Also known as: Thin client, Zero client
A thin client is a minimal computer that does little processing on its own, instead connecting over a network to a server or virtual desktop that runs the applications and holds the data.1
Overview
A thin client is essentially a screen, keyboard, and mouse bolted to just enough hardware to draw a remote session — a low-power CPU, a little RAM, and a network port, with no spinning disk and often no local storage at all. The real computing happens centrally, frequently on a virtualized desktop infrastructure (VDI), and the thin client simply streams the picture back and forth. A zero client takes this further, with firmware fixed to a single remote protocol.
Where it fits
Thin clients suit large organizations — call centers, hospitals, schools — where central management, security, and low per-seat cost matter more than local flexibility. Because nothing important lives on the device, a failed unit is swapped in minutes and stolen hardware leaks no data. A Chromebook is a consumer cousin of the idea. The limits are the same as that idea’s: take away the network or the server and a thin client can do almost nothing, so it is a poor fit for standalone or offline compute like local SDR processing.
Sources
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Thin client — Wikipedia, on minimal client computers that rely on central servers. ↩