What is our primary use case?
Our primary use case focuses on virtual desktop and application hosting. This is spread across different industries. We have a large number of employees, and we are one of the largest GSIs globally, managing many virtual seats across various sectors, including healthcare, aerospace and defense, manufacturing, and automotive.
What is most valuable?
The main benefit of
Horizon Cloud Service is that it is cloud-based, allowing our organization to leverage the service without having to manage all infrastructure directly. This offers significant flexibility and efficiency. Additionally,
Horizon Cloud Service has a robust protocol, making app management straightforward. The scalability of Horizon Cloud Service is also excellent, and its stability is strong for our use cases.
What needs improvement?
The licensing model needs to be adjusted, as a cloud license is currently required even for on-premises devices. Horizon Cloud Service should continue improving their protocol and work with other hypervisors, expanding beyond ESX.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using it for a while, but if needed, we could have a deeper conversation with our architect.
What was my experience with deployment of the solution?
The deployment of the solution was generally straightforward.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability is satisfactory for our use cases.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution is quite scalable, and we have no issues with its scalability.
How are customer service and support?
We haven't had to engage with customer service recently, but they are generally friendly to work with. However, I'm unable to provide a definitive rating for their service.
How would you rate customer service and support?
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was generally straightforward.
What about the implementation team?
The deployment size affects the number of people involved; a 100,000 seat deployment will take longer and involve more people than a 1,200 seat deployment.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The cost is considered normal, not remarkable but not outrageous. In terms of expense, compared to other virtualization products, I would rate it as a six.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We also have experience with other virtualization vendors, such as
Microsoft Azure. The main differences include the protocols used, where Horizon Cloud Service has a more mature protocol, benefiting users with high latency or low bandwidth.
What other advice do I have?
In situations where edge cases, high latency, or low bandwidth are factors, a Citrix protocol might be more suitable. If one is seeking a full networking solution, replacement of F5 load balancers or global load balancing, Citrix, could be a better option. Overall, I rate Horizon Cloud Service an eight.
*Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.