Vmware Remote
VMWare Tools for Remote Access#
VDI (Virtual Desktop) vs Terminal Server#
First let understand the difference between terminal server and virtual desktop remote access.
VDI (Virtual Desktop Infrasturcture)#
- No local pc required
- custom version of software per user
- designed for multimedia and desktop functionality
- local atttached storage is available on the remote desktop
- resources are individual to the user
TS (Terminal Server)#
- local pc is required
- all users share the same software
- all resources are shared
- struggles with multimedia - graphics and audio
VmWare Remote Access Options#
- VMware Workstation
- Mware Remote Console (VMRC)
- VMWare Horizon
VMware Remote Console (VMRC)#
- Standalone windows, mac and linux application. It provides console access to the vm on a remote.
- You can only launch VMware Remote Console (VMRC) from within the web client - “Launch Remote Access”
- VMRC is supported by all vSphere 5.1 and ESX configurations, and by all vCloud Director 5.1 configurations.
Using VMRC in VCloud Director#
According to the vcloud direcctor vmrc docs
You log into the tenant portal, select Action then select Launch VM Remote Console
Accessing VMRC via the API#
Docs on accessing vmrc via the api
VMWare Horizon#
- A tool to create a virtual desktop infrastructure and uses the vSphere for hosting virtual desktops
- All data lives in the data center, not on the endpoint, there are significant security benefits of VDI
- Easier to scale