Home Enterprise VMware Outlines Future Of Business Mobility

VMware Outlines Future Of Business Mobility

by Adam Armstrong

VMware Inc. outlined its future of business mobility with new solutions, services, and partnerships. As business transforms into a more fluid process, VMware is helping businesses move away from client-server focused IT with new solutions such as Identity Manager, further support for iOS devices in enterprise usage, and new partners to help standardize public applications and development in the enterprise. With these announcements, VMware is looking to deliver a more user- and application-centric experience for the enterprise.


VMware Inc. outlined its future of business mobility with new solutions, services, and partnerships. As business transforms into a more fluid process, VMware is helping businesses move away from client-server focused IT with new solutions such as Identity Manager, further support for iOS devices in enterprise usage, and new partners to help standardize public applications and development in the enterprise. With these announcements, VMware is looking to deliver a more user- and application-centric experience for the enterprise.

As the workforce becomes more and more mobile it presents a couple of challenges for IT. The first is keeping data secure as it leaves from beneath the protective wing of IT. The second challenge goes along with the first: IT no longer controls the end-user device, which can create an entirely new set of issues. IT needs a new, secure way to manage identities and devices and employees need to be able to use the devices they are most comfortable with and still have access to all of their applications and data.

As an answer to the above dilemma, VMware has introduced VMware Identity Manager, the industry’s first Identity-as-a-Service (IDaaS). VMware Identity Manager gives IT back the management and security with a central place to manage end-user provisioning, access and compliance, with enterprise-class directory integration, identity federation and user analytics. And the solution meets end-users’ expectations with secure, one-touch access to web, mobile and Windows applications. VMware Identity Manager is offered as a cloud service or as an on-premises solution, and can be used by other solutions such as VMware vCloud Air to VMware vRealize Air

Key features and capabilities include:

  • One-Touch Single Sign-On from any device to web, mobile and Windows applications without modification or app wrapping to help streamline access.
  • Unique Adaptive Access is delivered by a tight integration between VMware Identity Manager and AirWatch Enterprise Mobility Management. This integration provides an additional factor of authentication from enrolled devices that is both stronger and easier to use than passwords, while also maintaining conditional access policies between managed and unmanaged devices.
  • A Customizable and Context Aware HTML5 Application Portal empowers employees with a simple onboarding experience, automated app provisioning, and more secure application access across any device.
  • Enterprise-Class Infrastructure that is reliable and more secure, running in the cloud or on-premises, and federates existing on-premises Microsoft Active Directory infrastructures to centralize end-user management.

In order to further increase business mobility, VMware also announced that it was extending its support for Apple and iOS. iOS devices had been supported by VMware Horizon and AirWatch, VMware is announcing the development of application configuration templates and vertical solutions, in industries like healthcare, airlines, education and others. Now users with have a "single-touch" configured solution, for a wide variety of apps, and facilitate faster on-boarding of mobile devices in the enterprise.

VMware announced that 15 more partners have joined ACE, App Configuration for Enterprise. ACE is the open standard approach for managing and securing apps deployed via enterprise mobility management solutions. Once an application developer implements ACE standards, users simply download the public-facing application and corporate resources are automatically configured, allowing users to instantly and securely use the application. The new partners include: bigtincan, Deputy, DocuSign, Dropbox, Everbridge, Imprivata, Kony, Lua, MicroStrategy, OnBase by Hyland, ScrollMotion, ServiceMax, Showpad, Syncplicity by EMC, and Webalo.

And finally, VMware’s AirWatch announced that they are now supporting the AT&T Work Platform. This support will allow customers to gain better control and insights into their telecom costs. AT&T’s solution enables businesses to separate personal and corporate voice, messaging and data usage, making costs more predictable. When combined with AirWatch, customers will be able to better manage their bring your own device programs.

Availability and pricing

VMware Identity Manager is available now as part of part of the AirWatch by VMware Blue and Yellow Management bundles. Pricing starts at $150 per end user per year.

VMware Identity Manager page

AirWatch site

AT&T Work Platform page

ACE site

Discuss this story

Sign up for the StorageReview newsletter