HP Hardware Accelerated Graphics for Desktop Virtualization

Technical white paper | HP Hardware Accelerated Graphics for Desktop Virtualization
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Purpose of this document
• Provides an overview of concepts and practical implementation of hardware accelerated virtual desktop technologies.
• Gives IT decision makers, architects, and implementation specialists an overview of how HP and its virtualization
partners approach and implement hardware accelerated graphics for virtual desktop.
Abbreviations and naming conventions
Table 1. Abbreviations and terminology used in this document
C
onvention Definition
Broker/Connection Broker
Manages connections between end user devices and remote systems/desktop
Bare Metal OS
Operating system installed directly on system, not virtualized
CV
Client Virtualization
DAS
Direct Attached Storage
GPU
Graphical Processing Unit (Graphics Card). It is important to note that some graphics cards have more than
one GPU processor
GPU Compute
Synonymous to GPGPU. See GPGPU
GPGPU
General-Purpose Graphics Processing Unit. GPU technology that performs application computation
traditionally handled by the CPU
HDX
Citrix set of advanced desktop remoting technologies to deliver a High Definition Experience
HDX 3D Pro
Feature of XenDesktop for delivering high-end 3D professional graphics
Hypervisor
Virtualization host platform (VMware ESXi, Microsoft® Hyper-V, Citrix XenServer)
ICA
Independent Computing Architecture protocol (Part of Citrix HDX technologies)
OA
Onboard Administrator
Pass
-Through Graphics Technology that allows hypervisor to directly pass-through a graphics card device to a VM
PCoIP
Teradici remote desktop protocol used in VMware View
RBSU
ROM Based Setup Utility (HP Server BIOS)
RDS
Microsoft Server feature that enables users to connect to virtual desktops, session-based Desktops and
RemoteApp programs
RDP
Microsoft Remote Desktop Protocol
RemoteFX
Microsoft set of advanced desktop remoting technologies
RFX
Microsoft RemoteFX
RGS
HP Remote Graphics Software
SAN
Storage Area Network
softGPU
Software emulated GPU
VDI
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure
vGPU
vGPU has a different definition depending on platform used:
• Microsoft RemoteFX vGPU: Microsoft implementation of software virtualized GPU
• VMware vGPU: VMware implementation for software virtualized GPU
• Citrix/NVIDIA GRID vGPU: Hardware virtualization of the GPU
vSGA
VMware specific terminology Software Virtualized GPU (API Capture Model)
vDGA
VMware specific terminology for GPU pass-through
VM
Virtual Machine
vRAM
GPU Video RAM