Cloud Desktop Trends and Predictions for the Future

Cloud Desktop Trends and Predictions for the Future
By Shane Britt (Shells™)June 7, 2021

Cloud Desktop Trends and Predictions for the Future



Cloud technologies are revolutionizing the business landscape as organizations deal with the effects brought by the pandemic. Forbes reports that 69% of businesses are using cloud technologies to help their teams become more mobile and productive. One of the leading technologies in this sector that businesses use to improve its processes is a cloud desktop. 

With a dynamic personal cloud desktop in place, organizations can empower their employees to access information they need anywhere they’re located. They can switch devices and still access the same computer without logging in and out and remembering complex passwords. Therefore, your teams can collaborate and streamline business processes thanks to a centralized backup of business files and information.

Regardless of its overwhelming benefits, cloud computing technologies such as cloud desktops still have more room to grow to dominate users’ information transactions. A separate Forbes report reveals that the rise of cloud desktops will continue to accelerate as roughly 98% of employees expect to work from home for the rest of their careers. In this article, we’ll look at predictions and cloud computing trends 2021 that are expected to shape the working environment. 

  • Increase in Cloud Desktop Storage Capacity

The amount of data businesses deal with daily is increasing exponentially. Organizational leaders generate and analyze 10.6% more data than they previously used to thanks to the emergence of powerful tools such as artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). Using ML and AI, organizations can conduct daily data evaluation, which can ultimately lead to a compounding effect on the overall value of the information. 

As data becomes an integral component in understanding and improving processes, it comes as no surprise that many business leaders are generating information in bunches. While subsequent data generation can spell the difference in staying competitive, this leaves most organizations with the problem of finding an economical yet secure storage to save vital business information.

Therefore, it is more than likely that providers will increase cloud desktop storage capacity and provide more data centers to accommodate business needs. It is also expected that these same providers will offer these data centers at cheaper prices. While the demand for increased storage capacities is sky-high, cloud provider competition is also intense, which would likely result in them lowering its prices to become more attractive for small-and-medium-sized businesses and startups. 

  • Multi-cloud Desktops Become More Dominant

Public cloud demand accelerated like a house on fire during the pandemic. IDC reports that sales of public cloud technologies rose up to 9.4% in the third quarter of 2020. As public cloud demand intensifies, IDC further adds that multi-cloud solutions will likely dominate the cloud market in the coming years as the world grapples with the changes and uncertainties brought by the current crisis. 

This is mainly because multi-cloud solutions help businesses avoid putting all their eggs in a single basket. Compared to a public cloud, a multi-cloud platform uses different storage and unique application stacks and hosting. Through this process, businesses can still deliver the same service quality and provide users with some functionality even if one cloud goes down. 

Multi-cloud also reduces vendor lock-in since storage and systems are spread across several vendors. Often, moving to the cloud means depending on external cloud providers, and as organizations use these vendors more than expected, it becomes even more challenging to move away from them. By adopting a multi-cloud approach, businesses can migrate away from one of their vendors as needed since most of the infrastructure still remains in place. 

  • Cloud Desktop with Simple Collaboration Tools Emerge



With remote work becoming the norm, it is not uncommon for businesses to use collaboration and productivity tools to improve its processes. As risks and uncertainties continue to saturate the business landscape, it is more than likely that employees will continue to work from home in the next few years. 

This means that the need for innovative yet simple collaboration tools become even more apparent in achieving higher work quality and productivity. One of the future trends in cloud computing that will likely shake up the working industry is the emergence of cloud desktop with simple collaboration tools. This includes cloud desktops that can integrate chats, screen sharing, and video conferencing to ensure easier communication between remote teams. 

With most collaboration tools optimized for specific working environments, the rise of niche cloud desktops might be considered. In fact, there are now collaboration apps that are specifically built for different types of teams, from accounting to legal. By providing cloud desktop with customized collaboration tools, businesses can meet their requirements and as a result, deliver better results. 

  • Serverless Computing Grows

Serverless computing is virtually new but they have been a proven gem for organizational IT teams. Rather than having to maintain servers, perform patches, and scale up servers, serverless computing would allow teams to save more than the traditional cloud since providers will be responsible for allocation resources. 

This can be an enormous cost-cutter for businesses that cannot afford to hire an applicant with a computer science degree to handle cloud computing demands and updates. It also frees up more time and resources for employees to concentrate on customer-facing plugins such as user interface (UI) and user experience (UX). 

Serverless computing can also centralize code deployment into production and can be more cost-efficient than buying a fixed quantity of servers. Usually, cloud providers that provide serverless computing desktop services only charge users based upon the time and memory allocated to run their processes. Considering that serverless computing is more flexible, cost-effective, and energy-efficient, it is easy to see why its notoriety will grow exponentially in the coming years. 

  • Say Goodbye to On-premise Data Centers

With fewer people away from the office, it may be a matter of time before businesses have to get rid of on-premise data centers and leverage those in the cloud. It is worth noting that the farther away individuals are from the data center, the more terrible their user experience will be because latency will rise unexpectedly.

As multiple data center infrastructure nears hardware refresh or renewals, more IT leaders are expected to consider moving data and applications to the cloud to diminish or eliminate latency.

A Cisco report predicts that cloud data centers will represent 95% of total data center traffic by the end of the year. An increasing growth of Internet of Things applications may also result in on-premise data centers ceasing because of its inability to expand or manage data center demands.

The same Cisco report also adds that 94% of computing instances and workloads will be processed by cloud desktops, virtually reducing traditional centers to bits and pieces. Cloud data centers can also be scaled to suit your requirements while simultaneously eliminating upfront costs. The on-demand virtual space of cloud desktops also has more server resources which can provide more flexibility for your business to grow. 

  • Staying Competitive during Crisis through Virtual Desktops

As the pandemic reshapes the business landscape, organizations have to adapt to changes quickly to thrive. Part of being adaptable to changes is knowing how to use virtual desktop.  One of the most progressive virtual desktop solutions in the market today that simplifies remote work is Shells. It is brimming with powerful cloud capabilities that allow you to download, access, store, and edit documents. Shell offers a seven-day free trial on top of its Lite, Basic, Plus, and Pro pricing packages.