What are Fresh-Start, Trainer, Participant and Standalone Machines?
DaDesktop is an advanced training platform offering accessible cloud machines for training courses, along with admin tools to easily manage the Desktop machines on each course.
To support this, DaDesktop employs several similar yet distinct Desktop machine types to deliver such courses.
Below are descriptions of the different machine types used.
Fresh-Start Machine
A 'Fresh-Start' is the DaDesktop machine that the Trainer creates and develops their course materials on. Once complete, the Fresh Start machine is copied to all Participants' Desktops ready for the course they are undertaking. A Fresh-Start can be thought of as a 'Golden Image' which can be reverted to should any issues arise on either the Trainer's or Participants' machines.
Trainer Machine
A 'Trainer' machine is used by the Trainer to deliver the course materials to Participants. The state of this machine will differ from the Fresh-Start, as software applications and libraries related to the course subject are typically installed, configured, and run by the Trainer(s) during the course.
If more than one Trainer leads a course, multiple Trainer machines are used.
Participant Machine
A 'Participant' machine is used by each participant during the course where they can carry out installation, configuration, and exercises under the trainer's oversight.
Fresh-Start, Trainer and Participant machines are normally automatically deleted a short while after the course ends. There is, however, another type of machine available that is not linked to a course and can be kept for as long as needed called a 'Standalone'.
Standalone Machine
A 'Standalone' machine is not necessarily used during a course. As the name suggests, it 'stands alone' as a separate machine that can be used before or after the course is finished, or simply on its own with no link to a course. This makes the Standalone particularly flexible.
Typical reasons for creating Standalone desktops include:
- Preparing training course materials that can be reused time and again, outside of a course itself, or kept for future use.
- When you need a flexible machine, perhaps with a different operating system (Linux, Windows), to test out ideas in a safe environment.