Conferences that solve current IT challenges

Desktop Virtualization Strategies - Implementation and Management

Strategies to help the business and IT benefit from virtualization strategies through effective management, security, and recovery techniques

October 19, 2011

9:00am-5:00pm

7 CPE / 0.7 CEU / CISSP / 7 PDU Credits Awarded

Register
Bios

Donald E. Stephens Convention Center  Rosemont (O'Hare) Illinois

Overview

Desktop virtualization can increase desktop security, reduce desktop and responsibilities and reduce calls to your help desk Virtualization of IT desktop infrastructure and applications promises the following benefits:

  • Desktop Virtualization can significantly decrease maintenance and support costs

  • Easier provisioning of new desktops

  • Reduced downtime with server or client hardware failures

  • Decreased cost of new application deployment

  • Desktop image management capabilities

  • Longer refresh cycle for client desktop infrastructure

  • Secure remote access to the enterprise desktop environment

But still many do not understand at its basic level, what Virtual Desktop Infrastructure is. Economic survival and sustainability is a shared concern among many top executives. This leads to increased emphasis on recovery/continuity of operations and data. What should you be doing differently in this economic climate to adhere to enterprise wide goals?

In this one day conference attendees will learn how they may need to tweak their approach given current company challenges.

What You Will Learn

In this one day conference attendees will learn:

  • An exact definition of desktop virtualization

  • The pros and cons of desktop virtualization

  • How to determine if it is right for your organization

  • How to build a project plan for desktop virtualization

  • How to implement desktop virtualization in your infrastructure

  • How to modify your DR and Security plans

  • How to avoid implementation and management pitfalls

  • How other IT departments are working through these challenges

Conference Program

8:00am - 9:00am - Registration and Continental Breakfast

Khnaser

9:00am-10:00am

Getting on the Same Page: What are the Variations of Desktop Virtualization and What are the Business Benefits?

Elias Khnaser, Technology Officer, Sigma Solutions, Inc.

There are many promised benefits to the organization of Virtual Desktop Infrastructure At the same time, there is some confusion as to what Virtual Desktop is, what the different types are and what the exact benefits are to the extended enterprise.

  • How desktop virtualization works
  • About the differences between VDI, terminal server, OS streaming, client hypervisors, client-based virtual machines
  • The business benefits of desktop virtualization

10:00am -10:30am - Refreshment Break

Chase

10:30am-11:30am

Understanding the Pros and Cons of Desktop Virtualization

Mike L. Chase, J.D., CTO, Cloud Services, dinCloud/EnPointe

Desktop Virtualization has a lot of promise, but it is important to understand the reality of the undertaking. While there are some similarities between desktop and server virtualization, there are many differences.
When making a move to Virtual Desktop platform, IT executives and management should consider advantages and disadvantages:

  • There are exponentially more desktops than servers to support
  • Since server virtualization teams may not be responsible for virtual desktop, desktop groups may need to rethink their strategy for patching, management, software distribution, etc.
  • Desktop challenges may include uniqueness of end-user images
  • How to handle one-off machines in different departments that may need to be patched/managed separately
  • In certain environments (universities) it might be a challenge to lock down the PCs since there are different groups being supported
  • The costs of network and storage additions/enhancements
  • In a virtual desktop environment hardware can be stretched out longer
  • With less hardware there is less ‘break and fix’
  • Significantly less IT staff time spent fixing machines
  • Easier patching and management in some environments

Padmanabhan

11:30am-12:30pm

Where to Start with Desktop Virtualization Project Planning: How to Design, Modify and Implement

Purnima Padmanabhan, VP Products and Marketing, MokaFive

Organizations with local, national and international presences all have distributed PCs that need to be managed, updated, secured, etc. VDI can help alleviate many of these concerns. At the same time, by mid 2010, many enterprises will be looking to make a move to Windows 7. These two areas might make the timing right to move forward with virtual desktop for many organizations.


In this session attendees will learn how to: 

  • To develop a checklist that includes: Delivery options, costs, power and cooling, network load, organizational structure, user and application mismatch
  • Start with a desktop environment assessment to understand into the scope, size and impact of a virtual desktop infrastructure implementation.
  • How to design and modify your hardware and software environment
  • Virtual desktop can help manage your distributed environment
  • The impact of Windows 7 and how virtual desktop can support a potential rollout
  • The time and involvement of your staff to make sure the rollouts of both go smoothly
  • How to avoid pitfalls with virtual desktop implementation

12:30pm - 1:30pm Luncheon

 

 

1:30pm-2:30pm

How to Modify Your DR Plan to Include Virtual Desktop Infrastructure

Loring Pelz, Principal Consultant, Ahead

Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity are always top of mind with IT professionals.
How should you refine your DR/BC plan with migrating to a desktop virtualization environment and what should you include?

In this session, attendees will learn:

  • How to analyze your changing environment, processes and business/technology requirements
  • How to handle diverse data pools supporting the desktop, operating systems and user data
  • How to centralize, secure and manage the data
  • How to back up all virtual desktops and user data directly
  • How to automate disaster recovery

2:30pm - 3:00pm - Refreshment Break

 

 

3:00pm-4:00pm

Desktop Virtualization Security: Understanding the Benefits and the Risks

Christopher DeMichael, Delivery Manager, RKON Technologies, Inc.

Desktop virtualization promises enhanced security against malware and data leaks. Many claim that the real advantage is that data location and processing is done centrally. Others mention that not having to worry about machines walking out the door can help preclude intellectual property from falling into the wrong hands.
At the same time, there might be others attacks that are looking to target virtual machines.

In this session, attendees will learn how to develop a plan that covers the following:

  • Tools and techniques exist to test the isolation provided by desktop virtualization?
  • How to evaluate the security of a desktop virtualization environment
  • Are ease-of-use and integration with the host operating system always inversely proportional to security?
  • Are there ease-of-use features that should be disabled to provide higher security?
  • How to prevent attacks are targeting virtual machines
  • How to detect unauthorized virtual machine deployment?
  • What other security threats are out there in virtualized environment

Sao

Wahl

Nelson

Summar

Zolnier

4:00pm-5:00pm

How Enterprises are Leveraging Desktop Virtualization for Business Benefit

Moderator:
Sham Sao, Senior Vice President, Virtual Computer
Panelists will include:
Chris Wahl, Senior Virtualization Engineer, Career Education Corporation
Mike Nelson, Infrastructure Architect, Jewelers Mutual Insurance Company
Annur Sumar, Vice President, IT, Duff & Phelps
David Zolnier, Enterprise Solutions Architect, Heartland Business Systems, Former CIO, Indian Prairie School District

Panelists will include professionals from IT departments sharing experiences and lessons learned:

In this session, attendees will learn how IT departments are using virtual desktop to the benefit of their enterprises. Topics that will be covered include:

  • Costs savings
  • Where those savings are being redistributed
  • How IT is driving more value for the organization
  • How to handle implementation issues

Conference price: $249 per person.


Each attendee will receive a certificate awarding 7 CPE credits for CISSP continuing education, in addition to 0.7 CEUs and 7 PDUs. CISSP is a registered certification mark of (ISC)², Inc.

Exhibits

As is always the case at CAMP IT Conferences events, the talks will not include product presentations.  During the continental breakfast, coffee breaks, and the luncheon break you will have the opportunity to informally meet representatives from the following sponsoring companies, who have solutions in the area of the conference.

  



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Lodging Information
Village of Rosemont
Chicago O'Hare Airport