Are you building a Request for Proposals for an application delivery solution such as desktop virtualization (VDI), application virtualization, remote desktops or Desktop-as-a-Service? This template and guide will help you create your own RFP and make sure you’ve covered all the possible requirements.
Whether you’re looking to VDI, application virtualization, remote desktop architecture, an alternative to Citrix and VMware, an application workspace, Desktop-as-a-Service (DaaS), or indeed any other software deployment technology, this RFP template will help you consider and evaluate all the requirements you’ll want the proposed solution to meet.
When it comes to requesting proposals or creating tenders for an application delivery or virtualization solution there are many elements to consider, including how the proposed software meets not only your technical requirements, but also your higher-level business, commercial or end-user requirements.
This page will give you an overview of the requirements you’ll want to be sure to include for any successful virtualization or application deployment project, as well as a clear format and structure in which to provide them.
Download our full Application Delivery RFP template and get the complete template (in PDF format), fully-populated with important requirements and sample responses. A must for any virtualization project like this!
In order to get a software solution that meets your organization’s needs, you first need to set out a clear list of requirements that the project will fulfil, whether they are a ‘must’ (called essential requirements) or a ‘should’ (known as highly desirable requirements).
To give an example of this you might definitely want your new application delivery solution to be able to deploy 100% of software titles (an essential requirement), but delivering apps to Linux devices might be something that's a bonus and not critical to the project (this is a highly desirable requirement).
Once you have made your business case internally and gathered all your requirements for the proposed application delivery or virtualization solution, you should collate them all into what’s known as an RFP – a Request for Proposals, sometimes known as a Request for Information – and send this to your chosen virtualization or application delivery providers...
Here’s how to approach any RFP:
Top tip: To help you along the way, we've put together a checklist of all the requirements you might want to include in your RFP, to ensure you get a solution that meets the "any app, any device, anywhere" dream. We've also broken these key requirements down into categories (e.g. virtualization, end-user experience, management, pricing etc.).
Download our full e-book to get the checklist of requirements to include in your very own RFP today.
The start of any RFP should include important information about your company, as well as key dates, project outputs, submission guidelines, your existing application delivery solution and the main drivers for change.
We've broken down this opening section into some important details you'll want to include in your application delivery RFP...
What’s the main reason for requesting proposals from virtualization and delivery providers? Why are you looking to change and improve your existing EUC (end-user computing) environment? Think of this as an executive summary for your RFP document.
For example:
Our organization is looking for a software delivery solution to replace our existing Citrix XenDesktop environment. We require a new virtualization solution to deliver all our end-user services, namely our software estate, on-demand across multiple locations in a consistent and user-friendly way. The proposed solution should deliver Windows applications to both Windows and non-Windows devices, and should also support the delivery of Mac software to Apple devices.
With an increasing number of mobile endpoints as well as Chromebooks, we are looking for a cost-effective and infrastrcture-lite solution to improve the user experience by having just one point of access for all desktops and applications, regardless of OS or device type. We are also looking for the replacement solution to streamline IT efficiencies, namely in the packaging, imaging and deployment time of applications, all through a customizable user-facing portal to which we can add our corporate branding.
Sample background for application delivery or virtualization RFP
The RFP background will be one of the first things that the vendors read. It will set the tone for what they should expect in the rest of the request, and indeed it sets their expectations for what you want the new application delivery solution to do.
Give your chosen software vendors important background information about your company, to enable them to tailor the responses appropriately. This should be a high-level overview and could include any of the below as an example:
Lay out the key deadlines that you need your respondents to know in order for them to successfully submit their proposals. This could include RFP intent, submission, decision and implementation dates. There is another section later in the template for you to reference implementation criteria and timescales in more detail.
You should give as much information as possible as to what your current solution is, what it does, and what the new proposed solution will either replace or integrate into. You could list any key challenges or blockers with the current solution, in which it isn’t enabling you to achieve what your organization wants to achieve. This could be an overview of why you aren’t able to reach key IT strategies with the current setup. Some technical information as to how you’re delivering applications would also help to describe the situation to respondents.
You can name brand or product names in this section, which will give proposing vendors a chance to highlight their competitive advantages or ways in which they product is different. Your existing technology might be any of the below. If so, make sure you still explain what it does at a high level and what it doesn't do, as other vendors replying to your RFP might not fully understand the 'ins and outs' of other technologies.
