System and Method for a Distributed Virtual Desktop Infrastructure

• US 20130282792A1
• Filed: 10/15/2012
• Published: 10/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Citrix Systems, Inc. (Cloud Software Group)
• Original Assignee: Citrix Systems, Inc. (Cloud Software Group)
• Inventors: Graham, Simon
• Granted Patent: US 9,270,785 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/41 where a single sign-on provides access to a plurality of computers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/452 Remote windowing, e.g. X-Window System, desktop virtualisation protocols for virtual reality H04L67/131
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45533 Hypervisors; Virtual machine monitors
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1097 for distributed storage of data in networks, e.g. transport arrangements for network file system [NFS], storage area networks [SAN] or network attached storage [NAS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/30 Profiles

Abstract

A distributed virtual desktop infrastructure system includes at least one management server and a plurality of client management applications. The management server includes at least one processor, and is programmed and/or configured to determine a home system of the plurality of client systems for at least one user. The plurality of client management applications are in communication with the at least one management server, and are configured to execute on the plurality of client system and display, on at least one client system, a virtual desktop of at least one virtual machine executing on the home system. Related systems and methods are also described.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for providing distributed virtualized desktops, the method performed on at least one computer including at least one processor, the method comprising:

receiving, at a first computer, user credential data for at least one user;

transmitting, to a management server, at least a portion of the user credential data and identifying information of the first computer;

receiving, from central management server, an identification of a home system for the at least one user based at least partially on the user credential data, the home system comprising a second computer executing at least one virtual machine including a desktop;

establishing communication between the first computer and the second computer; and

receiving, at the first computer, display data from the second computer, the display data configured to generate a representation of at least a portion of the desktop on the first computer, such that the at least one user is able to access the desktop while the at least one virtual machine on the second computer is executing.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the first computer and the second computer comprise a client management application configured to communicate with the management server.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the first computer and the second computer are in communication through a local area network (LAN).

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the communication between the second computer and the first computer is established through a direct connection facilitated by a traversal of at least one network address translation (NAT) gateway.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a copy of a memory state of the at least one virtual machine from the second computer; and

identifying at least one portion of the memory state that was modified while receiving the copy of the memory state.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 5, further comprising:

receiving a copy of the at least one portion of the memory state;

identifying at least one other portion of the memory state that was modified while receiving the copy of the at least one portion of the memory state, wherein the at least one other portion of the memory state is a subset of the at least one portion of the memory state;

receiving a copy of the at least one other portion of the memory state.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 6, further comprising repeatedly identifying parts of the memory state that changed during a previous iteration of copying and receiving the identified parts of the memory state until no further changed parts of the memory state are identified or the changed parts of the memory state are less than a predetermined threshold.

8. A system for providing distributed virtualized desktops, the system comprising at least one management server including at least one processor, the at least one management server configured to:

receive, from a first computing device, user credential data for a user and device identification data for the first computing device;

identify a home system for the user based at least partially on at least a portion of the user credential data, the home system comprising a second computing device executing at least one virtual machine including at least one desktop; and

transmit, to the first computing device, data configured to facilitate a direct connection between the first computing device and the second computing device, such that the first computing device displays the at least one desktop while the at least one virtual machine continues to execute on the second computing device.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the management server is further configured to cause at least one of the first and second computing devices to migrate the virtual machine from the second computing device to the first computing device while the virtual machine is executing.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the virtual machine is migrated by copying a memory state of the virtual machine from the second computer, identifying at least one portion of the memory state that changed during the copying of the memory state, and copying the at least one portion of the memory state from the second computing device.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the first and second computing devices comprise a client management application configured to communicate with the management server.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the first and second computing devices are in communication through a local area network (LAN).

13. The system of claim 8, wherein the management server is further configured to receive at least one of a desktop state and a desktop status for at least one desktop on the second computing device.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the at least one of a desktop state and a desktop status is transmitted to the first computing device at predetermined intervals.

15. The system of claim 8, wherein the management server is further configured to power on at least one of the first computing device and the second computing device.

20. The virtual desktop infrastructure system of claim 15, wherein the home system is at least one other client system of the plurality of systems, and wherein the at least one client system displays the virtual desktop through a communication link with the at least one other client system.

16. A distributed virtual desktop infrastructure system, comprising:

at least one management server comprising at least one processor, the at least one management server configured to provide a plurality of centrally managed virtual machines to a plurality of client systems, the at least one management server further configured to determine a home system of the plurality of client systems for at least one user; and

a plurality of client management applications in communication with the at least one management server, the plurality of client management applications configured to execute on the plurality of client systems, and display, on at least one client system, a virtual desktop of at least one virtual machine executing on the home system.

17. The distributed virtual desktop infrastructure system of claim 16, wherein, if the home system is local to a first computing device being used by the at least one user, the virtual desktop is displayed from the at least one virtual machine local to the first computing device.

18. The distributed virtual desktop infrastructure system of claim 16, wherein the plurality of client management applications are configured to migrate the at least one virtual machine from the home system to the at least one client system while the at least one virtual machine is executing on the home system.

19. The distributed virtual desktop infrastructure system of claim 16, further comprising a storage area network in communication with the plurality of client systems.