Application Readiness

Planning your Windows 7 deployment

By: Randy Littleson

In my last post, I talked about Windows 7 Application Compatibility – 4 Things We've Learned. In this post, I want to look at the broader topic of Windows 7 deployments and some of the best practices and issues associated with it. Certainly Windows 7 application compatibility is near the front of that list, but there are other considerations.

One key factor that many enterprises must decide on is whether they are doing just a Windows 7 deployment, or if they are going to combine that project with others – whether it be BYOD, application virtualization, desktop transformation, or a host of other related initiatives.

A research SearchEnterpriseDesktop article on TechTarget entitled Despite BYOD and cloud, it's business as usual for Windows migrations had this to say:

Windows 7 was launched in October 2009, but it still accounts for less than 50% of enterprise operating systems. As of June 2012, Windows XP accounted for 44% of the enterprise desktop OS market, down from 56% a year ago and 64% two years ago, according to the latest figures from Net Applications, an applications vendor and research firm based in Aliso Viejo, Calif. Windows 7 accounted for 42% of the enterprise desktop OS market, and it's expected to pass XP adoption rates by the end of the third quarter of 2012.

These are global numbers. Windows 7 migrations have been happening faster in North America. Some estimates have adoption as high as 60% in North America with EMEA at about 46% of desktops and APAC coming in at about 20%.

It went on to say:

The trick -- and it's a complicated one -- is for IT to figure out how desktops, consumerization and mobility augment one another, then implement the technology to empower end users, all within a set budget.

From what I have seen, it appears that application virtualization is tightly aligned with Windows 7 migrations and is being done concurrently in a high percentage of cases. Many other initiatives are being implemented at the same time, but not as broadly as application virtualization. They tend to be distinct initiatives with their own budgets.

When it comes to actually planning the Windows 7 migration, there are two schools of thought on the best approach (you can access Microsoft upgrade and migration tools here). You can either push out the migration as the usual operating system update, or to do so as part of the PC refresh cycle. The jury is out as to which is best, but to have a clean image when migrating as part of the new PC cycle invariably simplifies the number of supported configurations, thereby decreasing drift in images. The ideal scenario, then, is going with the refresh cycle, but since many waited too long, they have to opt for the former.

According to a research report cited in an eWeek article entitled How to Successfully Migrate to Windows 7 companies indicated that approximately half of their IT staff were needed in the migration process and 54% used automation to simplify the upgrade. Many of the IT professionals surveyed felt automation was justified for any company with 10 or more PCs.

That same article cited planning, training and pilot testing as most critical to a successful Windows 7 deployment.

A huge benefit to those who still have to upgrade is the growing pool of resources based on the experiences of those that have already traveled this path. Tap into resources online and use social media outlets to compare notes so you can learn from their experiences.

Preparing for an Application Virtualization Rollout

By: Chris Maher

In my last blog post, I discussed some of the many benefits of using Application Virtualization. In this post, I'll discuss some steps to help you prepare for an Application Virtualization rollout.

The first step in preparing for an Application Virtualization rollout is to determine the application virtualization technology that best suits the organization's needs. Oftentimes this decision is determined based on the relationship with the individual vendors. For instance, organizations that have widely adopted Microsoft technologies will likely use Microsoft App-V, while applications that have adopted VMware technologies may be inclined to use VMware ThinApp. Others yet may decide that Citrix XenApp is the way to go.

Once the underlying technology has been chosen, how to deliver the virtual applications to the endpoints needs to be decided. There are two main mechanisms for delivering virtual applications: 1) streaming; and 2) pushing the entire application to the endpoint. Users of App-V may decide to leverage their existing Configuration Manager architecture to deploy the entire application or implement streaming servers that will stream only the blocks of data that are necessary to run the application. ThinApp users may decide to use Streaming Execution Mode, which streams only the necessary parts of an application into memory at launch time. One of the advantages of this approach is that there is no footprint or storage necessary on the endpoint. However, this solution also requires that the application be streamed over the network every time it's launched. Streaming has the advantage of getting the application to end users quickly on first launch, but has the disadvantage of having to be connected and performing "out of sequence" requests for portions of an application that aren't a part of the first launch. This can cause some sluggishness while using advanced features of an application.

Another decision that needs to be made is how to determine which applications should be virtualized. It's important to run a compatibility test on the applications prior to virtualizing. Some applications aren't good candidates for virtualization either because they have components that can't be virtualized, or because they integrate with many other applications or parts of the Operating System. Understanding which applications can be virtualized can save a great deal of time. By the same token, it's also key to understand the licensing for applications. It may be easy to virtualize an application and provide access to it on a network share, but it's important to ensure that no license agreements are being broken in the process.

