The dream of “write once, run anywhere” has been a long-standing goal in the world of IT. Yet, for many organizations, the reality when relying on certain application delivery solutions is a frustrating cycle of repackaging applications for every new operating system, virtual desktop environment, or cloud platform. This constant re-work is not just a drain on resources; it’s a significant barrier to agility and innovation.
Let’s break the cycle.
The Endless Cycle of Application Repackaging
Application packaging has become increasingly complex over time. What may seem like a straightforward task often turns into a convoluted process of managing dependencies, dealing with installer changes from vendors, and ensuring compatibility with an ever-evolving IT landscape. This complexity is magnified when you try to adopt technologies like certain application layering solutions and have a need to support multiple operating systems and images within a single organization. The result is a huge waste of time and resources, causing significant operational overhead for already stretched IT teams.
Many have been promised application portability by various solutions, only to find themselves packaging the same application multiple times. Many so-called portability solutions are little more than a filter driver-based approach, which doesn’t truly decouple the application from the underlying operating system.
Sever the App-to-OS Relationship for True Application Portability
Cloudpaging takes application containerization a few steps further than others. By using a dedicated virtual file system and unique disposition layers, Cloudpaging offers granular control over the isolation of applications and their components. This allows for true “package once, deliver to any Windows desktop” portability, even across different Windows operating systems. In fact, some of our customers have packaged applications as part of a Windows XP to Windows 7 migration over 15 years ago and are still using them on Windows 11 today, all running in Cloudpaging application containers. With support for Windows on Arm launched last year, Cloudpaging containers can be leveraged to seamlessly provision your x86/64 applications to ARM64 devices, as well.
This level of portability is essential when migrating to virtual desktop infrastructures and cloud-hosted desktops. Whether you’re moving to Azure Virtual Desktop today or Windows 365 Cloud PCs in the future, you need to be confident that your applications will not only work on your target desktop but will also be compatible with future platforms.
Benefits of Cloudpaging Application Containers
The key to breaking free from the repackaging cycle lies in application containerization. By encapsulating an application and its dependencies into a single, portable unit, containerization abstracts the application from the host operating system. This provides a number of benefits, including:
- Portability: A containerized application can be moved from one environment to another with minimal or no rework.
- Efficiency: Cloudpaging application containers are lightweight that execute in a container sandbox and have their own virtual file system.
- Improved Security: The isolation and encryption of containers adds an important extra layer of security for enterprise desktops.
In short, containerizing your applications with Cloudpaging ensures they can lift and shift to any Windows operating system or device type.
Centralize Application Management with Cloudpager
Cloudpager provides a single pane of glass to dynamically provision application containers and updates across all physical and virtual Windows endpoints. Simply upload your application containers to the cloud, including Cloudpaging, App-V, and MSIX, and they can be rapidly provisioned wherever and however you and your peers work.
Cloudpager also provides native integrations to:
…so you can instantly incorporate Cloudpaging containers into your existing workflows.
Unlock True Application Portability with Cloudpager
The days of being locked into a specific operating system or desktop platform are over. With Cloudpaging, you can decouple your applications from the underlying infrastructure and gain the freedom to choose the best solutions for your business. Stop the endless cycle of repackaging and start your journey to true application portability.
As long as the endpoint has a Windows OS, Cloudpager ensures your applications will run.
To see the platform in action, schedule a demonstration with our Technical Solutions team by filling out the form below: