Evaluation

It is essential that you establish the scope of the evaluation pilot project. The project’s scope can range from demonstrating mul tiple concurrent users running the corporate applications to ad-dressing issues such as optimum hardware configuration, server/application tuning, client software distribution (and automatic updates), ongoing maintenance, and disaster recovery. As you conduct an evaluation, keep the following guidelines in mind:

• Set up a test environment that emulates field conditions.
  
  
• Use the client and server hardware and software configurations that will actually be deployed.
  
  
• Agree on a prioritized set of things you want to evaluate, such as applications that need to be tested, printing requirements, authentication and security mechanisms, event logging, auditing, and reporting requirements; and set up success criteria for each, such as acceptable per-formance results based on clearly defined benchmarks.
  
  
• Select several users who can help you streamline the client software distribution and configuration process, and maintain a log that records common questions and problems.
  
  
• Set up a contingency plan in the event of system failure (for example, failure of server hardware, communication lines, modems, or power).
  
  
• Try to limit the scope of the evaluation to the most mission-critical applications. Once the power of WinFrame be-comes apparent, you might be asked to provide support for additional applications. Evaluating these could slow down the evaluation process and move the focus away from the critical applications.