Leostream™ Corporation (www.leostream.com), a leading developer of Virtual Hosted Desktop software, today announced that its Connection Broker software is deployed by more than 150 customers worldwide in sectors that include financial services, software, healthcare, education, customer support, and government.

The Leostream Connection Broker is management software that runs on virtualization hosts such as those offered by VMware®. IT administrators use it to consolidate end-user resources in the data center, establish access policies for end-users and machines, and manage the hosted environment.

"We are excited to see the rapid adoption of the Connection Broker for desktop virtualization," said Leostream CEO Mike Palin. "While this market is still young, we see our customers moving from proofs of-concept and pilots to production -- a number of our customers are now deploying Leostream-powered Hosted Desktops to thousands and even tens of thousands of end-users."

Analyst firm IDC predicts the total market for Virtual Desktop Infrastructure products and services will exceed $1 billion by 2011. Others predict 30 million desktops will be hosted by 2011.

"Analyst predictions are aggressive and the uptake we've seen confirms that Leostream has the flexibility to create the hosted end-user environments that customers are demanding. Our customers are realizing management, security, and cost-savings benefits today," Palin added.

Customers such as Commerzbank AG (NY), Bell Canada, Sogeti BV, the United States Patent and Trade Office, and the University of Rennes use Leostream to connect their end-users with the right hosted computing resources. The Connection Broker's vendor-independence gives customers the flexibility they need to integrate heterogeneous data center elements including desktops, Microsoft® Terminal Server sessions, and streaming applications into robust, unified Hosted Desktop environments.

Case Studies:

• Financial Services: Smart Card Authentication - Commerzbank AG (NY) engaged Leostream, Wyse®, and IdentiPHI to create a smart card-based authentication system for Hosted Desktops. Using a solution based on smart cards that store X.509 digital certificates, smart card readers, Wyse WTOS thin clients and Microsoft Active Directory®, these partners developed a multi-factor, strong authentication solution that provides  straightforward log-in and "anywhere" access for end-users while adhering to strict industry security standards.  Commerzbank North America Systems Engineer, Ewange Musonge said, "It was very important that we work with partners who bought into our vision for VDI, and understood our security and accessibility requirements. Our solution, based on the Leostream Connection Broker, eases and demystifies the login/authentication process for the end user. And end-users benefit from 'anywhere' access to Hosted Desktops, while the system itself adheres to strict industry security standards."
• Education: Wireless & Thin Client Application - The University of Rennes 2 in France engaged Leostream, VMware, and Wyse to create a campus-wide desktop solution that could be accessed both from thin clients in computer labs and laptops in areas with a WLAN connection. This solution improved campus-wide desktop accessibility for 20,000 users while meeting security and management requirements such as multi-factor authentication, fine-grained access rights, and a small management footprint.  "Leostream Hosted Desktops are far more manageable than desktops in a physical environment," said Humberto Duarte, IT Department Co-Director at the University of Rennes 2 in France. "The process of provisioning computers is streamlined.  We can rely on standard templates to provision new devices and users, and updates are also more efficient.     Security is greatly improved and patching is much easier thanks to centralized management."
• Healthcare: HIPAA-compliant 'Anywhere' Access - An American clinic with a staff of 400 evaluated the best way to implement new clinical systems, enhance security, and plan for expansion during systems upgrades that were part of  the clinic's regular hardware refresh cycle.  With the tight regulation of HIPAA-mandated patient security, need for failsafe 24/7 system reliability, and manageability concerns, the clinic looked for ways to     leverage virtualization to meet these goals.   After evaluating traditional desktops, application virtualization, and desktop virtualization, the clinic selected a secure Hosted Desktop solution managed by the Leostream Connection Broker and based on a VMware virtualization layer and thin clients.  The clinic replaced standard "fat" desktop PCs with Wyse thin clients equipped with card readers, moved Microsoft Windows® desktops to virtual machines, and deployed the Leostream Connection Broker to implement and control secure access to the Hosted Desktops.   The Connection Broker supported the clinic's requirements, including centralized patient data, smart cards for strong, two-factor authentication, location-based access, and USB lock-down.
• Software Offshoring: Role-based, Remote Access to Development Resources - Sogeti Nederland needed a cost-effective solution that would enable developers in India to access remote development tools hosted in the     Netherlands. The solution needed to be secure, location-independent, scalable, high-performance, and easily managed. Sogeti chose Leostream Connection Broker to provide role-based, semi-permanent Hosted  desktops to remote developers and testers while meeting security requirements and overcoming distance and local Internet infrastructure issues. The system enables the offshore team to use versioning and issue tracking  systems hosted in the Netherlands without ever directly accessing Soget i's corporate network.  With Leostream, Sogeti was able to provide a cost-effective solution that allowed seamless access to developers and testers while meeting all other requirements including the provision of multiple, semi-permanent Hosted Desktops per user. The platform fostered a more collaborative environment among developers and was built for less than EUR 0,50 per user (exclusive of connectivity costs).
  

To learn more about these case studies, please visit www.leostream.com/productCaseStudies.html