Application virtualization is a software technology that facilitates the deployment and management of applications by separating them from the underlying operating system on which they would normally run. You do not install a virtual application in the traditional manner, although you execute it as if you did. At runtime, the application acts as if it is directly interfacing with the original operating system and all the resources managed by the operating system. In reality, the application is running in an environment ("bubble") that is isolated from the operating system.
Virtual applications can run directly from a local hard drive on a target computer, or they can be streamed from a remote server. With streaming, the virtual application is stored on the server. A “sandbox” is created on the server or the target computer for each user of a streamed virtual application. The sandbox contains all sub-folders, configuration files, and application-specific registry entries that are needed to run the application. After the user closes the virtual application, the application is removed from the computer’s memory. Only small configuration files and a link to start the application remain. However, the sandbox containing all user-specific settings is still available on the server or the target computer for the next time that the user wants to run the application.
Virtual applications are regular applications captured into a virtual application image. This image contains all files and configuration data necessary to run an application, as well as all installation information that would normally be used during application installation. The creation of a virtual application image is done by means of tools that the vendor of the virtualization technology supplies. These vendor tools can generate a virtual application image from a regular application.
CA ITCM manages the virtual application life cycle after the virtual application image has been created with one of the vendor tools. The image can be imported into the Software Delivery Library as a standard software package and deployed to target computers through the standard CA ITCM deployment methods. The package can also be updated, upgraded, and retired through the standard CA ITCM methods.
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