*Parallels RAS can be seen as both a VDI and RDS solution
Using a concise list summarize everything you expect from both the replacement software solution and the vendor providing the solution. This will be a summary of a later section of the RFP document, in which you fully detail what requirements are essential and what are highly desirable. We have included a full, templated list of requirements later in this software-buyer's guide for you to consider when building an RFP for application delivery solutions.
Are there any specific guidelines that respondents must adhere to? If your company has a set RFP framework or legal requirements, you should make sure those are well-communicated to all companies who wish to submit a proposal. Most importantly, this should highlight how to submit the actual RFP and set expectations for how the process will work.
The next section makes up the bulk of your RFP document and will be of most interest to those responding. This is the part to which chosen vendors will write their responses, addressing your key requirements and providing information which illustrates how they will be a good fit for your proposed solution.
Before reading this, you’ll have already built your internal business case for doing anything at all, got senior buy-in and gathered your full list of requirements from different parts of the organization. The requirements should then all be collated into various categories to which the application delivery or virtualization vendors will respond.
The first level of qualification you’ll want to do is to check whether the responding organization itself meets your requirement, before you consider their software solution’s features and how it fits with your requirements.
You should ask for information such as company history, it’s location, employee information, relevant financials, customer base and key partners. You may also want to know the company has policies for things such as data security, corporate and social responsibility (CSR), anti-slavery and corruption.
The purpose of knowing this information is for you to be sure that the company with the successful response is credible, reputable and understands both your use cases and challenges faced by your industry, specifically when it comes to application delivery and virtualization.
In this section you’ll describe in detail all your requirements for the proposed virtualization or application delivery solution. You’ll want to provide vendors with a list of requirements to which they can respond, and you might want to split these up into those that are essential/mandatory and those that are highly desirable.
This will need to illustrate everything that you need the proposed software to do, including technical and end-user requirements. Make sure you consider every avenue of application delivery and deployment, and make sure you include it in this section. If you want to make sure that the replacement solution does something, include it in this section!
For example, you might want to know what OS or device types the solution supports, what delivery methods it integrates with, how it connects with your existing AD environment, how it delivers Windows software to non-Windows devices, what specific software titles can be virtualized, the infrastructure it needs to work with, cloud vs on-premise deployment, managed vs BYO devices and more! Think about everything to do with your desktop, software and end-user estate, then craft a series of requirements to fit.
You might categorize your requirements into the below, as an example:
We’ve put together a full list of the requirements you’ll want to make sure you’ve considered for any application deployment project like this. Download our Application Delivery RFP template and see what requirements to include in your very own Request For Proposals.
For a sample of what’s included in our full template, see below:
Once you’ve built your list of actual requirements for vendors to respond to, the next thing you’ll want to do is understand the software solution from a holistic perspective. This is to be sure you’re comfortable with what you’re investing in, not just in terms of application delivery, but strategically and from a business point of view, to minimize potential risks in the future.
You might want to think about some of the below points, for example:
By this point of your request for proposals, you’ll want to get an understanding of the details. Knowing what’s involved after signing the contract and purchasing the technology is a very important part of the whole software solution and should not be overlooked.
After choosing the successful response the next steps for any application delivery, VDI or DaaS solution is the implementation of the software itself. This process is something that you’ll want to make sure happens seamlessly and that you’re provided with all the support and project management throughout the process that your organization needs for it to be successful.
You’ll also want to consider what the support model looks like after the solution is ‘live’ at your organization, and what is required from the various roles within your IT department on an ongoing basis.
Make sure you consider some of the points below, for example:
Implementation
Support
The penultimate stage of your RFP/RFI is what your procurement team will be most interested in. By now you’ll have designed your Request For Proposals to elicit responses to meet your technical needs and you’ll be happy that you’re choosing both the right vendor and the best software.
Now you need to know everything to do with how your application deployment solution is priced and licensed, and what those models look like not only on day one but on an ongoing basis too. This section is designed to check the affordability of the proposed solution.
