing tool that will enhance the former's portfolio of personalized learning capabilities.

  • a professional worker in business casual attire interacting with a large screen displaying a generative AI interface in a modern office

    Study Finds Generative AI Could Inhibit Critical Thinking

    A new study on how knowledge workers engage in critical thinking found that workers with higher confidence in generative AI technology tend to employ less critical thinking to AI-generated outputs than workers with higher confidence in personal skills.