Citrix plans to enable iPhone users to operate Windows applications through a combination of virtualization and thin-client application server technology. A company spokesperson said that that during the first half of 2009 it will ship a version of XenApp that will serve Windows applications to iPhones over Wi Fi and over the the 3G phone network. At its web site, Citrix has a video demonstration of a prototype running Windows applications on iPhones.

The XenApp solution won't be a file viewer: the files are actually running on the Windows server and are not reformatted for iPhone. The iPhone will be remote controlling the apps. Any application that runs in Windows can be controlled on the iPhone. Users will be able to create, edit, and save files.

It's also not just like a VNC client of the iPhone. Citrix's solution will make use of the the iPhone accelerometer to sense positioning, and will work with the iPhone's touch gestures for zooming, panning, and other manipulations. The image can match the iPhone screen or be larger, letting the user scroll around.

XenApp (formerly MetaFrame Server and Presentation Server) will use the same ICA protocol for iPhone service that it now uses for Windows and Mac clients. The ICA protocol connects a virtual image of Windows XP or Windows Vista to the ICA client, which will include the iPhone. The virtual image of the operating system runs on Citrix' hypervisor (XenServer), and will also work with VMware virtual images, according to a Citrix spokesperson.

A spokesperson said that the large screen of the iPhone helps make running Windows applications practical.

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