At the Innovation Edge of the VMware Ecosystem

August is rapidly drawing to a close, and that means VMworld 2016 is right around the corner! This year the event, which celebrates all things virtual, VDI, and in the cloud, is being held August 28 - September 1 at the Mandalay Bay Hotel & Convention Center, Las Vegas.

NCS Technologies is an active and innovative part of the VMware ecosystem, and at the show we can be found at Booth #759. NCS is a leading supplier of IT solutions to government and enterprise, including healthcare providers and financial services organizations. Our virtualization solutions are key to helping IT organizations reduce complexity, improve manageability and reduce costs.

Today, an important focus of innovation in virtualization is at the end point -- where people are getting the work done, on desktops and with mobile devices on the move. NCS is well known for its ground-breaking VDI zero client devices. The terms thin and zero are used interchangeably and refer to virtualized PCs that are lightweight and typically purpose-built with no hard drive, memory, etc. and all applications and sensitive data reside back in the data center.

NCS zero clients are managed by VMware Horizon software and use the ultra-secure Teradici PCoIP remote display protocol. There is no persistent user data for users to worry about, no patches, updates or antivirus software needed.

Access Multiple Independent Levels of Security

SecureView is a virtualized platform solution of increasing interest to government professionals who work at different classification levels and would rather use one device to do it. It is a multi-level virtual platform which allows a user to run multiple securely isolated environments on a single PC or workstation, provide hardware-enforced security and deliver superior virtualization in the most demanding environments.

This SecureView platform is is the result of extensive development work by the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), the open source community, Assured Information Security and NCS Technologies.

Today we launch the latest version of our website, where you will more easily identify our computer industry expertise and explore the many ways we can help you meet IT challenges. NCS Technologies is well known to government customers as innovative and reliable. We have been a trusted partner to civilian agencies, the military and the intelligence community for more than two decades. In addition, enterprise customers in security, healthcare and financial services also rely on our computing products and integration expertise. Organizations in North America, Europe and Asia routinely come to us to help implement end point virtualization solutions, both desktop and mobile. We are emerging as a leader in the virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) space.

Think of us as expert designers, manufacturers and also partners. NCS has a long history of manufacturing high performance NCS-branded x86 desktops and workstations. NCS branded PCs and servers are in use with government agencies around the world. But NCS is also a close partner to the world's Tier 1 IT vendors.

Our Appliance & Server Engineering line of business is widely admired by software vendors and large integrators. All of this computing expertise is centered in our manufacturing and corporate campus in Gainesville, VA, just outside the Washington beltway. 

There is No Relief From Data Breaches in Summer

With bright summer days, long weekends and vacations, some may believe that the slower pace of business means relief from computer attacks and data breaches: but think again! The bad actors never relax in efforts to steal valuable private, personal information such as Social Security numbers and credit card information. Recognizable data loss victims in the news these days include Omni Hotels, Wendy's, and the FDIC, and such healthcare providers as 21st Century Oncology, Southeast Eye Institute, Medical Colleagues of Texas, Alliance Health Networks and Stomford Podiatry Group.

NCS Technologies is an important supplier of secure computing solutions to government, healthcare providers and financial services organizations and our virtualization solutions and are a major line of defense against data breaches. As you probably know, virtualization has been first implemented in the data center, where compute, storage and networking infrastructure equipment resides. IT administrators quickly realized the cost benefits of pooled server resources there, plus the pay-off of improved centrally-administered security and improved disaster recovery.

Now the benefits of virtualization are being extending outward to end points through a strategy called Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI), where desktop and notebook PCs are thin or zero clients. The terms thin and zero are used interchangeably and refer to PCs that are lightweight and typically purpose-built with no hard drive, memory, etc. and all applications and sensitive data residing back in the data center.

In the real world there is a difference. Many thin clients retain a small capacity hard drive, some local memory and an embedded OS. This requires some administration - increasing IT complexity and security vulnerability.

SecureView Is A Superior Multi-level Virtual Platform

SecureView capabilities are very important for government professionals who work with virtualized computers at different classification levels. SecureView is a multi-level virtual platform which allows a user to run multiple securely isolated environments on a single PC or workstation, provide hardware-enforced security and deliver superior virtualization in the most demanding environments.

