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Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) vs VNC Connect comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 7, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Intune
Sponsored
Ranking in Remote Access
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
239
Ranking in other categories
Configuration Management (2nd), Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) (1st), Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (1st)
Citrix DaaS (formerly Citri...
Ranking in Remote Access
5th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
125
Ranking in other categories
Application Virtualization (1st), Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) (3rd), Desktop as a Service (DaaS) (1st)
VNC Connect
Ranking in Remote Access
16th
Average Rating
7.4
Reviews Sentiment
5.9
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2025, in the Remote Access category, the mindshare of Microsoft Intune is 9.6%, down from 12.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) is 4.6%, down from 7.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VNC Connect is 3.3%, down from 3.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Remote Access
 

Featured Reviews

Joseph Merusi - PeerSpot reviewer
Everything has worked better since we started using it
Sometimes the syncing is inconsistent. I'm confident that the devices are checking in every eight hours, but sometimes the devices aren't picking up the settings as quickly as I would expect. Some features haven't been updated in a while, and Microsoft doesn't seem interested in developing them. Unless you talk to an engineer, you don't know whether there will be an update. There are communication issues, so you might start working with a feature without knowing if it will be deprecated six months from now. Some reporting areas still need development. For example, I noticed that the reporting for driver updates is still confusing.
DavidWood1 - PeerSpot reviewer
Flexible Deployment, reliable performance, and fast transmission speeds
Provisioning Server is a fantastic option for image management in Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops. It offers excellent performance and reliability. On the other hand, while Machine Creation Services can be scaled easily, they can significantly increase storage consumption. For instance, creating a Windows 10 image in MCS typically requires at least 80 GB of storage, in addition to any separate disks needed. To store changes made by users in Machine Creation Services, the differencing disk must be equal in size to the base disk, leading to significant storage consumption. On the other hand, Provisioning Server uses image versioning, creating a new image version every time it's modified. As a result, virtual machines streamed from the server revert to their original state after a reboot, which is similar to their state during the first boot. Using the provisioning server, I start by configuring a virtual machine with either a 2016 or 2019 server operating system. I install the necessary Citrix client provisioning server target device software, followed by installing the required applications. After that, I capture the entire configuration to a file share. The image is then streamed from the file share to the hypervisor, which can handle multiple machines. In some large-scale deployments, we have used a single image to provision thousands of servers. Once the image is captured and stored on the file share, it is set to read-only mode, and any changes made to it are not accepted until it is put in read-write mode. When a virtual machine is rebooted, it returns to its previous state before the changes were made. This feature can be beneficial in situations like a virus outbreak, where a simple reboot of the virtual machines can remove any malicious code or changes. A provisioning server offers a faster recovery time from a bad change and is generally faster than machine creation services. With the provisioning server, changes are not accepted until the read-write mode is enabled, and if a virus outbreak occurs, rebooting the machines restores them to the previous state. On the other hand, machine creation services' speed is dependent on the storage's speed, and recovery time from a bad change can take longer, especially with a large number of devices. If a bad change is made with machine creation services, the replication process can take a while to revert, whereas, with a provisioning server, all machines can be rebooted quickly. Within thirty minutes, I can restore my system to its previous state using the provisioning server.
Jose Miguel Moya - PeerSpot reviewer
Easy to deploy, but scalability needs improvement
There are no specific challenges I faced while using the product. I haven't used the solution to support any AI-driven projects. In our company, we need to have remote access to our labs because if not, people have to move to the laboratory, and we will spend a lot of time working. I don't know the features of VNC Connect that improved our company's support capabilities. I rate the tool a six out of ten.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"While I don't think you can ever have full visibility and control, Intune certainly allows us to see the applications being used and tells us if things like Windows patches aren't applied to machines. It does a good job. That visibility makes life a little easier."
"The many policies available in Microsoft Intune for managing our devices are valuable."
"The Mobile Device Management in Intune is a valuable feature."
"The management control feature is the most valuable."
"A great solution for anyone wanting a modern endpoint device management solution."
"The features I found most valuable in Intune are its user visibility and troubleshooting options."
"Intune's integration with Defender and other security solutions is valuable because it offers a view into different security vulnerabilities and enables us to secure them more effectively."
"The biggest asset is the range of device management options available with Intune, whether it is a Windows device, a Linux device, a Mac device, or mobile devices."
"The most valuable feature is the desktop experience so that users don't see much difference between the remote desktop and the local desktop... It also provides virtualization for high-end graphics so that they can be displayed. AutoCAD can be done on Citrix. The graphics are very good."
"The most valuable feature is connectivity. The remote connection is the reason we are using this solution."
"Citrix DaaS’s most valuable feature is the virtualization of applications and desktops."
"The only thing that is really important for me is being able to connect from wherever I am. It is important for me because sometimes I am in places where there are not enough safe conditions to be able to work safely, in terms of security and confidentiality of my data. Being able to access internal resources from a secure platform allows me to work without fearing that my data has been stolen."
"The most beneficial feature is seamless remote access, particularly for applications rather than full endpoints. Security features include full data encryption and integrated SSL VPN through NetScaler for secure access."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is the desktop virtualization, which allows me to connect from anywhere."
"Before we adopted a VDI storage solution, our customers' personal information was leaked. This happened a lot. But since we adopted a VDI solution, these kinds of issues have happened rarely."
"It is a stable solution. We don't usually have problems with the platform...It is a very scalable solution."
"The product’s ease of use and security are valuable."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is its ease of use."
"The most valuable features are that it is consistently low profile and consistently works without hiccups or headaches."
 

