Citrix Systems MetaFrame Presentation Server User Manual

MetaFrame Presentation Server Reviewer’s Guide

Citrix® MetaFrame® Presentation Server 3.0 for Windows® Citrix® MetaFrame® Access Suite

Information in this document is subject to change without notice. Companies, names, and data used in examples herein are fictitious unless otherwise noted. Other than printing one copy for personal use, no part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, for any purpose, without the express written permission of Citrix Systems, Inc.

Citrix, ICA (Independent Computing Architecture), MetaFrame, MetaFrame XP, NFuse, and Program Neighborhood are registered trademarks, and SpeedScreen is a trademark of Citrix Systems, Inc. in the United States and other countries.

This product includes software developed by The Apache Software Foundation (http://www.apache.org/).

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Java, Sun, and SunOS are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the U.S. and other countries. Solaris is a registered trademark of Sun Microsystems, Inc. Sun Microsystems, Inc has not tested or approved this product.

Portions of this software are based in part on the work of the Independent JPEG Group.

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Microsoft, MS-DOS, Windows, Windows Media, Windows Server, Windows NT, Win32, Outlook, ActiveX, Active Directory, and DirectShow are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.

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All other trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their owners.

Document Code: April 19, 2004 3:07 pm (MM)

Chapter 1 Introduction

MetaFrame Presentation Server Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Introducing Citrix MetaFrame Access Suite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

MetaFrame Presentation Server Editions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Introducing MetaFrame Presentation Server Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

MetaFrame Presentation Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Management Consoles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Administration Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

MetaFrame Presentation Server Clients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

The Secure Gateway for MetaFrame Presentation Server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Extensible Solutions for Enterprise Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Citrix Document Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

New Features of MetaFrame Presentation Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Simplified Licensing for MetaFrame Access Suite Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Enhanced Support for Large Farms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Zone Preference and Failover. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Policies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Delegated Administration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Bi-directional Audio Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Enhanced Multimedia Support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Session Reliability. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Workspace Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Other Key Features of MetaFrame Presentation Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Getting More Information and Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Accessing the Document Center. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Other Product Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Getting Service and Support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Chapter 2 Installing and Licensing MetaFrame Presentation Server Components

Requirements for Performing this Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

MetaFrame Presentation Server Installation Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

4 MetaFrame Presentation Server Reviewer’s Guide

Licensing Evaluation Versions of Citrix Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Installing MetaFrame Access Suite License Server and the License

Management Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Obtaining and Installing an Evaluation License . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Installing MetaFrame Presentation Server and Creating a Server Farm. . . . . . . . . 41

Adding a MetaFrame Presentation Server to your Server Farm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Installing MetaFrame Clients. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Chapter 3 Using MetaFrame Presentation Server for Windows

Using the Presentation Server Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Making Published Applications and Content Available to Users. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Publishing Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Publishing Web Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Configuring the Web Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Exploring the User Experience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Running Published Applications Through a Web Browser. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Running Published Applications from a Client Desktop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Workspace Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Printing to Client Printers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Monitoring and Managing Client Sessions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Managing Printers for Clients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Configuring Auto Creation of Client Printers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Auto Creation and Citrix Connection Configuration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Using the Universal Printing Capabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Client Printing with the Universal Driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Benefits of Using the Universal Driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Using Policies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Creating a Policy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Assigning a Policy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Chapter 4 Using MetaFrame Access Suite Components

Configuring Access Suite Console for the First Time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

Accessing Farm Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Accessing the Access Suite License Server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Adding a Shortcut to Access Suite License Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Launching License Management Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Using the License Management Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Opening the License Management Console. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Determining License Availability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

Perusing Historical Usage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

Controlling License Management Console Access . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Chapter 5 Using Load Manager

Introducing Load Manager Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80

Working With Load Evaluators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

Viewing Load Evaluator Assignments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Monitoring Server Loads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Chapter 6 Using Resource Manager

Report Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Report Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Real-Time Monitoring Capabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Delegated Administration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Identifying Status Icons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

Monitoring Servers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

Customizing Real-Time Monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

Monitoring the Status of a Group of Servers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

Using the Summary Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Creating Reports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Looking Back to a Specific Time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Reporting on the Use of Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Reporting User Activity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Viewing Saved Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Contents 5

Appendix Frequently Asked Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Introduction

This guide is for anyone reviewing or evaluating Citrix MetaFrame Presentation Server for Windows, Version 3.0.

