Introduction

The Desktop Optimization Pack (DOP, which Microsoft calls MDOP) is a set of PC management utilities available on a subscription basis to organizations that have Software Assurance coverage for the Windows client OS. The most prominent component of the DOP, Application Virtualization, will speed testing and improve reliability of PC configurations, and the other DOP components fill important gaps in systems management for Windows PCs. However, organizations should carefully examine the product’s licensing costs, which are hard to assess, and ensure they have enough PCs to benefit from the kit’s most important technologies; organizations that cover Windows on Enterprise Agreements are most likely to find value in the DOP.

Pack Aids Applications Management, Inventory, and Configuration

The current DOP version, released in the fourth quarter of 2008, is labeled 2008 R2 and has five components.

Application Virtualization (App-V), based on the acquired Softricity SoftGrid for Desktops and SoftGrid for Terminal Services, lets applications run in isolated environments on each user’s computer and can deploy and update the applications from centrally managed servers. It is designed to make desktop management easier and less expensive by reducing conflicts between applications and application versions installed on a PC and speeding installation of applications. App-V allows applications to be streamed from servers, USB-connected drives, or CDs, so that users always have the most current versions. The current version is App-V 4.5, which was released in Sept. 2008. (There is a separate Application Virtualization product for Terminal Services applications which is not part of the DOP and is not covered in this report.)