VMware Horizon Cloud Review

VMware Horizon Cloud is an efficient DaaS provider that scales your workspace to the cloud, driving the highest performance in speed, which earns it our best pick for uptime and scalability. 

With its Instant Clone technology, VMware creates a faster way to deploy customized virtual desktops by using in-memory cloning of parent virtual machines. There is zero dependency on the parent after cloning, which allows you to quickly deploy servers, scale more easily and maximize uptime for your virtual desktop infrastructure. 

VMware offers several versions of its DaaS, including Horizon 7, Horizon Cloud on IBM Cloud, and Horizon Cloud on Microsoft Azure. Horizon 7 delivers on-premises hosted desktops and applications from your own data center. Horizon Cloud on IBM Cloud delivers hosted desktops and applications from a VMware managed infrastructure, while Horizon Cloud on Microsoft Azure delivers from a Microsoft Azure managed infrastructure. 

Pricing for VMware Horizon Cloud depends on the license type, infrastructure and data capacity. These are the starting prices for each license type and data capacity: 

VMware Licenses 

Horizon Apps Universal License: 

• Named user – $8.25 per month
• Concurrent user – $13.40 per month 

Horizon Universal License: 

• Named user – $16.50 per month
• Concurrent user – $26.70 per month 

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure 

Horizon Cloud on IBM Cloud: 

• Standard capacity – $2,950 per host per month
  • This capacity has a standard host type and includes one vCPU, 2GB of vRAM, and 30GB HD.
• Graphic desktop capacity (M10) – $6,400 per host per month
  • This capacity operates with a maximum of 64 VMs per host (64 M10s) and includes two vCPUs, 8GB of vRAM, 120GB HD, and a 1GB vGPU.
• Workstation capacity (M60) – $4,800 per host per month
  • This capacity is for users running graphics-heavy 3D applications and includes four vCPUs, 16GB of vRAM, 120GB HD, and a 2GB vGPU. 

One of VMware Horizon Cloud's many beneficial features is Instant Clones, which are automated desktop pools based on a parent VM in vCenter, also called the master image. Instant Clones share a virtual disk of the master image and consume less storage than full VMs. 

VMware Identity Manager allows businesses to set up single sign-on for Horizon Cloud apps and desktops and to support data security with multifactor authentication. VMware can also offer many provisioning services, such as network and capacity resources and secure point-to-point network interconnectivity. 

The service provides automatic data protection for your Horizon Cloud infrastructure, including routine backups, data restoration, and end-user management interfaces owned and operated by VMware. Additionally, VMware monitors infrastructure networks, top-tier management and end-user management interfaces. However, you must pay for add-on storage to use advanced functions, such as the Horizon Cloud User Environment Manager. 

This DaaS solution offers VMware Hands-on Labs, allowing you to try out any VMware product or service without installation. These labs, ranging from one to four hours long, let you easily evaluate the operational features of VMware products. Available labs include Virtualization 101, vSphere Security, vSphere Automation, vSphere Integrated Containers, Advanced Topics and VMware Skyline.