Thin Client Proposal for Education Sector

Introduction

This document describes Thinvent's Thin Client solution for the education sector. It introduces the company, its products and achievements. It then provides a proposed solution for a typical college or secondary school.

About Thin Clients

Thin clients are computers that are optimised to work in a centralised computing environment. A typical PC consists of a processor, memory, storage, display, keyboard, etc. It is a self contained unit. Though it is connected to a LAN, it does not utilise any of the resources of the computer network. It only uses the LAN to connect to the Internet.

Thin clients, on the other hand, are designed to tap into the power of modern networks. All the computational and storage capacity of a thin client is derived from the network. A thin client contains only minimum amount of processing capacity.

When you install thin clients, you must also purchase a terminal server. A terminal server is a simple off-the-shelf server, installed with a Terminal edition of Windows or Linux. The thin clients, when switched on, connect to the server and provide a login screen. The users enter the username and password, and log into the server. Now, any work they do is performed on the server, not on the thin client.

Thin Clients in Your Environment

Educational institutions need to provide the latest computing facilities to their students. IT knowledge is very important to the employability of a student, hence they should be familiar with the best software and solutions in the industry. This means that institutions must upgrade their PCs every two to three years, in keeping with the times.

Thin clients, on the other hand, do not need an upgrade. All their computational power comes from the server. Hence, whenever the computer system feels sluggish, we only need to upgrade the server. A server is typically twice the cost of a PC, and serves about forty thin clients easily. Hence, rather than spending the cost of forty PC every three years, we are now spending on only the cost of two PCs.

Advantages of Thin Clients

Listed below are some of the advantages of thin clients:

Cost Benefits

Lower initial investment compared to PCs
Significant cost savings due to lower power consumption
Lower maintenance costs due to rugged design

Technical Advantages

Far more rugged compared to PCs – there are no moving parts in a thin client
Resilient to dust – there are no cooling fans in a thin client, hence it does not accumulate dust
Lower power consumption – Typical 25W power consumption of a thin client, including display and processing unit, compared to almost 200W for a PC
Smaller in size – The size of a thin client is smaller than a notebook

Operational Benefits

Lower failure rate due to no moving parts and lower operating temperature
Space saving – Precious room space is conserved
Centralized management – All software and data managed from the server
Enhanced security – No local storage means reduced risk of data theft

Power Savings

This helps you save Rs. 1,500 per year per computer, just in power bills alone. For a typical computer lab with 40 computers, this translates to Rs. 60,000 in annual electricity savings.

Implementation Benefits

For Students

Access to latest software without hardware upgrades
Consistent computing experience across all devices
Fast boot times and reliable performance
Familiar interface and applications

For Administrators

Centralized software installation and updates
Reduced maintenance overhead
Better security and data protection
Cost-effective scaling as enrollment grows

For Institution

Lower total cost of ownership
Reduced power consumption and environmental impact
Space-efficient computer labs
Future-proof technology investment

Conclusion

Thin clients represent an ideal solution for educational institutions looking to provide modern computing facilities while controlling costs and maintenance overhead. With Thinvent's proven thin client technology and Thinux operating system, institutions can create efficient, reliable, and cost-effective computer labs that serve students' educational needs.

For more information about implementing thin client solutions in your educational institution, please contact Thinvent's education specialists.