You’ll want to know information such as:
There are many different pricing and licensing models for software delivery, virtualization, VDI and DaaS solutions, so you’ll want to be sure that the proposed solutions fit what you’re looking for. Also make sure you're aware of the support, upgrade and maintenance charges that are prominent with certain desktop virtualization solutions; you might think you're paying upfront for the full solution, but you'll be tied to a maintenance contract on an annual basis, or else you won't get support and upgrades!
Read more: Exploring the hidden license costs in application delivery solutions >
Finally, you’ll want tangible examples of the vendors’ solutions being used by other companies or organizations who are both a similar size to yours (in terms of end-users and number of locations) and in the same industry. This might be partly covered by one of the previous sections of your RFP, but this gives you the opportunity to drill down in much more detail and get the information you want to be comfortable you’re making the right decision.
This is to ensure that your exact use case can be satisfied by the proposed software and that there are positive references and testimonials to support that. You may also wish to find an existing customer who is close to you geographically, and the vendor should always share with you the details of those people for you to contact to get your own independent reference. They should even set up a site visit for you to go and speak with another one of their customer’s IT teams to learn how they’re delivering software apps to their end-users and find out more about the solution and how it works.
For universities and colleges, it's important to know the usage of the proposed solution within your particular industry. The IT environment within Higher Education is much different to that of many industries, so be sure to get references and use cases of where the software has been used successfully at other institutions near you.
Now that you have built your business case for implementing a new software solution, identified exactly what you need your new virtualization and application delivery solution to do and presented your requirements, it’s time to write your template and publish it.
You should have already identified the vendors who you’d like to respond to your RFP. For application delivery solutions, you might look to vendors who supply various technology solutions such as Unified Application Delivery, Application Workspaces, Enterprise App Stores, Desktop Virtualization (VDI), Application Virtualization, Desktop-as-a-Service (DaaS) or a Remote Desktop solution. You should understand the higher-level benefits and use cases for each of these technologies before deciding which type you want responses for, or indeed a combination of them all!
Now it’s time to write everything up and get all the relevant internal departments to check and confirm that their individual requirements have been captured and correctly articulated. Once that is complete, you’re ready to publish and start seeing responses fly in for your new application delivery system.
Download our full RFP template (in PDF format) to see how this might look, as well as a detailed list of all the requirements we think are important in any successful application delivery or software deployment project.
If you have any questions about the process or what’s involved, contact us and one of our experienced application delivery experts will be able to guide you in the right direction.
Are you building a Request for Proposals for an application delivery solution such as desktop virtualization (VDI), application virtualization, remote desktops or Desktop-as-a-Service? This template and guide will help you create your own RFP and make sure you’ve covered all the possible requirements.
Auto validation is still available as an option. We aim to ensure there are as few occasions of attempting to launch but being unable to as possible, and where they occur, explaining why.
Detection occurs during validation - the client is given a list of directories to look in and it returns what it finds.
Dark mode wasn't something we were able to do for this version, but it is something that we are looking to include in the future.
If client download is not available in that instance - such as in labs mode or if client install is suppressed, then the client link will not appear. The client download link will also only appear on platforms which have a client - i.e. Windows and macOS.
If you would like to upgrade to 2.12 please submit a support request and the team will be touch.
To implement BYOD in a cost-effective and sustainable way, schools will need a clear idea of a number of key data points to understand which technologies are necessary and how many licenses of each technology are required: Number of users/devices Weighting of device type/platform (Windows vs Mac vs Linux) Software titles to deliver Usage data on software titles for licensing User groups requiring specialist software You can read more about implementing BYOD policies in schools in the SecurEdge article, ‘How to successfully implement a BYOD program into your school’ > https://www.securedgenetworks.com/blog/how-to-successfully-implement-a-byod-program-into-your-school
With a BYOD policy implemented, schools can begin working to introduce centralized communication points such as Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) or Learning Management Systems (LMSs). Software delivery tools such as AppsAnywhere also provide areas that can be used to communicate with students. Once BYOD is enabled, schools can be more confident that students are actively accessing digital academic resources through specific channels, and that communication propagated through those channels is much more likely to be seen.
Yes, it can do. While BYOD technologies may be expensive, with the correct provisioning and tools implemented, the decrease in hardware investment required from schools by allowing students to bring their own device and insight from reporting data can help schools save money on their software delivery.
