Virtual desktops will allow IT managers to offload the burden of managing all the devices on their network, according to an industry analyst.

George Hamilton, director of enterprise infrastructure at Yankee Group, believes that users will be able to purchase their own devices from normal shops, and use consumer support services rather than having to bother the IT team.

"The future is virtual clients," he said. "IT will no longer need to purchase, maintain and support endpoint devices, and why should they?"

Hamilton pointed out that IT departments do not currently support devices such as a BlackBerry, and that the user gets support direct from the supplier.

"You give it to your IT department for a couple of minutes and they edit all the back-end stuff, but if you have a problem with your device you go to your service provider," he said.

"We should be able to do that with laptops and desktops, and desktop virtualisation has the potential to do it."

The analyst explained that no software had to be installed on such a device, which could be bought from anywhere.

"To get corporate applications and information you will go through a secure toll and it will be delivered on the virtual machine that is completely separate from your personal stuff," he said.

"So you can still have iTunes and your family photos, but you just cannot clutter up the enterprise storage rack."

Dave Asprey, vice president of technology strategy at Zeus Technology, believes that there are a lot of server-hugging and laptop-hugging IT managers who would be very glad to get rid of this burden.

"On the other hand, there is the legitimate concern of not-technical users taking a laptop and downloading God knows what and bringing it into the office, " he said.

"Even if all the enterprise data is safe, as soon as the user plugs in with a worm it is going to take out everyone else who does not have up-to-date security in place."

Asprey maintained that, for this reason, most IT departments perceive virtual desktops as requiring twice as much systems management.

"But that is the state of things today," he admitted. "Where it is going in future is exactly what the Yankee Group is saying."

Hamilton added that virtual desktops also allow users to personalise their machines, which the IT department would have prevented in the past.

"IT's first response is seek and destroy: do not let that iPod connect to my network because it is an 80GB theft device," he said. "But when they start to limit users they are hurting their most productive workers."