Citrix Beefs Up Mobile Proposition With Security And Windows 8 Boosts

Thomas Brewster,

Citrix looks to take on Good Technology, RIM and others in mobile device management

Citrix has expanded on its mobile strategy with some fresh technologies to secure data, whilst offering plenty of support for Windows 8, which is just over a week away from general release.

At its Synergy event in Barcelona today, the vendor unveiled CloudGateway 2, which hooks up to its MDX technology to place a container around apps, to separate work and play tools. That includes native mobile and HTML5 apps.

It also allows IT teams far greater control over data itself on mobile devices and which software can use information.

Fresh Citrix apps

CloudGateway 2 also ties in with some fresh apps announced by Citrix today – @WorkWeb, and @WorkMail. The first offers a secure browser, which IT teams can configure for security. The @WorkMail allows for similar things, but is for email, calendars and contacts.

Both work on iOS and Android, and can be delivered through CloudGateway for that extra container security and management features.

“You have to deal with world of different application types, multiple platforms… and do it in a way where IT still has centralised control,” said Wes Wasson, chief marketing officer at officer at Citrix.

The additions draw Citrix into closer competition with the likes of Good Technology and troubled BlackBerry maker RIM, which is betting big on mobile device management now its handsets are not as popular as they once were.

Chief rival VMware has also been turning out some big mobile management plays, under its Project Horizon banner.

Citrix also announced its Receiver software, which delivers virtualised apps to end users and is now available across three billion devices, was available on Windows 8 from today.

It has also extended the reach of XenClient, which enables desktop virtualisation on laptops, to Ultrabooks powered by Intel.

Updates to Citrix ShareFile, the vendor’s “Dropbox for the enterprise” play, have provided additionally security. The StorageZones feature, available now, lets IT teams decide where their files are stored, giving greater peace of mind when it comes to different compliance rules in different countries.

By placing files and folders close to users, there should also be a performance boost.

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