Migrating to App-V 5.0 Can Be Complex

Application virtualization (App-V) 5.0, released in Nov. 2012 and updated twice since, is a major change that makes deployment easier and provides faster application streaming. App-V lets applications run in an isolated environment on each user’s computer and can deploy and update the applications from centrally managed servers. App-V 5.0 introduces a new application package format that is not compatible with previous versions, but it can coexist on the same PC as older versions, and there are tools available to help customers migrate to the new version. App-V 5.0 SP2 and App-V 4.6 SP3 also deliver support for Windows 8.1.

New Packaging Makes Deployment Easier

App-V is designed to make desktop management easier and less expensive by simplifying application management. App-V supports application streaming from a server (the App-V server) to a client PC (the App-V client). It quickly installs the primary parts of an application on first use and then streams the rest of the application as needed during use. Organizations can deploy and update the applications from centrally managed servers so that users always have the most current versions. App-V also runs each application in an isolated environment, enabling multiple versions of the application to coexist and reducing conflicts among applications. (See the illustration “App-V Architecture“.)