Thick Clients vs Thin Clients

Quick note prior to reading this article:

Firstly, while hardware, such as a dumb terminal or say a wise terminal is also a thin client, the focus of this article is that of software thin/thick clients.

I could go into some commentary on the present day/future role of hardware thin clients and what relevance they may or nay not bear, but I won't as commentary is not the purpose of this particular blog.

So what is a thick client?

Basically, your programs like Citrix ICA Client, Microsoft Office, and Mozilla Sunbird (calendars) are thick clients which are installed on your local machine, and communicate with a corresponding bit of software sitting on a server (see client/server computing for more information).

• They are a full software install and typically have a larger footprint on the registry and file system in particular.

• A thick client does most of it's work/processing on the local machine, and as part of this process passes information between the local workstation and a server.

The alternative is a thin client.

A thin client is actually similar in it's function to a thick client, with a couple of primary differences, namely:

• It is a smaller software install, so it takes up less space on your local computer, and will typically utilise the local machine's browser, such as Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, or Opera. Such thin clients are often known as plug-ins for your browser.

• Most of the processing work is done on the server, typically meaning the local machine only displays updates of information processed on the server.

So that's it, thick clients and thin clients explained.