Citrix MetaFrame Presentation Server is the easiest way to manage enterprise applications from a central location and access them from anywhere. As the foundation of the Citrix MetaFrame Access Suite, Citrix MetaFrame Presentation Server is the world's most widely deployed presentation server for centrally managing heterogeneous applications and delivering their functionality as a service to workers, wherever they may be.

MetaFrame Presentation Server is certified to run on Microsoft Windows 2000 Server and Windows Server 2003, extending significantly the capabilities over and above that of Microsoft Terminal Services and supporting virtually any application. MetaFrame Presentation Server provides an exceptional foundation to build highly scalable, flexible, secure, manageable access solutions that reduce computing costs and increase the utility of any information system.

CHAPTER 1

8 MetaFrame Presentation Server Reviewer’s Guide

MetaFrame Presentation Server Benefits

MetaFrame Presentation Server solutions enable you to provide your users with uninterrupted, secure access to your organization’s applications and information, from almost any device over any network connection dialup, or wireless.

Whether your users rely on desktop PCs, Macintoshes, laptops, UNIX or Linux workstations, thin-client devices, Windows-based terminals, wireless devices, or other network appliances, you can use MetaFrame Presentation Server solutions to:

• Speed application deployment to thousands of users simultaneously

• Provide your mobile workforce with consistent access to mission-critical data

and applications

• Quickly integrate remote offices with your corporate systems after an

acquisition or expansion

• Enable fail-over systems for business continuity during an emergency or

planned outage

Utilizing the MetaFrame Presentation Server, organizations can:

• Access any application on any device. Seamlessly access applications from

any client platform including UNIX, Mac, Linux, DOS, Windows CE, and many others.

−Internet, LAN, WAN,

• Web-enable existing applications. Provide browser-based access to virtually

any application including Windows, UNIX, packaged, custom, and legacy applications without rewrites or specialized development.

• Simplify applications deployment. Rapidly publish new applications and

upgrades to users across the enterprise without having to individually “touch” each desktop.

• Easily manage server farms from a single interface. Centrally manage

servers, applications, licenses, printers, and users from any location.

• Leverage and extend existing investments in hardware and software.

Deliver new generation applications, while protecting existing investments in hardware, networks, and applications.

Introducing Citrix MetaFrame Access Suite

MetaFrame Access Suite powers the on-demand enterprise by giving workers, anywhere, at any time, using any device, over any connection, the ability to easily and securely access whatever resources they need without regard to the underlying computing complexity. The MetaFrame Access Suite offers integrated products that deliver:

• Device and network services

• Security and identity management services

• Aggregation and personalization services

• Presentation and conferencing services

• User provisioning/measurement and system management services

Previously, customers had to purchase these technologies separately and piece them together to build an architecture for enterprise access. In contrast, the MetaFrame Access Suite is a single, unified solution that provides secure, easy, instant access to managed enterprise resources, and simplifies the deployment and management of new applications in heterogeneous computing environments.

The following diagram illustrates the suite’s capabilities:

Chapter 1 Introduction 9

This diagram shows the products comprising MetaFrame Access Suite and how it provides an enterprise-wide secure access solution.

10 MetaFrame Presentation Server Reviewer’s Guide

Products in the MetaFrame Access Suite are fully integrated, making it easy to add and extend the value of your MetaFrame implementation.

For the latest product information about MetaFrame Access Suite, see ww.citrix.com/accesssuite.

Citrix MetaFrame Presentation Server for Windows. Provides the world's most widely deployed presentation server for centrally managing heterogeneous applications and delivering their functionality as a service to workers, wherever they may be.

