Mastering Citrix Xendesktop

Nowadays, many organizations are moving toward desktop virtualization. Citrix® XenDesktop® is the most comprehensive solution to implement a scalable and high performance virtual desktop environment. This book will provide you with the technical skills you need to successfully design, set up, and maintain a XenDesktop® environment. This book will introduce you to the main components of a XenDesktop® infrastructure and covers how to design and install them. Through each chapter, you will quickly learn how to configure your virtual desktop environment in order to meet specific end user requirements, giving your users the freedom to work from anywhere and from any device while virtual desktops and apps are centrally maintained in your data center.

Master the skills required to implement Citrix® XenApp® 7.6 to deploy a complete Citrix®-hosted application from scratch About This Book Learn to implement and configure components of Citrix® XenApp® 7.6, which are XenServer®, XenApp®, Citrix® License server, PVS, Storefront, Citrix® Receiver, and Netscaler to secure WAN traffic Build the XenApp® 7.6 environment independently and perform tests to make sure the components are working as expected for internal and external traffic Implement advanced tools in Citrix® XenApp® to build and manage a cost effective, secure, and high-performing application delivery infrastructure with this comprehensive guide Who This Book Is For This is book is for administrators who are currently managing the implemented environment and want to learn how to deploy the Citrix® Hosted virtualization solution for the application in a windows server 2012 R2 environment. A reasonable knowledge and understanding of core XenApp® elements and concepts used during virtualizing applications are assumed. What You Will Learn Understand how to set up Hypervisor, install the management console, configure the storage repository, and create a virtual machine on hypervisor Set up an Infrastructure component and explore ways to tune them up so that they can be used for Citrix® environment Set up a Domain controller, DHCP, Certificate authority, and SQL server for static database for Citrix® XenApp® Validate the Citrix® XenApp® 7.6 solution to make sure components are communicating properly Manage the essential Citrix® components – Director, Licensing, and Policies with the Help of Citrix® studio Optimize the behavior of an Application and share desktop via Policies Installing and configuring Citrix® Provisioning services to deliver Citrix® XenApp® 7.6 virtual machines Secure the external Delivery of an application and shared desktop via netscaler to enjoy mobility In Detail Citrix® XenApp® is one of the leading pieces of Application delivery software that delivers Windows compatible apps to users on any device, anywhere. Citrix® XenApp® also gives administrators the ability to manage and control the freedom of mobility by increasing the security and saving costs at the same time. This book will provide you with all the knowledge required to successfully deploy and master a complete Citrix® hosted application. First, it will cover essential concepts of the architecture of XenApp®. You will then learn how to set up Hypervisor and how to set up Infrastructure components. Next you will learn how to Set up Citrix® Components, XenApp® resources, PVS, and Netscaler. We will further look at how to prepare the environment for Rollout. Additionally, you will learn how to configure the Citrix® components such as Citrix® Director. Moreover, you'll learn about shared desktop for delivery to end users and the application of policies for effective and secure delivery. Finally, you will learn how to implement provisioning services for a Citrix® XenApp® 7.6 environment. Style and approach This book is based on a course outline and hence takes a very practical approach so you will understand how to implement the components of XenApp® in a production environment. Complemented with many best practices and troubleshooting concepts of XenApp®, this book will help you master XenApp® swiftly.

If you are an administrator who is looking to gain a greater understanding of how to design and implement a virtualization solution based on Citrix® XenServer®, then this book is for you. The book will serve as an excellent resource for those who are already familiar with other virtualization platforms, such as Microsoft Hyper-V or VMware vSphere.The book assumes that you have a good working knowledge of servers, networking, and storage technologies.

This book provides an in-depth insight into the new architectures and concepts of current Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp technologies for central provisioning of desktops and applications. It is aimed both at newcomers to the Citrix virtualization world and at those upgrading from previous versions. All the necessary steps for the creation of a design, and the development and operation of a complete, scalable virtualization environment are discussed in a detailed and practical manner. Valuable advice and comprehensive background information also feature in this solution-oriented compendium, making it an indispensable companion for IT-solution architects, consultants and administrators.

Learn how to deploy and configure all the available Citrix NetScaler features with the best practices and techniques you need to know About This Book Implement and configure all the available NetScaler Application Delivery features and monitor NetScaler VPX performance in your environment Packed with real-word NetScaler deployment scenarios to help you see the configuration principles in action Integrate NetScaler with other Citrix technologies, including CloudBridge, Application Delivery Controller, HDX Insight, and Command Center Who This Book Is For If you're an administrator with prior experience using NetScaler then you have everything you need to make the most of this book. What You Will Learn Configure the more commonly used NetScaler VPX features such as basic load balancing, authentication, NetScaler Gateway, and StoreFront Configure the AppExpert features such as Responder, Rewrite, AppExpert templates, parsing HTTP, TCP, and UDP data Integrate NetScaler with other Citrix technologies such as CloudBridge, Insight Center, and Command Center Optimize traffic using caching, front-end optimization, and compression Dive deep in the security, caching, and compression enhancements Protect your environment with AAA and Application Firewall, or from HTTP DDoS attacks Troubleshoot an environment using tools such as TaaS and WireShark In Detail Citrix NetScaler is one of the best Application Delivery Controller products in the world. The Application Delivery Controllers are commonly used for load balancing purposes, to optimize traffic, and to perform extra security settings. This book will give you an insight into all the available features that the Citrix NetScaler appliance has to offer. The book will start with the commonly used NetScaler VPX features, such as load balancing and NetScaler Gateway functionality. Next, we cover features such as Responder, Rewrite, and the AppExpert templates, and how to configure these features. After that, you will learn more about the other available Citrix technologies that can interact with Citrix NetScaler. We also cover troubleshooting, optimizing traffic, caching, performing protection using Application Firewall, and denying HTTP DDoS attacks for web services. Finally, we will demonstrate the different configuration principles real-world Citrix NetScaler deployment scenarios. Style and approach This easy-to-follow guide explains as much as possible about each feature and its configuration. Each topic is explained sequentially in the process of configuring and deploying the feature.

