End-user computing (EUC) is a combination of technologies, policies, and processes that gives your workforce secure, remote access to applications, desktops, and data they need to get their work done. Modern enterprises use EUC so that their employees can work from wherever they are, across multiple devices, in a safe and scalable way. A well-designed EUC program gives users immediate access to the digital technologies they need for productivity, both on-premises and remotely in the cloud.
Why is EUC important?
The term end-user computing (EUC) covers technologies such as:
- Remote workforce management
- Virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI)
- Application virtualization and application streaming platforms
Users can access internal services and applications from devices owned, managed, or even hosted in secure facilities by enterprises or individuals. You can use cloud-based EUC solutions to scale resources up or down depending on demand and avoid heavy upfront investment. These solutions stream only pixels to endpoint devices, ensuring that critical data is kept secure in the corporate data center and is never stored on an end-user system.
Thus, EUC gives every user the tools to do their job and respond faster to organizational needs while keeping the organization’s intellectual property and core data assets secure. EUC satisfies regulatory needs to protect personally identifiable information (PII) and other data types from rogue actors. EUC services can also reduce the complexity of application infrastructure so that most workers can use them. For example, nonprogrammers can create working applications without the need for rigorous IT support. Anyone can deploy a Windows- or Linux-based application and make it look like a Software as a Service (SaaS) application, without the need for deep technical knowledge. These capabilities work together to improve productivity and collaboration within an organization.
What are the benefits of EUC?
End-user computing (EUC) offers organizations several valuable advantages. We give some EUC benefits below.
Business continuity
Hundreds of millions of people now work remotely, with no or limited access to company hardware. EUC has been critical to business continuity as employees access the business applications and data they need on their personal devices.
Security
EUC services and applications are centrally managed. They store data and desktops centrally in the cloud and stream only pixels out to endpoint devices, avoiding sensitive data downloads to user devices. End users can use multi-factor authentication to access EUC systems, even further decreasing the risk of unauthorized data access if an employee’s device is lost or stolen.
Agility
Cloud-based EUC solutions greatly improve agility by providing instant scalability, making it more straightforward for organizations to deploy and manage secure virtual desktop infrastructure. You can release new software and new tools or turn existing Windows- or Linux-based applications into Software as a Service (SaaS) applications faster than you could on premises. EUC also makes it more efficient to oversee migrations and deployments.
Cost savings
It is more cost effective for enterprises to manage centralized desktops and EUC solutions in the cloud. You can manage and install applications in a single location, reducing management complexity and cost. You can also add and remove users on demand and pay only for what you use, when you use it. You no longer need to overbuy hardware and licenses for peak user capacity.
Testing
EUC is an optimum environment for rapid prototyping and testing. Organizations can offer new tools to their workers to test how effective and user friendly they are on a large scale. EUC allows you to change design and structure to rapidly carry out testing campaigns.
Collaboration
Teams using EUC services can securely collaborate on projects, with their content stored on the cloud. You can also share project information with external users for cross-organizational collaboration with changes made in real time.
What are EUC use cases?
We give some common applications of end-user computing (EUC) below.
Remote workforce
It is more important than ever that organizations empower their people to work from wherever they’re based and from multiple devices. You can use EUC services to onboard new workers remotely, and grant access to the databases and applications they need to do their jobs effectively, all while keeping organizational data secure and compliant.
Contingent workforce
Contractors and temporary staff have always been popular options for businesses. This is particularly true for organizations where demand for products and services fluctuates through the year. EUC services help enterprises customize workforce management by providing their contingent workforce with the data and applications they require on their personal devices without the requirement to distribute costly laptops or other endpoint devices. Employees can access applications from any device, including personal devices, without the risk of data exfiltration from the company. Cloud-based EUC solutions also allow organizations to pay only for the infrastructure they need, when they need it, helping organizations with large seasonal shifts in workforce save money by avoiding overprovisioning.
Contact centers
Call center staff no longer have to be in physical call centers to do their jobs. Virtual contact centers run in the cloud allow agents to access virtual desktops and applications. EUC ensures that sensitive corporate information remains on the cloud rather than devices used by contact agents.
Trials, demos, and training
With EUC services, you can provide software trials on demand with no local installs or special hardware required. Similarly, sales teams can deliver your company’s software technologies for demos on any device. Training and certification workshops for your software can occur online, with no need for a physical lab or classroom.
What are the technologies used in EUC?
We explain some common EUC technologies below.
VDI
Virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) is a software solution that allows you to provision and manage individual desktop computing environments for end users from a centralized location. Virtual desktops are software applications that mimic real desktop computers. VDI technology creates a virtual desktop on a central server, and remote users can access this desktop from any physical machine over the internet.
DaaS
Desktop as a Service (DaaS) is a cloud computing service where providers deliver virtual desktops to end users online. It is set up with a per-user subscription license. Service providers oversee the management of maintenance, backup, data storage, and updates. DaaS offers advantages over VDI because it doesn’t require infrastructure setup and management costs and avoids overprovisioning.
Application as a service
Application as a service technology lets you make your Windows- and Linux-based applications available to users without rewriting the code. You can quickly and easily install, test, and update your applications and set scaling parameters to meet the needs of your end users.