For the latest product information about MetaFrame Presentation Server for Windows, see www.citrix.com/presentationserver.

Citrix MetaFrame Presentation Server for UNIX. Provides users with secure access to UNIX and Java applications, supporting Sun Solaris, HP-UX, and IBM AIX platforms.

For the latest product information about MetaFrame Presentation Server for UNIX, see www.citrix.com/presentationserverunix.

Citrix MetaFrame Secure Access Manager. Provides secure, single-point access over the Web to a wide range of internal and external information resources, including applications, data sources, documents, and Web content and services. With a powerful set of easy-to-use, wizard-driven configuration tools, IT administrators can enable browser-based access to the entire enterprise.

For the latest product information about MetaFrame Secure Access Manager, see www.citrix.com/secureaccessmanager.

Citrix MetaFrame Password Manager. Provides universal password security and single sign-on access to Windows, Web, proprietary, and host-based applications running within the MetaFrame environment.

Users authenticate once with a single password and MetaFrame Password Manager does the rest, automatically logging onto any password-protected information systems, enforcing password policies, monitoring all password-related events, and even automating end-user tasks.

For the latest product information about MetaFrame Password Manager, see www.citrix.com/passwordmanager.

Citrix MetaFrame Conferencing Manager. Adds to MetaFrame Presentation Server intuitive conferencing that eliminates geographical distances among team members, increases the productivity of meetings, and allows easy collaboration.

For the latest product information about MetaFrame Conferencing Manager, see www.citrix.com/conferencingmanager.

MetaFrame Presentation Server Editions

To accommodate a wide spectrum of customer requirements for functionality and scale, MetaFrame Presentation Server is offered as three editions:

• MetaFrame Presentation Server, Standard Edition. Delivers the level of

control that departments, workgroups, and small organizations need to extend the reach of Windows 2000 Server and Windows Server 2003 to any device. With the Standard Edition, small organizations can centralize IT management and provide workers with secure access to applications anytime, anywhere, and over any connection.

• MetaFrame Presentation Server, Advanced Edition. Builds on the features

of the Standard Edition to provide additional scalability, manageability and application availability for growing organizations. The Advanced Edition is the ideal access infrastructure solution for small- to medium-sized organizations who need to effectively manage and deploy applications and scale as organizational needs require.

• MetaFrame Presentation Server, Enterprise Edition. Provides the ultimate

access infrastructure solution for large organizations and multi-national corporations. The Enterprise Edition offers extensive scalability, rapid application deployment, and comprehensive monitoring capabilities needed in large server farms to manage access to Windows-based applications.

Chapter 1 Introduction 11

To provide a look at the broadest product functionality, MetaFrame Presentation Server, Enterprise Edition, has been selected for evaluation. This Reviewer's Guide provides a high-level overview of the MetaFrame Presentation Server solution, and describes the benefits of MetaFrame Presentation Server, Enterprise Edition.

12 MetaFrame Presentation Server Reviewer’s Guide

Introducing MetaFrame Presentation Server Components

MetaFrame Presentation Server includes the following components and component sets:

• MetaFrame Presentation Server

• Management Consoles

Presentation Server Console

Access Suite Console

License Management Console

Program Neighborhood Agent Console

Web Interface Console

• Administration Tools

ICA Administration Toolbar

Citrix Connection Configuration Tool

ICA Client Distribution Wizard

ICA Client Printer Configuration Tool

ICA Client Update Configuration Tool

Shadow Toolbar

SpeedScreen Latency Reduction Manager

• MetaFrame Presentation Server Clients

MetaFrame Presentation Server Client for 32-bit Windows (Program Neighborhood, Program Neighborhood Agent, and Web Client)

MetaFrame Presentation Server Client for Java

MetaFrame Presentation Server Client for 16-bit Windows

ICA Client for

ICA Client for Linux

ICA Client for OS/2

ICA Client for Windows CE

ICA Client for Macintosh

ICA Client for

ICA Client for Nokia 9210

• Citrix Document Center

• Secure Gateway

DOS (16- and 32-bit)

UNIX

Chapter 1 Introduction 13

• Enterprise Edition Management Applications

Load Manager

Resource Manager

Installation Manager

Network Manager

The sections that follow describe each of these components and component sets.

