The Evolving Thin Client and Endpoint Landscape — Virtualization Review

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The Evolving Thin Client and Endpoint Landscape

I recently wrote an article about my experience repurposing an old Windows 10 laptop using 10ZiG’s RepurpOS to evaluate its ability to handle modern VDI/DaaS and SaaS workflows.

I tested the system by connecting it to a Horizon VDI desktop and running Microsoft Office applications, Zoom, and streaming videos. I then, recognizing the importance of SaaS, ran Office 365 and other web apps locally on it (without a remote desktop) and found the performance was just as good as on my Windows 11 laptop. After running these tests, I found RepurpOS to be a stable, capable, and cost-effective solution for organizations looking to improve security and extend the life of their legacy PCs.

This made me think about how the thin client has evolved over the years to get us to where we are today.

The Early Years
The thin clients that we know today are the direct descendants of the dumb terminals. The purpose of these devices was to connect users to a more powerful computer, starting with mainframes, and later to minicomputers like DEC’s widely popular PDP-11. They were text-based and had black, green, or, if you were lucky, amber text. They had only a monitor and a keyboard, as advanced input technologies such as mice had…