Three Signs You Need Transition from VDI to DaaS

As organizations across the globe increasingly shift to remote work structures, CTOs face growing pressure to provide end-users with seamless computing experiences that require extensive amounts of data and processing capacity. Many CTOs are exploring innovative solutions for optimizing the performance, flexibility, and robustness of their virtual desktop infrastructures (VDIs). CTOs have long valued VDIs for their ability to use centralized, dedicated, and secure data centers to host virtual desktops – including important apps and data – that end-users can access from anywhere on their personal devices such as laptops and smartphones.

However, over time these legacy VDI solutions became less efficient, expensive and overly complex to manage. Hidden costs, security weaknesses, and overall performance problems are other reasons compelling organizations to seek a single solution that offers a modern, secure and simple virtual desktop experience. As CTOs continue to explore ways to optimize VDI, they should be vigilant for signs that  indicate it is time to migrate from VDI to a next-generation Desktop as a Service (DaaS) solution like Tehama.

Three signs your VDI needs a refresh

Your in-house IT team is spending considerable time managing infrastructure and conducting maintenance.

Costly VDI maintenance and specialized IT resources can easily burn through organizational budgets. Because desktop data travels over networks and is stored in centralized data centers, organizations must invest in expensive hardware infrastructure, including periodic replacements during outage events or downtime. Managing VDI licensing software can also be confusing, costly, and complex.

These VDI issues can be solved using a managed desktop-as-a-service (DaaS). The infrastructure for DaaS is managed by the provider, so internal teams are not responsible for managing rackspace, hardware breakdown, or maintenance. Since the provider has already managed upfront expenses, the client organization is only responsible for the basic monthly costs of the service. Typically, DaaS providers handle storing user data, as well as upgrades for services and applications. DaaS provides organizations the ability to optimize storage capacity and infrastructure, and the flexibility to strategically shift resources based on unpredictable workloads or performance needs.

You are managing multiple vendors/solutions to enable and secure remote work.

Managing VDI is challenging when multiple solutions are needed to connect VDI to corporate infrastructure, as well as securing that connection to ensure that the right people have access to the right data and applications.. For example, complications arise when your IT team has VDI to deploy virtual desktops while also managing multiple additional solutions for identification and access management, vendor automation workflows, network segmentations, and fulfilling audit and compliance regulations.

Aligning multiple point solutions to communicate effectively can be a nuanced challenge that adds a level of complexity to the administration process. A next-generation DaaS solution like Tehama can provide internal teams with a single vendor who is responsible for developing and operating the platform to satisfy all your remote work needs.

Your team is finding it particularly hard to be agile.

Legacy VDI can limit the ability of teams to scale resources based on fluctuations in demand. Many organizations deployed VDI only to later realize that its architecture could not be reconfigured without either degrading desktop performance or requiring a massive additional investment in computing, networking, and storage infrastructure.

DaaS, however, enables teams to easily scale resources and add user workstations quickly and seamlessly. This is particularly helpful to organizations that utilize contract resources or temporary project teams, as there’s no hardware to procure, allowing the flexibility to create a desktop almost instantly and delete it when no longer required.

Transitioning from VDI to DaaS to enable a secure remote workforce

Though your VDI solution likely does not currently enable a 100% protected, sustainable, and scalable remote workforce, a compliant DaaS solution can provide your remote teams with secure business continuity across geographic locations and time zones.

Streamline business continuity

Emerging global economic risks and security threats has forced organizations to find solutions that can quickly respond to geopolitical disruptions – from weather disasters and international pandemics to political upheaval and economic downturns. DaaS solutions allow businesses to promptly scale and configure teams to work remotely from anywhere in the world.

Bring your own device (BYOD)

DaaS is an ideal solution for environments that allow or require employees to use their own devices. Teams can focus on a secure connection so that anything on these devices will not translate back to the desktop instances in the data center. Employees can use any device and have the company approved desktop on all of them. Additionally, a proper BYOD program can improve efficiency and security for employees working remotely.

Eliminate on-premise VDI infrastructure and complex endpoint  management

DaaS solutions use secured and isolated end-user compute environments that conform to corporate image policies without incurring delays often associated with infrastructure purchases, configurations, shipping, and complicated vendor tool integrations.

Cost decreases from CAPEX to OPEX

DaaS moves costs from CAPEX to OPEX, leaving organizations with more readily available cash flows to optimize the business. Per-desktop pricing enables teams to know exactly what workforce expansion will cost the IT department, removing unforeseen infrastructure or hardware purchases. These purchases are handled by the provider, who bundles everything in with the price of each desktop.

Secure the workforce of the future with Tehama

Tehama is the Enterprise DaaS solution for organizations that implement and maintain global or hybrid remote workforces. Tehama’s next-generation DaaS solution eliminates the added costs and complexities of traditional DaaS or VDI through built-in security and compliance controls. Tehama provides the flexibility to facilitate secure worker or vendor onboarding in about an hour – so spinning up (and sustaining) a remote, global workforce is less stressful and time-consuming. Our virtual rooms and desktops provide IP protection and safe remote access to business systems via secure perimeters, automated encryption, ongoing malware and virus protection, and network segregation.

Tehama also facilitates compliance and a Zero Trust environment through SAML and MFA authentication, strict network access policies, least-privilege permissions – and a full audit trail including down-to-the-keystroke session recordings for perfectly witnessed records.

COVID-19 has forever changed the behaviors and routines of office workers. Tehama adds greater predictability with cloud infrastructure, virtual rooms, and virtual desktops – allowing businesses to easily onboard and manage employees and quickly meet service-level agreements with clients.

Contact Tehama today to book a demo and discover the benefits of enabling a secure, sustainable remote workforce quickly and easily.