Deskless Workforce Built on Surface RT Tablets

[TeknoBlast]

If you have some time, here's a great, but very long read.



How we did it: A desk-less workforce built on Surface tablets and Windows RDS

 

[Crimson Idol 8]

Great read. Thanks!

 

[jnjroach]

Awesome....

 

[oion]

Now there's a pretty specific and highly detailed use case.

The "consolidating device" approach is what I like and what makes the Surface and related hybrids such neat devices, so I agree with the general assessment that the iOS/Android approaches have been "patchwork," like trying to shove a square peg into a hexagonal hole. At my work, the company does deploy iPads---for only email; a $400-500 (I don't even know what they cost now) EMAIL READER. People try to point out that "because corporations have fleets of iPads, therefore iPads are great business devices," but the fact that the iPad doesn't replace anything tells me that they're trying to shoehorn the things to cover a mobility need only because there was no other choice. Android tablets suffer from higher maintenance needs and unknown security issues (I'm talking about Windows IT people), but that doesn't jive with corporations being Windows-based, so it comes down to the mobility position. That position is ripe for the picking, really.

Anyway, I tried the "compatible with Office" apps in iOS--no dice. (That article also enlightened me to an interesting yet ultimately expected move by MS in supplying iOS/Android remote desktop apps to the MS productivity suite: more competition for RT, so that adds a big question mark to the line's future. I expect MS is moving RT towards Windows Phone, so who knows what will happen there.)

Some random comments:

Remote Desktop was never hawked as much as it should have been for Surface RT, but I suspect that also had a lot to do with the lack of VPN for corporate use and the fact that average home users will not have a Windows Pro/enterprise OS. Win8.1 fixes (supposedly) the former problem, but the latter will always be there, so I guess it's up to Splashtop/Teamviewer/etc. for regular home functionality. Once 8.1 is finally out, I expect more corporate use for Surface RT and other extant WinRT devices.

Wow, User Profile Disks. This is thin client usage at its best. And I'm not sure you can get thinner than a Surface RT right now.

I only skimmed over the Hyper-V stuff--much too technical for me. But it's really great to see this level of detail for a successful, Surface RT thin client implementation. I hope others can use it as a blueprint. (Though I do worry about the single server thing, really hope there's redundancy somewhere.)

 

[hypokondriak]

Now there's a pretty specific and highly detailed use case.

The "consolidating device" approach is what I like and what makes the Surface and related hybrids such neat devices, so I agree with the general assessment that the iOS/Android approaches have been "patchwork," like trying to shove a square peg into a hexagonal hole. At my work, the company does deploy iPads---for only email; a $400-500 (I don't even know what they cost now) EMAIL READER. People try to point out that "because corporations have fleets of iPads, therefore iPads are great business devices," but the fact that the iPad doesn't replace anything tells me that they're trying to shoehorn the things to cover a mobility need only because there was no other choice. Android tablets suffer from higher maintenance needs and unknown security issues (I'm talking about Windows IT people), but that doesn't jive with corporations being Windows-based, so it comes down to the mobility position. That position is ripe for the picking, really.

Anyway, I tried the "compatible with Office" apps in iOS--no dice. (That article also enlightened me to an interesting yet ultimately expected move by MS in supplying iOS/Android remote desktop apps to the MS productivity suite: more competition for RT, so that adds a big question mark to the line's future. I expect MS is moving RT towards Windows Phone, so who knows what will happen there.)

Some random comments:

Remote Desktop was never hawked as much as it should have been for Surface RT, but I suspect that also had a lot to do with the lack of VPN for corporate use and the fact that average home users will not have a Windows Pro/enterprise OS. Win8.1 fixes (supposedly) the former problem, but the latter will always be there, so I guess it's up to Splashtop/Teamviewer/etc. for regular home functionality. Once 8.1 is finally out, I expect more corporate use for Surface RT and other extant WinRT devices.

Wow, User Profile Disks. This is thin client usage at its best. And I'm not sure you can get thinner than a Surface RT right now.

I only skimmed over the Hyper-V stuff--much too technical for me. But it's really great to see this level of detail for a successful, Surface RT thin client implementation. I hope others can use it as a blueprint. (Though I do worry about the single server thing, really hope there's redundancy somewhere.)

I build these types of environments for a living. There is always redundancy. Your VM's are redundant on the hypervisor, and then the hypervisor themselves are redundant in the data center, and then you have disaster redundancy in case you lose a datacenter. Far more redundant than someone carrying a laptop around.

