University of New Hampshire Makes Apps Available On Demand

Application virtualization - project background

UNH spans all fields of study and unites them through interdisciplinary programs, labs, research centers, libraries, internships, and fieldwork. Warmly supported and encouraged by their faculty mentors, students participate directly in assisting in the university's historic mission of enriching society through the creation and application of new knowledge.

The university attracts students and faculty from around the world. As state-of-the-art facilities are built to support academic growth, and new residence and dining halls are built to meet the growing popularity of campus life, the university continues to rest lightly on old Ben Thompson's farm, where students, faculty and staff live and work amid the rolling hills and riverbeds of one of the most beautiful campuses in the USA.

Download the University of New Hampshire case study

Virtualizing applications in academic computing

Academic Computing Systems (ACS) provides computing and networking expertise and support to various academic projects and initiatives. One of the main areas of responsibility is administration and maintenance of the public student computing clusters, along with the computer systems in the SuperTEC classrooms and Teach/Learn Center classrooms.

ACS provides the infrastructure necessary for effective use of information technology in the teaching environment. That group maintains nearly 800 OSX, Windows, and Linux public or classroom computers, including all of the Student Computing Cluster facilities and operations. The ACS group provides web hosting, application hosting and delivery, server administration, desktop administration, and technical consulting and expertise to a range of academic technology projects.

AppsAnywhere allows us to package up an entire Windows computer program such as SPSS, Photoshop, or anything else, and then deliver that application to a computer on demand.

The application goes from not being on the computer, to running in seconds to a few minutes, as opposed to an installation process that would often take tens of minutes to hours. It has provided us with more flexibility and quicker responses to requests for new software for the computers in the public labs and hands-on classrooms on campus.

We have saved significant staff time compared with the previous techniques we've used.

David Blezard, who has managed the university's ACS since 1994

Using AppsAnywhere, the University of New Hampshire have:

1. Enhanced the student experience by providing key software applications on demand
2. Simplified the process of providing the latest software updates for Academic Computer Systems colleagues and students
3. Optimized IT resources by improving asset and image management
4. Streamlind the deployment of essential applications such as SPSS

We want students at UNH to experience the best IT experience. A key factor of this is being able to access software, such as SPSS, quickly and easily. Students coming to university now expect the software they need to be accessed on demand.

The aim of partnering with AppsAnywhere is to provide a more streamlined application deployment solution to assist in meeting and exceeding student expectations.

David Blezard, UNH

UNH is similar to many universities needing to overcome the challenges faced in delivering complicated software apps to a demanding student population; Good on them for doing something about it!

Working with the team at UNH has been fun both professionally and personally, and I look forward to the day that David shares his experiences and challenges with the AppsAnywhere university community.

Tony Austwick, co-founder at AppsAnywhere