A virtual desktop running Windows 7 incorporating a standard College desktop which can be accessed from other computers or a tablet devices.

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure

ICT can now provide virtual desktops running Windows 7 (x64) with standard build (i.e. including Office 2010, Adobe Reader etc). These desktops can be accessed from either their computer (running Windows, Linux or OS X) or a tablet device (running either Android or iOS). These desktops are not meant to be customised as they are "refreshed" regularly (to keep up to date with security patches and software updates); nor are they meant for running high performance or specialist applications.

Who is VDI Ideal for?

The following usage scenarios would benefit from a VDI desktop:

• People who wish to access college resources such as electronic journals that they normally will not be able to access these from home.
• Owners of tablet devices such as iPads who wish access to a desktop environment (for instance to edit Office documents).
• Users in highly locked down networks (i.e. NHS Trust) who need a second "Imperial College standard" desktop.
• Mac/Linux users who wish to access the College's Windows environment.

Who shouldn't use VDI?

There are situations where we do not recommend the use of VDI:

• High performance apps or simulations are CPU intensive and unsuitable for execution on a virtual machine, we would recommend one contact the HPC centre for guidance.
• Running of specialist software is not supported under VDI, we aim to keep things simple with a standard desktop operating system. This allows us to provision or rebuild the desktops on the fly quickly (providing a better quality of service to the majority of users). Please contact the service desk for advice on how to proceed with executing specialist applications on a remote server.

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