As the name implies, a full clone disk is an exact, full-size copy of the parent virtual machine or gold image template. Once the clone of the gold image has been created, the virtual desktop machine is unique, with its own identity, and operates as a fully independent virtual desktop in its own right and is not reliant on the gold image from which it was created.

However, as it is a full-sized copy, be aware that it will take up exactly the same amount of storage as the gold image, which leads back to our discussion earlier in this chapter about storage capacity requirements. Using a full clone will require larger amounts of storage capacity and will possibly lead to higher infrastructure costs.

But before you completely dismiss the idea of using full clone virtual desktop machines, there are some use cases that rely on this model. For example, if you use VMware Mirage to deliver the operating system as a base layer, it only works today with full clones and dedicated Horizon View virtual desktop machines.

With VDI, a new approach to deploying storage is needed, and this is where linked clone and instant clone technology comes into play. In a nutshell, linked and instant clones are designed to reduce the amount of disk space required, and to simplify the deployment and management of images to multiple virtual desktop machines, making it a centralized, and much easier, process.