"With a cloud-oriented datacenter network, we had to quickly convert all traditional client-server applications into cloud-enabled solutions. To do so, we needed a comprehensive virtualization solution that was easy to understand and manage while being able to reach low bandwidth areas."

Antonio Guerrero
Deputy Technical Director

Grupo Trevenque is a leading provider of IT consultancy services in Spain which was started by a group of 90 dynamic professionals with the aim of delivering high-quality business solutions globally.

The ChallengeA new solution that would centralize the publication of applications.

Grupo Trevenque’s primary requirement was centralizing the publication of applications. The company needed to quickly turn the traditional client-server datacenter into a cloud enabled virtual network.

The company offers approximately 250 virtual desktops and applications, including Microsoft Office, Sage, SAP, Internet Explorer and personalized applications, to 220 concurrent users. The company required a virtualization tool that could centrally host desktops and applications and publish them to remote users.

Secondly, some of the clients were on a low-bandwidth network. To deliver a rich and consistent user experience, the company needed a tool that could optimize bandwidth to the core.

Another important requirement was device redirection, especially printer redirection. In a virtual network, any remote user should be able to use a local printer to print documents from the Internet. Configuring the local printer was a challenging task.

The company originally used VMware to set up virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI).

Citrix was used to publish virtual applications. The company had chosen Citrix because of its brand value, popularity and its wide range of features. Independent Computing Architecture (ICA) and HDX protocol was another feature that attracted Trevenque. Citrix was delivering reliable performance in that application publishing was not bad, and technical support was good.

However, the main challenge was training and certifying employees on the usage of Citrix tools. The Citrix solution also required the configuration and management of multiple components. The process was complex and time-consuming and required certified professionals.

In addition, configuring the load balancing component and licensing server was particularly challenging.

The TestWhich alternative virtualization solution could fix their complex problems without the need for external IT expertise?

Although Grupo Trevenque had good tools and infrastructure, the company could not leverage them due to a lack of technical expertise. There were only a few managers who could use all the product features.

Grupo Trevenque was looking for an alternate virtualization tool that could enable them to quickly set up cloud-based datacenters for seamless delivery of virtual desktops and applications while being easy to manage.

The cost and complexities of training and certifying IT professionals led Grupo Trevenque to search for a virtualization solution that was easy to deploy and use but still enabled them to deliver cloud-based IT solutions to remote clients from a central datacenter.

The SolutionParallels RAS chosen for its simplicity and ease of use.

Their search ended with Parallels RAS. Quick to set up and easy to use, Parallels RAS enabled the company to deploy cloud-based environments to remote clients while optimizing low bandwidths. Moreover, features such as High Availability Load Balancing and Universal Printing are included as standard.

This solution helps Grupo Trevenque to centrally host applications and easily publish them to remote users. While Citrix offered the same features with similar client policies, fewer managers were trained and certified with the technology, which reduced the agility of the VDI network. Even with solid tools, the company was not able to fully leverage the Citrix solution.

In comparison, the simplicity and ease of Parallels RAS reduced the complexity and costs involved in the training programs.

The company uses VDI and Windows Remote Desktop Services (RDS) to publish virtual applications to remote clients. Parallels RAS was set up to centrally host applications in the datacenter in Grenada and, using SSL-based encryption, publish them securely to remote clients. The company mainly used the following features: Desktop management, HTML5 Gateway, Parallels RAS Management Portal, application publishing and server load balancing.

The ResultsEase of use, reduced costs, and lower total cost of ownership.

Parallels RAS immediately simplified Grupo Trevenque's IT management. The company was able to quickly convert the traditional client-server networks into cloud environments.

The intuitive and straightforward interface enabled the staff to easily access all the solution's features to leverage the virtualization network. Administrators without any virtualization knowledge or technical expertise could easily manage the network from a single dashboard.

The performance of the product was fantastic.

The most important benefit offered by Parallels RAS was the availability of auto-configured features. Load balancing, printer redirection, and other virtualization components came auto configured by default. With Parallels RAS, the company could print from the cloud using any local printer without the need to install the local printer drivers on the central server.

Furthermore, the company was able to reduce the total cost of ownership (TCO). The costs of infrastructure management, training, and certification of staff using Citrix increased their TCO. With Parallels RAS, the TCO was significantly reduced.

Remote users now access resources using SSL encryption, ensuring a higher level of security. Bandwidth optimization is an added advantage. As a result of the Parallels RAS communication protocol, the company seamlessly delivered applications to offices with lower bandwidth.

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