Meet the virtual desktops of Windows 10, the power of Windows
Microsoft knows that users like virtual desktops. Having desktops beyond the physical limitations is a powerful way to organize and quickly access groups of windows. Virtual desktops are not new, in fact, Xerox PARC created one of the first virtual desktop experiences in the 1980s, and a version for Windows 10. x was later made. Microsoft offered the virtual desktop manager as part of Windows XP PowerToys and a little later released Sysinternals Desktops which enabled similar functionality. Many other operating systems and third-party utilities have also embraced the power of virtual desktops. Given the growing popularity of this organization tool, we decided to build a native virtual desktop experience on Windows 10.
It provides greater productivity especially when we are working on a single monitor, organizing by tasks or applications in each of the available desktops, offering more space to group windows, and helping to locate them more quickly. They can be created in infinite numbers, as long as they support the resources of the machine, by means of a mouse click and with changes between them from the taskbar. In the latest development release, Microsoft has created one of the most requested features by Insiders: moving windows across desktops. The company has also implemented keyboard shortcuts for these Windows 10 virtual desktops.
- WIN + CTRL + LEFT/RIGHT: Switch to the previous or next desktop
- WIN + CTRL + D: Create a new desktop
- WIN + CTRL + F4: Close the current desktop
- WIN + TAB: Launch task view
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Why do we say that it is so simple and fast? For these reasons:
It is easy to deploy as it can be configured in three easy steps and scaled up from scratch in less than an hour, eliminating the dependency on network and storage resources.
- It is easy to manage. If you regularly use Windows, you will be able to manage it centrally and guarantee secure access to the users you want to their virtual workstations at any time and place.
- It is easy to expand thanks to its flexibility, so you can gradually increase the implementation on demand just by adding the servers with which you are going to work.
Now, once you know its features, what does VDI-in-a-Box really offer you?
- Easy to start working. You only need two things: a ready-to-use server with a hypervisor and VDI-in-a-Box software. You load it, start it and it’s ready to go. Easy, right?
- Supports more than 2 billion devices. Citrix Receiver gives you secure access to any of 2 billion devices including iOS, Android, WebOS, Chrome OS, Mac OS, Linux, Windows PC, and more.
- Minimum cost, zero complexity as VDI-in-a-Box eliminates the need for shared storage, high-speed interconnects, multiple management servers, and cluster SQL servers that VDI often requires. This all-in-one design simplifies and offers high availability without the need for additional infrastructure.
Simple and intuitive: Desktop administrators manage VDI-in-a-Box servers centrally and with an intuitive wizard-driven interface that summarizes virtualization details – saves administrator time configuring and maintaining applications’ desktop images. This allows administrators to run scripts and automate management routines. And one more thing: automated administration reduces desktop support costs.
- Pooled and customized virtual desktops. VDI-in-a-Box gives you the best of both worlds: you get your own personalized desktop for your apps, settings, and data, and Windows administrators manage a single master image. Easier, impossible.