Parallels RAS 18.1 simplifies user access to Remote PC, improves user session management, offers admins new Azure Virtual Desktop capabilities & introduces native support for Apple M1 devices
Parallels, a global leader in cross-platform solutions, announced an update to Parallels Remote Application Server, that delivers an enhanced experience for both end-users and IT admins. Optimizing the cost-effective, flexible and scalable publication of virtual desktops and applications to any device, Parallels RAS 18.1 offers new productivity and management features to enable employees to work easily and securely from anywhere.
“Listening to our users’ feedback and learning about their remote working challenges especially over the last year, it’s clear that productivity and better management are top of mind for admins,” said Nick Dobrovolskiy, Senior Vice President of Engineering and Support at Parallels. “Parallels RAS 18.1 addresses these concerns head on by extending and maximizing performance for users while also improving the administrative experience. We’re committed to building on our Azure Virtual Desktop (formerly known as Windows Virtual Desktop) capabilities as well as offering leading edge support for newly introduced features from Microsoft.”
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Self-Service Remote PC Access
Among existing Parallels RAS customers, the huge increase in remote work as a result of the 2020 pandemic led to an over 200% increase in Remote PC usage – enabling businesses to build on their existing investment by utilizing their PC hardware located in shutdown offices. Parallels RAS 18.1 now offers a self-service feature that enables individuals to securely perform their own enrollment, which eliminates much of the pressure on IT admins that receive numerous requests to add standalone remote PCs manually. Remote PCs are automatically added to Parallels RAS as a published desktop, in a chosen location, with the specified user filtering preconfigured.
Additionally, this feature can be used by admins to auto-enroll remote PCs on users’ behalf. This reduces the IT burden and speeds up the on-boarding process to efficiently provide employees with remote access to office-based workstations.
Combined User-Session Management
Parallels RAS 18.1 builds on the advanced session details added in Parallels RAS 18.0 to solve the challenges of session management regardless of the delivery method. With different users requiring different workload session hosts (e.g., RD Session Hosts, virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI), Remote PC through VDI or Azure Virtual Desktop), admins can now view all user sessions in a single pane of glass. In addition, a new resource view is also made available, which shows exactly what published resources are running in these sessions.
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These capabilities, accompanied by the advanced session metrics, help improve management efficiency. Administrators and helpdesks can use this improved visibility together with a new search and filter capability to better understand what is happening in a session and take action to reduce downtime, improving the user experience through faster issue resolution.
New Features for Azure Virtual Desktop and New Apple M1 Support
- Azure Virtual Desktop Integration1: Parallels RAS 18.1 continues to bring more features to the existing Azure Virtual Desktop integration, first introduced in version 18, which enables customers to move swiftly to the cloud and benefit from cloud services and hybrid environments.
- Parallels Client for Apple Silicon (M1): The Parallels Client for macOS has been rebuilt and optimized to run natively on Apple M1 and Intel-based Mac devices to increase performance for Mac users.
Other Notable Features
- Dynamic session resolution update
- Bidirectional clipboard and file transfer control
- Granular multifactor authentication configuration
- Maintenance for published resources
- Yubico – YubiKey (PIV) support in the Parallels Client for Windows
Additional information and other features introduced in version 18.1 are available online on the Parallels RAS product page at parallels.com/ras. Stay tuned for more features to be added later this year that will further improve resource utilization, user productivity and administrative capabilities.
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