Cons

"It would be awesome if Microsoft opened their API so we could filter more properties. If we have to do anything outside of Intune that requires a third-party solution to talk back to it, we're very limited in what we can do. Trust your people. We promise not to break your stuff. Open it up just a tiny bit wider."
"Lacks the ability to deploy more ways of management, managing devices and processing the policies."
"A more incisive reporting tool with automated progress updates and graphical representation would be beneficial, as the current manual method lacks efficiency and visual clarity."
"We would like to see the ability to use multiple personas on a device, similar to Samsung Knox, included in future updates."
"There can be more logs. I do not have any other requirements."
"The current Intune reporting functionality could benefit from some improvements."
"The product needs to upgrade itself when the server is overloaded."
"If you wish to block any App Store application, there is no way to do so."
"The initial setup is very complex."
"Some customers find the price to be a significant factor. They have a hard time understanding the extra cost of the services"
"In the bank, a major part of all our applications is Microsoft App-V. If App-V is at end of life, then we need a new technology to replace it. As of today, I haven't seen in Citrix Studio that there is a new technology embedded directly in it to replace App-V."
"If anything could be improved, it might be some of the Director functionality, and some of the dashboard customization, or the overall Director customization."
"The sales team does not focus on client needs but instead focuses on selling higher-priced items."
"The visibility the solution provides across SaaS, hybrid, and multi-cloud environments, for user and application traffic, is also limited if you do not enable all the services and is based on which services you are utilising. Citrix provides end-to-end visibility based on their services you are utilising."
"As an end-to-end solution for implementing Zero Trust principles I would rate it a six or a seven out of 10, because it doesn't cover all aspects of Zero Trust. There are quite a few aspects you need to cover."
"The support offered by Citrix's partner needs to improve. The partner support platform should aim to provide more technical information to users."
"We occasionally have issues with the graphic software of the interface."
"Improvements are required in the area of scalability since it is an aspect of the tool where there are shortcomings."
"Ease of access is a bit of a challenge."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I have no comment on pricing of the solution."
"No one can compete with Microsoft when it comes to price, and the features it is offering."
"The price for Intune is fair."
"I would rate the price a four out of ten with ten being the most expensive."
"It is reasonable. When you have Microsoft 365 E3 or E5 license, it is already licensed in that license. So, you could say it is free."
"We work in the charity sector, so a lot of our clients get Microsoft Premium licenses or Business Premium for free. They get ten licenses free, and a lot of our clients do not have more than ten staff members. They are getting the tool for free, so its cost is not an issue."
"We have the business premium licenses for the solution."
"Intune is inexpensive. It also comes bundled in some Office 365 licenses, so you can choose to purchase it separately or as a package."
"The purchase price was around $300,000 USD and then the maintenance fees were 20%. There are no other additional fees."
"We recouped 60 to 70 percent of the hardware costs."
"In terms of pricing with the Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops, I think it has gotten better over the years. Citrix has found more dynamic ways to be able to revive licensing models that fit many different scenarios that organizations have. We have been able to evolve our own licensing over the years to accommodate our situations between concurrent versus user device licenses. Now, when we move into the Citrix Workspace realm, we definitely have some awesome options there."
"My company opts for the yearly subscription model to pay towards the licensing costs attached to the solution."
"They offer licensing per user. From time to time, they give discounts. Because it's a hybrid model, you can deploy some portion of it on cloud and some portion your on-prem."
"Citrix is a mid-range cost solution compared to some others out there."
"It's costly in the market. But it is not expensive for the company. For the company, it's relatively inexpensive because the core of the work is compensated with the price."
"I think it is a little high priced."
"I use the tool's free version."
"The tool is not cheap."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
26%
Computer Software Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
7%
Manufacturing Company
33%
Computer Software Company
12%
University
4%
Financial Services Firm
4%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

How does Microsoft Intune compare with VMware Workspace One?
Microsoft Intune is a great tool for managing a mobile device fleet while keeping access control. The solution makes ...
What are the pros and cons of Microsoft Intune?
Microsoft Intune is a great configuration management tool and has a lot of good things going for it. Here are some of...
How does Google Cloud Identity compare with Microsoft Intune?
Microsoft Intune offers not only an easy-to-deploy data protection and productivity management solution, but also ...
What do you like most about Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops?
My focus has primarily been on publishing virtual applications.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops?
I rate the product’s pricing a seven out of ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive.
What needs improvement with Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops?
I have found that Citrix DaaS is still a complex product, especially on the desktop side, which affects scalability. ...
What needs improvement with VNC Connect?
The bandwidth is slow. Improvements are required in the area of scalability since it is an aspect of the tool where t...
What is your primary use case for VNC Connect?
I use the solution to get remote access to our labs.
What advice do you have for others considering VNC Connect?
There are no specific challenges I faced while using the product. I haven't used the solution to support any AI-drive...
 

Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager
XenDesktop, XenApp (Citrix Virtual Apps), Citrix Workspace
No data available
 

Interactive Demo

Demo not available
Demo not available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway
Exelon, Aeronamic, AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Alameda County Medical Center, Alaska Department of Fish & Game, Aloysius Stichting, Amarchand Mangaldas, AmBev, Amnet Technology Solutions, Arval
Telesat Canada, St. Anthony's School, Pratt and Whitney, City of Sacramento
Find out what your peers are saying about Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) vs. VNC Connect and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
839,422 professionals have used our research since 2012.