Over 40 engaging recipes that will help you implement a full-featured XenDesktop® 7.6 architecture and its main satellite components About This Book Implement, configure, and optimize the migration from a physical to a VDI architecture using XenDesktop 7.6 Publish desktops and applications to the end user devices, optimizing their performance and increasing the security for the delivered resources A pragmatic guide that helps you to explore the XenDesktop 7.6 architecture and its related components to implement a service-oriented architecture based on the Citrix FlexCast approach Who This Book Is For If you are a system administrator or an experienced IT professional who wants to refer to a centralized container of procedures and advanced tasks in XenDesktop, this is the book for you. Experience of the virtualized environment and an understanding of the general concepts of desktop virtualization (VDI) are required. What You Will Learn Upgrade from XenDesktop 5.6 / 7.x to XenDesktop 7.6 Configure and deploy virtual machines for XenDesktop 7.6 Perform configuration and optimization operations for desktop and server OS images for future deployments Plan and configure XenDesktop user experience Execute desktop environment administration tasks, including catalog creation, power management, and resource allocation Understand how to publish the hosted applications, Local Access Apps (LAA), and applications using Microsoft App-V Work with XenDesktop PowerShell to reduce the time required to perform the management tasks by the creation of the PowerShell scripts Implement the two-factor hardware and software authentication for XenDesktop Install and configure Citrix Netscaler Gateway 10.5 and Citrix XenMobile 10 to improve the quality, the performance, and the manageability of your Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) architecture In Detail In the era of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) and consecration of the mobile devices, Citrix has strengthened its position in this market, powering its desktop and application virtualization platforms, integrating the ability to publish virtual and physical desktops with the capability to assign applications and contents in a secure manner on any device, anywhere, more than previous versions. The XenDesktop 7.6 version is a more integrated platform, which permits the use and interaction with mobility and cloud platforms leaders in the market. This book will help you understand how to implement, configure, and optimize migration from a physical to a VDI architecture, moving from a standard application approach to a centralized and more secure way to assign and release resources to the end users. The book begins with the upgrade and installation procedures for the core infrastructural components, along with an explanation of how to deploy and optimize procedures for desktop virtual machines. Moving on, you will perform desktop and applications deployment through the XenDesktop core plus integrated publishing platforms, such as Microsoft App-V. Finally, the book explains how to install and configure important collateral platforms such as the Citrix Netscaler, Citrix CloudBridge and Citrix XenMobile platforms, along with execution of the most advanced activities and configurations. Style and approach This book is a step-by-step course that includes standard and high-level tasks oriented to deploy a full-functioning Citrix environment. This practical approach is based on both GUI and command-line operations, which gives IT professionals an alternative on the way to operate, where possible.

This is a step-by-step, task-based, practical guide to learning and getting your basic XenDesktop 7.x site up and running. It is fast, easy, and makes learning desktop and application virtualization simple. If you are a system administrator, consultant, or beginner who wants to implement and administer Citrix XenDesktop sites, then this book is for you. Familiarity with virtualization of desktops and applications and datacenter concepts will be helpful. The ability to read network diagrams and understand servers, data flow, clients, devices, and the interworking of these pieces will be beneficial.

Successfully deploy XenDesktop sites for a high performance Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) About This Book Size the VDI environment so the administrator has breathing room to design and build their XenDesktop systems efficiently Use desktop virtualization tools to provide users fast, convenient access to their Windows Desktops Understand the key pinch points in the resource layers such as; the Client layer, Network Layer, Access Layer, Control Layer, Services Layer and Resources Layer Who This Book Is For Citrix XenDesktop High Performance is written for administrators who would like to deploy Citrix XenDesktop in their enterprises with the aim of providing high efficiency. Basic familiarity with Citrix XenDesktop is assumed. What You Will Learn Understand key concepts, terminology, and system requirements Discover how components work in regards to virtualization and performance Identify architectural resource layers and components Explore the hypervisor virtualization software that runs on top of the hardware and learn how to tune it for maximum performance Analyze client hardware and software, including thin clients and mobile devices In Detail Citrix XenDesktop is a suite of desktop virtualization tools designed to provide users with fast and convenient access to their Windows desktops and applications through any device. Virtual desktops mean that rather than setting up hundreds or thousands of individual computers in an enterprise, companies can instead opt to create servers with large amounts of memory, disk, and processing resources, and use virtualization to offer these resources to end users. The result of this is that users are provided with an experience that appears to be identical to having an individual desktop PC. Each user has some disk space, processor time, and memory allocated to them, as though it is present on their own physical machine, when in reality, the resources are physically present on a centralized server. This book starts by answering the basic questions you need to ask when considering XenDesktop, followed by methods of how you can properly size your server infrastructure for XenDesktop. You'll discover how to optimize the virtual machines used in XenDesktop, how to optimize your network for XenDesktop, and how to optimize the hypervisor and the cloud. You'll also learn how to monitor XenDesktop to maximize performance. By the end of the book, you will be able to plan, design, build, and deploy high performance XenDesktop Virtualization systems in enterprises. You will also know how to monitor and maintain your systems to ensure smooth operation. Style and approach This book is an all-inclusive guide that uncovers hidden and previously unpublished performance improvement areas for any XenDesktop site.