MetaFrame Presentation Server

MetaFrame Presentation Server allows multiple users to log on and run applications in separate, protected sessions on a single or on multiple servers. You install MetaFrame Presentation Server on computers running a multiuser operating system and publish applications or other resources you want to make available to users. For example, using MetaFrame Presentation Server, you can make available office productivity applications (such as word processors and spreadsheets), enterprise resource planning applications such as SAP and Peoplesoft, or any other custom applications.

You can group a number of servers together to form a server farm. A server farm is a group of computers you manage as a single entity. Server farms provide you with a flexible and robust way of deploying applications and content to users.

Management Consoles

The following management consoles are available with MetaFrame Presentation Server.

• Presentation Server Console

• License Management Console

• Program Neighborhood Agent Console

• Web Interface Console

• Access Suite Console

Each of these consoles is described in the sections that follow.

MetaFrame Presentation Server Console

Presentation Server Console is the command center for the entire MetaFrame Presentation Server farm. It gives administrators single-point control of all system resources—servers, applications, licenses, printers, and users—for exceptional management power and simplicity.

14 MetaFrame Presentation Server Reviewer’s Guide

You can use the Presentation Server Console to manage a server farm from any location. By default, the Presentation Server Console is installed with MetaFrame Presentation Server.

License Management Console

The License Management Console is a Web-based application that lets you track and manage licenses. Here are some examples of tasks you can perform with the License Management Console:

• Track historical license usage

• Track real-time license usage

• View alerts for when licenses are about to expire

To access the License Management Console, you can use a Web browser from any location.

Program Neighborhood Agent Console

Program Neighborhood Agent Console is a Web browser-based tool designed to help you customize Program Neighborhood Agent for your users. Use Program Neighborhood Agent Console to set defaults for shortcuts, display size and colors, audio, logon method, authentication, and other functions. In addition, you can permit or deny users the ability to customize many of these options. Program Neighborhood Console is available from servers running the Web Interface.

Web Interface Console

Use the Web Interface Console to monitor MetaFrame Presentation Servers from any workstation with a supported Web browser. Web Interface Console lets you view information about the server farm, published applications, servers, and active sessions, and lets you reset, disconnect, and shadow client sessions and send messages to users. Web Interface Console includes searching and filtering capabilitie.You can install the Web Interface Console on MetaFrame Presentation Servers running Internet Information Server 5.0.

MetaFrame Access Suite Console

The Access Suite Console is the management interface for the entire MetaFrame Access Suite.

You can use the Access Suite Console to manage multiple server farms from a central location. The Access Suite Console is designed to integrate with the Microsoft Management Console (MMC). The Access Suite Console snaps into the MMC to provide a central, easy to install, and easy to use location for managing your deployment. You can also access the Presentation Server Console from the Access Suite Console.

Chapter 1 Introduction 15

Management functionality is provided through a number of snap-in management tools (extensions) that you can select when you install the Access Suite Console or at any time later. Extensions are available to help you:

• View applications, servers, and zones in multiple farms

• Manage sessions across multiple farms

• Monitor the performance of your server farms

• Create reports analyzing your MetaFrame Presentation Server deployment

• Create a trace for problem analysis

Administration Tools

MetaFrame Presentation Server provides a number of administration tools. This section list included administration tools and provides a brief description of what they do.

ICA Administration Toolbar

The ICA Administration Toolbar provides easy desktop access to the following administration and management tools:

• ICA Client Update Configuration Tool

• Shadow Taskbar

• Citrix Connection Configuration Tool

• SpeedScreen Latency Reduction Manager

• Citrix SSL Relay Configuration Tool

• Presentation Server Console

• Access Suite Console

• Document Center

ICA Client Update Configuration Tool

To help organize automatic client updates, use the ICA Client Update Configuration utility to manage the client update database.

