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Is your organisation stuck to their legacy environment? Do you struggle with your strategy for the remote desktop and file server? Are you looking for a way to transition to a modern workspace but don’t know how to cross the technology gap? We’ve got good news for you. In this article we highlight challenges of the transition to the cloud and share how other IT-managers overcame them.
Scale down or phase out your remote desktop
Is your remote desktop only used to access specific line of business applications? During an end-user research, a large healthcare organisation in the Netherlands discovered that people didn’t like working in their remote desktop. They shared why:
- The remote desktop is slow (especially with videos)
- It’s cumbersome to login to the remote desktop (another credential set)
- 74% of employees only worked in the browser or Outlook on the remote desktop
Needless to say, this organisation came up with a strategy to move away from the remote desktop. This gave them extra benefits, such as:
- Reduced complexity for IT-management
- Scaled down infrastructure (drastically lowering costs)
- Saved all end-users 10 minutes per day
How do you transition to a modern workspace?
Phasing out a remote desktop might seem like a big step. And for some end-users it might be a bad decision as they still need their remote desktop. But, this shouldn’t stop or slow down your transition to the cloud.
That is why organisations often integrate all their local, cloud (SaaS) and remote applications within their new digital workspace. By doing this IT-managers will:
- Offer a consistent user-interface to everyone, with remote desktop applications only accessible to those who still need it
- Offer Single Sign-On to all web- and remote applications
- Manage access to and conditions for applications in one central location
That is why Workspace 365 allows you to integrate your remote desktop solutions within Workspace 365, such as:
- Citrix Virtual Apps & Desktops
- Clientless RDP
- Frame by Nutanix
- Windows Virtual Desktop (WVD)
With Workspace 365 we allow IT-managers to set Conditional Access on any application. By doing so, people will only see the applications which are relevant to them. E.g. if they are on their smartphone, they will only see the applications that are suitable for that device.
Local and web applications
In Workspace 365 you are also able to use the Local App Launcher and connect to your identity provider, such as Azure, Okta or HelloID to offer Single Sign-On to web applications.
Integrating your file server in your modern workspace
How do you transition to a modern workspace when you still need your file server? Most IT-managers seek for a modern digital workspace that integrates both their file server document storage as well as their cloud storage solutions (such as SharePoint and OneDrive).
When you unite all your storage solutions it will save time on support tickets. You can train people to use one Document App to access and share all their documents.
Using Microsoft’s online editors in your file server
A healthcare organisation with 2,000 employees wanted to implement an online workspace. However, they had applications which were linked to their file server, which prevented them from fully migrating to SharePoint.
They wanted to use their file server with Office Online Editors, as most people only used it to make meeting summaries or to read documents. Unfortunately, in the past they couldn’t use the Office Online editors with their own file server due to licensing restrictions.
“While using the Workspace 365 Document App we perform a validation check to validate that people are allowed to use the Office Online Editors for their file server”
Luckily for them, with Workspace 365 we are allowed to use any Microsoft 365 license which includes Office Online for our Document App. This customer made a huge saving on their Microsoft licensing as they could save 10 euro, per user, per month.
Simplify work-life: focus on productivity to save people time
It is our mission to conquer complexity. We have an intense focus on those people who do ‘the important work’. Not everybody loves IT; that is why we develop a digital workspace that simplifies other software solutions. By doing this we increase the amount of time that people can spend on more important work.
Easy user-interface, on any device
Thanks to our Conditional Access settings, the workspace is optimised for any device. On a desktop you might want to show the applications next to intranet components. While you might want to hide sensitive data, such as healthcare records, on insecure networks.
Workspace 365 takes away the complexity for the end-user. We allow IT-managers to set conditions so that the people who are less IT-savvy don’t have to search for applications, information and more.
Use everything you pay for: optimise Microsoft 365 adoption
Most people don’t get everything out of their Microsoft 365 license. That is why we create integrations with tools such as Azure, WVD, SharePoint, Teams, OneDrive, Power BI, Power Automate and much more.
Before buying a new solution, IT-managers would be wise to see what is already included in their Microsoft 365 license and to see how add-ons can help them to achieve their goals.
Discover Workspace 365
This is just a small part of Workspace 365. If you struggle with your transition to the cloud and what to do with your fileserver and remote desktop contact us.
Are you ready to discover how we can conquer complexity for your organisation? Schedule a call with one of our workspace experts to discuss the most common challenges and roadmaps to your ideal digital workspace.
