Software Centrally Manages HP Workstations

Users of Hewlett-Packard Co.s xw line of workstations can now centrally manage and maintain systems that are distributed throughout the enterprise.

HP, of Palo Alto, Calif., this week released its Remote Workstation Software, a two-piece solution that enables financial service institutions to bring almost thin-client-like capabilities to their workstation environments by bringing the computing resources in a single place, and then delivering them to workstations throughout the enterprise over standard TCP/IP lines. From this central area, administrators can quickly map users to multiple systems or move them from one system to another, according to Ken Tidwell, a product marketing manager at HP.

It also reduces system downtime, operating costs and security risks, while opening up space on cluttered desktops, Tidwell said.

The software will have two parts, the DM297A Sender Module on the remote management site, with a starting price of $399, and the DM498A Receiver Module on the desktop, starting at $99. The modules run on workstations powered by Intel Corp.s Xeon or Pentium 4 systems.

Tidwell said the key to the system, which HP has been running internally and now is productizing, is compression technology developed in HP Labs. Applications are compressed before they are transferred between the receiver and sender sites, then decompressed once sent. The compression allows for reduced bandwidth use, and the standard networking infrastructure enables unlimited distance between the remote site and the workstations.