Application Streaming

[tmcd35]

Hi Guys,

 

I've recently become interested in the idea of streaming applications. Could make room builds a bit quicker/easier. Especially when a teacher hands you a new program to install two days after you've just ghosted that room...

 

Any way, has anyone here add any experience with this. Or better still, could point me towards prices. I've found several solutions on the ol' Interweb, but am finding it difficult to obtain specifics (usually a sign of high pricing!)

 

Thinstall looks perfect. Listed at $5000 though, e-mailed them for an edu price twice, been ignored

 

XenApp sounds good, but couldn't find any hard facts or prices outside of details on Citrix Presentation servers.

 

AppStream seems to be priced at £25 per client - times 900 clients is a lot!

 

And SoftGrid seems to be available only via Microsoft's Desktop Optimization Program. Which is only available to Software Assurance customers. Though there is a mention of an optional subscription, no price is given!

 

I've got a demo of Altiris, but having played with it I don't think it'll present the streamed applications to the end user seamlessly enough for me.

 

Any thoughts, Ideas, have a missed something obvious? Is there (heaven forbid) a decent piece of GNU that'll do the job?

[Ric_]

I've not done any App Streaming with XenApp Server (or Presentation Server 4.5 as it used to be called) but it does look relatively easy. Education Enterprise licenses are somewhere in the region of £120 each depending upon how many you get and how strong the pound is at the time.

[saundersmatt]

I'm a big advicate of Softgrid. It works a charm in our environment.

 

Just to throw another soultion in the works there is also Server 2008 remote app. I'm not entirely sure of the licensing but since it is terminal services based i'd assume you just need TS licences, which are pretty cheap.

 

Matt

[tmcd35]

Thanks for that Matt.

 

If I remember correctly, RemoteApp is Microsofts answer to the Citrix presentation server. The app runs on the server. I'd like the app to be stored on the server but run on the client.

 

Like I say, Thinstall looks 100% perfect, but £2,500 is way too much - knock off the leading '2' and I can argue a case with the money men.

 

How did you get your copy of Softgrid? Is it the 4.5 trial version on their beta test site or the 4.2 version with MDOP, or a pre M$ version?

 

If it's the MDOP version, do you have M$ software assurance or did you get the subscription?

 

Cheers

 

Terry.

[saundersmatt]

My apologies, you have been doing your homework, unlike me. I didn't realise citrix presentation server worked that way, though it was similar to TS, hence recommended remote app.

 

We're running 4.2, licenced through SA as there are a few more things that software assurance allows us to use.

 

Matt

[K.C.Leblanc]

I've not used it, but X2 must be worth a look. Very keenly priced.

[srochford]

And SoftGrid seems to be available only via Microsoft's Desktop Optimization Program. Which is only available to Software Assurance customers. Though there is a mention of an optional subscription, no price is given!

 

Yet again, Microsoft manage to screw up the simplest of things :-)

 

Not sure how you buy your MS software but on the Campus agreement, Software Assurance is built in so Softgrid is easy to buy; it comes in at less than £3 per FTE staff (Campus isn't priced per PC but per member of staff).

 

Talk to whoever you buy your Microsoft software from to get a price; Mike Young at Pugh is very good and does seem to be able to make sense of MS licensing!

[tmcd35]

I've not used it, but X2 must be worth a look. Very keenly priced.

 

Thanks for that, I'd looked at X2 before when I was researching ThinClients. We have a couple of Terminal Servers in situe for those jobs. It looks as if X2 is just another take on TS.

 

I'm looking for something to stream the apps to run on the client, rather than running the apps on the server and streaming just the display.

 

SoftGrid actually looks as if it might be the one to look at on cost (M$ winning on price ?!?). If only I can get the actual figures. I've e-mailed Phoenix Software, hopefully they'll help.

[Geoff]

I stream Sims.NET, PARS, Office 2003 and Firefox to my Linux Desktop PC. I have Citrix Presentation Server 4.5.

 

I could stream these apps elsewhere (for example Sims is a good candidate for streaming to the more creaky teacher PCs). But I've not needed to.

[linescanner]

You could look at using Sun Secure Global Desktop

 

You can get apps from TS units integrated into the start menu.

 

We have a number of customers using it to deploy SIMS to laptops in school and at home.

 

I can launch SIMS here on my Ubuntu workstation

 

Andy