VMware ThinApp Factory Tech Preview available now

Yesterday VMware released a Technical Preview of the VMware ThinApp Factory (v 0.3.0).

The ThinApp Factory is a virtual appliance that brings centralized administration and automation to the process of creating virtualized Windows applications with VMware ThinApp technology.

ThinApp Factory utilizes vSphere API’s to spawn workloads which automatically convert file shares of application installers into ThinApp application containers. These workloads can be run in parellel to maximize throughput and increase ROI for virtualization projects.

Packagers and administrators can now utilize ‘Recipes’ during this packaging process. Recipes are simply small json files which contain a redistributable blueprint of the customizations and optimizations necessary for packaging complex applications. These recipes can be created and now exchanged freely with other customers via the ThinApp community site.

Key Features

  • Automates packaging of application installers into virtualized Windows applications;
  • Leverages vSphere, vCenter for automation of workloads to efficiently package 1000’s of applications;
  • Provides and utilizes ‘Recipes’ as redistributable blueprints for application packaging;
  • Provides a lightweight web UI with a dashboard for administrators to use for the entire workflow of packaging to distribution;
  • Enables administrators to import and edit existing ThinApp projects and modify package.ini, registry, and file settings through the web UI;
  • Integration with Horizon Application Manager application catalog for automated population of application metadata and deployment with the Horizon ThinApp Agent.

System requirements

ThinApp Factory is packaged as a virtual appliance with the following configuration:

  • vCPUs: 2;
  • vRam: 2 GB;
  • vHDD: 500 MB.

Compatible Browsers

  • Internet Explorer 8 or 9;
  • Firefox 3.5 or later;
  • Chrome 11.0 or later (not supported with use of VRMC and manual capture);
  • Safari 5 or later.

Chack out the VMware Labs ThinApp Factory site for more information,  the ThinApp Factory virtual appliance download and a detailed ThinApp Factory Installation Guide.