Virtualfuture.info

So our application virtualization comparison chart seems to be very popular. We get a lot of positive responses, but one thing that we get a lot is the fact that we mention ThinApp has no central management for deploying the virtualized apps, and that it can easily be done with Active Directory. Although that is true, we still say that ThinApp has no central management for deploying the apps, just to compare it with other products that do come with a central deployment tool, like InstallFree or Microsoft App-V.

Okay, so how can you distribute ThinApp Applications? There a a lot of possibilities, I will explain 2: through Active Directory and with a login script. Read the rest of this entry »

I stumbled on a nice post on TechStrategyPartners from George Gilbert and Juergen Urbanski. It gives a clear view on which areas VMware will be putting their money on and why. It’s a pretty large piece of reading material and I had a couple of “duh” moments but the core of what they’re telling comes down to this:

We’ve all seen the light concerning server consolidation, it’s (becoming) commodity. So what, at this moment, are the areas where the money is ? According to the authors (VMware stakeholders), VMware has defined 3 waves they are setting out to ride the next period : Read the rest of this entry »

Today I was at the “ThinApp - going deep on capturing applications” session. I expected a real technical session about how to tweak a captured application and maybe some best practices. It was a little bit of a soft presentation until one of the presenters showed something used in R&D at the moment: ThinApps that run in a second (virtual) desktop. Read the rest of this entry »

We (Matthijs Haverink and I) have updated our application virtualization chart with the latest release of Citrix XenApp 5.0, Microsoft App-V and Xenocode 2008 SP1. We also changed Symantec Appstream in the chart by combining it with SVS pro, a more commonly used combination. Read the rest of this entry »

From today VMware ThinApp 4 is available. You can download a 60-day trial version which includes the packager, 50 client licenses and VMware workstation 6.

The ThinApp suite 4 can be Read the rest of this entry »

After reviewing VMware’s ThinApp I thought to myself:
How about the other application virtualization solution’s features? I know a couple of application virtualization products, but I don’t know exactly what the differences are.

OK, let’s google for an Application virtualization comparison chart… mmm, not there. Why not make one?
So we did. My colleague Matthijs Haverink and I have written a comparison chart with the following products:

• Microsoft Softgrid *
• VMware ThinApp
• Installfree Bridge
• Citrix Application streaming
• Symantec Appstream
• Xenocode Virtual Application Studio

* This is Softgrid 4.2. From version 4.5 it’s called App-V. When App-V is released, this chart will be updated.

This comparison chart will be expanded with other solutions in the near future, but this is a good start.
Over the next few weeks, we will publish a review of all products in the chart, starting with Installfree by Matthijs.

Feel free to comment on this chart and when neccesary, we will correct the chart.

Download the Application virtualization comparison chart. (pdf)

Update September 9th 2008: Download the updated chart.

While I was working on an Application virtualization comparison chart (which will be released next week), I noticed something interesting. In the ThinApp FAQ it is stated that the general availability of VMware ThinApp will be on June 27th 2008. So now you know.

Another thing I’ve read was this:

…it has a very fast product release cycle—about once a month.

This comes from the ThinApp whitepaper. I hope this also means that new features, like a GUI for editing applications, will be released soon. Fortunately, you don’t have to upgrade all your applications when a new ThinApp update is released.

Until the final release, you can read my review here.

While I was writing a review of the latest release candidate of Thinapp, VMware announced the upcoming release of the 4.0 version of Thinapp.

PALO ALTO, Calif., June 10, 2008 — VMware, Inc. (NYSE: VMW), the global leader in virtualization solutions from the desktop to the datacenter, today announced the upcoming availability of VMware ThinApp 4, an application virtualization solution that lets customers run multiple versions of virtually any application on any Windows operating system without conflict. For example, users can run both Internet Explorer 6 and Internet Explorer 7 on the same operating system without disruption.

Pricing, Packaging and Availability:
The VMware ThinApp offering, which includes a copy of VMware Workstation and 50 client licenses, is priced at $5,000.  The client licenses are priced at $39 per endpoint. The ThinApp licenses are perpetual.  ThinApp will be available for purchase within 30 days through VMware’s network of distributors, resellers and OEMs.  All prices are VMware list prices.

 
There is a introduction video from VMware that you can watch here.

After having seen the Installfree demo last week, I decided to take a look at VMware’s Thinapp Release Candidate, a.k.a Project Northstar. Features in the latest release are:

• Application Link: allows administrators to dynamically link ThinApp packages to one another, making it possible to create separate packages for interdependent components (such as Java or .NET) and use them across multiple ThinApp packages.
• Application Sync: allows customers to execute updates to virtual applications through a secure Internet connection, increasing application portability while reducing security and patch risks to offline and out-of-network machines.

Release notes
Manual

After registering for the release candidate, Read the rest of this entry »