Dell Technologies Launches Unified Workspace To 'Radically Change' End-User Computing

The offering brings together technologies from VMware, Dell Technologies and Secureworks to improve the end user experience and simplify IT.

Dell Technologies on Monday announced the launch of an integrated solution for end-user computing, Unified Workspace, that aims to dramatically improve everything from device selection to deployment to security and management.

The offering integrates VMware Workspace ONE device management with solutions and services from Dell Technologies and Secureworks. The Round Rock, Texas-based company unveiled Unified Workspace in connection with Dell Technologies World 2019 in Las Vegas.

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The offering "will radically change end-user computing and help IT teams reduce costs by enabling a move away from high-touch processes to a modern management approach,” said Shankar Iyer, senior vice president and general manager for end user computing at VMware, in a statement.

Michael Tanenhaus, CEO of Mavenspire, an Annapolis, Maryland-based solution provider that works with Dell Technologies, said the offering represents "Dell IP brought together to provide seamless deployment, seamless lifecycle and seamless security as it relates to end-user devices."

"This is [Dell] saying, 'Let's deliver the whole thing, not just the managed PC and the break-fix. Let's also deal with how do we secure it, how do we watch it, how do we deal with the fact that people move around and they have different behaviors all over the place,'" Tanenhaus said. "This offering brings all of that together."

VMware Workspace ONE serves as the "backbone" of the Unified Workspace offering, providing modernized deployment, management and security for devices, Dell said.

After deployment, Workspace ONE offers unified endpoint management capabilities that include cloud policy management, improved application delivery, automated patching and enhanced device health monitoring and diagnostics.

Unified Workspace improves device selection by tapping data on how workers their use their PCs--such as around battery consumption, storage utilization and mobility requirements--and then recommending the ideal PC and applications. Devices can then be shipped pre-configured with the necessary applications and settings, saving time for IT.

On security, Dell is introducing new BIOS protection with Unified Workspace, with the new Dell SafeBIOS solution.

Rather than storing BIOS information on the hardware itself, which is susceptible to corruption, Dell SafeBIOS is an off-host BIOS verification capability that is integrated with VMware Workspace ONE, enabling IT to set up automated workflows to push over-the-air updates and restore devices to compliance.

SafeBIOS is also integrated with CrowdStrike endpoint protection, enabling detection of BIOS attacks using the CrowdStrike console, as well as with Dell's Secureworks, allowing users to leverage Secureworks' "best-of-breed" insights, Dell said.

Additionally, Unified Workspace includes threat management via Dell SafeGuard and Response, which brings together managed security and incident response with Secureworks threat behavioral analytics and CrowdStrike endpoint protection.

Michael Goldstein, president and CEO of LAN Infotech, a Dell partner in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., said the added security from integrating with CrowdStrike is a smart move by Dell.

Overall, it "makes a lot of sense to have one streamlined offering from Dell" with Unified Workspace, Goldstein said. "It was only a matter of time until this came out."

Tanenhaus said he expects that Unified Workspace will resonate well with customers, and said the move is ultimately part of a larger push at Dell Technologies to integrate the many offerings under its umbrella for the benefit of partners and customers.

"There's a clear theme of Dell Technologies putting all of its IP together, particularly with VMware, and rolling it out as kind of a single SKU, super easy-to-access solution for the customer," he said.

Dell Technologies is "literally connecting all the dots and making it seamless to get the end result," Tanenhaus said.