I'm currently investigating options regarding thin clients following a move to a system based on Microsoft Remote Desktop Services. Currently users are using their existing desktops as RDP clients, but at some point this hardware will be due for replacement, prompting me to investigate thin clients in a little more detail.
I've been spending some time looking into the HP thin client range, which offer a number of OS options, including Windows Embedded.
One of the main reasons for switching to thin clients would be the reduced management burden compared to fat desktops. From the point of view of hardware maintenance, it seems quite obvious why that would be the case. From a software point of view, I appreciate that write filters reduce maintenance requirements, but I'm unsure how things would work when it comes to OS updates. This has led me to wonder – is it normal practice to keep Windows Embedded thin clients up to date in terms of security and reliability patches in the same way that one would with the full version of Windows (Windows Update, WSUS, etc)? If it's different, how exactly, and why? If it's more or less the same, it seems to negate one of the main advantages of switching to thin clients (at least where Windows Embedded is concerned).
In my particular case, it looks as though I would have the thin client configured in kiosk mode to drop straight into the RDP client, so security updates seem less of an issue. However, I get the impression that thin clients are also used as browser terminals for web-based apps, in which case security updates would be more of a concern.
I'd appreciate it if someone with some in the trenches experience can fill in some of the blanks to help me understand things a little better.
Best Answer
Just in case somebody else stumbles across this question later, let me throw this in as well. There is nothing "THIN" about an embedded OS from Microsoft. Its over 4GB, usually 8. It takes an hour to push out an image. HP doesn't recommend using windows updates or WSUS to push updates and because of the slower disk and CPU it takes a lot longer to roll through updates so make sure you are staying up to date every month.
Oh, and if you are choosing windows for your thin clients, make sure you order the version of the OS that you want. There is no such thing as downgrade rights with HP thin clients and windows OS versions (if you have a way let me know but I spent 4 months dealing with HP sales and support). You can install another version of an OS on your machine but it can't be an HP branded version from an HP image because it will tell you its not licensed for that machine, even if you are windows 8 trying to go to windows 7. You can also install a newer version (ie Windows 8.1) but the management tools didn't work for more than an hour before it would disconnect and never come back. HP couldn't help with that either.
IMHO the only way you can go with a thin client setup is to get rid of Windows 7 embedded. It can be managed but the maintenance costs are a LOT higher. Go with ThinPro. You can image a machine in about 45 seconds, it captures most of the settings and there are a lot fewer patches for it.