BASF IT Services

IT Services Company Streamlines Desktop Deployment with Software Virtualization

BASF IT Services supports networks and computers for nearly 60,000 users worldwide. The company followed an expensive certification process to ensure flawless operation of the applications it makes available—but the careful certification process was delaying the delivery of applications. BASF IT Services needed a way to shorten application deployment time while still keeping certification at the same high level of quality. The IT service provider found a solution in software virtualization technology. Microsoft® SoftGrid® Application Virtualization accelerates the certification process and reduces overhead considerably by delivering applications to customer PCs dynamically. Virtualization is invisible to users, who receive their new applications and updates sooner than before and can remain confident that the new software is compatible with their existing applications.

 

Situation

IT outsourcing continues to be a choice that many companies have to face. The larger a company is, the more synergy and efficiency it can gain by outsourcing its IT services. BASF Group has long turned to external IT service providers. But in April 2001, BASF Group created an IT services subsidiary of 2,350 employees by merging all BASF IT activities in Europe.

The highly qualified staff at BASF IT Services delivers a wide range of IT services. About 17 percent of its business is with companies not in the BASF Group. Unlike many external service providers, BASF IT Services offers support for large installations.

As BASF IT Services wins more customers, the demands upon the firm increase. Frank Walburg, Department Manager of Desktop Software Services, understands this firsthand: His department of barely 100 employees takes care of desktop application deployment to all customer client PCs. This includes the deployment of leading productivity software such as the Microsoft® Office system, as well as that of industry-specific applications.

Every program, update, and patch undergoes rigorous testing before it can be deployed on customers’ desktops. BASF IT Services has developed its own testing process and implements a very extensive certification process. “New applications have to demonstrate their compatibility with a group of standard programs, our core applications,” explains Walburg. “For these tests, several people have to coordinate their tasks and reconcile them with each other.”

A new program is deployed to users only when it has passed this security and compatibility check. However, though security is the firm’s top priority, the amount of time needed to certify it was a headache for the IT staff. For example, some of the applications they support are updated every week. This brings intense pressure to get updates to customer PCs as quickly as possible. Anthofer had been looking for an alternative process for a long time. He needed a way to disassociate applications from the operating system and other programs to eliminate incompatibilities. Thin clients weren’t a valid alternative, because they require moving to a server infrastructure that would have increased overhead on the customer side.

Solution

It was no surprise that Anthofer was interested when he heard about Microsoft SoftGrid® Application Virtualization. The product, part of the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack, makes it possible to virtualize, or dynamically deliver, applications without installing them. Programs remain separate from the operating system and are streamed to the user’s PC, much like video.

Microsoft SoftGrid consists of a client component on the user’s PC; a “sequencer” packaging tool that prepares normal programs for streaming; and the SoftGrid Virtual Application Server, which serves as the distribution point for the stream. The technology is invisible to the user, and the streamed program behaves like a locally installed application. Microsoft SoftGrid is completely integrated with Active Directory® directory service.

Application virtualization is a relatively new technology that borrows from operating system virtualization. The software program is fooled into thinking that it is running on a normal PC. In reality, it only has access to the resources it needs to function. This means there are no uninstall routines to follow, and no registry entries on the computer.

After analyzing the concept and having a positive experience in the pilot phase, BASF IT Services implemented SoftGrid on the first customer computers. The new tool immediately proved itself. “Virtualization saved us time and reduced overhead in the certification process,” summarizes Walburg.

Benefits

“We have seen a number of advantages with Microsoft SoftGrid,” says Walburg. “For one, we have significantly accelerated the testing of new programs by using virtualization. There are no more installs, and virtualized programs have no effect on the operating system or other applications.”

Shortened Deployment Time, Same High-Quality Certification

For the IT experts at BASF IT Services, virtualization means they can skip several steps in the distribution preparation process. New applications are made available on demand to users, which means they are ready for the customer much sooner.

By virtualizing and uncoupling applications from the operating system, security on the underlying operating system can be managed in a far more restrictive manner. For the administrator, application administration consists of nothing more than assigning a user to the correct Active Directory group.

There are also advantages to users in virtualizing Microsoft Office programs. Up until now, all computers in a customer network had to be updated to the new version at the same time. This was a logistical challenge, especially for large corporations. Microsoft SoftGrid simplifies these changes considerably. Users can work with one version while the other is available on their computer virtually.

Invisible Technology from User Perspective

Several thousand users are already using programs that have been virtualized with Microsoft SoftGrid, but they don’t even notice. Programs are launched using the same icon or Start menu entry, just like they always have. Performance has not suffered from streaming. “Feedback from our customers is overwhelmingly positive—pro¬grams and updates are available sooner,” says Walburg.

Reduced Number of Support Calls

IT professionals are expecting a decline in the number of support calls and questions, since complex installation processes and interactions with other programs that are the source of many problems have been eliminated. Up until now, a program installed via software distribution might function on the target PC, but it wasn’t a sure thing for everyone else. With virtualized applications, there’s nothing to distribute; the virtualized program is “streamed” to the PC and can be used without installing. The Microsoft SoftGrid client software, which needs to be distributed only once, works the same for each streamed program.

Because virtualized programs run isolated and conflict-free but concurrently, a user can work with different versions of the same program on his or her PC. This advantage is hard to overestimate for user-support personnel, who need to offer support for several program versions.

Faster Response to Customer Needs

T

he number of Microsoft SoftGrid–supported users increases every day. Anthofer sees potential for every customer PC to benefit from this solution. In theory, nearly any application can be virtualized using Microsoft SoftGrid. The only exceptions are those programs that require extreme, direct access to hardware or are deeply integrated into the operating system. “We still distribute programs using software deployment. The goal is to align the scripts and MSI packets with the existing distribution solution,” according to Walburg. But Microsoft SoftGrid has secured a place for itself in his solution portfolio. Walburg concludes: “By implementing SoftGrid, we’ve simplified processes, and we need less detailed knowledge about the applications we’re distributing. This allows us to respond to our customers’ demands more quickly and efficiently.”

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For More Information

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For more information about BASF IT Services, call or visit the Web site at:
www.basf-it-services.com