Understanding Citrix Hosted Desktops and Their Use

Last updated on December 9th, 2022

Citrix hosted desktops are VDI implementations that help us deliver virtual desktops to any end device. The installation, configuration, management, upgrades, and service monitoring are achieved by Citrix only. The managed service provider offers you hosted unit with pre-installed apps and a Windows experience.
Your IT team is only responsible for managing in-house IT, PCs, access control, and on-premises security. This offers advanced feasibility, high productivity, and increased operational efficiency.
This is a quick start guide to understanding how Citrix hosted desktops benefit small, medium, and large enterprises.

Table of Contents

What Is Citrix Hosted Desktops?

Hosted Citrix desktops are virtual desktops hosted on the Citrix server. These are customizable, cost-effective, and comprehensive for any business. Managed DaaS providers use Citrix Virtual Apps for creating hosted desktops. These thin clients have advanced features, including high security, storage flexibility, and endpoint accessibility.

What Are The Features Of Hosted Citrix Desktops?

Citrix hosted desktops are packed with features like security, customer support, no capital expenses, endpoint accessibility, uptime, etc.
Here are some of the features of hosted Citrix desktops:

1. Similar To Windows Desktops

Citrix-hosted desktops are similar to your Windows desktops. From look-and-feel to smooth accessibility, hosted Citrix desktops are exactly like your office desktops. Therefore, this smooth experience allows employees of an organization to adjust to the change without challenges. Your IT team only needs to support the implementation procedure followed by accessing virtual desktops. Other than this, the experience is comparable to windows desktops.

2. Managed Operations

Hosted Citrix desktops are offered as a managed solution by providers who ensure comprehensive services. This includes OS patching, management, and upgrades that help monitor the overall health of the infrastructure.
Citrix-hosted desktops help you migrate your data from legacy systems to the cloud. You only need to understand the requirements of your business, ensure access control hierarchy, and start using hosted Citrix desktops.

3. No Capital Expenses

Managed Citrix desktops don’t have any capital expenses. The managed VDI provider sets up the entire IT infrastructure for VDI. This means you don’t need to spend money on management, security, and upgrades.
You receive high-end, high-performance servers with advanced storage infrastructure. You only need to start using virtual units, and everything else is maintained and upgraded by the cloud service provider.
Further, the best physical desktops to use for virtual desktops are the ones you already have in your organization. Therefore, there’s no need to spend money on the physical hardware of the office.

4. Connects To Devices

Citrix-hosted desktops are designed to be compatible with many third-party devices and applications. This means that your scanners, printers, and other devices necessary for office infrastructure can be easily connected with hosted Citrix virtual desktops.

5. Flexibility

Citrix hosted desktops offer flexible usage for the following reasons:

● You can scale your resources, including RAM, storage, and upgrade your configuration as per the requirements of your business. It is also possible to de-scale these resources whenever required.
● The payment model for managed desktops usually includes a pay-as-you-go model. This allows you to reduce your overall cost and manage your office desktops flexibly.

6. Advanced Security

Citrix hosted desktops provide secure access to business-critical applications. With the help of Citrix Virtual Apps, managed desktops acquire a multi-layer security architecture, including the following:
● TLS 1.3 and 256-bit encryption
● OS patching, IP filtering, and management
● Access control
● Multiple factor authentication
● Intrusion Detection and Prevention system
● Antivirus upgrades
● DDoS protection

7. 99.99% Uptime

Citrix-hosted desktops offer 99.99% uptime for data and app access. This is possible due to geographically isolated redundant servers and infrastructure. The fault-tolerant systems replicate data and virtual machines to multiple servers, offering maximum uptime, such as 99.99%.
This uptime ideally means only a few hours of downtime throughout the year.

8. Backup and Support

Citrix-hosted desktops offer you 30-day backup support for your devices. This allows storing data on redundant backup servers, which improves recovery feasibility.
During a disaster or mistake, you can restore your data whenever possible. For example, a flood wiped your offices. You can restore data at any point without any challenges.
Similarly, if an employee deleted a data file accidentally, you can restore it to a backup image.

9. Customized Solution

Based on the requirements of your business, you can easily customize your solutions. Contact the managed services provider that offers Citrix hosted desktops, explain your business needs, and get custom virtual desktops.

Also Read: Citrix vs. VMware VDI

Frequently Asked Questions About Hosted Citrix Desktops

When you first start using managed DaaS services, you may have a series of questions in mind.

What Is The Difference In The Experience Of Windows Desktops And Hosted Citrix Desktops?

There’s practically no difference between hosted Citrix desktops and windows desktops. Similar to windows installed on your office desktops, hosted Citrix desktops have the same experience. Your employees won’t face issues accessing Citrix virtual desktops. Just one day of training would be sufficient. Post the training; your employees only need to sign in to the server, confirm their access controls, and start using virtual hosted desktops.

Why Should You Use Citrix Hosted Desktops?

There are many benefits attached to Citrix hosted desktops. It includes:
● Virtual resource management
● Seamless desktop virtualization
● On-demand scalability
● Advanced security
● High uptime; more than 99.99%

How Can Citrix Hosted Desktops Help My Business?

Hosted Citrix desktops are designed for sustainability and low-cost management. You can centrally store data, manage desktops from one access point, and secure your devices from cyber threats. This helps businesses reduce capital expenses, improve security, and enhance collaboration.

How The Right Cloud Hosted Provider Improve Experience Of Hosted Citrix Desktops?

The right hosted Citrix desktops offer you multiple features:
● 24/7 customer support
● Unique customizations
● Seamless upscaling/downscaling
● Pay-as-you-go model
● DRaaS support
● 30-day free backup

Along with this, the right cloud provider will offer you a high-performance experience via SSAE-16 Tier 3++ and Tier 4 data centers.

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