What is desktop as a service (DaaS)?
DaaS is a high-performing, secure, cost-effective type of desktop virtualization. DaaS frees businesses from tethering their computer operating systems and productivity software to any physical hardware. Instead, businesses can use DaaS to access virtual desktops over the internet from a cloud provider. Cloud providers that offer this service distribute and manage virtual desktops from their own datacenters.
DaaS vs. on-premises
DaaS solutions differ from on-premises software in a number of ways, most notably:
Pricing. With DaaS, companies can avoid making advance purchases of hardware that they anticipate their employees needing, such as expensive desktops and laptops. Instead, companies pay cloud providers only for the data, resources, and services that they use.
Scalability. Cloud providers offer companies the freedom to use any amount of desktops on a fluctuating basis. This gives companies instant access to the precise number of desktops they need, whenever and wherever they need them.
Management. Cloud providers offering DaaS conduct maintenance, data storage, updates, backup, and other desktop management for companies that outsource these solutions. DaaS providers often manage their customers’ desktops, applications, and security as well.
What are the benefits of DaaS?
The financial, performance, and administrative benefits of using DaaS are numerous. Let’s look at some of the biggest reasons businesses use this type of desktop virtualization.
Enables remote work. The rise of hybrid and remote workplaces calls for a different approach to accessing applications and data. With DaaS, IT teams can easily move data between different platforms and users can easily access the data they need from multiple machines, no matter where they work.
Supports BYOD. Besides freeing employees from physical offices, DaaS can free employees from solely working on company-issued devices or with one particular device. With DaaS, IT teams can more easily support bring your own device, or BYOD, policies that let employees work on their own phones, tablets, and laptops.
Simplifies desktop management. For IT teams, outsourcing the deployment, configuration, and management of virtual desktops helps reduce the administrative load. The ability to quickly scale up or down the use of desktops, applications, and data based on user need also helps to ease IT duties.
Helps increase security. DaaS poses fewer security risks because the data resides in the cloud provider’s datacenter, not on the laptops, tablets, and phones that employees use. If a computer or device is lost or stolen, it can easily be disconnected from the cloud service.
Reduces IT costs. DaaS solutions save businesses money by shifting IT costs from traditional on-premises hardware and software purchased up front and in bulk to cloud-based services and desktops purchased as needed. DaaS can run on devices that require far less computing power than a standard laptop or desktop machine, which helps companies save money. Allowing employees to use their own devices also helps save on hardware costs, as does reducing the workload of IT teams.
Extends the life of legacy machines. Companies that lack the immediate funds to upgrade all of their outdated machines can use DaaS to install a newer operating system on them. Serving the newer operating system from the cloud is a more affordable prospect than replacing an entire fleet of on-premises equipment all at once.