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A hosted desktop is a product set within the larger cloud-computing sphere generally delivered using a combination of technologies including hardware virtualization and some form of remote connection software, Citrix XenApp or Microsoft Remote Desktop Services being two of the most common. Processing takes place within the provider's datacentre environment with traffic between the datacentre and the client being primarily display updates, mouse movements and keyboard activity.
A hosted desktop commonly involves a browser-based connection to a desktop environment which includes an office productivity suite alongside other desktop applications. The desktop is hosted, run, delivered and supported from a central location, usually a secure data center with high-quality and resilient connections to the Internet/cloud. Cloud Desktop is a term often used to refer to a container of a collection of virtual objects, software, hardware, configurations etc., residing on the cloud, used by a client to interact with remote services and perform computer related tasks.
Connecting clients run pre-installed or downloaded viewer applications via one of many remote desktop protocols. Clients can include thin clients, PCs, workstations, mobile and handheld devices running a variety of operating systems such as Windows, Mac OS X, Linux and others.