Next week, the VMworld conference kicks off and all of us at X1 are excited. VMworld gives X1 the opportunity to introduce our newly-minted VMware Ready products – X1 Search 8, X1 Search 8 Virtual Edition, and X1 Rapid Discovery – to VMware users. Perhaps more importantly, though, the conference is an opportunity to hear where the world is moving with regard to several hot topic areas: VDI; hybrid cloud; and mobility.
Desktop virtualization promises many benefits: lower IT costs; streamlined administration of IT assets; and end-user flexibility in terms of accessing the desktop from anywhere. Given the popularity of BYOD, the consumerization of IT, and the need for mobility to support telecommuting, VDI is becoming more and more important. There look to be some compelling sessions at the show about customer successes using VDI that will show not only that the benefits of VDI are real, but also how others can learn from those successes to continue to drive VDI adoption. At our booth, X1 will continue to remind folks building unified search into VDI requirements early on can optimize VDI deployments. At the very least, this will help to ensure that end-users are more receptive to the virtual desktop and allow them to remain productive. Getting end-users to buy in is often half the battle when deploying new technology. When it comes to VDI environments, a good search solution must decouple the search UI from the indexing service. Otherwise, indexing will require virtual desktop computing resources and cut into VDI cost savings. The goal is to minimize the RAM usage and search client footprint on the virtual desktop.
Hybrid cloud is a combination of a private IT infrastructure and a public cloud. The public and private cloud infrastructures then communicate over an encrypted connection and can port data and applications back and forth. Hybrid cloud is hot because it delivers real benefits: increased speed of access time and reduced latency because of an on-premise, private infrastructure that is accessible directly as opposed to through the internet; more flexibility to have on-premises infrastructure that can support the average workload and to leverage the public cloud when the workload exceeds the power of the private cloud component; and more flexibility in server designs that can lower the costs of storage. X1 will detail to booth visitors how unified search of information no matter where it lives – cloud, on-premise, hybrid – can make hybrid cloud environments more user-friendly. Products like X1 Rapid Discovery enable hybrid search that lets IT glean all the benefits of hybrid cloud while ensuring end-users are happy with their ability to find information.
Mobility is an important topic and complementary to both VDI and hybrid cloud. VDI and hybrid cloud environments will enable business professionals to be mobile and productive. One of the keys to productivity is fast, easy access to information – and that is exactly what X1 provides. The architecture for X1 Search 8 Virtual Edition stands to enable better access to information on more and more devices. We are excited for VMworld because it means the opportunity to meet further with the VMware Airwatch team and understand how X1 can continue to partner with VMware in new and innovative ways.
If you are going to be at VMworld, please come see X1 at Booth #2436. We would be happy to show you our products and how they can complement existing or planned VMware investments.