You can configure a client update database on each server in a server farm or configure one database to update the Clients for multiple servers running MetaFrame Presentation Server. As Citrix releases new versions of the Clients, you add them to the client update database.

Using the ICA Client Update Configuration Tool you can:

• Create a new update database

16 MetaFrame Presentation Server Reviewer’s Guide

• Specify a default update database

• Configure the properties of the database

• Configure client update options

• Add new Clients to the database

• Remove outdated or unnecessary Clients

• Change the properties of a Client in the database

Shadow Taskbar

You can use the Shadow Taskbar to shadow sessions and to switch among multiple shadowed sessions. Shadowing an ICA session means viewing the session from another session, usually running on another device. During shadowing, you can view and control other users’ sessions remotely.

Citrix Connection Configuration Tool

The Citrix Connection Configuration utility adds support for more connection types and advanced configuration options to the Terminal Services Configuration utility that ships with Windows.

Use the Citrix Connection Configuration utility to:

• Add network, asynchronous, and other types of connections

• Configure existing connections

• Set parameters for mapping client devices

• Set modem parameters

• Test modem configurations

SpeedScreen Latency Reduction Manager

SpeedScreen Latency Reduction Manager helps reduce a user’s perception of latency with mouse click feedback and local text echo. Use this tool to configure local text echo and other features that improve the user experience on slow networks.

Mouse click feedback, which is enabled by default, changes the appearance of the pointer from idle to busy after the user clicks a link, indicating that the system is processing the user’s request.

Local text echo temporarily utilizes client fonts to immediately display text a user types while the screen redraw from the server is in transit. When a user types text, the keystrokes are sent to the server, which renders the fonts and then returns the updated screen redraw to the client. You can bridge the delay between keystroke and screen redraw by enabling local text echo.

Chapter 1 Introduction 17

Citrix SSL Relay Configuration Tool

Use the SSL Relay Configuration Tool to configure Citrix SSL Relay, which secures communication between a server running the Web Interface and your farm.

Citrix SSL Relay provides end-to-end Secure Sockets Layer/Transport Layer Security (SSL/TLS) encryption between specific servers and clients.

MetaFrame Presentation Server Clients

Citrix uses the Independent Computing Architecture (ICA) protocol to exchange information between a user’s client device and the published resources on the computer running MetaFrame Presentation Server. The MetaFrame Presentation Server Client software is available for a range of different devices so users can connect to published applications from various platforms.

This is a diagram showing multiple users of MetaFrame Presentation Server Clients on a variety of devices, which are connecting to a server farm and accessing published applications and resources.

18 MetaFrame Presentation Server Reviewer’s Guide

You publish any given application or content once on the server, but multiple users can simultaneously access the published resources. Application processing on the client is kept to a minimum because the application runs entirely on the server. The ICA protocol sends keystrokes, mouse clicks, and screen updates between the server and the client, so to the user of the client device it appears as if the software is running locally.

Because applications run on the server and not on the client device, users can connect from any platform. For example, Microsoft Outlook running as a published application looks and feels the same whether the user is connecting from a Windows CE hand-held computer, a Macintosh desktop, or a Linux workstation. You can control user connections to the server to prevent over-consumption of licenses or server resources.

With many clients (including the Clients for 32-bit Windows, Java, Macintosh, and Linux), you can secure ICA communications using the Secure Socket Layer (SSL) or Transport Layer Security (TLS) protocols. SSL/TLS provides server authentication, encryption of the data stream, and message integrity checks and enables you to securely deliver applications within a LAN or across the Internet.

Program Neighborhood

With the client Program Neighborhood, users can connect to published resources and servers running MetaFrame Presentation Server using:

• Application sets

• Custom ICA connections

An application set is a user’s view of the resources published on a given server farm that the user is authorized to access. Resources published in an application set are configured for such session properties as window size, number of colors, supported encryption levels, and audio compression rate.