BYOD policies in schools reduce the hardware investment of electronic devices, including mobile devices, needed for schools to offer equal access to digital academic resources to all students. By leveraging student-owned hardware, BYOD policies in schools can increase the resources available to students, such as software, digital media and digital learning environments, at a fraction of the cost of ensuring there are enough organization-owned machines for every student to use. Furthermore, BYOD allows students to access school resources outside of school and outside of teaching hours via their own device.
BYOD policies in schools help to introduce students to completing work from their own devices in preparation for higher education and employment. In an ever-more-digital world, getting used to using personal devices to complete work can help desensitize students to the potential distractions offered by those devices. BYOD can also help students learn to manage their time effectively in a society where the lines between work time and free time are becoming more and more blurred.
We’re excited to be releasing AppsAnywhere 3.0 in December 2022, in time for January enrolment. Your dedicated Customer Success team will be in touch when it’s available to ensure your institution gets the most out of AppsAnywhere.
To get the latest version if you are currently using AppsAnywhere, schedule a call with your specialist implementations team and we can help you to start benefiting from AppsAnywhere 2.12 now.
Most IT professionals get excited when considering new technologies and solutions. Without a doubt, the prospect of a VDI deployment project is likely to get your team’s juices flowing. However, deploying VDI is complex and often includes a host of new infrastructure and unique software management tools. The best advice is to engage with a vendor partner early on so that the design for your campus can be vetted by experts who work with VDI on a daily basis. A vendor partner can also help guide through different architecture scenarios, use cases, and potential pitfalls. All of the knowledge transfer gained will put the IT team in a far better position to successfully deploy and support VDI for your campus.
As is the theme throughout the rest of this article, there isn’t really an objective victor in DaaS vs. VDI. However, when it comes to Higher Ed, we rarely see full DaaS deployments. They’re often saved for more limited use cases, such as temporary BYOD access, or delivering to satellite campuses. For the scale of delivery required by HEIT, VDI will usually come out on top. However, you still need to decide whether to go for legacy VDI, or newer, hosted solutions…
DaaS refers to virtual desktops being provided to organizations as a service-based solution. It will include support for managing, upgrading and maintaining virtual machines. It is a more complete out-of-the-box solution with a price tag to match. Fully-hosted VDI is just like legacy VDI, except you don’t need on-premise server infrastructure, and they are often pay-as-you-go. Fully-hosted solutions are also referred to cloud-hosted solutions and they are the same as VDI, except hosted for you, as the name suggests.
Both VMware and Citrix have a robust product offering across many different solution suites. Historically, Citrix has excelled in the realm of remote app delivery or app remoting solutions. On the other hand, VMware leads the way with full desktop VDI delivery. Deciding on the right approach is solely dependent on the needs of the institution and what goals they are hoping to achieve with the project.
A formal BYOD policy helps to ensure a high chance of success and adoption as well as communicating practical information to users on how to interact with and use software on their BYO devices.
To put it concisely, a BYOD policy should include any or all of the following: Device type Operating system Available resources Security Usage conditions
A BYOD policy is a formal definition and agreement between the BYOD provider (universities) and the BYOD users (students). It is similar to an SLA (Service Level Agreement) between service-providers and outlines how users can expect to interact with their university's BYOD program, as well as any limitations, usage conditions, and compatibility information.
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AppsAnywhere is a global education technology solution provider that challenges the notion that application access, delivery, and management must be complex and costly. AppsAnywhere is the only platform to reduce the technical barriers associated with hybrid teaching and learning, BYOD, and complex software applications, and deliver a seamless digital end-user experience for students and staff. Used by over 3 million students across 300+ institutions in 22 countries, AppsAnywhere is uniquely designed for education and continues to innovate in partnership with the education community and the evolving needs and expectations of students and faculty.
Register your interest for a demo and see how AppsAnywhere can help your institution. Receive a free consultation of your existing education software strategy and technologies, an overview of AppsAnywhere's main features and how they benefit students, faculty and IT, and get insight into the AppsAnywhere journey and post launch partnership support.
Register your interest for a demo and see how AppsAnywhere can help your institution. Receive a free consultation of your existing education software strategy and technologies, an overview of AppsAnywhere's main features and how they benefit students, faculty and IT, and get insight into the AppsAnywhere journey and post launch partnership support.
