VMware to acquire Thinstall
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VMware has agreed to buy Thinstall with an eye toward help organizations better provision, deploy and update desktop environments.
VMware has agreed to buy Thinstall, a supplier of application-virtualization software, in a move designed to help organizations better provision, deploy and update desktop environments.Desktop virtualization, which allows servers to host desktop environments that can be tailored to meet the needs of specific users, is expected to gain momentum this year. Other companies besides VMware are expanding their desktop-virtualization capabilities.For instance, last year Citrix Systems XenSource, a provider of open-source virtualization software.'Delivering software applications to an organization's workforce is the single largest cost of desktop administration today,' said Jeff Jennings, vice president of desktop products and solutions at VMware. Thinstall's software will ease administrative tasks by providing faster, easier and more secure delivery of software applications to desktop PCs, he said.Thinstall, based in San Francisco, decouples applications from underlying operating systems, improving application portability across desktop environments, VMware officials said. The company was an early proponent of agentless application virtualization, which requires no pre-installed software on physical or virtual PCs and no new deployment infrastructure or management tools.Thinstall's architecture integrates into existing application management systems so information technology administrators can deliver virtualized applications across a variety of operating systems including Microsoft Windows NT, 2000, XP and Vista.Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed; however, VMware officials expect the deal to be completed in the current fiscal quarter.VMware also acquired the services-related assets of Foedus, a provider of virtualization technologies and services based in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. VMware plans to capitalize on Foedus' expertise in application and desktop virtualization services to help VMware partners expand their services business.GreenPages Technology Solutions, an IT consulting firm and VMware partner, acquired Foedus' remaining assets this month, including the company's sales and marketing organizations.
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