The way we work is changing, and not just because the COVID-19 pandemic has led to more remote working than ever before. Technology is constantly changing, and businesses are having to adapt to these changes in order to stay ahead of the curve – ourselves included.
ebb3 was built on enabling businesses to be competitive through the use of virtual desktop infrastructures (VDI). This technology allowed us to deliver desktops and applications to users, facilitate remote access for employees, and streamline IT administration with the aim of increasing productivity. While it was fantastic at doing all of these things, one area where it underperformed was graphics.
How has VDI changed?
Historically, VDI started off being used for applications which provided basic functionality, but business and technology has since developed in terms of complexity and scope. Today, businesses and organisations are demanding applications which can constantly evolve in order to support high levels of user interactivity through the use of graphically immersive interfaces. At the same time, operating systems such as Windows 10 (with its graphic acceleration), were also evolving and demanding more graphic resources, which IT infrastructures had to be capable of supporting.
Why is GPU the answer?
The answer to the additional demand for improved graphics performance on VDIs was GPU virtualisation – as it allows the virtual machines to receive the same GPU benefits as a physical desktop. It accomplishes this by offloading the graphics processing to the server, rather than relying on the CPU (central processing unit). This means the VDI can therefore not only support more users, but overall application performance is enhanced as well.
The benefits of GPU technology
If you are thinking about investing in GPU technology to ensure your VDI experience is the best it can be, then the main benefit you will access is uncompromised user experience. If your workspace is highly virtualized, then you will be consuming large amounts of RAM and CPU resources – and this could slow your performance down and lead to reduced feature sets. Power users could also experience slow performance in 2D/3D graphics and video-conferencing scenarios – which would be a nightmare at the moment. GPUs can be used to take some of the pressure off CPUs, balancing added workloads and improving the user VDI experience.
An example of how GPU can benefit a business
For a better understanding of how GPUs can help your business, let’s use the example of how an architectural firm may benefit from the use of GPUs. A busy architectural firm may find that a lot of its team spend most of their time outside of the office, meeting with clients and on-site. They want to be able to access current information on the project wherever they are, and on whatever device they are using – PC, tablet or smartphone. Without the use of VDIs and GPUs, there would be little insight into their resource demands, and potentially a lot of calls placed to the IT helpdesk, leading to unproductive (and unhappy) employees.
The introduction of VDIs and GPUs means that all employees have remote access to 3D apps which not only boosts their flexibility but also consolidates performance, meaning user experience is increased and the demand on the IT department is reduced.
What is the future of GPU?
At the moment, a lot of businesses are deploying pockets of GPU functionality for specific projects or business units, while also using a common virtualized computing environment in their IT department. We believe that as more areas within a business see the benefit of their application developers using GPU technology, more will also begin to use a single common virtualized GPU accelerated computer environment and enjoy the benefits that brings.
To find out more about how VDI and GPU technology work and how ebb3 can help you make the most of this technology, please give us a call on 0203 8181 000 or email us at info@ebb3.com