Citrix Independent Computing Architecture (ICA)

Citrix® Independent Computing Architecture (ICA®) technology provides the foundation for deploying applications and information onto any device. That's why Citrix ICA has become the de facto industry standard for delivering corporate applications across the broadest variety of desktop platforms and networks.

On the server, Citrix ICA has the unique ability to separate application logic from the user interface. On the client, users see and work with the application's interface, but 100 percent of the application executes on the server. And with ICA, applications consume as little as one-tenth of their normal network bandwidth.

This efficiency enables the latest, most powerful Windows®, UNIX® and JavaTM applications to be accessed with exceptional performance from existing PCs, Windows-based terminals, network computers and a new generation of business and personal information appliances.

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Key ICA Differentiators

• Thin Resources
  Citrix ICA requires the equivalent of an Intel® 286 processor and access to a minimum of 640 KB of RAM to operate.
• Thin Wires
  The Citrix ICA protocol consumes less than 20 Kb of bandwidth. This allows it to operate consistently -- even over dial-up and ISDN connections -- without regard to the robustness of the executing application.
• Universal Application Client
  Citrix ICA works with any Windows, UNIX or Java application. Citrix ICA takes applications designed for a wide range of deployment technologies and deploys them with only one piece of ICA-based client software.
• Platform Independent
  Citrix ICA is inherently platform independent and has been ported to Symbian OS, Linux®, Java, Windows CE, OS/2®, Macintosh® and other non-DOS devices to deliver Windows applications to non-Windows and specialized ICA devices.
• Open Licensing Strategy
  Citrix open licensing strategy for ICA enables OEMs to deliver the benefits of server-based computing to users of low-cost Windows-based terminals, network computers, wireless devices and a new range of low-cost, lightweight information appliances. Citrix ICA is being broadly adopted by industry leading vendors - including Microsoft, HP, IBM, Compaq, Sun Microsystems, Sharp, Wyse, Psion, Nokia, Casio and others - for inclusion in new and future hardware and software products that extend the reach of enterprise applications into new markets.

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