Housing group migrates to virtual desktops

A London housing group expects to reduce its carbon footprint by introducing virtualisation

The Notting Hill Housing Group has rolled out a virtual desktop system as part of a wider plan to meet carbon footprint targets and cut costs.

Expenses and space requirements were reduced at the firm following the implementation of the virtual desktop system based on VMWare VDI. Thin client terminals are also being used to facilitate access to the hosted desktops.

The housing group claims that the migration to the new environment did not disrupt existing applications or desktop set-up, and that support has improved as helpdesk staff can now perform tasks remotely.

"Although the initial cost for setting up each user was around £50 more than a traditional PC, we are estimating the savings over the next five years at £500 per head and will also hit our eco-friendly targets," said Andy Paynton, head of ICT at the Notting Hill Housing Group.

"Of course these benefits are important to us, but perhaps even more important are the improvements for users. For example, a log-on time of around 25 seconds, compared to more than five minutes previously, has already led to a dramatic improvement in productivity.

"Add to this the ease with which support staff can provide upgrades, fix issues and improve usability, and the operational benefits are clear."

The implementation of VMWare virtual desktops was supported by Plan-Net.