Thin-client computing has been around for years, and at various times, vendors have declared that thin is in.
The thin-client approach involves diskless desktop computers that pass off most processing and administrative chores to a centralized server. The underlying premise of thin clients is that fewer moving parts and no local storage reduce administrative costs and boost security.
Many organizations have bought into the technology, but performance concerns and budget issues have kept others on the sidelines. Thin-client computing may now deserve another look, given proven financial benefits, continuing security concerns and recent technology twists.
1. The proof is in: Running thin clients can cost less Lower operating costs have been a central selling point for thin clients since they arrived on the market. With years of use behind it, the technology has the track record to prove its marketing pitch.
York County, Pa., for example, saves $80,000 annually because it uses thin-client technology. The deployment consists of Citrix Technology’s Citrix Presentation Server software and Hewlett-Packard’s Compaq t5000 thin-client devices. The county first deployed thin-client technology in 2001.
“We’ve realized a huge savings through the course of our deployment of thin clients,” said Jeffery Shiflett, York County’s assistant director of information technologies.
He said the county, which previously used desktops, has saved on technology upgrades and ongoing support costs. Because there’s less to break, there’s also less to repair, Shiflett said. He said the organization’s thin-client investment paid for itself in less than two years.
But don’t expect to save much on the initial hardware investment. In some cases, the price of a thin client isn’t much different from a desktop PC’s.
“The greatest savings comes from the reduction in touch labor required for administration and troubleshooting,” said Col. Rusty Lingenfelter, chief of the Information Infrastructure Integration Division in the Army Chief Information Officer’s Office.
The Army has used thin-client solutions to access multiple classified networks from one machine, Lingenfelter said. Traditionally, Army users who frequently accessed several networks needed to have multiple PCs on their desks.
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