Value of Virtual Infrastructure - HITS Nova Scotia

Value of Virtual
Desk Top
Infrastructure
Lauren MacDougall, Communications Manager, HITS-NS
There a lot of hype these days
about cloud-based computing or
the cloud. Another way to
describe this means of managing
data is virtual desktop
infrastructure (VDI).
Virtual desktop infrastructure
(VDI) is the practice of hosting a
desktop operating system within a
virtual machine (VM) running on a
centralized server. 1 In other
words, a desktop computer can
access multiple applications
without having to physically
maintain specific software or
worry about compatibility issues
between various applications. In
the technology discipline,
compatibility is referred to as
interoperability.
There are two aspects of
virtualization: (1) desktop and (2)
server. The key benefits for both
server and desktop virtualization
are consolidation (the process of
placing multiple operating systems
on the same piece of hardware),
mobility (the ability to move
operating systems between pieces
of hardware quickly) and
administration (desktops and
servers can be deployed in a
matter of minutes vs. hours).
The big difference between server
and desktop virtualization is the
fact that servers have always been
centralized. Currently, 80 per cent
of the provincial Data Centre’s
servers are virtual.
HITS-NS has negotiated an
enterprise license agreement with
VMWare for various products.
Before VMWare, all provincial
servers resided within the
provincial Data Centre. Now with
desktop virtualization, the same
can be said about our
desktops. The physical device
(i.e. PC) sits in front of the end
user, but the applications actually
run on servers in the Data
Centre. This means that desktops
now benefit from the same
advantages that servers
have…increased security,
increased reliability, back-up and
disaster recovery capabilities,
centralized management and in
the long run…reduced costs. VDI
also centralizes desktop support
virtually eliminating the need for
IT support staff to go to various
locations to troubleshoot desktop
issues.
HITS-NS’ mission is to enrich the
circle of care through the secure
delivery and support of provincial
health care information systems
and services. VDI assists HITS-NS
in achieving our mission by
providing many benefits to Nova
Scotia’s health care infrastructure
and the end user.

Benefits of VDI to Users
User mobility
As more and more applications
become available to health care
providers, so too do the
demands on end users’
computer resources. Through
VDI, applications can operate
independent of others avoiding
the conflict between versions of
JAVA, web browsers, etc.
Consistent and secure user
experience in multiple locations.
Benefits of VDI to IT
Administrators
Centralized desktop
management
Application compatibility issues
reduced or eliminated
Increased data security
Reduced costs
Hardware independence
Reduced support calls
Long-term cost and carbon
footprint reductions
An average PC under a
moderate load will consume
approximately 200 watts/hr,
which equals 4.8
kilowatts/day assuming it’s
on for the entire day. This
same PC will use half of
that when running VDI so
2.4 KW/day. On average,
virtual desktops under the
same load will only
consume approximately
0.21 KW/day so the overall
power consumption per
desktop is reduced by a
little less than half.
April 2012
As applications are upgraded
throughout their lifecycles, the
VD solution provides a
consistent, common
environment for testing
purposes and delivery,
reducing support costs and
downtimes.
Advantages of Virtual Servers
Consolidates servers to reduce
costs and maximize utilization
of resources
Better use of hardware. One
physical server can host a
number of virtual servers,
depending on the applications
Once you virtualize a server, it
is completely portable -
anything you can do with a file,
you can do with a virtualized
server
Provides easier disaster
recovery and more flexible
backups. Administrators can
back up individual files or the
entire server, which isn’t easily
achieved with a physical
server.
Applications can be accessed
and run on remote servers at
the provincial Data Centre
rather than stored on the end
user’s PC.
The enterprise agreement with
VMware could potentially save
HITS-NS and our clients more
than 40% over the next three
years.
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