Virtual enterprise desktop on a stick

Computer security company Check Point has released Abra, a virtual workspace activated by an encrypted USB device, says The Sydney Morning Herald.

With this offering, users can turn any computer into their work desktop, complete with the company's security features.

Enterprise IT managers can program the stick with all the parameters required to give remote workers access to the enterprise's systems from any Windows-based computer.

Virtualisation software, such as Citrix XenServer, is becoming increasingly popular among companies that wish to improve their data centre operations, writes Codestone.

According to Voice & Data, the technology has "gained massive momentum" in recent times.

This is because the option can act as a solution in addressing the challenges in the server environment of a data centre, such as cost.

Two researchers from North Carolina State University (NCSU) have developed software, called HyperSafe, they say can protect virtualisation hypervisors from malicious 'blue pill' rootkit threats, states Computerworld.

"HyperSafe enables the hypervisor self-protection from code injection attempts," says Xuxian Jiang, an assistant professor of computer science at NCSU.

Jiang, along with his PhD student Zhi Wang, developed the software with funding from the US Army Research Office and the National Science Foundation.