My work laptop is not just a computer – it is my connection to the corporate world. I write blogs, read email, attend web-based meetings, and track my budget – anytime, anyplace. Like many mobile workers I dread it when IT pushes out new patches to my computer.  Will it be when I am editing a doc or attending a web meeting? And there is always the fear that I will lose data before it is successfully captured on corporate servers through a file sync or backup.

So what does the trend toward virtual desktops mean to me – your garden variety road warrior/knowledge worker? The promise of fewer maintenance hassles and a more reliable way to keep my data safe and accessible. In this regards both IT and I have the same goals – something that does not always happen. However, the world of virtual desktops has not always offered the most satisfying user experience (my fear) and the ROI is often not as straight forward as server consolidation (IT’s fear).

The virtual desktop moved closer to reality for both users and IT with the launch today at VMworld of VMware View 4.5. For me, the user, VMware View offers full desktop capabilities, even while disconnected from the corporate network. View can also deliver a personalized desktop experience across a variety of end-user devices, including Windows and Mac devices, as well as thin clients – a key feature since the number of computing devices I have seems to be growing instead of decreasing.

From an IT standpoint VMware View 4.5 brings a managed desktop virtualization package that can support a massive number of desktops through a single console. VMware View 4.5 is designed for scalability, flexibility, and performance – all attributes shared by the AMD Opteron™ platform.  In fact, the latest VMware desktop solution is designed specifically to take advantage of multi-core processors, such as those offered by AMD, to deliver an excellent user experience. 

VMware View 4.5 can be a great fit for customers deploying desktop virtualization with the new AMD Opteron ™ 6000 Series platform which is designed to increase VM density and support more virtual desktops per server. Based on the next-generation AMD Direct Connect Architecture 2.0, the new AMD Opteron 6100 Series processors offer:

• Up to 24 cores in a 2P configuration or up to 48 cores in a 4P configuration
• Up to twice the memory bandwidth as the previous generation of Operton processors, with 12 DIMM slots per CPU
• Improved power efficiency features with hypervisor support for Enhanced AMD PowerNow!™ and C1e state
• AMD-Vi™ technology for I/O Virtualization with the AMD SR56x0 chipset
• Outstanding price-performance balance as compared to competitive offerings

As the first 8- and 12-core x86 processor for the 2P and 4P server markets, the AMD Opteron 6000 series platform offers double the core count of AMD’s previous generation 4- and 6-core processors, which helps deliver greater VM densities and more virtual desktops per physical server.  Add on top of that a competitive price, more memory channels than the previous generation and improved power features, and you have an environment perfectly positioned for the next generation of desktop virtualization, aided by the launch of VMware View 4.5.  

We have a long history of collaboration with VMware, extending back to before the original AMD Opteron processor launch in 2003.  At that time, server virtualization on x86 computers was in its earliest stages and server-hosted desktop technology, referred to under the mainframe-style name of “terminal serving”  was making its way into the x86 computing world. Today, thanks to our partner VMware, server virtualization is moving into the mainstream, as nearly every enterprise IT shop has implemented some level of virtualization, and desktop virtualization is gaining more and more attention as the technology matures.

Check out more information on VMware View 4.5 here.  

Margaret Lewis (@margaretjlewis) is a Product Marketing Director at AMD. Her postings are her own opinions and may not represent AMD’s positions, strategies or opinions. Links to third party sites are provided for convenience and unless explicitly stated, AMD is not responsible for the contents of such linked sites and no endorsement is implied.