I read “5 Virtual Desktop Pitfalls” by Jon Brodkin in Network World. According to Mr. Bodkin the 5 pitfalls are cost, storage, network, multimedia support and user experience.
The network requirements and user experience are probably the two areas that have improved the most over the last decade so I would say these are fading pitfalls. In fact the improvements in network infrastructure and the user experience are driving VDI adoption.
Multimedia support will continue to be a game stopper in some cases.
The cost pitfall surprised me. Mr. Bodkin quotes Forrester analysis finding that the ROI is 3 – 5 years if that. This contradicts acquisition costs that I have seen that were lower than the cost to replace desktops not to mention the lower operational expenses. Clearly a business needs to be in desktop refresh mode to have a rapid ROI.
The article is worth reading especially if you are involved or considering a VDI implementation.
Link to “5 Virtual Desktop Pitfalls” by Jon Brodkin:
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2010/040110-virtual-desktop-pitfalls.html?page=1