Community Roundtable

I recently ran into having to create a chunk of MCS dedicated machines for this COVID-19 situation the world is in. MCS Dedicated machines are very different from MCS Pool machines. One of the HUGE differences is updating the machine’s images and updating the targets. As you are aware, MCS Pooled is very similar to PVS and it’s a nice update feature for the PVS/MCS targets. But MSC dedicated machines are not the same.  This Blog is around MCS Dedicated Full Clones only and updating the Master ...

We recently purchased a 28-Node Nutanix setup. We currently have a good chunk of Citrix VAD in VMware. During the design, I was a bit confused about what plugin went where. After looking back, it’s now very straightforward. With that in mind, I wanted to take the opportunity and put this little quick guide together so that people who go through this can understand what the plugins are and where they go. These plugins are what allow you to integrate Nutanix into CVAD infrastructure. Thank you, Kees ...

This quick write-up isn’t anything advanced. Most of you out there know this, but some may still question it. We know there is a lot of documentation around PVS and Martin Zugec is updating a lot of this within Citrix Tech Zone . This is more of a confirmation that running a defrag on the VHDX on a merged vDisk is still needed on today’s PVS server vDisk. I reached out to some guys on Slack, as I knew I would get a solid answer fast. As you can see, it is still needed. Some rebuild images, and some ...

Compliance, The Ultimate Convenience… Achieving a positive user experience and a successful information security program can be a good team building process. Create that positive user experience by keeping it simple with the three T’s of Technology: Teamwork, Training and Testing.   Teamwork - Developing a good relationship between your end user and your technology operations team is key for success. Building a relationship with the end users assists in every aspect of what you are trying ...

In 2019, Citrix held the first-of-its-kind conference in Santa Clara for developers, which I wrote about last year here on CUGC . I was thrilled to participate and was looking forward to seeing when such an event would return. Clearly, 2020 has had different plans in store for all of us. At the risk of sounding cliché… as we adapt to our ‘new normal,’ some things have changed in terms of format, but Citrix Converge is returning in an online format and is free! Multiple Tracks This year Citrix ...

Hi all, Citrix Converge 2020 is happening from November 2nd to November 13th and I wanted to share some of my insights into this conference. To be honest, I was not really thinking much about Citrix Converge 2019 when I first heard about it. The conference was presented as a developer conference, so I did not really think I would fit in for that type of conference since I am primarily a Citrix and Microsoft architect with a focus on automation. Since I was a bit curious about what the conference ...

CTP and CTA Applications for 2021 Classes Are Now Open! Are you interested in being more involved with other like-minded individuals who are Citrix technologists and are also huge fans & advocates of Citrix? Well today is your lucky day! We are excited to announce that we are now accepting applications for the CTP and CTA classes of 2021! The application window will remain open until October 30, 2020. For details on what it takes to be a CTP or a CTA, keep reading. CTP and CTA candidates are ...

This is a guide on how I upgraded my site from 7.15 flat, all the way up to 1912. I also included moving off 2012R2 to 2016 DDCs with some troubleshooting situations you might run into. I covered the basics of upgrading licensing, DDC upgrades, Storefront upgrades with NS VIP configuration, PVS upgrades, WEM upgrades, VDA upgrades, and some re-configuration of Snap-ins with Citrix Director for ADM and session recording. References for detailed instructions: https://docs.citrix.com/en-us/citrix-virtual-apps-desktops/upgrade-migrate/upgrade.html ...

CUGC Women in Technology–2021 Mentorship Program Applications Open! We’re so excited to announce that applications are now open for the 2021 CUGC Women In Tech mentoring program! This will be the program’s 5 th year, and we are so thrilled at the growth we’ve seen. (For more on the program's history and how it started, check out this blog post from co-founder and CTP Jo Harder.) Ready to Apply? The WIT mentoring program is now open for new submissions starting September 3, 2020 . Candidates ...

Even if any third party Antivirus solutions are installed on Windows Server 2016 and 2019, Microsoft Defender, unless manually disabled, remains in Active Mode. On windows 10, it disables itself when a Non-Microsoft antivirus product is installed. It becomes extremely important to apply CVAD exclusions, if Citrix Delivery Controllers are installed on Windows server 2016 and 2019, to avoid disruptions similar to CTX279897 where Defender virus definition 1.321.1319.0 detected HighAvailabilityService.exe ...

