Full-Service System Integrator - and More

In my last blog I highlighted how NCS was a leading full-service system integrator. Our integration and logistics services, and our deep relationships with Tier 1 OEM partners, makes us a valuable asset for any company needing a strong partner in the IT space. At our manufacturing campus, NCS has a secure and climate-controlled 55,000-square-foot facility, registered to ISO 9001:2008 and 14001, optimized for flexibility and quick response for any need involving engineering, manufacturing, inventory management or logistics.

Our highly trained professionals here offer design services, manufacturing services such as full-system integration and configuration control, logistics and warehousing, user-side services, such as CONUS and OCONUS installation and on-site repairs, and comprehensive warranty services.

Take a Look at NCS-Branded Systems

But NCS has much more to offer our many customers in government, the military, and commercial markets such as healthcare and financial services. For instance, NCS has deep experience in manufacturing and selling NCS Branded computer systems, including x86 desktops and workstations, zero client desktops and notebooks, and server and storage built with the latest Intel technologies.

NCS offers a family of desktop computers that are highly customizable for any requirement or need. Our affordable Stratus 5480 Series, which features Intel's 6th-generation Core processors and integrated Intel HD graphics support, supports up to three displays simultaneously. Our Stratus 7480 Series also features Intel's 6th-generation Core processors and provides improved performance by using serial point-to-point links, allowing increased bandwidth and stability. It supports up to six USB ports, six SATA ports, DDR4 memory and many ways to customize.

In addition, NCS branded workstations and desktops computers are the hardware of choice for 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 Laborator (AFRL), the open source community, Assured Information Security and NCS.

You likely already know that NCS Technologies is an industry leader in virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) and virtual end points. NCS has a long history of manufacturing high performance NCS-branded x86 desktops and workstations. And our Appliance & Server Engineering line of business is widely admired by software vendors and large integrators. All of this expertise is centered in our manufacturing and corporate campus in Gainesville, VA, just outside the Washington beltway. 

SecureView, a Multi-level Virtual Platform

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.

In reviewing industry literature on data center modernization and service delivery to end points, many customers are concerned about the sheer complexity of managing legacy equipment and software from multiple vendors and different generations. Many IT administrators now strongly consider virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) in an effort to reduce data center infrastructure complexity, while lowering costs and improving reliability.

Virtualizing Beyond the Data Center

In any discussion about Virtualization, the focus is often on the data center rather than the desktop. There is no doubt that big gains in productivity, manageability, cost efficiency and security can be made with data center server and storage modernization.

When the topic moves to the desktop, many IT administrators are content to implement a thin client strategy without a deep dive investigation. When it comes to the possibility of adding "zero clients" to that mix, many in IT may not go the extra mile to investigate this ultra-secure, easy-to-manage alternative. This can be doubly confusing as many vendors mix together under the label "thin client solutions", both thin and zero client technology! So the labels can get muddied up. But it's safe to say many administrators start out thinking about thin clients as the way to go.

What 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 Laborator (AFRL), the open source community, Assured Information Security and NCS.

SecureView:

• Is a low-cost, multiple-independent levels of security (MILS) workstation-based COTS technology
• Is based on Type 1 or bare metal client hypervisor
• Allows single computer to host multiple guest VMs running at different classification levels
• Addresses a wide variety of use cases

Government analysts looking for superior, hardware-enforced computer security are increasingly turning to SecureView.

In case you missed the live webinar, I highly recommend viewing "Learn how world-class El Camino Hospital improved end-user experience with VDI". This informative webinar shows how a VDI improves productivity in a very complex environment, the hectic metropolitan hospital. The webinar can be found on Teradici's website at http://goo.gl/yYhgTV  

You may also visit www.teradici.com and click on the tab "Resource Center". Webinars is a dropdown menu choice.

Mike Turicchi of NCS, Teradici's Mirela Cunjalo and James Brummett, the hospital Director of Technical Services, are the presenters. Discussing the hows and whys that VDI was fully implemented, James walks you through the "before and after" of life in a sophisticated Silicon Valley hospital where staff, patients and visitors are knowledgeable and demand the latest technology and productivity tools.

Periodically we like to briefly spotlight NCS virtualization products to show how they improve IT performance and user satisfaction in any organization. This week we highlight the Cirrus LT Plus, the newest PCoIP notebook in our growing VDI portfolio. Recent blogs have discussed how organizations (like an intelligence agency, for instance) may insist on use of only specifically-approved end point devices. While health care institutions and many enterprises may be perfectly comfortable with implementing VDI in a relaxed BYOD environment. Our point is that Cirrus LT Plus delivers in all scenarios.

I recommend viewing a brief webinar that I informally call "real world desktop virtualization". It was offered recently via BrightTALK and can also be found and replayed on the Teradici website at http://goo.gl/OX5tFp. The webinar is entitled "Learn how world class El Camino Hospital improved end user experience with VDI." 

Mike Turicchi of NCS joined Teradici's Mirela Cunjalo for a super-informative discussion packed with "news you can use" information. In addition, the hospital Director of Technical Services, James Brummett, is an articulate ambassador for "Best IT Practices". James walks you through the "before and after" of life in a highly sophisticated Silicon Valley hospital where staff, patients and visitors are ulta-knowledgeable and demanding concerning technology capabilities.

Virtualizing a Desktop and How Zero Clients Fit In

The annual HIMSS healthcare IT conference is finished. Tens of thousands of attendees in Las Vegas joined celebrity speakers and medical leaders to evaluate better ways to use IT to improve healthcare delivery. Mike Turicchi, the NCS Chief Product Strategy Officer, will soon follow this blog with his thoughts on the IT trends in healthcare that he identified from the four-day event.

One issue that we continue to see - and this was a frequent topic of discussion at the show - is that IT experts can be familiar with some parts of virtualization and VDI, but not others. For instance, an IT administrator can speak knowledgeably about the benefits of server and storage virtualization, but be relatively inexperienced with desktop or endpoint virutalization strategies.

So we heard at HIMSS16, what is a zero client? How is it different from a thin client?

IT folks know something about the concept of virtualizing an existing PC or installing a new thin client, but can be fuzzy about how a zero client fits in.