Microsoft released their Windows Server 2008 R2 service pack 1 beta today, and with it comes one of the most interesting features for the commercial office PC user, Microsoft RemoteFX.

Microsoft RemoteFX is designed to introduce a new set of end user enhancements to remote desktop (RDS) computing in Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 that enable a local-like desktop environment over the network.

With RemoteFX, a RDS platform technology being developed for Windows Server 2008 R2 Service Pack 1, Microsoft is taking the remote desktop experience to the next level: By leveraging the power of advanced codecs and virtualized graphics resources on the datacenter host, RemoteFX allows IT organizations to recreate the fidelity of hardware-assisted graphics acceleration on a remote user?s desktop, enabling a local-like, full-fidelity virtual desktop experience including support for 3D applications, portable graphics content such as Silverlight and Windows Aero. Users can access this rich content from a broad range of end point devices, including PCs, thin clients and other low-cost devices that are RemoteFX-enabled.

As an integral part of RDP, RemoteFX ensures continuity with existing RDP features while offering new capabilities for virtual or session-based desktops. For virtual desktops deployed on top of the Hyper-V virtualization platform in Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1, graphics hardware-assisted rendering of the screen content on the VDI host will ensure that even the most advanced applications today and tomorrow will "just work".