Linux thin clients, are they worth to look at?

[Najtsob]

How good is a Horizon view client on Linux or to ask another way are there any missing features or limitations compared to Horizon view client on windows ?

Which vendor would you recommend to go with in case of Linux ? As I looked each of them have so custom version of Linux which makes me wonder how good are they supporting it ? Would it be possible to install some standard distro like Ubuntu, Debian, ... on the clients ?

I have also considered PCoIP Zero clients but they are to limited.

[krowczynski1980]

Hi!

We are using IGEL Linux TCs since several years are are very satisfied with them

Check out their product:
https://www.igel.com/products-hardware/thin-client/

https://www.igel.com/products-hardware/zero-client-comparisons/

[Najtsob]

Interesting.

How about various USB peripheral devices, like scanners, printers, smart cards and tokens, webcams, itd ... ? There are always drivers available for windows 7 based thin clients but I'm doubt if they are available for linux ?

Is is possible to redirect USB device to Horizon VDI desktop without device drivers beeing installed on linux ? (Like pcoip zero client).

[krowczynski1980]

We are connecting USB drives and webcams without any problems

[Najtsob]

Are they recognized by the Linux on the thin client or they just get redirected into virtual desktop ?

What about CPU performance, dual core 1Ghz AMD cpu should be enough or should we look for something more powerful ? Current thin clients have 1,6Ghz atom single core cpu and it is bottleneck for VDI performance. 

[markadams123]

Hi!

I’ve been using PCoIP zero clients for a long time and they always live up to my expectations. So far, I haven’t come across any alternatives that provide a complete desktop experience other than PCoIP zero clients. The 3D graphics and HD media they offer over networks with high latency is unparalleled in terms of performance.

Linux thin clients are definitely worth a try. A friend uses ClearCube’s Raspberry C3Pi thin client that integrates a minimal Cloud Desktop operating system which supports VMware Horizon, Citrix HDX, Microsoft RDP and many virtual desktops. As the OS is Linux-based, his IT department centrally manages and secures the thin client which they then connect to their hosted desktops.

In a nutshell, the Linux hosting environment is efficient, reliable and flexible. 

I would also suggest doing some research on other options in the market. You never know what you may come up with.

Feel free to share your views with me. Cheers!