Codestone

A product offered by one software provider is enabling customers to "lock down" their PCs, it has been revealed.

ThinLaunch's Thin Desktop allows administrators to control the applications accessible to users on Microsoft Windows platforms, United Business Media reports.

Once a computer is switched on, the program prevents Windows Explorer Shell from running and instead opens a particular application chosen by the network controller.

According to general manager at the company Mike Cardinal, the organisation's co-founder Nick Rudnik came up with the idea after becoming dissatisfied with Microsoft's way of controlling how PCs work.

Mr Cardinal remarked: "He [Rudnik] hated Group Policy. So he wrote software to let the user do only certain things while taking advantage of all system resources."

He added that various uses have been devised for the platform, mostly inspired by clients, including remote access functions.

Recent research by Wolters Kluwer found that enterprises are increasingly looking to optimise their efficiency through implementing new technologies, including remote access software.