For consistency purposes, creating standards and best practices for the application virtualization process is very helpful. For instance, what is the naming convention for applications and shortcuts? Should shortcuts be delivered to the desktop? How will application updates be handled? What documentation is needed? How will User Acceptance Testing be conducted?

Once the applications to be virtualized are determined and the process for packaging and testing them has been designed, a migration plan can be created. This will typically include the resources necessary to virtualize, test, and deploy the applications. It will also include how to retire the existing locally installed applications that are being replaced by virtualized applications. This step is typically the longest in the rollout.

Leveraging automation techniques during the application virtualization migration process can drastically reduce the amount of time needed to rollout. It can also increase the likelihood of success by minimizing the amount of manual intervention needed to properly virtualize an application. Solutions such as the Flexera Software AdminStudio Application Virtualization Pack can assist with the process of testing applications for compatibility and converting applications to an application virtualization format. AdminStudio can also help enforce the standards that are defined as part of the process.

Preparing for an application virtualization rollout can seem like a daunting task. Oftentimes organizations wait for a compelling event such as an Operating System migration or a desktop transformation initiative to implement application virtualization. However, given the many benefits, it can make sense to implement application virtualization sooner rather than later.

Desktop Transformation Success Begins with Understanding your Users

By: Ken Hilker

Resistance is futile. Desktop transformations are assimilating the standard corporate computer. I was speaking to a friend and former colleague the other day that had recently turned in his corporate laptop, and was glad to be rid of it! He was now working from home three days a week, using his personal computer to connect to a virtual desktop environment hosted in the corporate datacenter. He had connected his iPhone to his company's email server for mobile access to email and calendar appointments. His company had not provided him with a single device with a hard drive (for a financial company this had huge security benefits) and my friend hadn't even noticed. The only hardware device that his company was providing was a low powered Linux thin client for the days my friend ventured into the office.

In July 2011, Forrester Research reported that 60% of companies were supporting a bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policy and Gartner Research forecasts that Virtual Desktops will account for 10% of enterprise desktops by 2014. For this new wave of desktop computing to roll out successfully, IT must accept that one solution will not fit all. Trying to migrate 100% of desktops to thin clients will fail. Trying to migrate 100% of laptops to tablets will also fail. IT must learn to "right-size" their users by matching their computing needs to a menu of new device options. Some will be best suited with traditional desktops and laptops. For others, a thin client or a tablet may suffice. And some may not need any corporate provisioned devices at all.

To make this assessment IT needs a much deeper understanding of their users than ever before.

• What applications are they using? Can those applications be virtualized or run in a multi-user environment?
• How much data is stored in the user's profile? Does it need to be secured?
• How often does the user require mobile access? Will they need offline access, or will they always have an internet connection?
• What type of processing power is needed?

The culture shift of trading in a laptop or desktop for a thin client or an employee owned device is a major hurdle for many companies. It is highly recommended to evaluate the questions above in detail with a programmatic solution. Use the data collected to match your users to a computing solution with capabilities that best aligns to their needs. When paired successfully, your users, like my friend, will be only too happy to trade in their device.

Windows 7 Application Compatibility – 4 Things We’ve Learned

By: Randy Littleson

By now, many companies have successfully completed their Windows 7 migration and solved the Windows 7 application compatibility challenges that this project inevitably brings to bear. According to various sources, this is where Windows 7 migrations globally currently stand:

• According to a Microsoft spokesperson quoted in February 2012, one-third of business PCs have upgraded to Windows 7 since it was released in late 2009. Gartner predicts that Windows XP market share will continue to decline to under 5 percent by early 2013.
• Organizations that have not yet migrated (or started detailed planning) from Windows XP are "really, really late" according to Gartner. The same article quoted Gartner saying that "about 5 to 10 percent of the industry" is still not thinking about these migration issues.
• In a May 2012 webinar, Michael A. Silver, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner, said the issue of migration was still a big concern.
• According to Gartner, it typically takes six to 12 months to complete an OS migration.
• My own experience has been that North American companies seem to be further ahead, with Europe and Asia-Pacific slightly behind on the adoption curve.

On April 18, 2014, Microsoft will "end of life" Windows XP – which by that time will be more than 13 years old – meaning Microsoft will no longer support it or offer updates or patches. At the same time, Windows 8 is quickly approaching. However, Gartner believes most companies will skip Windows 8 altogether and even Microsoft acknowledges, "for the enterprise, the path to Windows 8 is through Windows 7."

