Horizon 8 Reviews

Horizon is used to create virtual desktops. It's helpful for people who want to transition from large desktops and laptops to more virtual desktops. More people are working remotely, and that freaks out IT departments when they can't get access to an employee's desktop. We are seeing a lot of demand for virtual desktops for remote working.

Horizon allows us to sell a solution to customers.

VMware Horizon View is easy to configure and deploy.

The cost of licenses is always a challenge. I would also like the deployment to be simplified and automated to be more streamlined. It would be helpful for managing. For example, if you are deploying 900, it would be nice to automate the management of groups of 30 or 40 or whatever you're doing. Automation and deployment tools would be good.

We've used VMware Horizon View off and on since it was first introduced in 2006. I have been messing around with VMware since early in my career. It's probably been about 18 months since I last did a direct Horizon solution. 

Horizon View is pretty stable.

Horizon View has been scalable enough for everything I've done so far. The last deployment was about 900 users. It was a mixture of office workers and managers.

VMware support is okay, but sometimes it's a little bit hit or miss trying to get somebody who knows what they're doing and talking about.

Our customers switched from more of a traditional laptop or desktop environment where they were maintaining 900 different systems and trying to keep them patched and updated. A VDI is helpful for tracking ransomware or viruses because you can lock down systems more easily when they're centrally controlled.

Setting up Horizon is probably not easy for an inexperienced person. You can't just read the manual and do it. You need some experience to set it up. It's not overly complex, but it also isn't so simple that you could deploy it yourself if you've never done it before.

It took about two or three months because you can't just roll it out. You have to migrate the users in batches. If you're rolling out a thousand users, you can't just turn it on and have at it with a thousand. You deploy 30 and migrate a department and then do another. That's the case with any virtual desktop solution. Rolling it out is always going to be a more gradual process than a big bang all at once overnight.

VMware has tools to calculate projected ROI. The customers don't hit that projection, but they get relatively close. Typically the projected return is higher than what customers actually see.

The pricing can be relatively competitive, but sometimes you have to go back to VMware and ask for additional discounts. You can make it competitive If you're prepared to put in the work. The list prices and standard discounts may not be competitive, but if you push hard enough, you can get the price to where you need it to be.

When you deploy the solution, the goal is to reduce normal operating costs by making it easier to keep your devices updated and patched. Obviously, there are hardware costs for running virtual machines, so there are additional costs depending on where you're running it, especially if you're using the standard hybrid cloud. If you use the Horizon Cloud, it's a different pricing model.

I'd rate VMware Horizon View seven out of 10. If you want to simplify management and retain control, give it some serious thought. If you're allowing users to work on their own devices, it's necessary. If everybody has their own laptops, you want to use something like Horizon or VDI to manage your corporate applications. It's absolutely essential for that type of environment.

We are using it to provide our users with a personalized desktop experience when they're working remotely, especially during the pandemic.

We are using its latest version. We usually deploy it on-prem, but I know that there is a possibility to put it on the cloud.

It is simpler and faster to deploy new versions and updates. It is also easier to make sure that everybody is using a standard image or a standard setup.

One of the most interesting features in the enterprise version is the ability to do some support. There is a feature for remote control and debugging, which is something we didn't have before having Horizon 7 and the enterprise version.

It is safer in terms of viruses and other types of attacks. If a machine ever becomes compromised, you can just destroy it immediately by logging off and having it recomposed.

The most important feature that is missing is the ability to do some remote support on the client itself. For example, if somebody has a Horizon client installed on his machine, there should be a way to support his local machine as well. That's because most of the problems can't be solved very often due to the computer or the setup that someone is using on his personal machine. Because a Horizon client is already installed on the machine to access the environment, it would be nice if the client itself possessed some sort of remote control tool in it so that if needed, we could support both the virtual setup and the actual setup of the machine. It pretty much does everything well. It is mostly the support aspect that can be improved. You have perfect control over your in-house environment. You have a solution that can pretty much be used anywhere, but you have no control over the machine that's being used to access your environment. Definitely, that's where most of the features are lacking. There should be an option for remote control and maybe some options for conformity. For example, if somebody installed the Horizon client on their shared computer, there could be some safety features or safety checks that were implemented in the client itself to make sure that the person using it is not using a compromised machine or something like that.

Its integration with third parties can be improved. Sometimes, there is a lack of integration with third parties. For example, we had issues at some point with Adobe products running in virtualization. I know they have a very hard time running in a virtualized environment and performing correctly. They work, but they're very slow, and they're hard to support.

