The VMware View Open Client for Linux is arguably the fastest client, but does not support audio or USB redirection, which will make it unusable in many installations. This is a shame, since this client could form the basis of a simple transition from physical desktops to VDI by allowing admins to leverage existing hardware to attach to the VMware View farm without paying for additional licenses. From what I understand, the lack of these functions is legal and political, not technical. Hopefully these artificial hurdles will be overcome soon. The Open Client really needs to be fully functional, or it's just not viable.

Beyond the software clients, there are several companies producing thin client systems that have embedded VMware View clients. These units are designed to connect to a VMware View server and offer all of the options View supports.

Regardless of connection method, whenever a user authenticates to the VMware View server, they are presented with a virtual Windows desktop that works exactly the same as the physical Windows desktops they're used to. The one difference: In addition to logging out of the session, they can now disconnect. Disconnecting allows them to reconnect from anywhere and resume where they left off, while logging off will necessarily close all open applications and present them with a clean slate at the next log-in.

When running over 100Mbps Ethernet with the VMware View Client, the experience is roughly the same as with a local desktop. Of course, the overall experience is highly dependent on the specs of the desktop VM, such as RAM and CPU allowance, but when VMs are properly configured, most users are unlikely to notice much of a difference.

Users running from remote locations or via the Internet will see some sluggishness inherent with RDP (Remote Desktop Protocol), and high-latency connections will suffer somewhat too. This is a well-known factor present in all RDP connections, not simply VMware View. As with Citrix and Microsoft Terminal Services, it's best to know your users and what they need before deploying any form of virtual desktops. Users that require lots of CPU and RAM to run applications like Photoshop are not generally suitable for VDI, much as they aren't for other forms of remote desktop access.

Speaking of remote users, VMware View can be deployed to allow remote users to access their desktops from any browser anywhere. This comes in the form of another VMware View server built as a security server -- essentially, a Windows server that resides on the DMZ and acts as a proxy to the internal VMware View server. This removes the need for the internal View server to be Internet accessible and offers some measure of protection from external threats. The setup and configuration of this security server is extremely straightforward, requiring only a few open ports between the two systems, as well as to the security server from the Internet.