Need Thin Client Opinions and Suggestions plz

[Rinnt]

Hello,

Our organization of 40 users is hoping to upgrade our Thin Client and Server hardware. Currently we are utilizing the old WYSE terminals with not very much success. We have had TeleVideo product line suggested to us but are unsure.

Can any of you suggest or recommend some decent thin client hardware?

Also

Can any of you suggest or recommend some decent Terminal Server hardware to run Win2000 with Citrix?

Also, we would like some thin clients to have floppy drive capabilities. Do some come with this feature? And would you say that a thin client with 64MB and a 300MHz processor is enough for basic office use? Thanks for the replies!!

 

[CitrixEngineer]

To connect to a Citrix server, that spec of thin client is practically overkill!

I've tested connections on a 386SX16 with 8Mb RAM, and performance is almost flawless.

The graphics capabilities are more important than processor speed and memory, although the higher graphics resolutions do require the clients to have more than the traditional 8 or 16Mb RAM.

NeoWare and NCD make some excellent TC devices - and I quite like the newer WYSE WinTerms. Some of them will even offer you a free trial - NCD practically fell over themselves to offer me a selection of devices to try out, when I approached them, and when WYSE heard we were thinking of upgrading, they sent two of their men around with free samples and a demo of the new features.

The NCD devices have several upgrade capabilities, including a floppy option - however, I'd have to question the wisdom of allowing users access to floppy disks. We lock all of our FD drives!

These are the only TC devices I've tested to date; I haven't tried the Televideo units.


Decent hardware for the server(s) depends on how many users you have.

I like DELL PowerEdge and IBM eServers, but that's my taste.

Dual processors are a must - Quad is overkill.

Speed is not too important, but it's still worth getting the fastest you can afford.

Xeons with large caches offer a considerable performance benefit, mainly in terms of solidity with large quantities of users, over any other processor with a small cache, although the cost is disproportionate.

Xeons with small caches offer no detectable performance advantage over much cheaper PIII/IVs at the same speed.

I've never tried an Athlon-based server, but suspect they might not be suitable for running Terminal Services.

RAM is very important. ECC is best, and a minimum of 1Gb per server is not only recommended, but essential, IME. I'd go for 2Gb personally.


Redundant everything. At least a RAID controller, and a pair of mirrored drives. A redundant NIC and PSU can also be more than handy.

If you haven't already got one, a UPS can be a lifesaver too.


I hope this helps CitrixEngineer@yahoo.co.uk

 

[Rinnt]

Clients:
Overkill???? Heh, how were you able to operate under that spec? Either you aren't running very much on your citrix or we must be doing something very wrong! We're running mostly the old WYSE WINTERMs and there is a noticiable (but not impeding) delay even on local clients (we have remote ones as well). The network is 10Mbps... Perhaps it should be at 100M? Then again, the old WYSEs don't have a 100M card. I think all those companies do trials... I know I was checking out the TeleVideo site -

http://www.televideo.com/home

- and found that they do trials as well. Whattya think of that new combo flat screen model they have? Pretty nice!

Server:
We're running Quad 200Mhz now... not nearly enough I'd say?

 

[agmood]

Check out the T20 thin client terminal from Compaq...no floppy drive but a nice little terminal for around $300. They also have a T1010 that has standard mouse/keyboard connections (T20 is all-USB).

For servers I like Compaq's DL360s -- dual processors and a gig of RAM.

 

[CitrixEngineer]

Could be video, as noted above - or could be heavy printing. If you use audio, that will slow everything down.

All of this and more, including security, is encapsulated in what Citrix call Virtual channels. ICA will happily operate sub 15k - I've even seen it working over 9.6k GSM - but with just about everything switched off, and all TW stuff enabled!

10Mb NICs should be OK for clients. Remember, all the processing is done on the server. If you have performance issues, I'd firstly suspect broadcast traffic from Novell servers (if you have them) and W9.x PCs. Obviously, if you're getting new clients, then 10Mb NICs aren't worth considering;

It's highly likely that upgrading NICs, hubs, switches, etc to 100Mb will give better performance - but in an ideal world, I'd track down any bandwidth thieves!

A Quad Ppro running NT4 TSE with a couple of Gigs of RAM should service 70 Word/Excel users, or 40, if they use Java database clients, IE and Outlook. I had just under 100 at one site on a quad Ppro 200 running WinFrame! I have noticed, however, that Ppros don't seem to be as nippy or scalable running W2k as PIIIs or IVs.

I have a pair of load-balanced dual 733Mhz eServers in my test lab that happily support 50 users each, with 2Gb RAM apiece. This combination is far preferable to a single server, giving added redundancy (but not fail-over - for that you'd need something like Vinca clustering software).

I hope this information is useful CitrixEngineer@yahoo.co.uk

 

[woonbronmaasoevers]

check out Eizo eClient. You stick everything in the monitor. no extra case..

http://www.eizo.com

 

[chifu]

I do believe it does matter how powerful your client is. Experimenting with PCs loaded with client software, a lower spec PC is slower and more jerky then a higher spec PC when running full desktop sessions. I would think this is due to various issues with speed of graphics cards, nics, RAM, keyboard and mouse drivers etc. So it is not just down to the power of the servers.

Anyone using very old terminals should see if a more modern one improves speeds. Then you get into the situation of a powerful thin client being the same cost as a standard PC.

 

[ATCal]

We are currently evaluating the Neoware units through IBM. I like them much better than the Wyse units. They seem to me to perform a little better, and I like the idea that they have a PCI/ISA slot for possibly a wireless adapter. I also like the included management software that allows global updates and asset management even if the unit is powered down (WOL). You can also mount the monitor ON TOP of the thin client.
They definitely get my nod. Al
atc-computing@home.com

 

[Rinnt]

OK, It looks like the Capio 508 is definately a product of choice. It has a great price, good power, and good functionailty. My only problem is I haven't been able to find anyone else that has used them.

Have any of you used the Capio 508 thin client? If so, what were your results? Sucessful?

The website, btw, is

http://www.neoware.com