An overview of DAAS

One thing that drives innovation in technology is efficiency. The advent of cloud computing technologies brought more efficiency, agility and flexibility to business networks. DaaS is a notable example of this cloud revolution.

An overview of DaaS
Desktop-as-as-Service (DaaS) is a form of the virtual desktop infrastructure where desktops are hosted in the cloud and delivered to remote users on-demand. Particularly, the backend of the VDI is hosted in the cloud. DaaS is also termed hosted desktop services and is normally delivered by a third party provider. It runs on a multi-tenant architecture and is offered on a subscription basis. The service provider handles the data storage, security, backup and upgrades which means the complexity of VDI is eliminated while the benefits are realized. As the customer data is saved during the login and logoff sessions, end-users can login to their desktops from anywhere, anytime and from any device.

DaaS is extremely beneficial for businesses that want to deliver the VDI power to their users but do not have the budgets and expertise to do so. Without making huge investments, businesses can lay their hands on world-class hardware and software. At the same time, the helpdesk becomes more efficient as virtual desktop replacements are rolled out quickly. Parallels, VMware and Citrix are the leading providers of hosted desktop services.

Benefits of DaaS/Hosted Desktops
Can be easily deployed and managed
Reduces hardware costs and operating expenses
Costs lesser to manage and maintain
Easily scalable and delivers higher performance
Networks are more flexible and secure
Helpdesk becomes more efficient

There are different types of DaaS options available for organizations. You can choose non-persistent virtual desktops where the user profile and data is not maintained and is removed once the session is terminated. When you buy persistent virtual desktops, you can save user profiles and data between sessions. However, the price differs accordingly.

DaaS Industry Stats
The hosted desktop market is quickly gaining popularity, not least due to an increasingly mobile workforce, ubiquitous internet access and device diversity. According to 451 Research, DaaS is a $2 billion market as of 2014 - a 30% growth over the previous year. And, this industry is expected to grow at this pace in the next two years. A recent IDC study predicts that hosted workspace as a service would touch $661 million by 2016.

According to a recent survey of Citrix, Financial services is the leading vertical market for DaaS with 31% adoption rate which is followed by healthcare and manufacturing vertical markets with 12% each. The survey also reports that 53% of businesses are interested in bundled services where DaaS offering is augmented with applications, mobile device management and file sharing services.

Why businesses should consider DaaS?
BYOD networks, virtual offices and Windows EOL are the three important aspects that make businesses turn towards a VDI. In a virtual desktop infrastructure, businesses can use legacy systems and still run latest applications on them to optimize costs. At the same time, they can remotely publish apps to any device. However, VDI was not as successful as IT experts expected. The reason was the complexity in managing the VDI. Businesses had to invest in physical data center infrastructure. Most businesses did not have the budgets and staff expertise to deploy and manage complex VDI networks.

By embracing DaaS, companies get all the advantages offered by the VDI while leaving challenges and headaches to the cloud provider. They don’t have to worry about the hardware, software, SLA and network performance as these aspects are handled by the service provider. By leveraging a global network of datacenters, they can enjoy optimal network performance to boost your business revenues.

Challenges of DaaS
Though DaaS provides numerous benefits over VDI, it comes with certain challenges.

DaaS Licensing
The most important challenge is DaaS licensing as Microsoft makes it difficult for organizations to host its OS on cloud desktops. This is especially difficult when using Windows 8 or 7. For instance, an end-user who has a license to access Microsoft applications from the iPad from the office cannot use the same iPad from home. This is why cloud providers use server software, however it only allows minimal customization option for end-users.

Calculating Overall Costs
For businesses that have a smaller group of remote users or use fewer applications, DaaS can be economically beneficial. You don’t have to make upfront investment for the infrastructure. It typically costs $25-$40 per user. However, organizations that have large clusters of users have to compare the local VDI expense with DaaS costs that mount up in the long run. When power users go for a higher configuration, the price goes up to $65 and above per user. In addition, the cost of applications used needs to be calculated.

Storage Challenges
While DaaS is beneficial for organizations with a small number of remote users or for a temporary location, VDI is beneficial for organizations that have large clusters of users connected through a local LAN and a VDI host server. Most enterprises leverage both models to make the best of both worlds. However, this fusion creates new storage problems as you need to connect cloud users with the local data center infrastructure so that they can access file data which is a challenge. As a workaround, you can either create a VPN tunnel from the cloud to the datacenter or copy data to and fro from corporate file servers to the cloud. Another challenge is data separation. Businesses need to ensure that employee’s office data and personal data is not mixed.

Performance Issues
Another challenge is the periodical latency issues that affect the performance of the network. Especially for organizations that run high-end graphical applications and streaming media, latency issues can be a concern. These companies need to work with the service providers to eliminate such performance issues. Don’t forget, there is no offline access which means users have to be always connected to the Internet.

Security Challenges
With data being the most valuable asset for any company, sharing resources in the cloud is a concern for businesses. It is important for organizations to check the credibility of the service provider before signing the contract. On the service provider part, higher security standards have to be maintained. In addition, organizations are required to comply with data governing regulation imposed by local authorities.

Business Continuity
The very purpose of DaaS is to securely provide 24/7 access to corporate resources. It means your cloud network should always be on. Moreover, virtual desktops should be accessible from any device, OS or platform. However, in a DaaS environment, you don’t have control over the backend infrastructure and have to rely on the provider for reliability, scalability and service levels. Considering the outages with AWS, you’ll have to opt for a robust SLA.

DaaS Market Trends for 2015 and ahead
The present trends in the DaaS segment prove that Managed Service Providers have a bright future. MSPs have to do their ground work to identify market requirements and design a service offering accordingly. For instance, financial services sector has a higher DaaS adoption rate. So, MSPs need to concentrate more on this segment. They have to consider bundled packages that also handle MDM [Mobile Device Management] and other cloud needs. In addition, MSPs need to consider the following trends and realign their strategies accordingly.

Alternate for Windows Desktops
The new trend in the DaaS segment is the search for a Windows desktop alternate. First of all, Windows XP has reached its EOL. And, many businesses still use XP. However, businesses are reluctant to upgrade to Windows 7 or 8 as licensing for windows 8.1 is expensive. Secondly, Windows 10 is on the way and businesses do not want to invest in a version with an uncertain lifespan and unproven efficiency. This is why people are looking at DaaS solutions that are not tied into Microsoft offerings. There are several organizations such as US Department of Defense that have already implemented Linux desktops.

Desktop-less ChromeBooks
Secondly, the increasing popularity for Chromebooks makes it a good choice as a Windows alternate. With a Chromebook, you don’t need a desktop. Applications can simply run in a browser from the cloud, making the operating system irrelevant. When more innovation is added to Chromebooks, they can easily serve DaaS needs of an organization.

Diversified Audience
With the explosion of smart-phones, businesses are now experiencing a diversified audience. There are multiple devices operating on multiple platforms and technologies. Optimizing your DaaS offerings to these devices is a challenge. Businesses need to concentrate more on providing a consistent end-user experience across all devices.

More emphasis on Security and High Availability
One of the main concerns of a multi-tenant DaaS environment is security. The government regulations and increasing hacking attacks are making service providers to put more emphasis on securing customer data. At the same time, speed and performance cannot be compromised. Service providers are now concentrating on offering secure networks but with a high availability.