BOXX Takes Virtualization to the XTREME

There’s no question that virtualization has taken the data center by storm. Over the years, a growing number of organizations have tapped into virtualization to optimize hardware costs, bolster security, and provide business users with the flexibility to access critical systems and data remotely.

While the general business community has benefitted greatly from virtualization, graphics-intensive users like designers and engineers have remained primarily on the sidelines. Hosting dozens of users on a single physical server in a virtualized environment is a viable option for running office applications or doing simple web browsing, but the approach has been lacking for users of such high-end 3D applications like SolidWorks, Revit, or 3ds Max because of the sacrifices related to performance and productivity.

Despite these obstacles, a virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) holds great appeal to power users just as it does for their mainstream counterparts. With the right kind of VDI environment, engineering users could benefit from such advantages as remote access to key engineering systems and data to the ability to consolidate data in one centralized, secure place.

Tackling the Performance Problem

BOXX Technologies Inc., recognized for its groundbreaking work in high-performance workstations, is now bringing that expertise to bear on a new VDI approach that tackles the performance problem for high-end graphics users. BOXX’s variation on VDI technology, called XTREME Desktop Infrastructure (XDI), employs a number of techniques to deliver optimal performance for graphics-intense applications.

Traditional VDI environments cannot adequately accommodate high-end graphics tasks because they utilize software-remote desktop host applications and software graphics running on the CPU. BOXX XDI, however, is unique, directly assigning one dedicated remote desktop host processor and one physical graphic processing unit (GPU) to each user on the system. Featuring professional GPUs (from either AMD or NVIDIA) running native drivers that are certified for professional applications, XDI systems are able to support almost any professional application by providing the ability to run the specific drivers certified by the ISVs. XDI systems utilize the PCoIP remote desktop protocol and are compatible with VMware Horizon desktop virtualization solutions,allowing them to be used in large enterprise deployments. But because XDI systems utilize a dedicated PCoIP processor per user, VMware Horizon is not required, thereby lowering the overhead, complexity, and cost of a remote workstation solution and making it available to customers who may lack advanced IT resources, but are still in need of a viable solution.

The ABCs of XDI

With BOXX XDI, engineers can easily access a virtual workstation remotely from anywhere with an Internet connection, allowing them to work seamlessly from home or at a client site. An XDI environment also centralizes the large data sets traditionally used by engineering organizations in a server room while “lightweight” pixels are streamed to remote users—an approach that secures sensitive design IP. Finally, XDI users can also take advantage of shared high-speed storage.

BOXX is offering XDI in a variety of configurations. The XDI V8 solution hosts up to eight concurrent power users on a single 2U server within a centralized secure environment, while the XDI V4 configuration provides similar capabilities for up to four concurrent users on a single 1U server. Both feature dual Intel® Xeon® processors (16 cores).

The XDI S1 is BOXX’s one-to-one solution, which connects a single user to one physical rack-mounted remote access workstation. Featuring a single Intel Xeon processor (12 cores), XDI S1 is ideal for power users who want the benefits of virtualization, but who don’t have a need to host multiple users on one physical server? Users interested in the remote access capability on any of BOXX’s other high-performance workstations have the ption of converting any BOXX workstation into an XDI solution by adding a PCoIP Remote Workstation card.

Engineers and other power users shouldn’t be shut out from the benefits of virtualization. With BOXX’s XDI family of solutions, they can finally ride the wave that’s transforming the data center while maintaining peak performance and productivity.

For more information visit boxxtech.com/XDI or call 1-877-877- BOXX.

This content is sponsored by BOXX Technologies. Intel and the Intel logo are trademarks of Intel Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries.