Citrix's newly revealed Trinity project will uncouple its technology from Microsoft's Terminal Services and allow users to support Windows, VMware or Blade PC-based desktops.

At the Ft Lauderdale, Fla., software company's annual conference, Citrix executives said the set of Trinity technologies due to be delivered in the first quarter of 2007 will enable customers to have one platform for delivering shared desktops or dedicated virtualized or Blade PC desktops.

The Trinity technology will be offered as a new standalone product and will not require Microsoft terminal services -- for the first time, executives acknowledged.

Citrix's classic Presentation Server allows end users to access shared Windows desktops from a server farm running terminal services.

Trinity, in contrast, will allow users to connect physically to various types of desktops -- shared desktops, or dedicated virtualized or Blade PC-delivered desktops that cater to the needs of individual users. Trinity will allow customers to connect to the desktop using Citrix's Independent Client Architecture (ICA) protocol, the company said.