Server 2008 Terminal Services Squeezing Citrix?
Today's list of blog posts seems ripe for market news, so let's take a look at another analysis. With Server 2008 coming out next month, and with Terminal Services so substantially improved over all previous versions, is there an upcoming play with Microsoft putting the squeeze on current Citrix customers?
Citrix licenses go (at the Platinum level) for something like $600 per CCU. Now that includes lots of other goodies like application streaming, monitoring with EdgeSight, and transport security with their SSL VPN appliance. That product set is good in many places.
But at the same time Microsoft's Terminal Services comes for nothing more than the cost of the TSCAL (which Citrix users have to buy as well). Server 2008 includes transport security now, and an SSL VPN. Application streaming and monitoring are similarly available, but with added cost.
With Terminal Services rapidly approaching the quality of Citrix, how will this impact Citrix's future viability? One wonders if Microsoft is putting the squeeze on their partners -- of which many are also Citrix partners concurrently -- to sell theirs over Citrix. The opposite is also potentially true.
If you're a partner of either Citrix or Microsoft, are you feeling the squeeze? Or, if you're an end user of either product, have you felt your partner's messaging change much? Let us know...
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Comments
Every year the same silly questions and interpretations. RDP is still ages far away from ICA. Do you ever tried to setup a application delivery farm with RDP/terminal services? Good Joke! Dont mix total different things and dont confuse the audience! :-)
Posted by: Tom | January 23, 2008 4:44 AM
Dont waste my time with this crap, there was absolutely no information or evidence that supports the title of this article.
Posted by: jerome z | January 23, 2008 8:09 AM
Its good to hear that there's still substantial support of Citrix in the marketplace. Have either of you seen Terminal Services in Server 2008? Setting up an application delivery farm is made much easier now, in addition to plenty of other tasks that were previously only possible with Citrix.
Posted by: Greg Shields | January 23, 2008 9:35 AM
The windows client will still only work on Windows based machines and will be tweaked for network usage only. Citrix ICA client will still be available to Mac and Unix users, and will work better for long distance connectivity and (dare I say it....?) dial-up users.
I.
Posted by: Ian MacLatchie | January 23, 2008 11:58 AM
This response is directed to Ian: Part your comment is incorrect. The Remote Desktop client is available for the Mac and Linux platforms. Here's the link to the Mac TS client: http://www.microsoft.com/mac/products/remote-desktop/default.mspx. And here's the link to a 3rd party Linux TS client (one of many available): http://www.rdesktop.org/.
Posted by: Greg Shields | January 23, 2008 12:36 PM
Citrix is not going away anytime soon. I have worked the First MS Terminal Services and Citrix 1.8 thru 4.5. In addition ICA is levels above RDP. Even though RDP is a foundation for Citrix it has not and will not replace Citrix in the near future. With Citix and Xensource virtualizing it will further revolutionize the Industry of Server Based Computing (SBC) and virtualization utilizing Citrix ICA.
Posted by: James Brown | February 29, 2008 4:58 PM