Last August 27, 2014 — at VMworld® 2014 (Singapore), VMware, NVIDIA and Google announced a collaborative effort to deliver high-performance virtual desktops and workstation-class graphics to Google Chromebooks.
Showcased
as a technology preview, the solution demonstrates the next generation of
VMware Blast
Performance and NVIDIA GRID™ vGPU™ technology to satisfy customers’ most
demanding visual computing needs. The joint effort is expected to expand the
hardware options for high performance virtual desktops, enabling customers to
select their system of choice without compromise.
“We
are breaking down traditional barriers to adopting virtual desktops and
offering new economics for the delivery of graphics-intensive applications
through the power of the cloud,” said Sanjay Poonen, executive vice president
and general manager, End-User Computing, VMware. “Organisations of all
industries and requirements will soon be able to embrace the mobile-cloud using
a solution that offers a new way to work from three proven, industry leaders.”
The
joint solution optimises the performance of virtual graphics applications at scale.
NVIDIA GRID vGPU is the industry’s most advanced technology for sharing GPU
acceleration between multiple virtual desktops. Combined with VMware Horizon in
the data centre, the solution will VMware, NVIDIA, Google Demo Graphics-Rich Applications on
Enterprise Cloud Desktops Page 2 optimise
graphics and CPU utilisation to allow more desktops and applications to be
deployed on a single server.
VMware
BLAST Performance technology in the data center and in firmware residing on Chromebooks
will deliver a great end-user experience, graphics-rich applications with high fidelity,
and extended battery life by up to 50 percent using exclusive NVIDIA® Tegra®
decode technologies.(1)
This makes graphically demanding
applications, such as Adobe Illustrator CC and Autodesk
AutoCAD, and productivity applications like Microsoft Office completely fluid.
NVIDIA Tegra K1-powered Chromebooks, such as the Acer Chromebook 13, will be
among the first Chromebooks to take advantage of this future technology.
“This
collaboration will offer customers all the performance, stability and
compatibility of NVIDIA hardware-accelerated graphics, with the added flexibility,
mobility and security of a virtual environment,” said Jeff Brown, vice
president and general manager, Professional Solutions Business, NVIDIA.
“Chromebooks
were designed to bring a new approach to many of the problems with traditional computers,”
said Caesar Sengupta, vice president of product management, Google. “We're excited
about what this collaboration means for our customers and what it can enable
them to do. Imagine manufacturers designing complex 3D models and sharing them
with engineers around the globe, or physicians taking medical imaging out into
the community, rather than being tethered to high end workstations.”
Availability
Customers
who would like to experience VMware products with NVIDIA GRID vGPU can register
for an early access programme at www.nvidia.com/grid-vmware-vgpu.
The programme will be available for
select NVIDIA and VMware customers in Q4 2014.