There has been some recent change to the LTSR article around Local Host Cache upgrades: https://docs.citrix.com/en-us/citrix-virtual-apps-desktops/upgrade-migrate/upgrade.html#replace-sql-server-express-localdb When upgrading Delivery Controllers to Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops version 1912 or 2003 :  Upgrading SQL Server Express LocalDB is optional.   Local Host Cache works properly , with no loss of functionality, regardless of whether you upgrade SQL Server Express LocalDB. We added ...

One thing I've learned is that the Gateway vServer doesn’t really need ICA Proxy unchecked for what I am trying to do. I am not using EPA scans or anything advanced yet. But, you could do it to save a step later. Now I understand this may not be the best way, but sometimes you have to do what you need to do to secure things. 0. Check the Trust Request on the Brokers and enable it if it’s not already enabled. 1. Open POSH and add asnp citrix* and Run Get-brokersite. If it’s set to false, then run ...

During my webinar on Layering , a question came up that I did not have time to delve into, mainly because it can become a ‘holy war’ amongst us all. The question, (or statement?): Why use layering ( notice I say ‘layering’ and not ‘app layering’ ) if I have automated my image creation? I want to address the phrasing of the question first because we need to make an important distinction here. As I address the question in this blog, I will be using the term ‘layering’ which means any layering ...

Introduction I recently completed a project with a client to build out a brand new, on-premises Exchange 2016 environment that required load balancing with Citrix ADC. As with most enterprise Exchange deployments, a reverse proxy and load balancing solution should be implemented for redundancy and to secure those services. This customer was previously using the Exchange SMTP relay receive connectors to explicitly allow certain hosts to send mail via SMTP relay but wanted to transition to a load ...

How to automate NetScaler ADC firmware upgrades from NetScaler ADM ADM (Application Delivery Manager) is neat, and Citrix did a fantastic job on the product. One of the things I would like to do is automate scheduled NetScaler firmware upgrades. With Maintenance Jobs in ADM, you can. Below is a quick guide on how to achieve this for an MPX HA pair: Networks>Maintenance Jobs>Create Job For me, it’s a HA pair. Select "Upgrade Citrix ADC/Upgrade Citrix ADC HA": Give it a name and ...

During this COVID-19 pandemic, I had to build 500 VDI desktops. I could only use dedicated machines because of how some software is licensed. I didn’t really care for this, but I had to do what was needed to provide remote support. This was my experience, in getting an automatic reboot with MCS Static (dedicated machines). Set the Delivery Group to the following. I set the peak hours to be 24/7. I specified that when the user logs off, it will shut down the machine. I will explain this ...

Hi! I'm Owen, this is my first MyCUGC blog post. I work as a virtualization expert for an IT solutions provider in Quebec, Canada. I've been working professionally in the IT industry since 2000, and from 2005 onwards, I have have seen a huge benefit to maintaining a home lab.  The thing about working in the IT industry is, once you've completed the first part of education via a 1, 2, or 4 year college or uni course, the learning doesn't stop (or shouldn't !). However, you  ...

It‘s time to say goodbye to your on-premises XenMobile Server (XMS) environment. And now, it‘s time for Cloud transformation to Citrix Endpoint Management (CEM)... The lifetime of XMS on-premises is a time-bomb and the End-of-Life date is currently still not released but could happen any week or month. And then start the last years of official support and Citrix will release only bug fixes and security patches. You can check the End-of-Life date on the Product Matrix: You’ll see new features ...

In Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops 1912 release, we introduced the User P ersonalization L ayer (UPL) feature. UPL comes from the Citrix App Layering side of the house and anyone who knows about user layers will be familiar with this functionality which was brought natively into Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops without any additional infrastructure needed. UPL is here to extend the capabilities of non-persistent machine catalogs, as well as to preserve user data and locally-installed applications ...

On February 26, the Austin , Houston and Dallas-Ft. Worth CUGC groups came together for the first CUGC XL event of 2020 at Space Center Houston. It was a great day in an epic location, packed with learning and networking, as CUGC members from around Texas gathered together to hear from five awesome speakers: "EUC Choose Your Own Adventure" Steve Greenberg, CTP Fellow This was an open-ended discussion driven by choices from the audience. The way questions were asked and answered made ...