Where a traditional desktop PC supplies its own processing power and memory for the user, a thin client collectively pools the horsepower and data storage from a central server, with the user’s desktop and files delivered remotely to desktop devices. The key advantages to these systems are their cost effectiveness, ease of management and their ability to be scaled. Thin clients are by nature a more economically viable way to deliver computing in large numbers.
The college installed 350 thin clients in their newly built Learning Resource Centre and across their campus. Giles Batchelor, Network Development and Services Manager for the college suggested the core reasons for implementing the technology was to improve management, maintenance and to provide a consistent experience for students across their different sites.
Mr. Batchelor commented that they have still retained some of their existing desktop PCs. The more resource intensive applications such as video analysis and design software can run independently on PCs using their own processors and memory, while the everyday core computing needs are handled perfectly by the thin clients.
When asked about the student’s reception to the new hardware, Mr. Batchelor stated that the students notice very little difference between the new thin clients and their old PCs. They are able to continue using the Windows environment that they are familiar with, retaining all the same features as the traditional PCs they have at home.
A year into the project we asked Mr. Batchelor what he has observed as the main benefits since switching to thin clients. With cost saving an obvious benefit, his answer goes on to explain some of the wider advantages:
“We remotely manage all user PCs in the same way. Management and maintenance time have been reduced, software updates are all deployed centrally, there are less hardware issues to deal with, and swapping out a thin client can be done in 2 minutes. We successfully deployed an IT suite in 45 minutes which would have taken a day with PCs including imaging and set up. Our energy costs have been reduced as the thin client draws less energy, and as no heat is generated the air conditioning systems use less power too. Classrooms are much quieter now as there are no ‘whirrings’ of cooling fans to disturb the students.”
When asked if this kind of technology would suit more academic institutions around the country, Mr Batchelor responded favourably stating;
“Yes, they can make management of IT Suites much easier, less technician time is spent fixing problems with desktop PCs, most issues can be resolved from the helpdesk. Make sure that you partner with an organisation you can trust. Cutter worked beyond the call of duty to assist us in getting the system in and working.”
The full financial benefits to Moulton are still being calculated but research house, Gartner have suggested that the annual average ‘total cost of ownership’ of an office PC is between £2275-£3911 per unit due to licensing, downtime, repairs, electricity and technician costs, on top of the purchase price. Electricity savings alone for a deployment of 350 units are in the region of £12,000 per year, with six figure capital expenditure savings from year 3 forward due to the thin client’s longer lifecycle. Over the lifetime of the thin clients six and seven figure savings in staff costs are achievable.
Cutter Project
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