VMware Horizon View 5.2

VMware's End User Computing strategy has certainly envolved over the last few years. It was formerly distributed across many products that all solved parts of the VDI problem: View, Horizon, Mirage, Project Octopus, ThinApp, AppShift, et cetera. I can tell you first-hand that many customers just didn't get it, nor did they want to wade into such a cloudy pool of technologies.

At the Potomac Region VMUG event in Washington, D.C. last year, I listened intently as VMware explained that future versions of View would incorporate many of these solutions.

VMware View 5.2 represents a major consolidation of EUC products. You'll note right away that the product name has evolved: VMware Horizon View. View is now a major component of the VMware Horizon suite. In 5.2, we finally get clientless access to our virtual desktops via HTML5. And AppShift... Wow. If you haven't had a chance to see AppShift in action, I highly recommend checking it out. I saw it for the first time at VMworld 2012, and it was amazing. In short, AppShift can re-imagine a Windows desktop or application into a touchscreen metaphor, complete with gesturing.

I suspect that 5.2 will entice many customers who have been considering VDI to finally take the plunge. Virtual infrastructure is kind of a done deal; pretty much everyone has already virtualized their server workloads. Now it's time to provide desktops in the same fashion.