If these settings are not required to run the published application (such as, for example, the audio compression rate), you can change them on the client device at the application set level.

Program Neighborhood Agent

Using the Program Neighborhood Agent in conjunction with the Web Interface, you can integrate published resources with users’ desktops. Users access remote applications, desktops, and content by clicking icons on their Windows desktop, in the Start menu, in the Windows system tray, or any combination thereof.

The Program Neighborhood Agent handles the following functions:

• User authentication. The Client provides user credentials to the Web Interface

when users try to connect and every time they launch published resources.

Chapter 1 Introduction 19

• Application and content enumeration. The client presents users with their

individual set of published resources.

• Application launching. The client is the local engine used to launch published

applications.

• Desktop integration. The client integrates a user’s set of published resources

with the user’s desktop.

• User preferences. The client validates and implements local user preferences.

The client Program Neighborhood Agent is designed for flexibility and ease of configuration.

Web Client

The Web Interface technology, which allows interactive applications to be published to users through a Web site, is built into MetaFrame Presentation Server.

Use the Web Interface for MetaFrame Presentation Server to give users access to published resources through the Web or your Intranet. Users log on to the Web Interface using a familiar Web browser and see links to the applications that they are authorized to run.

The Web Interface Welcome page showing links for published applications and resources available in the server farm.

20 MetaFrame Presentation Server Reviewer’s Guide

The Web Interface dynamically creates an HTML page with a depiction of the server farm for each of your users. After logging on, each user sees a Web page that includes all the applications and resources in the server farm that you configure for that user. Using the Web Interface, you can create stand-alone Web sites for application access or Web sites that can be integrated into your corporate portal.

Any enterprise that relies on the Internet for connectivity must contend with security issues. Despite the enthusiasm for worldwide business communications, corporations must still be assured that they can protect confidential data from prying eyes as it travels through a public network. You use the Web Interface with the Secure Gateway to transport data securely over the Internet, using standardsbased security technology. Users access their applications through the browser, typically as shown below.

The Secure Gateway for MetaFrame Presentation Server

Secure Gateway is an infrastructure component you use to secure access to server farms and access centers. The Secure Gateway transparently encrypts and authenticates all user connections to protect against data tampering and theft.

Install the Secure Gateway in a network’s demilitarized zone (DMZ) to form a secure perimeter around the MetaFrame Presentation Server components in your enterprise network. The Secure Gateway authenticates users connecting over the Internet and establishes a secure channel for data exchange between the client device and the MetaFrame Access Suite.

Extensible Solutions for Enterprise Systems

Many additional features are available as part of various MetaFrame Presentation Server solutions. You install and use only the features that you need on each server and customize the server according to your needs and the role of a server in your enterprise.

Many additional features are flexible because you can install them separately. You can administer the additional features that come with MetaFrame Presentation Server, Enterprise Edition, through the management consoles. This means that you use the same tools to access all of the information about computers running MetaFrame Presentation Server. For example, if you install the Enterprise Edition of MetaFrame Presentation Server, the management consoles include additional pages that you use to manage and monitor your server farm.

Chapter 1 Introduction 21

Load Manager

Taking server farm load balancing to a new level, this component lets administrators customize rules to optimize server resources in any environment. Application scheduling permits administrators to schedule application availability to accommodate routine application and database maintenance. (Only available in MetaFrame Presentation Server Advanced and Enterprise Editions.)

Resource Manager

With this component, administrators can centrally monitor and manage the server farm to ensure continuous, smooth operation. Capabilities include real-time monitoring and alerting, application monitoring and usage, and user-configurable setting of metrics and alert thresholds. (Only available in MetaFrame Presentation Server Enterprise Edition.)

Installation Manager

This capability eases the administrative burden of installing and uninstalling applications on servers in large server farms. With the click of a mouse, administrators can replicate applications across the entire farm, saving time and effort. (Only available in MetaFrame Presentation Server Enterprise Edition.)

