Published in the Charleston Regional Business Journal

Slimming down the cost of technology with thin clients

By Shelia Watson

In the beginning there was the mainframe computer, which stored great quantities of data in one place, ready for retrieval. At the dawn of the information age, the creators of the mainframe saw that it was good. But it was also huge. And it was expensive. Only large companies could afford to invest in these giants.

And so began the evolution of the personal computer (PC), which was so affordable that smaller companies and individuals alike could buy them. And buy them they did. With desktop computing the icon of efficiency, PCs multiplied in the workplace.

But, alas, there was soon trouble in paradise. With a processing unit, monitor and often a printer at each desk – each component with its own hardware, software, settings and data files – the task of maintaining the computers became a burden.

Studies have shown that 90% of the total cost of ownership (TCO) of technological equipment is maintenance. Considering the profileration of PCs in the workplace, managing them all can be a serious drain on resources, especially for small businesses.

The old dog-new trick solution

Enter "thin client" technology, a solution in which networked PCs (the "clients") are centrally-managed from a main server, where the applications and most data files are stored. This form of centralized computing is actually a return to the mainframe, but on a smaller scale – something a small business can afford.

Thin clients are not "mini" computers or laptops; the actual size of the computer has not changed. They are called "thin" because they no longer store the applications and data files. The size of hard drives and the power of the processing units required to run them is considerably decreased. Some thin clients are built without floppy drives or CD drives because, with the server handling their processing and storage, external drives are not needed.

What's so great about being thin?

Some of the benefits to thin client technology are obvious. Applications are installed once on the server instead of at each workstation. Managing applications and files in one location reduces the downtime required to configure individual workstations. Likewise, when it's time to upgrade, only an installation on the server is required.

Server-managed applications can alleviate licensing violations, which occur when a program is installed on more workstations than the number for which it was purchased. For instance, if a company purchases five licenses for Microsoft Word, only five workstations in that company can install Word. If the program is installed on a sixth workstation, the license agreement is violated and the company can be fined up to $100,000 per occurrence.

When applications are managed on the server, however, the number of licenses purchased determines the number of workstations which can use the program simultaneously. Using the example above, all workstations in the company will have access to Word, but the server will allow only five workstations to log into Word at one time; a sixth workstation would be prohibited from opening the application until one of the five closed Word.

Another benefit is the ability to use existing equipment. With the server handling processing, older equipment can run applications with the speed and power of newer equipment. Storage at the server means the clients can use smaller hard drives. In both cases, a company can avoid the "need to upgrade" cycle.

Coordinating remote sites

Thin client technology is a boost for businesses with several locations or employees who travel frequently. Databases or industry-specific accounting packages need not be replicated at each remote site. The application can be provided by the server to the remote user over telephone or data lines, avoiding the expense of uploading and downloading disparate sources of information as well as the cost of separate application licenses.

Bill Daniel of Great Beach Vacations LLC says thin client technology provides an indispensable flexibility to the way his firm conducts business. “We simply could not operate without it,” says Daniel.

With a central facility on Kiawah Island and remote offices on Seabrook Isle of Palms, Great Beach's network is used for reservations and maintenance, front desk activities, record keeping and file maintenance. All processing takes place at the Kiawah Island office. The other two locations use information provided by the central office via terminal server to run applications, update files, and perform tasks normally associated with a full-size network.

Charleston Physical Therapy, with a central office in West Ashley and remote offices in Summerville, Goose Creek and James Island, employs thin client technology to achieve much the same result. General manager Lenette Maxwell says, “Thin client technology allows us to have centralized scheduling and centralized billing, the values of which to us are practically incalculable.”

Caveat emptor

Despite the glowing reports of thin client technology, several disadvantages must be considered. For starters, the server must reside on its own, and, depending on the amount of processing and storage needed, it must be powerful and allow plenty of space for data files. The server requires a great deal of random access memory (RAM) to operate efficiently, and the technology itself – the client/server package that enables such a setup – is not cheap.

Another disadvantage is that all the technology eggs are in the server basket. As the central work processor, the server must be maintained constantly. If the server crashes, the company is dead in the water until the server is up again.

Other issues are more inconveniences, such as the client with no floppy drive, which prohibits the employee from saving files to disk without downloading directly from the server.

Another consideration is that tying together various hardware components in this environment may cause bottlenecks in processing.

While thin client technology has its disadvantages, for many small businesses the benefits of centralized computing may outweight the costs. A return to the mainframe – albeit a slimmed down version – can provide small businesses a sensible solution to the TCO issues of computing.