VMware Horizon 6 and how it can benefit you..

What is Horizon 6?

VMware Horizon 6 leverages the best of Horizon View and extends these benefits beyond VDI, providing end users with on place to securely access all their desktops, applications and online services, from any device. Horizon 6 allows organisations to deliver virtualised or remote desktops and applications through a single virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) platform and support end users with access to all their desktops and applications through a single unified workspace.

With Horizon 6, VMware have introduced six new key capabilities to help organisations deliver unlimited access to desktops and applications, at lower costs and with better performance. These enhancements help maximize operational efficiency and consolidate control.

The Key Features are:

Applications:

• Supports end users with robust access to SaaS apps, Web apps, packaged VMware ThinApp apps, RDSG-Hosted apps and Citrix XenApps, through a single unified workspace.
• Enhanced support for USB drives with RDSH-hosted apps and session-bases desktops for file storage, sharing and collaboration.
• Support for scanning and imaging devices with virtual desktops and RDSH-hosted applications.
• Client drive redirection to ensure simple drive mapping to a virtual desktop.
• Google Chrome client support.
• Client-free, HTML access to legacy Windows apps across more devices, including Google Chromebooks.

Virtual Networking:

• VMware NSX with Horizon 6 brings push-button simplicity to VDI Networking. IT administrators can create and change policies for end users within seconds.
• Policies dynamically follow the end user across devices and locations, without the need for time-consuming network provisioning or security rules. 
• Organisations can easily scale up or down, and each end user's network security policy will remain intact.
• Horizon 6 provides a highly extensible platform that integrates with industry leaders in antivirus, malware, intrusion prevention services and next-generation security policies, by extending security policies from the data center to the device.

Graphics:

• Immersive 3D graphics delivered from the cloud.
• VMware provides full support for the industry's leading ISV applications, including Siemens, ESRI and Autodesk.

Storage:

• Horizon 6 leverages optimised VMware Virtual SAN 6.0, ensuring that customers can easily scale out and support up to 4,000 Horizon 6 virtual desktops per cluster.
• Support for all-flash Virtual SAN ensures end users can enjoy great experience with the best possible TCO.
• Horizon 6 now supports Virtual Volumes VM-aware storage systems to simplify storage management and policy settings for VDI.

Scalable and Available:

• Horizon 6 allows organisations to design virtual desktops around a wide range of validated technology partners or leverage hyper-converged infrastructure with VMware EVO:RAIL, to linearly scale out desktops and apps on demand.
• Applications can be delivered in real time with VMware App Volumes, now integrated with Horizon 6.
• Organisations can ensure that end users enjoy high availability with continuous access to services, by leveraging the Cloud Pod Architecture available with Horizon 6.

Fed-Ready:

• Horizon 6 is designed and certified to meet the most demanding compliance regulations, including those of the U.S. Federal Government.
• Horizon 6 now provides Common Access Card support for simple and secure access to apps and desktops for agencies that require it.
• Horizon 6 also provides end-to-end support for IPv6 networks for simplified packet processing and address assignments.

Horizon 6 offers improved security, simplified operations and accelerated time-to-value, and is available in three editions, Standard, Advanced and Enterprise. For more information about VMware Horizon 6 or other VMware products please contact Practical Networks, a VMware Partner on 01723 587240.