I have been using this solution for probably close to two years.

The solution is very stable. It is very robust. The most fragile factor is the actual VM or the OS that you run on it. You might have a good virtual desktop solution, but if your VM that is running has an actual bug in it, such as a faulty patch or a problem that has to do more with software, then you're stuck with it anyway. 

Its scalability is very good based on what I have seen so far. It is easy to scale it up or down, and I haven't seen any constraints of any kind.

Usually, at any given time, there are close to a hundred users who are using it. It is used by all departments. We use it everywhere, and it is used extensively. We don't really plan to extend it because it is already fulfilling all of our needs, so we don't need to upscale or downscale it. It is just perfect right now for our needs.

It often depends on who you end up with. I've seen some people who go the extra mile and solve your problems really easily and quickly. If they don't have a solution, they'll make sure that somebody is able to help you. I've also seen the complete opposite at times where you have trouble trying to get follow-ups. It really depends on who's handling your case, and the fact that their support center is in India doesn't always help. I don't know if it's a language barrier or a social barrier or something else, but it's not easy. They are on the better side than the worst, but there is definitely room for improvement.

We were using Horizon 5. Before that, I've used different technologies but not in this environment. I've used a Citrix Metaframe in a different environment and not at this job.

It was very straightforward. It was a lot simpler than previous versions.

It was an in-house job. We were using Horizon 5, so we already had some experience with the product.

For its maintenance, one or two people are enough.

We have definitely got an ROI.

It is hard to know for sure. It is definitely in the $20,000 to $30,000 range. It is quite expensive, but you do save money on desktop power, desktop upgrades, etc. You're able to extend the useful life of your previous desktops. Previously, we used to change desktops regularly, and now we just change them when they break.

If you're currently looking for a solution that's in-house, it's a great solution. If you're looking into something that's more cloud-based, then you should definitely try a successor, which is a Horizon 8 or Horizon Air.

I would rate Horizon 7 an eight out of 10.

I use the solution for application delivery and data security for external people.

The most valuable feature of VMware Horizon is the VDI service, which helps externals use their own devices while keeping the data inside our data center.

The solution should provide easy configuration.

I have been using VMware Horizon for around one and a half years.

I rate the solution’s stability an eight out of ten.

Since the solution is on-premises and we are moving to the cloud, scaling down is very easy. On the other hand, if we would deploy a lot of new VIs, it would be very easy to just add them. VMware Horizon is very flexible when scaling up and scaling down. Around 2,200 users in our organization use VMware Horizon to deploy the main applications.

I rate the solution’s scalability a nine out of ten.

The solution's technical support is very good. When we face issues with VMware Horizon, the support team creates patches in less than three weeks. If there are issues, the support team is very involved in finding out what's happening and solving the issue.

Positive

We previously used Citrix. We switched to VMware Horizon because Citrix was not as flexible as VMware Horizon was for us. The supplier that won the contract was in favor of using VMware. So, VMware Horizon came with the supplier we selected.

Delivering legacy applications and overall stability was challenging while setting up the solution.

On a scale from one to ten, where one is difficult and ten is easy, I rate the solution's initial setup a five out of ten.

The solution's actual deployment before we got into the pilot phase took about six months. The solution's deployment process included design, implementation, testing, and distribution to the end user. We had five people, including two from the supplier and about three internal people, to deploy the solution.

We needed to keep our legacy applications running because the business is reliant on them. If the applications stop, the business stops. In that case, we had no choice but to choose a technology like VMware Horizon.

We paid a lot of money for software that is not really fully operational out of the box. We had to have patches from VMware to get it into production. Hence, we lost a lot of time implementing the solution. We have a three-year contract, for which we pay about ten euros per user per month.

On a scale from one to ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive, I rate the solution's pricing a seven out of ten.

I am using the latest version of VMware Horizon. I think one person from the supplier does the maintenance for VMware Horizon. We can implement our zero-trust strategy using VMware Horizon. It's a big part of our zero-trust solution. So, external people only have access to Horizon instead of having direct access to our company data with their devices.

Users should make a good comparison between cloud solutions Azure VDI and VMware Horizon, especially now that the company has been sold to a private investor.

Overall, I rate the solution a seven out of ten.

The solution is useful for anyone working from home. It enables connection to office workstations and open corporate portals. We can access all files and folders, and collaborate with other team members. I'm a company manager. 

