Frequently asked questions


Q: Do I need to add hardware in the server to use PCoIP?

A: No, the integration of software PCoIP technology into VMware View does not require the addition of hardware to the server or the desktop client. VMware and Teradici will ensure full interoperability between hardware implementation of PCoIP and the software implementations of PCoIP in both the host server and at the user desk. As such, the addition of hardware PCoIP in the server is fully optional.


Q: Will the software implementation provide a good user experience?

A: Yes, the software implementation of the PCoIP protocol delivers an exceptional user experience for all but the most demanding workstation applications. The differences between hardware and software display compression can be characterized by differences in server CPU loading, network loading and user experience (resolution, display frame rates etc.). Software display compression can optimize for any one aspect (CPU, network or user experience) at the expense of the other two. This applies to any display compression technology. In contrast, hardware display compression enables an uncompromised and highly scalable solution, zero loading on the server CPU for remote display delivery, the lowest network bandwidth and the best user experience. In general, software PCoIP compression provides server and client flexibility whereas hardware compression provides additional application performance, higher virtual machine consolidation ratios, tighter security and the best overall user experience.

PCoIP Software Client (in VMware View 4):

  • Client flexibility while delivering an exceptional user experience
  • Existing PC's or thin clients to reduce capital costs
  • Laptops/notebooks for secure mobile computing

PCoIP Software Server (in VMware View 4):

  • Ease of deployment with no special hardware required in the server
  • Provides the most flexibility when migrating clients (load balancing, preventive maintenance etc.)

PCoIP Hardware Desktop Portal:

  • Best overall user experience
  • Zero client to minimize desktop management costs
  • Superior investment protection and longer lifecycle than traditional thin clients
  • Tightest security including intelligent USB peripheral authorization

PCoIP Hardware Host:

  • Better application performance due to zero loading on the host CPU or GPU
  • Maximize virtual machine consolidation ratios by off-loading server for display compression, packet encryption and network transport acceleration to free cycles for more virtual machines
  • Best overall user experience

Q: Does a good user experience need a lot of bandwidth?

A: No, PCoIP technology is a dynamic solution that adjusts the compression/quality level depending on the available network resources. Also, PCoIP solutions will share the available network bandwidth either fairly as the default, or unfairly based on IT configuration. IT can set soft target or hard bandwidth limits per client.


Q: Is the RDP client mode of a PCoIP portal a zero client implementation?

A: Yes, the RDP client is implemented in the Teradici TERA1 ASIC. It is a true zero client in that the desktop can support any user type when in PCoIP portal mode.


Q: How do you connect a PCoIP-enabled zero client to VMware View?

A: The client will be used in an RDP zero client mode to connect to VMware View 3. VMware View 4 will integrate PCoIP technology, which would connect to the client in PCoIP mode. Migrating from VMware View 3 to VMware View 4 will be seamless.


Q: What type of RDP performance can be expected?

A: PCoIP-enabled zero clients that are operating in RDP mode will function similarly to a mid-range x86-based thin client with single wide-screen display (up to 1600x1200 resolution) and keyboard/mouse support.

However, when used in PCoIP Portal mode connected to a PCoIP Host, the Portal will support any application, any 2D or 3D graphics, full display frame rates (up to DVI maximum of 60 frames-per-second), multi-display up to DVI resolution (1900x1200 resolution) each, any multimedia/flash, any USB peripheral including web cams, printers scanners etc.


Q: Why should the display image and graphics be rendered on the host computer?

A: Display rendering is the process of creating the 2D or 3D display image in the CPU (executing graphics commands) or the graphics hardware (GPU). When the rendering is performed on the same computer as the application, this is called "host rendering" and is used by the PCoIP protocol. When the rendering is performed on a device that is remote from the computer running the application, this is called "client rendering". Most other remote protocols use some form of client rendering. Host rendering has many advantages over client rendering:

  1. Application compatibility – Almost all applications have been written with the underlying assumption that graphics will be rendered on the same computer as the application so host rendering naturally guarantees application compatibility. In contrast, rendering images remotely often results in either poor application performance caused by the application waiting for remote rendering commands to complete or slower image updates for those cases when the remote rendering commands are inefficient over the network.
  2. Investment protection – Client-rendering protocols continue to evolve enhancements to try to address the previously mentioned application compatibility issues, but they are constantly playing “catch up” as new applications are released. These enhancements not only require upgrading the protocol, but also often require upgrading the thin client hardware. Since client-rendered protocols are constantly increasing the capabilities required in thin clients, industry experience has been that the average thin client is obsolete in less than 3 years. Only host rendering can guarantee that all current and future applications will work as designed without having to have a protocol or thin client upgrade. This means that host rendering provides the optimal investment protection. Today’s PCoIP Portal will continue to support future applications as long as VGA or DVI monitors are available (future versions will also support DisplayPort).
  3. Reduced client maintenance – With host rendering, a PCoIP Portal is simply an image-decoding device much like the video decoder in a cable or satellite set-top box. This means that a PCoIP Portal is a true, zero client which requires no more IT management than a home router or set-top box. In contrast, traditional thin clients run a Windows or Linux-like operating system thus requiring operating system patches, anti-virus updates, and protocol upgrades to support new capabilities and codecs. This is a fundamental limitation of client-rendered protocols.
  4. Better network performance – Since client-rendered protocols are sending rendering commands rather than compressed images, all of these commands must be reliably delivered to the remote device and executed in the correct order. When the network has significant latency or loses some network packets containing those commands, the performance of a client-rendered protocol begins to degrade as rendering commands wait for previous commands to successfully reach the remote device and complete. In contrast, the PCoIP protocol is only sending compressed images. As the network latency increases, the compressed images will take longer to reach the PCoIP Portal, but subsequent images never have to wait for previous images to arrive at their destination, much like a televised sporting event does not wait while the compressed video is bounced off a satellite to a home TV. If the network happens to drop a compressed-image packet, the PCoIP protocol is intelligent enough to resend the lost packet only if that section of the image has not changed since the packet was lost. This reduces the amount of unnecessary packet re-transmissions in a lossy network.

Q: Given all of the advantages of host rendering compared to client rendering, why are most other remote image protocols using client rendering?

A: The primary reason is that host rendering requires compression of the host-rendered image before transmitting it over the network. Doing this in software on the host computer either requires a significant amount of computation on the host computer or a significant amount of bandwidth on the network if limited compression is used. Until the recent introduction of multi-core CPUs with multimedia instruction extensions, this tradeoff was generally unacceptable. With today’s CPUs, the PCoIP Software Server can now provide an exceptional user experience for all but the most demanding workstation applications while making efficient use of the available network bandwidth. However, the CPU resources required for the PCoIP Software Server will limit the number of virtual machines that can be consolidated on a single server. By offloading this computation load to a PCoIP Hardware Host, significantly more users can be supported from one server, thus reducing cost, space, and power consumption in the data center.
 

 

 

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