Network Manager

Enterprises that use network management software from leading providers, such as HP and Tivoli, can incorporate MetaFrame Presentation Server farms into these solutions and administer them through the native network management console or through a customized version of the management console. (Only available in MetaFrame Presentation Server Enterprise Edition.)

Citrix Document Center

The Citrix Document Center gives you a single point of access to all Administrator’s Guides for the MetaFrame Access Suite. Browse the Table of Contents for information about a task you want to accomplish and get point-andclick access to all pertinent sections across the guides.

22 MetaFrame Presentation Server Reviewer’s Guide

New Features of MetaFrame Presentation Server

The following new features and enhancements are included in this release.

Simplified Licensing for MetaFrame Access Suite Products

New technology in MetaFrame Access Suite software simplifies managing your licensed products in the following ways:

• You centrally manage and monitor license usage

• You can access your licensing data remotely

• You can create reports allowing you to analyze trends in license usage

• An electronic backup of all licenses is stored on the Citrix Web site

• You can share licenses across farms

For more information about the license server, see “Licensing Evaluation Versions of Citrix Products” on page 37.

Enhanced Support for Large Farms

Zone data collectors now monitor server load information for their own zone instead of the entire farm. This behavior reduces traffic among zones when users connect to applications, especially in large farms where zones are connected across high latency links.

In earlier releases, a data collector automatically sent updates about server loads in its zone to the data collectors in other zones. This change in communication is designed to reduce interzone network traffic. Instead of each data collector maintaining load information for all servers in the farm, the data collector maintains load information only for the servers in its own zone. This behavior is especially beneficial in large farms.

Zone Preference and Failover

A new policy rule enables you to direct user connections to preferred zones and set transparent failover to backup zones when preferred servers are unavailable. When users open applications, the Zone Preference and Failover policy rule directs their connections to the server with the highest zone preference and lightest load.

The Zone Preference and Failover rule is available if you are using the Enterprise Edition of MetaFrame Presentation Server.

Chapter 1 Introduction 23

Policies

You can now create policies to apply connection settings based on server groups, IP addresses, and client names—in addition to users or user groups as in earlier releases. New policy rules give you broader control over bandwidth limits, zone connection preferences, audio options, and printing.

You can use new policy rules to do such things as:

• Direct user connections to a local zone and set failover options to other zones

• Route print jobs directly from the server to the printer rather than through the

client device

• Control bandwidth limits for sessions

• Control audio sound quality used by client devices

The examples cited above include only a few of the new capabilities provided with connection policies.

Delegated Administration

With delegated administration, you can restrict an administrator’s permissions to perform certain tasks to select servers and applications. For example, you can:

1. Create two separate “session administrator” accounts.

2. Give one account permissions to manage user sessions on servers in California.

3. Give the other account permissions to manage user sessions on servers

in Maine.

Bi-directional Audio Support

MetaFrame Presentation Server now supports client-side microphone input. This allows you to publish dictation software for use in client sessions. Using local microphones, including a number of Philips SpeechMike speech processing devices, users can record dictations with applications running on the server.

For example, a user away from the office can establish a client session to record notes using a laptop. Later in the day the user can retrieve the notes for review or transcription from the desktop device back at the office.

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Enhanced Multimedia Support

MetaFrame Presentation Server offers the following major multimedia enhancements.

SpeedScreen Multimedia Acceleration

SpeedScreen Multimedia Acceleration optimizes streaming multimedia playback through published instances of or remote desktop connections to Internet Explorer, Windows Media Player, and RealOne Player. This feature offers significant performance gains in the following areas:

• User Experience. Multimedia playback in ICA sessions is about as smooth as

local playback

• Server CPU Utilization. The client device decompresses and renders

multimedia content, freeing up server CPU utilization

• Network Bandwidth. Multimedia content is passed over the network in

compressed form, reducing bandwidth consumption

SpeedScreen Flash Acceleration

SpeedScreen Flash Acceleration allows you to optimize the way MetaFrame Presentation Server renders and passes Macromedia Flash animations to users. Flash animations are a common component of many Web sites and Web applications.

