During a recent discussion with a client regarding Citrix Session Recording it became obvious that there were many features of Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops that the client wasn’t aware they had access to. So in this post of the Xenwerx Blog we are going to go through the features that comes with each version of Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops when deployed on-premise. Whether you take advantage of all the features you get with your licensing model of CVAD you should at least know what you are paying for and make use of any features that could be beneficial to your organization.
There are six version of Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops (CVAD) that can be licensed for on-premise deployment.
- Virtual Apps Standard (formerly XenApp Advanced)
- Virtual Apps Advanced (formerly XenApp Enterprise)
- Virtual Apps Premium (formerly XenApp Platinum)
- Virtual Desktops Standard (formerly XenDesktop VDI)
- Virtual Apps & Desktops Advanced (formerly XenDesktop Enterprise)
- Virtual Apps & Desktops Premium (formerly XenDesktop Platinum)
Below we will look at each feature available for the above licensing models.
Virtual Apps Standard
Server Based Virtual Applications – Enable secure access to Windows, Web, or Linux application on any type of device.
Server Based Virtual Desktops – Windows or Linux hosted-shared server based desktop available from any device.
HDX User Experience Optimization – A superior high-definition user experience on any device for multimedia, voice and video, USB Peripherals and graphics.
Browser Content Redirection – Redirect the contents of a web browser and be rendered on the client for maximum server scalability.
Unified Communications Optimization – Seamless integration with products from Cisco and Avaya to deliver real-time communication.
HDX 3D Pro – Specialized technologies that enabled delivery of 3D graphics.
Citrix X1 Mouse – Works with the Citrix Bluetooth mouse for use with iOS and Android devices.
HDX User Experience Templates – HDX templates make it easy to fine-tune end user experience.
Citrix SD-WAN for Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops Standard (DaaS) – SD-WAN integrated into DaaS admin workflow for automated provisioning of SD-WAN virtual appliance on Azure. Requires a separate purchase of SD-WAN for on-premise locations.
Citrix SD-WAN AutoQoS – Improves CVAD experience through granular optimization within and HDX session.
Citrix App Layering – Adds the ability to create distinct layers for OS, applications, Office 365, and user personalization.
Unified Management Console – CVAD Studio simplifies and automates larger scale deployments.
Citrix Director – Web based unified view for IT Help desk and admins to monitor, troubleshoot, and assist users.
Director Historical Reporting & Trending – Provides 1 week of historical data retention and trending
High Availability – Ensures users can connect to resources in the event that the site database is unavailable.
Citrix Machine Creation Services (MCS) – Provides image management and provisioning control within Citrix Studio.
Microsoft App-V Integration – Distribute App-V applications to virtual desktops or servers
Profile Management – (User Profile Manager) manages user profile settings between active sessions.
Enterprise scalability – Can scale to tens of thousands of users globally.
Hypervisor Agnostic – Works with Citrix Hypervisor, VMware vSphere, Microsoft Hyper-V, Nutanix Acropolis and other cloud management platforms.
Hyper-V and System Center Virtual Machine Manager (SCVMM) – Integrates with existing Hyper-V virtualization and provisioning.
Citrix ADC Load Balancing – Requires Citrix Gateway appliance (Sold Separately) – Monitors services and web traffic to load balance users across CVAD infrastructure
VDA Restore – Will Automatically restore the VDA back to its pre-upgrade state if a version upgrade fails.
Credential Guard Compliant – compatible with the Microsoft credential guard security feature to guard against “Pass-The-Hash” attacks.
Strengthened IT Security – Only screen updates, mouse clicks, and keystrokes (not data) are transmitted to the remote connection. Data stays within the data center.
Multi-Factor Authentication – Compatible with RSA SecureID, RADIUS Servers, and Aladdin SafeWord via Citrix Gateway.
Smart Card Integration – Compatible with smart card authentication as well as passthrough support via Citrix Gateway. Supports Common Access Cards (CAC) and Personal Identity Verification (PIV).
Accelerated Logon for Smart Card Users – Ideal for healthcare workers who need fast access to patient information.