This product works quickly and is reliable. You feel like you're working on your own desktop and not on a remote desktop.

The one thing that could be improved would be to implement more robust audio redirections. When we are talking on headphones, using Teams, or any other communicator, there shouldn't be any lag time, voices cutting out, or interrupted connections. It has improved from what it was initially, but there's still a way to go. 

I've been using this solution for two years. 

The solution is definitely scalable. If you want to change computer size, or need more horsepower, it can be done. You can also work with multiple flavors of operating systems and if you need to test and work with Linux servers, or open two or more windows, you can do that too.

The solution requires very little technical support because the environment is very stable. The vendors provide great training and have a good knowledge base if any assistance is required. 

I previously used Dell vWorkspace but they halted development when it was sold. We had concerns regarding ongoing support and the lack of development so we switched to Horizon. 

The initial setup is really straightforward. It doesn't take more than five minutes and doesn't require external help. 

I recommend this product and rate it nine out of 10. 

We use the solution for the virtual desktop environment. Our customers are mostly from the financial sector. 

The solution's most valuable feature is low bandwidth consumption. It helps to improve user experience.  

VMware Horizon View needs to improve orchestration and integrate additional images. I would also like to see its statistics.

I have been working with the solution for eight years. 

I rate the solution's stability an eight out of ten. 

I rate the product's scalability an eight out of ten. My company has four financial enterprise customers using it. 

The technical team assigned someone promptly whenever we encountered any issues, and the issues were resolved. 

Positive

I rate VMware Horizon View's deployment a five out of ten. You must install different components to get it working, which is cumbersome. We completed the deployment in three to four days. Once the hardware is in place, you proceed to provision your password and select the components you want to use.

I rate the product's pricing a seven out of ten. Pricing can be an obstacle for smaller businesses. Pricing is fixed, and there are no additional costs. 

I rate the overall solution an eight out of ten. 

We are using VMware Horizon View in two ways - for both virtual disk infrastructure (VDI) and application virtualization. 

The primary use case is for individuals external to our company to connect and access internal resources. This is done by publishing a virtual desktop point to allow access.

In terms of productivity, VMware Horizon View has been extremely beneficial.

We can run 100 percent of our employees remotely using VDI. We have anywhere from two the three thousand employees.

I appreciate how simple and straightforward the operation of VMware Horizon View is. It is very user-friendly and can be used on any device, anywhere, and anytime.

There are certain areas that require improvement, and in my opinion, the most important factor is with some instances where I have experienced limitations, particularly with the printing service. Using a printer with the VDI is not a straightforward process.

Overall, in my opinion, the solution works perfectly.

I have been using VMware Horizon View since 2016, for seven years.

During this time, I have used several versions and performed multiple upgrades. I initially began with version 6.2, then proceeded to upgrade to 7.1, 7.4, and now to 7.13. Currently, I am planning to upgrade to version 8.

VMware Horizon View is quite a stable solution. We have had no issues.

In my opinion, scaling up to ten sites is easily achievable as the solution is highly scalable. It can be scaled not only within a single site but across multiple sites as well.

We have approximately two thousand people in our environment that are using VMware Horizon View.

We are not only planning to provide access to external employees but also aiming to expand access to internal employees.

The last time I contacted them was about an issue with USB printing, which I believe was related to a Microsoft patch rather than a VMware issue. It seems that the USB printing feature was affected negatively by the Microsoft patch.

To clarify, the printer redirection feature within VMware Horizon was impacted by a Microsoft patch or update, which resulted in the feature not functioning properly. Both products are involved in this issue.

Previously, we were using We were using Citrix XenApp.

Building the infrastructure is relatively straightforward; however, the challenge is in retrieving the master image or golden image for your desktop, which can be a time-consuming process depending on your specific needs. 

For an experienced individual, the implementation of the health solution should not take more than three days.

To be honest, I was able to implement it on my own. However, it's important to note that you may require certain prerequisites from the network team if you plan to make the solution highly available, such as utilizing LoadRunner and other tools.

In my personal opinion, the solution is worth the investment and provides good value for its cost.

I cannot provide a detailed comment on the pricing; however, I can say that it is quite expensive.

The licensing for VDI is divided into multiple modules, including standard and enterprise options. There are different types of licensing available for VDI.

We were considering Microsoft VDI as well as Zendesk.

In my opinion, for large enterprise companies, if the solution is implemented properly with high availability and designed using best practices, there should be no issues.

I would rate VMware Horizon View a ten out of ten.

