Video conferencing and virtual desktops

Virtual desktops (also known as thin clients) are generally not compatible with software based video conferencing.

This is not a problem with StarLeaf, but instead an incompatibility between thin clients and real time audio-video applications.

In this topic:

• About thin client incompatibility
• Yealink VP59

About thin client incompatibility

Real time audio and video relies on a processor being physically connected to a camera and microphone. The processor receives raw audio and video from the mic and camera, compresses it to reduce the rate of data, then transmits it over an IP network. A processor at the other end receives the compressed data, decompresses it to reproduce raw audio and video, then outputs this to the physically connected speaker and screen.

However in a thin client deployment, the computer processor is not physically connected to the hardware of the user (camera, microphone, screen, etc), because the processor is instead in a server farm. This means that the raw audio and video data has to be sent across a server to be compressed and decompressed, which is a lot slower than being a normal desktop setup.

StarLeaf recommends to avoid using thin clients for video conferencing. Instead use a: 

• PC or a laptop with a physical processor
• Dedicated video conferencing endpoint, such as a Yealink VP59

Yealink VP59

The Yealink VP59 is a video phone with a large touchscreen display, in-built camera, and corded handset. It can be a good solution for organizations who do not want to deploy PCs and laptops as their video conferencing solution.