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HCoA Tales From The Field

11.7.23

The deck has been updated for VMware Explore Barcelona

Noted changes to call out are the following;

  • New EOL date for V1 (31.1.2025), however the end of capacity date for additional pods remains at 31.10.2023.
  • Added revised links to the technical deep dive session at BCN that Rick Terlep and Graeme Gordon are scheduled to present. Hopefully a recording of this session will be made available on the Explore BCN Site.
  • Called out the different potential use cases for Azure on AVS (24 x 7 workloads) vs HCoA (burst capacity / on demand billing)
  • Add a link to the Hans Bader’s session from Explore Las Vegas on VDI Workload costing
  • Feature Parity Changes specific to the EMEA audience. Removed calling out lack of FedRAMP support in V2 and added in the lack of Azure Tagging at the pool level.

09.19.23

Content updated for the Boston VMUG Usercon. Deck is available at the link below.

8.23.23

VMware Explore Las Vegas Attendees; While I can’t share the specific deck that I presented during the event, the previous versions, shared below contain much of the same if not more detailed content. Please feel free to download the PDF. Also, reach out directly if you have additional questions not answered in the presentation.

6.22.23

Corrected the date included in the 6.21 post for the v1 End of General Support to 1.31.24

6.21.23

Dates reflecting the recent formal declaration of V1 HCoA services including both of the End of Availability (10.31.23) and End of General Support (1.31.24) have been including. I’ve also removed the previous reference below to WS1 Access Entitlement Support, as that update was pulled from the release and is now still pending implementation.

5.22.23 – Update

Details have been added on the Horizon Cloud offering page noting another option for organizations not want to migrate to full blown VMware SDDC + Hyperscaler offerings, i.e., VMC on AWS, would be to consume VMware partner hosted offerings.

I’ve also called out, that as of the April 23 SaaS release of WS1 Access, desktops entitlements from HCoA are now capable of being “published” to the WS1 Access catalog. Previously this was a limitation for V2.

Link below has been updated to the new deck

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Practical experiences in deploying Horizon Cloud on Azure, both current and next generation.

Here is a link to the PDF copy of the presentation

Material will be updated as content and links change. Please check the reference date on the title slide for the latest information.

VMware Explore Las Vegas 2023

My EUC Session Picks

Admittedly, these picks are a bit biased to Horizon and application delivery, but I’ve called out some WorkspaceONE sessions for good measure. By clicking on the image of the session, you will be provided with a link to the session in the content catalog.

  1. Solution Keynote – Intelligence Platform

During last year’s EUC keynote at Explore SFO, we heard how much intelligence, i.e. the idea of using a “data lake”, from all of the endpoints managed in the VMware EUC estate is going to be taking a primary role. It’s my assumption here that we’re going to be hearing about how these data points can then be analyzed them automated. Think of setting a condition state for a iOS or Windows 10 desktop, then based on your level of comfort having WS1 automating the endpoint management to match that desired state.

  1. App Volumes 4 – Tech Deep Dive

App Volumes and by extension, Apps on Demand and Published Apps on Demand, continue to be a leading driving force in delivering VMware’s vision of a stateless desktop environment that is composable and delivered on demand to the user. We’ll hear from the product manager, Jeff Ulatoski, as to where the product is head and perhaps to which additional platforms it will be available.

  1. Application Packaging with Rimo3

Initial application rationalization, the process of discovering the applications installed in a golden master, who is responsible for that application, what goes into testing and then packaging it, can be a daunting tasks for organizations. Add in the complexity that these applications need to be tested continuously during patching cycles and the problem gets worse. Rimo3 has developed a unique set of tools to automate this process. As AoD becomes more prevalent, the need to test and automate against a wider set of potential desktop environments becomes all that more important.

  1. Horizon Cloud on Azure – Next Gen Deep Dive

With the recent announcement of the Horizon Cloud version 1 platform deprecation timeline, it’s critical for Horizon admins to understand the future of the platform and how it’s a significant architectural change from what was offered prior. This session will cover up to date migration information along with deployment considerations as we move more functionality into the Horizon Cloud.

  1. Horizon Cloud Platform + AVD & Win365

The Horizon Cloud platform, is evolving to allow admins to deploy desktops to a multitude of different platforms, including the three core Hyperscalers, in several different offerings, based on the business requirements of how much or how little those admins wish to manage the actual desktop delivery stack. For Microsoft, we’ll hear from their director of product for AVD and Windows365, Scott Manchester, as to how the are partnering with VMware and the Horizon Cloud platform to offer a “better together” pairing that’s perhaps better than the native SKU

  1. Virtual Desktop Cloud Cost Analysis

I’ve been lucky enough to work with Han on a few of our global accounts. His catchphrase of “If your moving your on-premises VDI images directly to the cloud, your doing it wrong.”, has really resonated with me. As we’re moving more workloads to native Hyperscaler offerings, it’s important to understand the nuances of each platform’s cost structuring along with how subtle changes in CPU, Memory and disk storage can have a dramatic impact to your overall cloud spend at scale.

  1. EUC Community Roundtable

Sean Massey will be leading a discussion of industry veterans including Jens Henning, Jon Towles, Dane Young and Stephen Wagner regarding where EUC from both the VDI and MDM spaces is headed. I always appreciate the insights of these individuals who are at the forefront of our global partner practices.

  1. Practical applications of AI in Intelligence Platform

A practical take on the keynote. How information in the intelligence platform can be used to drive automation and alerting from one of the best in the field, Johan van Amersfoort.

  1. Shameless Self Promotion – My own Horizon Cloud On Azure Session