Leostream Corporation released a new checklist for companies considering migrating away from Citrix.
The company shared the checklist as many organizations reevaluate their virtual desktop infrastructure and remote access strategies due to renewal prices, operational complexity, and shifts in technology infrastructure. Leostream says price should be considered, but shouldn’t be the sole reason to take on a disruptive technology migration.
Why Companies Are Looking Beyond Citrix
“Rather than simply replacing one platform with another, organizations have an opportunity to rethink their overall digital workspace strategy,” said Karen Gondoly, CEO of Leostream.
Leostream recommends IT leaders consider seven criteria before selecting a digital workspace platform. They include:
1. Infrastructure flexibility. According to Leostream, organizations shouldn’t be forced into one infrastructure environment. A digital workspace platform should support workloads across on-premises, private cloud, public cloud, and hybrid environments without changing how users connect to applications and resources.
2. Cloud choice. Companies may want to place certain workloads in AWS, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, and other environments. Cloud choice shouldn’t be dictated by a vendor’s platform.
3. Multiple user groups. Desktops, apps, access policies, authentication methods, and display protocols may vary for knowledge workers, engineers, developers, contact centers, healthcare workers, scientists, students, and creative professionals. Platforms should be able to support unique needs for each group.
4. Scope of the platform. Organizations should avoid paying for components they do not use. While larger enterprises may need an expansive platform, SMEs may prefer a lightweight offering that meets their needs without extra bloat.
5. Operational simplicity. Leostream recommends that IT teams consider the total cost to run a platform. This includes the skill level needed, maintenance, and infrastructure. Can the vendor automate onboarding/off boarding? provisioning? How much does each activity cost?
6. Protection of long-term technology investment. Virtualization platforms, cloud providers, authentication technologies, and remote display protocols will continue to evolve. How will this platform protect an organization’s long-term technology investments?
7. Vendor relationship. Leostream says organizations should assess whether vendors are responsive to their needs, collaborative in approach, transparent about licensing, and capable of supporting customers through initial deployment and future scaling requirements.
Leostream Positions Migration as a Strategic Opportunity
Leostream’s Remote Desktop Access Platform includes hosted desktops and workstations, connection management, remote access, built-in authentication and authorization, and zero-trust security concepts.
Leostream is telling customers migration away from Citrix shouldn’t be treated as a licensing exercise. In many cases, SMEs can use the opportunity to redesign their workspace architecture.
