We feature the best virtual desktop services and Desktop as a Service (DaaS) providers, to make it simple and easy to ensure secure and cost-effective solutions for remote working.
The best virtual desktop services and Desktop as a Service (DaaS) providers make it simple and easy to ensure secure and cost-effective solutions for remote working. Desktop as a Service (DaaS) is not an entirely new phenomenon, but it’s certainly experienced significant growth in the past few years, both in terms of technology and market share, and especially more recently due to the pandemic. The reason for their take-up is that virtual desktops are a secure and flexible means for businesses to support a remote work staff and Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) practices. Of course, the pandemic and move to working from home has also accelerated take up of this technology. In a DaaS framework, a provider takes care of the technical and logistical aspects of cloud desktop and app environments, and a business rents these services for less than the cost of building and maintaining them itself. We’ve combed through the many DaaS providers on the market and chosen six of the best, based on services, security, scalability, and cost. Amazon WorkSpaces is an industry leader in DaaS, with great features and pricing options for small businesses. It makes use of a PCoIP protocol for compression and encryption of data transfers, and WorkSpaces also uses Amazon’s SDX protocol. Customers can provision Linux and Windows virtual machines, while AWS runs on Windows, macOS, Chromebook, iPad, Amazon and Android tablets, Chrome and Firefox. Both operating systems come bundled with default software like Internet Explorer, while Microsoft Office and others can be added for a monthly fee. One of the biggest advantages with Amazon WorkSpaces is the flexible pricing. Businesses that are interested in trying out the services can take advantage of a free tier with two workspaces, for up to 40 hours per month. There are several payment options based on disk size, number of CPUs, memory, and whether you bring your own licenses (BYOL). Bundled services can be charged monthly or even hourly, so you pay for what you use. There are no one-time fees and no commitments: you can cancel your subscription at any time. Citrix is another big name in DaaS, and the Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops platform has great hosted desktop services that are particularly well suited to a mobile workforce. Users can connect from Android, Windows, macOS, Chrome OS, and iOS/iPadOS and seamlessly switch between devices while maintaining workflow: the service adapts to different screen sizes, so employees can connect on a computer, tablet, or even mobile phone.