As many companies have already completed their Windows 7 migrations, quite a bit has been learned about the processes, technical challenges, and best practices in ensuring a successful migration. I would like to share some of these best practices:

1. Establish an Application Readiness process—in order to manage the complexity of migrating all of your applications successfully to Windows 7, you need to establish an Application Readiness process. Such a process would include the following steps:
   1. Identify—identify deployed and used applications
   2. Rationalize—eliminate duplicate applications
   3. Assess compatibility—determine suitability for migration/upgrade
   4. Plan—plan migration in line with business objectives
   5. Fix and Package—convert applications to required format
   6. Deploy—deploy packaged applications (using SCCM or an enterprise app store)
   7. Such a process is essential to managing a complex project like this, but also establishes consistency and best practices for on-going Application Readiness processes. In a typical company, 30% of the applications change each year and need to be put through this same process, so establishing it now ensures that you have a successful migration and an on-going best practice process in place.
2. It's more than a Windows 7 migration—most companies have used their Windows 7 migration project to evaluate whether or not their applications are optimally deployed. Thus, most companies are combining Windows 7 migrations with application virtualization, private cloud and virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) projects to solve compatibility issues, gain efficiencies and streamline ongoing application management processes. Since you need to evaluate and manage your entire application estate through the migration process, it's a great time to leverage these new technologies to gain further benefits.
3. It's more than just Windows 7 application compatibility—as a result of #2, the focus needs to be on more than just Windows 7 application compatibility. Holistically assessing application compatibility needs to be integral and baked into your Application Readiness process, and it needs to cover Windows 7 application compatibility, application virtualization compatibility assessment, web application assessment and virtual desktop assessment to ensure that all the desired destinations are assessed for each application. It appears that very few companies are standardizing on a single vendor for their virtualization and/or cloud infrastructures—choosing instead to go with the best solution for the type of deployments that they choose to utilize. Therefore, application compatibility assessment needs to be equally agnostic and help you assess the right solution for your needs.
4. Leverage the right tools to automate your business processes—like any critical business process, your Application Readiness process should be automated to the extent possible. Choose an Application Readiness solution that can help automate and manage this process through all phases as outlined above. Doing so significantly reduces the risk of human error and standardizes each step in the process.

Companies across the globe continue to move to Windows 7 at a rapid clip—but there remains a lot of work to do. Windows 7 application compatibility is at the heart of any successful migration project. Hopefully these insights, based on experience, will help you ensure that your migration is a success.

Why Use Application Virtualization

By: Chris Maher

Application Virtualization technology has been available for almost a decade, but actual usage of the technology has been limited. Many companies that own licenses to use the technology have either not got around to implementing it or still haven't bought into the Return on Investment. As such, I'd like to address some of the main benefits of Application Virtualization.

Application Virtualization derives its name from decoupling the application from the underlying Operating System. Therefore, the application is never actually installed, and it executes in its own segmented virtual environment. Because the virtual application runs in its own environment, other applications on the system cannot "see" it. This enables applications that would normally conflict with one another to reside on the same machine. A great example of this is different versions of the Java Runtime Environment (JRE). Without Application Virtualization, if two different applications require different versions of the JRE, they need to be installed on two different machines. With Application Virtualization, the applications can reside on the same machine.

From a desktop perspective, this can really help with managing the environment. However, in a hosted environment, such as Citrix, the savings can be quite substantial. In a hosted world, the existence of silos is generally a direct result of applications that don't "play nice" together. With Application Virtualization, you can increase the number of applications that run in a hosted environment, thus reducing the number of actual servers that need to be managed.

Another advantage of Application Virtualization is the concept of streaming applications. In the traditional world, the entire application must be pushed to the target machine and installed. Depending on the size of the application, this can be a lengthy proposition. With Application Virtualization, the application can be broken down into blocks of data that are needed to launch the application (called Feature Block 1), and blocks of data that can come down upon request (known as Feature Block 2). Typically, Feature Block 1 can be anywhere from 10%-20% of the overall size of the applications. For an application that's 100 MB in size to be installed traditionally would require the entire 100 MB to be downloaded, and then have the installation run. With Application Virtualization, only about 20 MB of the application needs to be streamed, and then the application can run without any install. This benefit gets your users working more quickly.

Another big advantage, and one that typically gets ignored, is the improvement around managing the overall application lifecycle. Applications can be easily deployed to end users without having to worry about application compatibility, thus eliminating much of the remediation testing that occurs today. It can also be much easier to maintain after application deployment. In a streaming environment, if an application that has already been deployed needs updating, it only needs to be updated on the Streaming Server. Changes to the endpoints will be applied upon application launch. Finally, to reclaim an application from a user is a matter of flipping a bit to remove the application, without having to worry about completely uninstalling the application.

The last big advantage is about keeping the "Gold Image" gold. When an application is physically installed, files, registry settings, COM objects, etc. are all added to the Operating System. When the application is uninstalled, oftentimes remnants are left behind. With Application Virtualization, to remove an application from a device is as simple as removing a file. No residual components are left behind, which keeps the base Operating System clean, and as close to the "Gold Image" as possible.

I've covered some of the many benefits of Application Virtualization. Here's hoping that you're encouraged enough to start using it!