As businesses seek to increase the value of their technology investments, the costly, high-maintenance "fat-client" PC model is increasingly under fire. Thin-client systems replace individual desktop PCs with a centralized server that dishes up the applications and data users need at individual workstations.

For businesses, server-based thin-client computing is attracting attention because of its ability to solve some of the most vexing problems facing IT: the staffing shortage, data privacy and security, and the quest for value from technology purchases. Because thin clients address all these problems, it's no wonder that experts say the market for thin-client technology will grow nearly 500 percent from the year 2000 to 2006.

Nevertheless, much is misunderstood about thin clients. For example, many IT managers hesitate to implement thin-client solutions out of fear that end users will resent the loss of their personal hard drives. And despite evidence to the contrary, some technologists worry that network performance will suffer when processing is moved away from the desktop and back to the server. We've interviewed analysts and users to demystify the technology and to highlight some of the benefits thin-client computing can bring to the enterprise.

What Goes Into Thin-Client Computing
In addition to the thin-client hardware that sits on the desktop, server-based thin-client computing requires three elements: an operating system environment that supports thin clients (Windows, Citrix, Unix, and Linux are the most common); technology that offers IT greater control over network traffic; and centralized application and client-management software.

Thin clients hearken back to the mainframe-dominated era, before computing was pushed out to end users in the form of PCs. The problem with using PCs, as anybody who's ever worked on a help desk knows, is that users get themselves-and the company-in all manner of trouble through unauthorized applications, downloads, and errors.

By returning control of the applications to centralized servers maintained by knowledgeable IT staff, thin-client computing can solve many of these problems.

The Lean and Mean Payoff
Thin-client benefits start with a lower initial cost. Although it's possible today to buy bottom-of-the-line PCs for $500 to $600, experts say that most enterprises pay significantly more for their desktops. For example, most business managers have spends about $2800 on each new PC. This high up-front cost is one reason many are now phasing in thin-client devices.

Pressured by competition from low-end PCs, thin-client vendors have continued to drive down their own prices. For IT, this translates into substantially lower initial costs. When you're comparing the costs of PCs and thin clients, hardware cost is just the tip of the iceberg. The big savings come in reduced needs for maintenance, help-desk expertise and other IT staffing requirements.

With thin clients, applications reside on a central server. This makes it a snap to upgrade or to deploy those applications.

For most IT organizations, the single biggest budget item is staff. This is where thin-client computing really distances itself from fat PCs. "Reduced reliance on scarce IT resources" may be thin clients' number-one advantage. A network administrator may spend 70 percent of his time on end-user issues. Those tasks are not rewarding or challenging, so why not get rid of all that?" Thin clients let network personnel devote more time to their more challenging strategic work.

Research from Stamford, Conn.-based Gartner Group suggests that thin clients can save an IT department 80 percent in support-staff costs.

When applications are moved to the server, the increased control for the IT department brings almost immeasurable benefits in uniformity, security, and data privacy, analysts and users say. "Which makes more sense?" asks Kaplan. "Keeping data on hard drives of PCs that are scattered around the world? Or keeping that data in a data center, where it's managed, backed up, redundant, and accessible to users from anywhere around the world through a secure Internet connection? Thin clients virtually eliminate virus threats-you can control user access, control what users copy to their local drives, and filter e-mail attachments."

Energy Savings
Thin-client devices generally consume only between 1/5th and 1/12th of the energy of their PC counterparts. And while the requirement for an increased number of central servers may offset a small part of these energy savings, organizations with remote offices can often eliminate servers in those offices entirely, enabling still greater net reductions in electricity usage.

The Growing Market
With more companies realizing these benefits, it should come as no surprise that enterprise thin-client devices will grow from 929,000 in the year 2000 to over 4.8 million in 2006.

What are the key factors that will drive the market growth?
Businesses, under constant pressure to reduce costs while improving access to enterprise data, will "continually evaluate desktop purchases" to determine which type of system delivers the best price/performance ratio for their organizations.

As adoption rates of thin clients increase, the benefits and cost advantage of this solution will become increasingly well-known in the IT community, driving further growth in the market.

Finally, the growth of "fat pipes" -- high-bandwidth solutions such as Digital Subscriber Line and cable modems -- will also spur adoption of thin-client computing. In the past, IT managers feared that moving applications away from the desktop would prove to be a drag on network performance. But the availability of high bandwidth has made thin clients an attractive option.

Overcoming Resistance
Despite the compelling advantages of thin clients, they sometimes face opposition within some IT organizations for outdated or inaccurate reasons. At the top of the list is the fear that end users will rebel when their fat PCs are taken away. Although some early grousing among users is common, Vector's Kaplan says, "Our client studies show an increased user satisfaction with the IT department after moving to thin clients. You have to make the switchover right and do your planning, but when you do, thin clients help people get their work done-and they like that."

Industry reports have shown "nearly every" end user is happier with thin clients than they were with a PC. I have one or two power users who want access to other devices," he says. The solution is simple:, the power users and their managers find a way to provide the needed access using the thin-client system.

Some IT departments mistakenly believe that thin clients aren't standard products. "That is a misconception, because thin clients gain their power from the servers and networks that support them." Servers and networks are ubiquitous and very well understood, "so that's an unfounded fear,"

In the end, thin-client computing combines the security and control of a mainframe with the interface and function of a PC. As IT organizations seek to stay lean and mean, it seems inevitable that many will cut out the fat in favor of a thin-client solution.

www.gohelios.com