This virtual platform is is the result of extensive development work by the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), the open source community, Assured Information Security and NCS Technologies.

In short, SecureView is based on Type 1 or bare metal client hypervisor and allows a single computer to host multiple guest VMs running at different classification levels.

Financial Managers at HFMA Conference Look for Stronger Security

Virtualization has moved beyond the data center. Financial managers are exploring how virtualization at the end point - with desktop and notebook PCs - can be an important part of evolving security strategies. The Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA) National Institute is holding the Out of the Box trade show event this week at the Sands Expo and Convention Center in Las Vegas. NCS is demonstrating virtualization solutions at Booth #2131.

Association members include CFOs, controllers, accountants and other financial professionals. Organizations associated with HFMA include hospitals, managed care organizations, physician practices, accounting firms, banks and insurance companies. Many financial professionals in these organizations are stopping by Booth 2131 to explore how zero client desktop or laptop computing can be a cost-effective part of a more secure financial organization.

Some of our visitors have heard something about thin client computing but are unfamilar with zero clients. In addition, analyst groups and vendors often mix together thin and zero client solutions under the one category of "thin client solutions". But there are differences, and zero client computing is clearly superior - easier to manage, delivering a lower cost of ownership and definitely more secure.

Protect Financial & Healthcare Data

Protect Financial Data

By now most healthcare organizations regularly analyze and implement multiple strategies to secure patient data. Unfortunately, patient data breaches are a fact of life in healthcare and are reported on a weekly basis. Data loss can be related to external attacks, or rogue employees accessing data unrelated to job responsibilites or records carelessly exposed by lost or stolen PCs.

Financial professionals attending next week's Healthcare Financial Management Association "Out of the Box" event should be aware that strong security must also be extended into protection of financial data in the hospital, clinic or office. For those in finance, data protection must go beyond standard anti-virus updates and the now publicized ransomware threats.

Superior Security & Virtualization

Our booth staff supporting the ACQUIRE Conference this week in Washington reported a strong interest by government professionals in security and virtualization technologies.

NCS Technologies demonstrated a number of leading virtualization solutions that deliver government-level security, manageability and low cost of ownership.

The NCS zero client virtual end point portfolio is recognized as world-class. Our zero client solutions include the Cirrus LT family of notebook PCs and desktops that include Cirrus DT WiFi, a portable desktop that delivers mobility or freedom from expensive cabling.

At Acquire, many customers explored the NCS end-to-end VDI solution. Government customers learned about our Deployable Virtual Desktop Infrastructure offer, which allows military and other responders to rapidly deploy infrastructure into the field without the weight and footprint of traditional solutions.

Another popular piece of the NCS virtualization portfolio at the show was SecureView. 

SecureView is a multi-level virtual platform which allows a user to run multiple securely isolated environments on a single PC or workstation, provide hardware-enforced security and deliver superior virtualization in the most demanding environments. The virtual platform is made possible by extensive development work by the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), the open source community, Assured Information Security and NCS.

Test Drive Superior Security & Manageability

Government workers have the opportunity to explore and demo advanced virtualization technologies at the ACQUIRE Conference & Expo today and tomorrow at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Washington, D.C. NCS Technologies can be found at Booth 1420.

NCS Technologies is showcasing a number of leading virtualization solutions that are optimized for IT managers concerned with government-level security, manageability of all network elements and low cost of ownership.

ACQUIRE's two day conference program addresses the most pressing priorities and issues for government, military and contractor professionals looking to deliver on agency missions. The conference provides IT managers insights into how to leverage the government's acquisition vehicles to support their agencies' IT programs.

One solution that is showcased at Booth 1420 is SecureView. 

SecureView is a multi-level virtual platform which allows a user to run multiple securely isolated environments on a single PC or workstation, provide hardware-enforced security and deliver superior virtualization in the most demanding environments. The virtual platform is made possible by extensive development work by the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), the open source community, Assured Information Security and NCS.

SecureView is based on Type 1 or bare metal client hypervisor and allows a single computer to host multiple guest VMs running at different classification levels. SecureView addresses a wide variety of use cases.