RES PowerFuse 2010 review

Giving computer users a consistent desktop experience wherever they log on can be difficult, especially in mixed environments where one day they might connect via a standard desktop PC or notebook computer and, on another, a thin client or virtual machine. RES Software's RES PowerFuse addresses such issues with virtual workspaces, independent of any underlying hardware or operating system, which can be generated on the fly whenever and wherever a user logs on.

Designed specifically for Microsoft networks, a PowerFuse workspace doesn’t replace the Windows desktop. Rather it tells Windows what the user expects to find, what applications to make accessible, the settings to apply and so on. The end result is a lot like using Windows profiles and Group Policy, except that PowerFuse is much more flexible and, as we discovered, a lot easier to manage.

The main prerequisite is a SQL database, to store the desktop and application settings, data file locations, printer setups and other bits and pieces that go to make up a PowerFuse workspace. For our tests we used SQL Server Express, which is fine for a small network, but on a large deployment you’ll need something a lot more scalable. Fortunately there’s plenty of choice with, as well as the full SQL Server platform, support for Oracle, DB2 and MySQL. You can even make use of Microsoft’s cloud-based database service, SQL Azure.

At least one PC will also be required to host the PowerFuse management console. In our case, we used a Windows XP Pro PC, but any version of Windows (32-bit or 64-bit) from XP onwards can be employed. The initial setup will also step you through creating the PowerFuse datastore plus Active Directory integration to enable workspaces to be assigned at the user, group and division level, with support too for Novell directory services, if needed.

Of course Windows doesn’t come with support for PowerFuse so additional software will be needed on each PC, terminal server or virtual desktop. Agent software to work with all the latest versions of Windows is included (32-bit and 64-bit), along with thin client and VDI environments from VMware and Citrix. Client agents also include the PowerFuse Workspace Composer to dynamically build a workspace whenever a user logs on based on who they are, plus when and where they’re logging on from.

The process of building a workspace is remarkably quick, taking on average just a few seconds in our tests, regardless of complexity. A locally cached copy of the workspace data helps here, rather than having to connect back to the database every time. Another nice touch is the ability to implement changes to the workspace immediately, without the need for users to log off and back on. Any personalisation done by the user can also be maintained across sessions so users don’t feel entirely powerless.

On the downside, deploying the agent software can take time, but this only has to be done once and, as it’s via a standard MSI, the process can be automated. Added to which you get detailed instructions on how to configure the software for supported thin client and VDI environments.

A fair amount of technical expertise is assumed, but a competent network administrator should find PowerFuse easy enough to cope with. Once the agents have been deployed the main task is configuring and assigning the user workspaces, with just about everything done from a single integrated management console. The latest implementation sports a familiar, Outlook-like interface, making it relatively easy to navigate. That said, it still took a while to get to grips with and a fair amount of experimentation, before we were confident in what we were doing.

Fortunately RES has thought about this and included additional desktop transformation tools in the latest PowerFuse 2010 release. These include a Desktop Sampler to gather information about the way user desktops are configured, the printers and applications they’re using and so on. This data can then be fed into a new Workspace Designer to create managed workspaces that replicate those setups You can also check just who will be affected by any changes before they’re applied.

The ability to store and apply user settings outside Windows profiles is another key feature in the 2010 release, together with support for offline folder synchronisation to give mobile workers access to their data when disconnected from the network.

Finally, in the Enterprise edition we tested, support for virtualised applications is also available. More specifically the software can work with Microsoft App-V, Citrix XenApp and VMware ThinApp, making it easy to give users access to the correct applications when they need them. Licence monitoring and enforcement is also built in.

So, are there any drawbacks? Well, it’s Windows only, which could be an issue for some. On top of which it’s important to spend time piloting the product and experimenting with workspaces before deploying in anger. That, though, is fairly standard with any product being introduced across a whole enterprise. Some customers may also need help with rollout.

Such concerns aside, PowerFuse is a very flexible, impressive and easy to manage solution to an increasingly common set of problems on mixed desktop networks.

Windows XP Pro, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows Server 2003 (including R2), Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2008 R2
Microsoft SQL Server 2000 or later (including Express editions); Microsoft SQL Azure; Oracle 9i or later; IBM DB2 (8.1 or later); MySQL (5.0 or later)
Microsoft Terminal Services 2003 and later; Citrix XenApp 4.x (x86); Citrix XenApp 5.x/6.x
VMware View 3/4; Citrix Xen Desktop 3/4
Microsoft App-V; Citrix Application Streaming; VMware ThinApp 4.x
40MB disk space required for installation plus 12MB per user