It is important to understand the macro-architecture for a VDI solution deployment. When designing a VDI solution, administrators need to understand the number of users, the type of users, and any functionality that users require. The following figure shows a modular architecture with features that address the most demanding business needs such as scalability, flexibility, and efficiency:
Figure 1. VMWare Horizon architecture
The solution requires the following components:
- Horizon Agent—installed on the guest operating system, the Horizon Agent enables the virtual machine to be managed by a remote server and enables the Horizon client to form a protocol session to the machine
- Horizon Client—installed on a client device to access the Horizon system that has Horizon Agent installed
- Connection Server—functions like a communication broker and connects users to Horizon Agents
- Cloud Connector—used with a subscription licensing option, it performs management capabilities hosted in VMware Cloud
- Unified Access Gateway—virtual appliance that enables remote secure connection to internal resources
- WorkSpace One—used for the management purposes of the end devices
- Instant Clone—provides image management with automation capabilities
- App Volumes—orchestrates application delivery to the users
- vSphere—vSphere ESXi and VMware vCenter are key components to build and manage the virtual environment. vCenter provides management capabilities while ESXi is the core solution to aggregate all the needed resources to run the application and the virtual desktops. By default, VxRail comes with a vCenter license to manage the internal virtual infrastructure.
When designing a solution for high availability these components also require protection to ensure that in the event of an outage the solution can continue operations at a second site. For this use case we present a solution where protection of application components and the availability of the virtual desktops are on different platforms.