Unified management and control of the digital workspace

Agility and efficiency in digital transformation depend on ensuring the right people can access the right applications on the right devices with appropriate privileges. Achieving this requires unified management across growing user populations (employees, partners, customers) and an expanding device landscape, spanning traditional desktops, mobile platforms, virtualized environments, and cloud applications. A viable approach must rely on strong identities, accurate access rights, and context-aware controls such as location, device state, time of day, and transaction criticality, supported by strong authentication and cross-platform single sign-on.

Many prerequisite “building blocks” already exist inside organisations—identity data, application platforms, and endpoint management capabilities—but are often owned by separate teams and systems. A holistic solution requires better collaboration, governance, and data quality, because identity lifecycle management underpins authentication and authorization models such as RBAC and ABAC. Application delivery is complicated by heterogeneous ecosystems: legacy UNIX/mainframe environments, evolving Windows estates, web and SaaS platforms, and rapidly changing mobile operating systems, including risks from unpatched Android devices. Endpoints now include corporate and BYO devices, raising security, legal, and compliance demands, and increasing the need for auditing and traceability.

The proposed “unified application workspace” model integrates identity management, application delivery, device management, endpoint security, access management, governance, and policy enforcement into one framework, shifting security away from perimeter assumptions toward identity- and policy-centric control. VMware Workspace ONE is presented as an implementation approach that unifies IAM, endpoint management, and cloud/virtualized application delivery, enabling policy-based access (including geo-fencing, jailbreak/root detection, step-up authentication, and micro-segmentation). Migration requires careful, phased planning, stakeholder involvement beyond IT, rigorous requirements definition, and platform selection through proofs of concept, testing, and audits.

• User groups that need access commonly include employees, partners, customers, and external workforces.
• Context factors considered for access decisions include location, device, time of day, and transaction criticality.
• Windows 10 is described as the latest Windows incarnation while previous versions still play essential roles in many corporate environments.
• UNIX and mainframe systems are described as backbones for many organisations and are often accessed via terminal applications or home-grown front ends.
• Mobile market share is described as mainly divided between iOS and Android.
• Android devices are described as sometimes not being fully patched or updated, leaving known severe vulnerabilities in use.
• Workspace ONE is positioned to deliver applications across Windows, iOS, Android, and web applications.
• Virtualized delivery of Windows applications is described as being achieved via Horizon 7 and Horizon Cloud.
• Workspace ONE policies can incorporate geo-fencing and detect device tampering via jailbreaking (iOS) or rooting (Android).
• Secure access to corporate network resources can be enabled with micro-segmentation and application-specific VPN-based links.

• “Well-designed application delivery builds upon pre-existing strong foundation layers.”
• “Combining previously isolated infrastructure into an integrated application platform can enable an unprecedented level of efficiency and security.”
• “You must involve all the required stakeholders, beyond IT and enterprise security.”
• “Cloud, mobile and BYO are disruptive changes beyond application delivery. Understanding and fulfilling all legal, regulatory and corporate requirements is a prerequisite.”