Which Is A Better Option For Education Industry: On-Premise VDI or DaaS?

Which Is A Better Option For The Education Industry: On-Premise VDI or DaaS? In the spring of the previous year, the education industry took an unprecedented turn- the workplace settings and educational system changed. In-school classes moved to digital sessions, and the teaching staff was asked to combine the power of technology and existing information for remote classes overnight. The ability to access in-campus computers from practically anywhere is exactly what we need right now. In this scenario, Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) can prove beneficial. VDI can be deployed in two ways. Either you can create a on-premise VDI environment on the local premises or choose the services of a third-party provider, known as Desktop as a Service (DaaS) rnLet’s see the difference between them.

The Power of On-Premise VDI

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure is a desktop virtualization technology utilized to create and deploy virtual desktops on a server setup for higher performance and enhanced user experience. rnIdeally, the biggest strength of a Virtual Desktop Infrastructure is the control and power it offers to your education organization. Every desktop is hosted on the on-premise VDI, which provides your IT staff complete control over resource allocation, security, and other important factors. rnHowever, there’s another option, which is as effective as VDI – better in some ways. Explore how DaaS works.

Unlocking the Opportunities of DaaS

Desktop as a Service is a similar solution to VDI, but it is cloud-hosted. You are basically getting virtual desktops as a service from a cloud provider. rnHere’s how it works:rnVirtual desktops are created and deployed on the remote server of a cloud hosting provider. These VMs are also replicated on various servers to achieve server redundancy. These units are offered to users remotely. rnUsers of VMs, or students, in this case, get the same on-campus interface even when they open the desktop on their own device. They get access to resources, applications, and data as approved by the access control hierarchy given by the IT team.

What do you get with DaaS?

• No desktop challenges
• Central management of desktops
• Business continuity
• Scalability
• BYOD support
• Lower hardware investments

rnWe have already discussed how VDI works. DaaS has the same functions, quality, and benefits, however with additional advantages. Let’s explore these:

1.Cost-Effectiveness

If you select an on-premise VDI solution, you need to look after setting up the servers, along with their installation, maintenance, and upgrades. All these things cost educational institutions a lot of money. From hardware upgrades to infrastructure maintenance, everything raises your capital expense.rnHowever, the situation is not the same in the case of DaaS. It is an out-of-the-box solution, which helps you reduce expenses on infrastructure and upgrades. You can eliminate your capital expense as the DaaS providers setup the VDI environment in the data centers. Just acquire services from a provider and pay-as-per-your-use.

2.Scaling

Scaling is a nagging requirement for every industry – more so for educational firms. Every year, admissions increase and so does the need for IT infrastructure. Similarly, there are times when you don’t need all these resources, such as during summer vacations.rnWith on-premise VDI solutions, your complete infrastructure is waste during the time when no one is using VMs. rnDaaS solutions can easily help you scale and de-scale. You can de-scale when you don’t need all these virtual desktops. But, when you experience a sudden surge in demand, you can increase your resources, VMs, etc. just by requesting the DaaS provider.rnTake pandemic conditions, for instance. When the pandemic hit us, educational institutes that adopted DaaS were able to alter the desktop configuration as per requirement.

Security

On-premise VDI solutions are completely handled and managed by your IT team. For this reason, this team is responsible for taking extra measures to ensure data security. This means that you need to invest additional revenue in advanced security measures and employ a specialized team for the same.rnWith DaaS solutions, the situation is a bit different. Your service provider ensures security, including data encryption, access control, multi-factor authentication, and automated controls, such as intrusion detection and prevention.

Data Backup

Lastly, backup is important to help you continue your business even during disaster, pandemic, and any other similar situation. When you face crises, your data can get compromised easily. rnIn the on-premise VDI solutions, you have to consider this and then setup your backup center. You have an option to back up on on-prem or external centers, which will also eat more of your money. You also need to manage all this and that will consume additional time of your team unnecessarily.rnIn DaaS solutions, your data is automatically backed up regularly. In case of a disaster, pandemic, or server failure, you can recover your data almost instantly. As soon as you are ready, recover your data and resume work.

Summing Up

While VDI and DaaS both offer a favorable solution to the education industry,DaaS has add-ons that you don’t want to miss. From improved security to automatic backups, the hassle of your IT team is greatly reduced. All you need to do is focus on the quality of education and your DaaS service provider will focus on providing you the best solution with managed services, better security, and instant scaling.