Virtualization: Citrix Launches XenApp 6
Citrix Systems continues to bolster its virtualization story. Sometime later this month, the company expects to ship XenApp 6, a virtualization and application “delivery product” that lets users connect to corporate applications. You can also host apps with XenApp, or stream them direct to the local user. Here are some more details.
XenApp 6 is going to bring enhanced integration with Microsoft App-V virtualization, Windows Sever 2008 R2 support, and it’ll be sprinkled with all the power, automation and other enhancements you’ve come to expect. Generally, Citrix wants you to know that XenApp6 will feature expanded scalability, and of course, simplified central management with AppCenter, which allows for management of applications via a central console.
XenApp is also sporting “Enhanced High-Definition HDX Technology” which is a big word for the fact that you can now virtualize and/or stream real time media applications while utilizing a host of USB peripherals back at the thin client. All the white, maintaining a “CD-quality” audio and ‘high-definition’ user experience (but we don’t think they’re talking about video quality)
There’s also integration with Citrix’s Dazzle, which lets users pick if Microsoft’s App-V or XenApp virtualizes and delivers their application.
But wait, there’s more: Mac and smart phone support is here, so you can get at your Windows Apps on a Mac, and multitask on your iPhone or Windows phone. (Remember the Windows 7 on iPad story?)
Citrix is also touting this beast’s “unparalleled scalability.” Translation? XenApp 6 has been confirmed to scale to 100,000 concurrent users in a “single farm.”
Sounds like some big beefy virtualization going on. But we’ll offer some reality checks ones it arrives.
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One issue with Citrix XenApp 6 is that, unlike previous versions, it doesn’t support mixed server farms (server clusters that contain more than one XenApp and/or Windows server version in the same farm.). That leaves 3 possible options for upgrading existing XenApp sites:
Option 1: Upgrade all servers to XenApp 6 all at once (since XenApp 6 only runs on Windows Server 2008 R2). This is not easy to accomplish in a production environment, which can afford little or no downtime. And if you are hosting an application that isn’t very compatible with 64-bit platforms (Windows Server 2008 R2 is 64-bit only) then you’re truly stuck.
Option 2: Create a secondary farm for the XenApp 6 servers; then distribute the clients between the two using a Web interface. This introduces 3 challenges: (1) Since XenApp 6 has new management consoles and a whole new way of doing configuration and scripting, each farm will need to be managed separately using a different tool-set. (2) Determining how to properly distribute the clients between each of the two farms requires close monitoring; otherwise users may not be able to connect to the proper farm. (3) In all likelihood the combined size of both farms will potentially be much larger than a single farm would have been.
Option 3: Switch to Ericom’s PowerTerm WebConnect. With a three-tier architecture, PowerTerm WebConnect (certified by Microsoft for Windows Server 2008 R2) can support mixed farms containing Windows Server 2003, 2008, 2008 R2 and future versions of Windows as well. So it can actually be easier, safer and more cost-effective to not only choose this solution over Citrix’s in the first place, but even to upgrade an existing XenApp farm to PowerTerm WebConnect than to XenApp 6!
You can read more and download a free evaluation at:
http://www.ericom.com/citrix_alternative.asp?URL_ID=708
Adam
Adam: The VAR Guy barely manages to boot up his own PC daily, so our resident blogger will need to trust that the tech info you shared above is accurate…
-TVG