Introduction
After evaluating multiple remote desktop solutions for Linux, including Microsoft RDP (XRDP) and NoMachine, we conducted an extensive real-world performance test of ThinLinc on an Ubuntu Server environment.
The objective was simple:
- Provide every employee with an independent Linux desktop.
- Support multiple simultaneous users.
- Deliver an excellent user experience even over slow Internet connections.
- Minimize server resource consumption.
- Achieve a browsing experience comparable to working on a local machine.
The results exceeded our expectations.
Test Environment
Server
- Ubuntu Server 24.04 LTS
- XFCE Desktop
- No dedicated GPU
- Standard cloud VPS
Clients
- Windows PCs
- ThinLinc Native Client
Network
- One of the test machines used an ADSL connection with approximately 2 Mbps download speed.
The Results
From the very first connection, ThinLinc immediately stood out.
The improvement was not limited to scrolling performance.
The entire desktop experience felt significantly more responsive than any other solution we tested.
This included:
- Extremely smooth scrolling in modern web applications.
- Instant window movement and resizing.
- Fast application startup.
- Responsive menus and interface animations.
- Excellent browser performance.
- Very low perceived latency.
Even demanding web applications such as Odoo Online behaved remarkably well.
The desktop simply felt natural.
Better Than NoMachine?
NoMachine is an excellent remote desktop product.
It has earned its reputation for years by delivering one of the smoothest remote desktop experiences available.
However, during our testing, ThinLinc consistently felt even more responsive.
The difference became especially noticeable while navigating websites, scrolling through long pages, and interacting with browser-based business applications.
The desktop remained fluid even under continuous interaction.
Significantly Better Than XRDP
The difference compared to Microsoft's traditional RDP implementation (XRDP on Linux) was dramatic.
With XRDP we experienced:
Noticeable scrolling lag
Higher interaction latency
Less fluid browser rendering
Reduced overall responsiveness
After switching to ThinLinc, the user experience changed completely.
The desktop felt closer to working on a local machine than to using a traditional remote desktop solution.
For browser-heavy workflows, the difference was immediately obvious.
Excellent Performance on Slow Internet
One of the most impressive aspects of ThinLinc was its performance over a very limited Internet connection.
The client computer was connected through an approximately 2 Mbps ADSL line.
Despite the limited bandwidth:
Browsing remained smooth.
Desktop interaction stayed responsive.
Odoo Online remained comfortable to use.
General office work was performed without difficulty.
This demonstrates how efficiently ThinLinc compresses and transmits graphical updates.
Bandwidth was clearly not the limiting factor.
Multiple Concurrent Users
A critical requirement for our environment was allowing every employee to have an independent desktop session.
ThinLinc handled this perfectly.
We successfully connected multiple users simultaneously, each with:
Their own desktop
Their own applications
Their own browser session
Complete isolation from other users
The sessions remained stable throughout testing.
This makes ThinLinc an excellent foundation for centralized Linux workstations.
Free Community License
One of ThinLinc's strongest advantages is its licensing model.
The Community Edition provides:
Up to 3 concurrent users out of the box.
A free Community License that can be expanded to 10 concurrent users.
For small businesses, development teams, or internal office environments, this is an exceptionally generous offering.
By comparison, achieving the same number of concurrent virtual desktops with other commercial solutions often requires purchasing server licenses from the start.
Ideal Use Cases
ThinLinc is particularly well suited for:
Remote employees
Odoo Online users
ERP systems
CRM platforms
Office applications
Software development
Linux workstations
Educational labs
Small and medium businesses
It enables organizations to centralize computing resources while giving every employee the feeling of working on a dedicated computer.
Resource Efficiency
Another pleasant surprise was server efficiency.
Most CPU utilization came from the web browser itself rather than the remote desktop infrastructure.
ThinLinc introduced relatively little overhead while maintaining excellent responsiveness.
This allows more users to share the same server without sacrificing usability.
Why ThinLinc Feels Different
Unlike traditional remote desktop implementations that simply transmit screen updates, ThinLinc has been engineered specifically for high-performance Linux desktop delivery.
Its protocol, display pipeline, and optimization techniques are clearly focused on interactive desktop workloads rather than simple remote administration.
The result is a desktop experience that feels substantially more responsive during everyday work.
Final Thoughts
Our evaluation began with a simple objective: find the best way to provide fast, multi-user Linux desktops over the Internet.
We tested XRDP.
We tested NoMachine.
We finally tested ThinLinc.
The outcome was clear.
ThinLinc delivered the best overall experience of all the solutions we evaluated.
Its combination of:
Outstanding responsiveness
Smooth browser performance
Excellent operation on slow Internet connections
Stable multi-user sessions
Efficient resource utilization
Generous free licensing
makes it one of the strongest remote desktop platforms currently available for Linux.
For organizations looking to build centralized Linux work environments—especially those relying heavily on browser-based applications such as Odoo—ThinLinc deserves serious consideration.