Sent from the SurfaceForums.net app for Windows 8

 

[hypokondriak]

Now there's a pretty specific and highly detailed use case.

The "consolidating device" approach is what I like and what makes the Surface and related hybrids such neat devices, so I agree with the general assessment that the iOS/Android approaches have been "patchwork," like trying to shove a square peg into a hexagonal hole. At my work, the company does deploy iPads---for only email; a $400-500 (I don't even know what they cost now) EMAIL READER. People try to point out that "because corporations have fleets of iPads, therefore iPads are great business devices," but the fact that the iPad doesn't replace anything tells me that they're trying to shoehorn the things to cover a mobility need only because there was no other choice. Android tablets suffer from higher maintenance needs and unknown security issues (I'm talking about Windows IT people), but that doesn't jive with corporations being Windows-based, so it comes down to the mobility position. That position is ripe for the picking, really.

I think non trusted devices like iOS and Android connecting into through a reverse proxy of sorts (i.e. F5 Big IP) with a desktop displayed is quite fine. Bluetooth keyboard and you have essentially the same functionality as a Surface. Your company just chose to only deploy email, but there are other options. Android or iOS stability or vulnerability concerns are eliminated by the F5 or comparable device - if users don't meet X criteria their device is not allowed through the proxy until they adjust (i.e. scans to prevented Root or Jailbreak devices in).

Sent from the SurfaceForums.net app for Windows 8

 

[oion]

I think non trusted devices like iOS and Android connecting into through a reverse proxy of sorts (i.e. F5 Big IP) with a desktop displayed is quite fine. Bluetooth keyboard and you have essentially the same functionality as a Surface. Your company just chose to only deploy email, but there are other options. Android or iOS stability or vulnerability concerns are eliminated by the F5 or comparable device - if users don't meet X criteria their device is not allowed through the proxy until they adjust (i.e. scans to prevented Root or Jailbreak devices in).

Sent from the SurfaceForums.net app for Windows 8

I think our IT admins simply don't know the platform enough, and perhaps Android has the additional issue of updates and versioning compared with the much more locked-down proprietary iOS devices--one Android tablet can behave differently than another at the firmware level, or something. Although this can be controled by buying a single fleet from one manufacturer. I expect email is the easiest to deploy for iPad, however, and ultimately it comes down to the necessity of workarounds for other corporate things.

 

[hypokondriak]

I think our IT admins simply don't know the platform enough, and perhaps Android has the additional issue of updates and versioning compared with the much more locked-down proprietary iOS devices--one Android tablet can behave differently than another at the firmware level, or something. Although this can be controled by buying a single fleet from one manufacturer. I expect email is the easiest to deploy for iPad, however, and ultimately it comes down to the necessity of workarounds for other corporate things.

Yeah things are getting easier here though. Things are getting to the point these days where it's almost becoming expected to have a backend infrastructure that can handle android, ios, win 8.1, etc without ever getting these devices on a corporate network. I actually think Chromebooks are great value in this regard...$200 laptops as thin clients are much better than $500 tablets.

Sent from the SurfaceForums.net app for Windows 8

 

[kristalsoldier]

I wonder though if the convergence between Win Phone 8 and RT takes place, which would survive? From the little that I have been reading, it seems like the idea is that it would be the phone OS which would borrow features from RT and not the other way around. If such a situation comes to pass (earliest estimate, which is very very rough is 2015), what happens to the Surface tablet?

 

[jnjroach]

The ARM based Windows fusion would equate to what Windows of the Future will be, a non-desktop Windows OS. Phone's multitasking is very week currently Windows RT is much better especially in the 8.1 Update, the merger of the two allows for form factors ranging from 3" to 10" devices, all running some version of Office Gemini.

 

[hypokondriak]

I wonder though if the convergence between Win Phone 8 and RT takes place, which would survive? From the little that I have been reading, it seems like the idea is that it would be the phone OS which would borrow features from RT and not the other way around. If such a situation comes to pass (earliest estimate, which is very very rough is 2015), what happens to the Surface tablet?

Now that WP8.1 supports 1080p screens I hope we are closer to that single API that will allow these apps to run on all the devices. The forward looking decision Microsoft made that hardly any recognizes (outside of us users of course) it how well the live tiles and simple 2d approach scales. Combine this with the face that developers tend to mimic the OS they are designing for and you have a solution that follows you exactly device to device. That's something nobody else can provide. Hopefully Microsoft is first.

Sent from the SurfaceForums.net app for Windows 8