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Teradici has made significant enhancements to its multi-codec PCoIP protocol, including 4K Ultra High-Def (UHD) high frame rate content support, designed to improve the experience of users working with demanding content, according to the company.

The PCoIP Ultra protocol enhancements will be available as a technical preview to Cloud Access Software customers in mid-April, with general availability to follow in May, the company said in an announcement April 3. Teradici will showcase Cloud Access Software and the PCoIP Ultra protocol enhancements at the NAB Show.

“PCoIP Ultra supports 4K/UHD in a couple different ways,” Teradici CEO David Smith told the Media & Entertainment Services Alliance (MESA).

“First, it supports CPU scaling, including really efficient multithreading, using the AVX2 instruction set on modern servers,” he explained, adding: “Secondly, for customers who prefer it, it supports GPU offloading, which also handles 4K/UHD content via H.264 or HEVC. For media and entertainment in particular, we’re finding 4K support is quickly becoming a requirement as displays, and therefore the content being produced for them, are rapidly being upgraded to 4K. It’s become table stakes in the industry quite quickly.”

PCoIP Ultra represents Teradici’s “most advanced protocol enhancements yet, designed to meet the needs of the most demanding graphics-intensive applications while delivering the same lossless image quality and security our customers expect,” Smith said in a news release.

He added: “Even for the most challenging use cases as content shifts to larger and more immersive formats, PCoIP Ultra delivers uncompromising quality, security, and efficiency.”

The PCoIP Ultra enhancements “use an expanded array of encoders, enabling the choice of the most efficient hardware or software codecs according to content characteristics,” according to Teradici. That “flexibility results in a faster, more interactive experience for users of remote workstations working with high-resolution content, including creative design applications, dynamic wireframes, video editorial suites, and animation tools,” it said.

In addition to 4K/UHD high frame rate content, the first release supports efficient scaling across multicore CPUs leveraging AVX2 instruction sets and

expanded multi-codec architecture for third-party codecs, including H.264/HEVC, according to Teradici.

For users – typically working with high-demand applications such as those used for visual effects, broadcast video, animation, computer-aided design (CAD), financial trading or medical imaging – the significant improvements in responsiveness provided by the PCoIP Ultra enhancements “will enable them to work remotely with these emerging content formats as seamlessly as if they were using a high-powered, expensive workstation at their desks,” the company said. Users’ IT teams will find that allows for a “cohesive solution across their organizations regardless of location or requirements, and the highest level of security for all users, reducing risk and support time,” it said.

For Teradici Cloud Access Software customer DNEG, a leading global visual effects studio, the support for high frame rate content and GPU acceleration in PCoIP Ultra offers a potential benefit to both user experience and productivity.

“Virtual workstations enable DNEG to be more nimble, efficient and competitive, but only if our artists’ experience is consistent in quality and speed,” DNEG CTO Graham Jack said in the announcement. He added: “Teradici understands that and has worked with us continually to ensure that the performance of the virtual workstation solution delivers what we need. We’re excited about the potential of the protocol enhancements to further improve the software’s performance, helping us to deliver a leading edge experience to our artists.”

Teradici’s recent collaboration with chip maker Nvidia to enhance the PCoIP protocol to support GPU acceleration with Quadro Virtual Data Center Workstation software and the NVIDIA RTX Server is the first example of the expanded multi-codec support in PCoIP Ultra, Teradici said.

In terms of future enhancements to Teradici’s PCoIP Protocol, “without giving too much away, we’ll be looking to further improve on performance and content formats,” Smith told MESA, adding: “You can expect we’ll have more to say about that later this year.”

Teradici will showcase Cloud Access Software and the PCoIP Ultra protocol enhancements at several upcoming events, including Avid Connect, the NAB Show and Google NEXT. Visit Teradici’s events page for more information or to request a meeting with Teradici at one of these events.