Nothing is perfect, but this product is amazing.

We use it to provide virtual client desktops for remote users or data center users. It's basically for people to work from home or for a call center.

Instant Clone instantly creates another VM with a Delta disk, which is just the VMware backend. This helps with scalability and management.

They need to make troubleshooting, diagnostics, and error reporting a little better. There are too many consoles with different error messages to identify a problem and figure out how to fix it

I have been using VMware Horizon for 10 years.

It's hard to generally classify this product's performance as stable or not. The performance is dependent on the hardware, not the product. If you have fast hardware, it's going to be fast. If you have slow hardware, it's going to be slow.

Technical support is better than most. I would say it's above average.

It's very complex. There are multiple steps, connectors, and servers. All of them have multiple components that all talk, so that's never going to be easy. But I think it's complex because of what it's doing. And if you use it all the time, that complexity just becomes familiar.

We implemented in-house.

Test it. You can't just listen to a consultant. You have to test it yourself and set up a proof of concept.

I would rate VMware Horizon a seven out of ten. 

VMware Horizon is focused on VDI and application delivery. Organizations use VMware Horizon to deliver third-party applications to their end users. This is facilitated by Horizon's VDI solution, which provides the necessary infrastructure and management capabilities.

The console is straightforward and easy to understand for the end user. It can be deployed on any device, including iPads and Mac OS. Users can access their daily applications and resources provided by the VMware Horizon environment from any device.

It covers and deploy legacy applications to customers who are using outdated operating systems. Legacy applications run only on older computers, but with the power of Horizon, they can be deployed on any device. With recent changes, Horizon operates with a high degree of independence. It enables users to work anytime, anywhere, on any device.

VMware Horizon is best in class product, but they should the improve its connectivity of the agents deployed. They should create their own virtualization infrastructure to host their horizon moving forward.

I have been using VMware Horizon for four years.

We encountered licensing issues. It uses a newer type of licensing, leveraging the cloud for auto licensing rather than using a traditional license key. This change should be discussed with the customer moving forward. To address this, we needed to replace some of our components to connect with the tenants for auto licensing.

I rate the solution's stability a seven out of ten.

The scalability depends on the underlying infrastructure. Horizon operates with VMware vSphere. As long as the company regularly reviews the scalability and virtualization information, Horizon can be easily scaled up or down based on the requirements.

I rate it a seven out of ten.

Currently (Q1 of 2024), raising a ticket with VMware Horizon can be challenging with recent changes (Migration due to recent product acquisitions). Some of the customer portals and support portals are undergoing migration, making it difficult to access them directly and submit tickets.

Negative

The initial setup of VMware Horizon can be time-consuming since it involves deploying various components. There are separate components that you need to deploy as part of Horizon. You may have to deploy other components that can be integrated with Horizon. For instance, a Microsoft server that hosts the RDSH can be added to the Horizon environment. This kind of integration with different products can add complexity, making the implementation of VMware Horizon medium in terms of difficulty.

Deployment depends on the number of agents to be deployed on end-user devices & the number of VM's or VDI components to be deployed in the implementation. On average, it takes two weeks for deployment.

I rate the initial setup a six out of ten.

Compared to other VDI providers like Citrix or other VDI provider, it stands on par in terms of cost. It is neither cheaper nor expensive, but comparable to the standard pricing in the market.

VDI can be beneficial in many instances and use cases. One example is when you have existing users accessing the company network. For users who shift roles or locations but use the same laptop, VDI is advantageous. Instead of purchasing a physical hardware device for each individual user, you can build the infrastructure and deploy VMs for them to use moving forward. This approach simplifies onboarding and offboarding users, as VDI allows easy management of user accounts. 

VMware Horizon is a key component in deploying and providing a comprehensive digital workspace for organizations. Horizon can be used independently or integrated with other VMware products to create a unified digital workspace. It supports VPN and enhances the digital employee experience by using AI functionality to learn user behavior. This AI capability helps seamlessly identify and analyze any issues within the company, ensuring a smooth and efficient working environment. It includes various networking and monitoring tools, such as those provided by VMware virtual infrastructure VMware, which contribute to a robust and secure organizational framework.

VMware Horizon is still undergoing a migration process. This could be attributed to VMware's acquisition by Broadcom, followed by the sale of the digital workspace pillar, which includes the Horizon product. Horizon may have established its own company as part of this migration process, leading to issues, particularly with the portals.

Overall, I rate the solution a seven out of ten.