desktop Thin client

[spence]

Hi i was wondering if i use a existing desktop as a thin client would it still need a hard drive and memory.

 

[spence]

or would it boot off the network card

 

[Synaesthesia]

Depends on how thin you make it! You can maybe still boot ubuntu or windows off a 4gb flash to keep things fast on the client side, store everything else on the network, or you can network boot. Not an expert on this though!

 

[Other Pineapple Smurf]

You would still need Memory and I would go for a lot more on a thin client than a fat client running the same terminal services as you want to cache as much as possible in RAM.

It also depends on what you want to do?

Also with the cost of Thin Clients, many people just use a basic PC/Netbook/Nettop as its more cost effective.

 

[spence]

The reason i am raising this question is i am looking at upgrading my works computers but i am in two minds whether i should buy thin clients and replace the desktops or use the old desktops as "fat Clients". My problem is am i creating work for myself in fixing and upkeep of computers that are already 5 years old

 

[spence]

They are being used mainly for word excel and powerpoint and maybe delphi at a later stage

 

[repitah]

If you are using a "fat"-client to create a thin-client, you will still need memory, albeit a minimal amount for the motherboard&CPU to operate.
The harddrive can be replaced by a USB memory stick with a basic OS, or you can investigate network booting (PXE)

If you go the network boot root, things to consider is :

gigabit networking:

server, switches and "thin"-client NIC​

small foot-print OS (150MB is reasonably comfortable to boot from, but less is better):

typically a linux distro. You could probably hack together a Windows based system -- licenses will be required. Don't expect much/any support though. This is the domain of Windows Embedded.​

 

[spence]

Thanks for the reply repitah. i will probably be using terminal services and they will remote into their specific desktops. The thing im most worried about is is am i setting myself up for extra work not going the actual thinclient route. Bearing in mind these systems are already 5 years old.

 

[spence]

I like the flashdisk idea but this is going to be in a school environment so they would probably be stolen within the first day

 

[repitah]

Trying to breathe new life into old machines is going to be painful. Refurbishing the machines (strip, clean and rebuild) is a good start. Also test the HDD smart and replace CPU fans if possible. -- Finding parts may be a challenge.
Assuming the school is running XP, maybe do a fresh install, install SP3 and the latest RDP client. Investigate write filtering (goggle fbwf) so that the main OS is locked, but the profiles directory / %temp% is not.

Using the new features of terminal ervices, you can publish an app instead of an entire desktop, so that may be a consideration for you.