A thin client is a stateless, fanless desktop terminal that has no hard drive. All features typically found on the desktop PC, including applications, sensitive data, memory, etc., are stored back in the data center when using a thin client.

A thin client running Remote Desktop Protocols (RDP), like Citrix ICA and Windows Terminal Services, and /or virtualization software, accesses hard drives in the data center stored on servers, blades, etc. Thin clients, software services, and back end hardware make up thin client computing, a virtual desktop computing model.