By Tony Huynh, Product Line Manager, End-User Computing, VMware
It gives me great pleasure to announce that Horizon 6 with View will be adding support for Microsoft Lync 2013 VDI integration on Windows 8.0 and 8.1 desktops. In View 5.2, VMware added support for Lync 2013 Client capabilities, including VoIP and videoconferencing, in View desktops running Windows 7 SP1. With Horizon 6 with View, customers will be able to run the Lync 2013 Client with full functionality inside Windows 8.0 and 8.1 virtual desktops as well.
Customers can use View PCoIP technology to deliver an optimal user experience when accessing their View desktop. Once inside the View desktop, users can fully leverage the Lync 2013 Client to communicate and collaborate using its rich VoIP and videoconferencing capabilities.
Figure 1: Lync Call Flow with VDI Plug-In
Figure 1 shows that the Lync VDI architecture is comprised of two components, the Microsoft Lync 2013 Client running inside the virtual desktop in the data center and the Lync VDI plug-in running on the local Windows View Client. With the Lync VDI plug-in running on the client endpoint, all the media processing takes place locally, thereby offloading the data center server. Benefits for customers include full Quality-of-Service (QoS) support, point-to-point media delivery, and optimal audio and video quality.
We’ve been asked about whether remote teleworkers accessing their View desktops can still utilize their Lync 2013 Client to make VoIP and videoconferencing calls. The answer is simply, yes! Customers access their View desktops remotely by connecting through the PCoIP Secure Gateway, all without the need for VPN connectivity. But how does the call flow work for Lync audio and video calls when the users connect remotely? Well, through Lync’s unique architecture, the audio and video flow from the Lync VDI plug-in to the Lync Edge Server, and then on to the other Lync endpoint.
With View and Microsoft Lync, customers get the best of both worlds, with the industry-leading VDI solution in View and Unified Communications capabilities from Microsoft Lync.