SpeedScreen Image Acceleration

Using lossy image compression, SpeedScreen Image Acceleration offers you a trade-off between the quality of photographic image files as they appear on client devices and the amount of bandwidth the files consume on their way from server to client. Lossy image compression reduces the size of image files the server sends to the client by removing redundant or extraneous data from the files.

Chapter 1 Introduction 25

Session Reliability

Session Reliability keeps ICA sessions active and on the user’s screen when network connectivity is interrupted. Users continue to see the application they are using until network connectivity resumes without prompting for users’ credentials again.

This feature is especially useful for mobile users with wireless connections. If a user with a wireless link enters a road or railroad tunnel and momentarily loses connectivity, the display on the client device freezes until connectivity resumes on the other side of the tunnel. The user continues to access the display during the interruption and can resume interaction with the application when the network connection is restored.

Session Reliability is available and enabled by default with the Enterprise and Advanced Editions of MetaFrame Presentation Server. This feature is supported with Version 8 or later of the MetaFrame Presentation Server Client for 32-bit Windows.

Workspace Control

Workspace Control enables users to quickly switch between client devices and is especially useful to roaming or mobile users. You now have the ability to configure, and allow users to configure, the following controls on the Program Neighborhood Agent interface or the Web Interface:

• Log on. You can configure user logon behavior to include automatically

reconnecting to disconnected sessions only or reconnecting to disconnected and active sessions.

• Disconnect. The new Disconnect command allows users to disconnect from all

applications at once.

• Reconnect. You can configure the Reconnect command to mean reconnecting

to disconnected sessions only or reconnecting to disconnected and active sessions.

• Log off. For the Web Interface, you can configure logoff behavior as logging off

from the Web Interface and all active sessions together or logging off from the Web Interface only.

Workspace Control is available if you are using the Advanced or Enterprise Edition of MetaFrame Presentation Server. For more information about Workspace Control, see “Workspace Control” on page 59.

26 MetaFrame Presentation Server Reviewer’s Guide

Getting More Information and Help

This section describes how to get more information about MetaFrame Presentation Server and how to contact Citrix.

Accessing the Document Center

The Document Center provides a single point of access to the documentation and enables you to go straight to the section in the documentation that you need. It also includes:

• A list of common tasks and a link to each item of documentation.

• A search function that covers all the PDF guides. This is useful when you need

to consult a number of different guides.

• Cross-references among documents. You can move among documents as often

as you need using the links to other guides and the links to the Document Center.

You can access the Document Center from your product CD-ROM or install it on your servers.

To start the Document Center

Chapter 1 Introduction 29

• On a server on which you installed the Document Center, from the Start menu,

choose All Programs > Citrix > MetaFrame Presentation Server > Documentation and open document_center.pdf.

• Or, from either the server or component CD, click Browse CD.

In the Windows Explorer window, open the Documentation folder, then open document_center.pdf.

Important To view, search, and print the PDF documentation, the Document Center requires Adobe Acrobat Reader 5.0.5 with Search or a later version with Search. You can download Adobe Acrobat Reader for free from Adobe Systems’ Web site, http://www.adobe.com/.

30 MetaFrame Presentation Server Reviewer’s Guide

Getting Service and Support

Citrix offers a variety of self-service, Web-based technical support tools from its Knowledge Center at http://support.citrix.com/. Knowledge Center features include:

• A knowledge base containing thousands of technical solutions to support your

Citrix environment

• An online product documentation library

• Interactive support forums for every Citrix product

• Access to the latest hotfixes and service packs

• Security bulletins

• Online problem reporting and tracking (for customers with valid support

contracts)

Another source of support, Citrix Preferred Support Services, provides a range of options that allows you to customize the level and type of support for your organization’s Citrix products.

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