Rymden - stock.adobe.com
Converging UC and end-user computing: Key challenges for IT
Optimizing the end-user computing environment means overcoming the hassles that can plague the delivery of UC-based voice and video.
Ever since the advent of the softphone and desktop video applications, IT leaders have wrestled to intertwine unified communications with end-user computing. In the days when voice and video conferencing typically ran on dedicated hardware and networks, engineers could easily provision appropriate resiliency and performance. Now, voice and video are simply applications on the network, though they continue to have their own unique requirements that require careful consideration to ensure success.
End-user computing (EUC) includes the devices and networks that individuals use to run their apps. Today, these environments vary greatly, but usually at a minimum include desktop and mobile devices, along with remote access technologies such as virtual private networks. EUC may also include OSes and virtualization, as well as management and analytics.
Key challenges converging UC and end-user computing
Unified communications (UC) requires high-quality, reliable voice and video performance. This means that EUC environments must be optimized to support the specific applications in use. Key challenges include network bandwidth and performance, as well as the use of desktop virtualization.
1. Compute and network
From a network bandwidth and performance standpoint, voice and video typically share the same access bandwidth and processor capacity used by other applications. This may not matter much on high-performance workstations and 1GB LANs, but it can be a major challenge on older devices or when using Wi-Fi and/or cellular networks with variable bandwidth and latency.
A laptop CPU running a wide variety of tasks and background software may not have the memory or processing power required to support intensive applications like 4K video. AI-based local capabilities, such as virtual backgrounds and background blur, may suffer if computing resources are limited.
On the networking side, voice and video running as apps on a PC or mobile device may not be able to prioritize their traffic over other applications, resulting in potential latency and jitter that can negatively affect performance.
2. Virtualization
Virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) is a popular way to simplify remote desktop management. In a VDI environment, applications are hosted remotely. This removes the need for administrators to manage distributed applications and may improve security postures. VDI may also enable companies to provision users with lower-cost endpoints rather than full-featured laptops and PCs.
VDI creates several issues for UC, including the potential lack of localized voice and video processing. This means raw, high-bandwidth voice and video must transit the network for conversion from analog to digital. This issue is becoming less of a challenge, thanks to vendors such as Dell and HP that support local processing, but VDI may also introduce screen refresh delay and consume a large amount of remote server resources. Careful engineering and analytics are required for both ongoing management and to ensure that sufficient computing resources are provisioned.
Other potential issues that may plague users are the inability to access certain features if they're unable to run local desktop versions of UC apps and the inability to use certain devices, such as headsets, to communicate with a VDI-hosted app.
Mitigating EUC issues
Organizations can overcome VDI challenges by using technologies that guarantee UC performance, such as Microsoft's SlimCore and vciBridge. Companies can also use VDI-specific plug-ins from vendors, including Cisco and Zoom. All of these enable localized voice, video and feature processing to offload backend servers, but they require companies to deploy VDI endpoint devices capable of running the local software. Work with your UC vendors to understand specific options for your local environment.
Another option to mitigate UC and end-user computing concerns is to use enterprise content delivery networks (CDNs) to optimize video streaming and application distribution. CDNs may reduce the effect of virtual events, like town halls, on the network.
Finally, proactive monitoring of application performance is essential to ensure success. Do not wait for users to call the help desk to report issues.
Those responsible for UC must ensure their application architectures align with EUC environments. Develop strategies that boost voice and video performance -- especially when using VDI.
Irwin Lazar is president and principal analyst at Metrigy, where he leads coverage on the digital workplace. His research focus includes unified communications, VoIP, video conferencing and team collaboration.
