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Here is a three minute (or less) pitch building the story of Citrix technology. It doesn't capture everything, but it gives a fair flavour. Intended for technology audiences, potentially with little exposure to Citrix, I think it's is "as simple as possible, but no simpler".
As always, I'd love to hear what you think.
Michael
Citrix technology ranges from point to point desktop sharing like GoToMyPC and GoToMeeting (1) ...
... through to sophisticated enterprise delivery of Windows desktops and applications, including remote sessions from Windows Server farms (2) ...
... and full desktop images, hosted on a shared server and delivered over the internet (3).
The desktop technologies are complemented by application acceleration appliances, delivering web apps for dot com and the enterprise (4).
All can run "virtually" to enable the promise of cloud computing (5). Indeed, the Citrix hypervisor is at the heart of the largest (IaaS) clouds.
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Cloud is still not well understood. Indeed the very name suggests fogginess. This is why we see such a profusion of "what is cloud" presentations, all, or most, providing a very vendor-centric view. In the presentation below, I've attempted instead to provide a general overview of how cloud is perceived by different players, and (surprise, surprise) to position Citrix technologies with respect to the most general views of 'cloud'.
Cloud computing (for the IT professional at least) includes notions of Software as a Service, Infrastructure as a Service, and Platform as a Service. These categories are well understood and largely accepted, but are imperfect. Very clearly, all can be applied to offerings from external providers as well as to operating models, or "patterns" within the enterprise. Furthermore, we're seeing a great deal of category leak at present, with SaaS offerings on IaaS, PaaS offerings that can be hosted as IaaS and offered as SaaS, etc, etc.
Citrix has various technologies that enable Infrastructure as a Service and this has been the focus of our C3 (Citrix Cloud Center) marketing to date. However Citrix has long been a leader in bringing the notions of Software as a Service to the enterprise. This is something we've been doing for over a decade with our WinFrame, MetaFrame and XenApp technology. It's the core notion of today's Citrix Delivery Center, now extended to desktop virtualization.
Here's an updated cloud computing deck, originally used at some of the Citrix iForum events (and posted here), that I recently presented as a keynote at the IT Architect Regional Conference in Malaysia (http://www.iasahome.org/web/malaysia/). Please let me know what you think.
Cheers, Michael
Some other links on Citrix C3:
This week at our iForum Singapore event Adam Jaques and Gordon Payne demonstrated an early version of the Citrix Receiver for the Android operating system.
| UPDATE August 3rd: See the announcement and demo: http://community.citrix.com/blogs/citrite/adamj/2009/07/29/Citrix+Receiver+for+Android+Demonstration+Video |  |
I'm excited about this, first because it's being developed in Citrix Labs, and what's more in Citrix Labs Sydney. I'm more excited because it brings Citrix ever closer to ubiquity on the smart phone - we have a client for Windows mobile, a receiver for the iPhone, an alpha receiver for the Blackberry, and soon a receiver for Android.
This is really important for Citrix and for our customers because the age of Smartphones has begun, and the mobile device, and mobile experience, will never be the same again. Citrix is helping make this happen by making the Smartphone enterprise friendly by bringing 'every' enterprise application to the Smartphone, no matter what variety; be it Windows, web or other.
For many, the Smartphone will be (or already is) the major connection to the web, the Internet and to the work environment. This brings new challenges for information and security management in every organization.
To address these challenges Citrix Labs is working closely with Open Kernel Laboratories to bring cutting edge laptop management approaches to the world of the Smartphone. In much the same way that the XenClient initiative (originally Project Independence) is bringing new capabilities for laptop management, there is an opportunity to combine the new Android Receiver, secure virtual cell technology from OK Labs, and a management infrastructure to create separate personal and enterprise cells on a given Android device. This is an ambitious goal, but one that could open up a new age of Enterprise managed mobile devices.
In a press release in May, Martin Duursma (VP of Citrix Labs) put it like this:
"Working together on mobile-to-enterprise virtualization (M2E), Citrix and OK Labs will enable handset OEMs, MNOs, or enterprises to deliver enterprise applications and content to any mobile device through an OK Labs implementation of Citrix Receiver for the OK Labs mobile phone virtualization platform," said Martin Duursma, Vice President, Citrix Labs. "Today's announcement broadens the Citrix vision of Project Independence for local desktop virtualization and desktop computing and applies it to enterprise application and desktop delivery into mobile devices."
Steve Subar (CEO of OK Labs) puts it like this:
"To address the security requirements of enterprise IT and the personalization preferences of mobile workers, mobile-to-enterprise virtualization (M2E) will enable a secure corporate cell on a mobile device where the receiver function is protected from the security breach of a personal cell. This solution will enable mobile phone users and Corporate IT to leverage best of both worlds - open, unfettered access to personal consumer applications and data with secure, controlled access to enterprise applications and desktops. In addition, M2E will make possible the centralized remote management of the corporate IT cell across all user devices."
My view - we're in for a gloriously interesting next few years with rapid changes coming from consumerization married with Smartphone technological innovation. With the Citrix receiver providing EVERY enterprise application on EVERY Smartphone, Citrix is definitely along for the ride.
Are you?