Businesses looking to save money on IT deployments and significantly reduce their carbon footprint should investigate MiniFrame's SoftXpand Business system.
SoftXpand installs onto a desktop PC system, to which six monitors, six mice and six keyboards are attached. Six users can then log on simultaneously and use what feels like a traditional desktop PC.
The theory behind this configuration is that a traditional desktop PC has underused processing power, which could easily be used to service six user accounts running under one operating system.
Had the system been linked through an RJ45 cable, using layer-3 switching would make the systems essentially separate, with each user being unaware that five others are sharing the same system. However, the USB cabling and graphics card connections mean that user systems will essentially be located closer to each other, probably in visual contact.
The benefits would be that firms deploying the package would need only one system and a fully configured backup system in the unlikely event of a failure. Application management and other associated system management costs would similarly be reduced, since initial setup would be a once-only exercise. Patching and system administration would be limited to the one desktop system.
The peripherals are standard, and the desktop PC is to all intents and purposes standard, albeit with subtle modifications to improve performance and reliability. For instance the power supply used in the system is a more reliable and energy efficient model.learn more>>