Virtualizing the University Computer Lab

We are beginning to hear announcements fairly frequently about the states, school districts, and universities that are moving to the cloud for their email and productivity tools. As schools and universities adopt cloud technologies, what will become of the school computer lab?

Computer labs have been important locations on campus for students to work, study, and access computing resources. But almost all students now come to college owning their own personal computers. A recent CNN story said that 95% of college students interviewed this spring owned at least one computer (83% owned a laptop, 24% a desktop, 15% both). That's up from 23% of students who owned laptops in 2003.

Budget Pressures

So as universities battle budget issues (as well as space issues), the rooms full of rows of PCs may seem a good target for elimination. An article in the Chronicle of Higher Education last fall said that 11% of universities were phasing out or planning to phase out the computer lab.

The cost savings of eliminating the computer lab can be substantial. When North Carolina State University announced its move to a virtualized computer lab, Eric Sills, the assistant vice provost touted the $500,000 saved by closing down half its labs and by not purchasing a round of new computers. Sills did admit however that the university was likely to buy more servers which would negate some of that savings with its move to virtualized computer labs.

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