App Protection – Protect data against key logging and screen grabs by scrambling keystrokes and blanking out screen shots.
ICA Proxy – Provides secure access to applications and desktops without requiring VPN connections.
Session Watermarking – Displays a text-based watermark on an app or desktop session to deter and track data theft.
Citrix Content Collaboration Integration – Integration Citrix Content Collaboration suite (ShareFile, Podio, etc.) to allow on-demand access to files and collaboration.
Any Device Access – Allow users to access their applications and desktops from any device
Enterprise App Store (StoreFront) – Provides access to applications and desktops that users’ have access to in one place for self-service access.
HTML5 Access – Provides clientless access to resources via web browsers.
Universal Printing – Decreases the hassle of configuring and managing network and local printers and optimizes printing from local, mobile, and remote connections.
Virtual Apps Advanced
Everything in Virtual Apps Standard plus the following
VM Hosted Application – Deliver application from desktop operating system as well as server operating systems.
Optimized Skype for Business – HDX Real-time Optimization pack that optimizes Skype for Business traffic.
Optimized for Microsoft Teams – Optimizes the delivery of voice, video, and telephony via Microsoft Teams.
Workspace Environment Management (WEM) – WEM optimizes users experience, accelerates user logins, improves manageability of the user environment.
Custom Delegated Administration (Studio) – Provide the ability to provide granular access to specific users / groups such as helpdesk staff or support teams
Configuration Logging – Track administrative changes made via Studio
Citrix Provisioning for Citrix Virtual Apps – Centralized image management for Windows and Linux OS workloads.
Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) Integration – Manage pooled desktops and server images from System Center.
Virtual Apps Premium
Everything in Virtual Apps Standard and Advanced plus the following
Citrix Casting – Allows users to securely and seamlessly move Citrix session from a mobile device to any display connected to Citrix Ready workspace hub.
HDX Seamless Local Apps – Blend locally installed applications on a Windows endpoint with applications in Citrix Session for a seamless user experience.
App and Desktop Probing – Proactively monitor health of apps and desktops with automated application launches to test site health.
Citrix App Layering with Advanced Configuration – Use application layers with multiple hypervisors, multiple clouds, multiple provisioning mechanisms, and multiple broker types.
Director Premium Edition – SNMP Integration, Reboot Warnings, and Citrix ADM integration.
User Experience Network Analysis – Network analysis provided by Citrix HDX Insight.
Citrix Connector for System Center Configuration Manager – End-to-End solution for managing Citrix Delivery and published application from within Configuration Manager console
FIPS Compliant
Common Criteria Certified
Smart Access – Fine-grained context-based policy engine that provides granular access to tasks such as printing, copy/paste, or mapping drives
SSL VPN – Provides Secure Remote access control from any device to all corporate resources location on the internal network.
Intelligent Session Recording – Records on -screen activity of any user session hosted from a VDA or Server OS or Desktop OS.
Self-Service Password Reset – Allow users to unlock or reset their own domain password via Citrix StoreFront
Virtual Desktops Standard
The features of previous version plus the following.
User Personalization Layers – Extends the capability of non-persistent machine catalogs by preserving users’ data and locally installed applications across sessions.
Citrix Provisioning for Virtual Desktops – Centralized image management for deployments of all sizes.
Virtual Apps & Desktops Advanced
The features of previous versions plus the following
Single Session Server VDI – Delivers a desktop from a server operating system for a single user. Supporters Windows Server 2016 & 2019
Remote PC Access – Provides secure remote access to physical PCs and laptops without the need for VPN and takes advantage of the full HDX experience.
Virtual Apps and Desktops Premium
A combination of all features listed in previous versions.
To see any variance and current feature list the official CVAD Feature Matrix can be found here. It is important to note that some features are not available on all versions. Consult the feature matrix linked above to verify the availability of any feature you are interested in.
If you found a feature that you have but are not taking advantage of, reach out to Xenwerx or another Citrix Partner for assistance in implementing the feature in your environment.