Blog | Vikash.nl

Basic setup Citrix StoreFront 3.0

September 1, 2015February 10, 2017 - by Vikash Jhagroe - Leave a Comment

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Reading Time: 5 minutes

In this blogpost I will show the basic setup of Citrix StoreFront 3.0. StoreFront is the component for making your published desktops and published app available for your end-users.

A fewÃ‚Â new features of Citrix StoreFront 3.0:

unified user experience
improved customisation
loopback communications (no more host file editing)
treating published desktops as published apps
delegate authentication to backend servers

My environment for this basic setup:

Windows 2012 R2 (sf01.vikash.nl)
Citrix StoreFront 3.0 setup (www.citrix.com)
SSL certificate (storefront.vikash.nl) using own CA infrastructure (dc01.vikash.nl)
Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Controller (xddc01.vikash.nl)

Before we can proceed with the installation we need a SSL certificate. For lab purposes I have installed a internal CA (my domain controller) and requested a domain certificate. Using Internet Information Services Manager on my StoreFront server I requested a domain certificate.

Make sure that you request a proper SSL certificate for production environments! Contact me if you have any questions regarding SSL certificates in production environments.

SSL Certificate request:

Open IIS Manager and click on create Domain Certificate:

Fill in the required information and click on Next:

Select the appropriate CA and set a friendly name for the certificate. Click on Finish:

We now have to bind this certificate to the Default Web Site on your Citrix StoreFront server. In my case this is sf01.vikash.nl. Start IIS Manager, expand Sites and click on Default Web Site. Then click on Bindings:

Click on Add:

Select https as Type and select the SSL certificate we just requested. Click then on OK:

Now we can see that SSL is enabled for the Default Web Site. Click on Close:

Now you can test the certificate by browsing to the default website of the StoreFront server:

If everything went well you should see no errors in your browser when requesting the page using https.

Installing Citrix StoreFront 3.0:

Start the setup by double-clicking onÃ‚Â CitrixStoreFront-x64.exe. Setup wil now start:

Accept the license agreement and click on Next:

The setup will install the required Windows Features and Roles. Review and click on Next:

Setup is now ready for install. Click on Install:

Installation in progress. Grab a coffee:

Click on Finish after installation of all the components:

Citrix StoreFront will automatically open and you will be presented with the Welcome to StoreFront screen. From here we can start the basic configuration of StoreFront:

Basic setup of Citrix StoreFront 3.0:

Click on Create a new Deployment:

Enter your Base URL. In my case it is https://storefront.vikash.nl. Click on Next:

Enter the Store name. In my case it is Vikash. Click on Next:

Now we have to specify Delivery Controllers so StoreFront knows where to get published apps or desktops. This is your XenDesktop or XenApp controller. Click on Add:

Enter a name for the Display name and set the correct Transport type, in my case it’s http. Make sure you select the correct version of XenDesktop of XenApp. Click on Add:

Enter the hostname of the controller and click on OK:

As you can see the controller has been added. Click on OK:

Click on Next:

Leave the defaults (None) on the Remote Access page and click on Create:

Click on Finish:

Now click on AuthenticationÃ‚Â in the left panel andÃ‚Â click on Configure Trusted Domains. By adding trusted domains the user can only set their username when logging in. This options also allows us to add multiple domain names as trusted domains and allow the user to select the appropriate one when logging in.

For now we have only have one domain. Select the Trusted domains only option, click on Add and enter the domain name (vikash.nl). Then click on OK:

Now click on Receiver for Web in the left panel and locate the Website URL. Time for some testing!

I will login using my test user (test01) from a virtual machine which is joined in my domain, so my SSL certificate will be trusted. Open the URL in a browser and enter the test user credentials:

The user is successfully logged in. I don’t have published apps or desktops yet. I show that in another blogpost. For now we have a working Citrix StoreFront 3.0 environment, ready for further testing.

You can also follow me on twitter or add the rss feed from the blog and you will be notified when I add new posts. If you have any questions feel free to contact me.

Provisioning Services

Basic setup Citrix Provisioning Services 7.6

July 4, 2015February 10, 2017 - by Vikash Jhagroe - 2 Comments.

Reading Time: 6 minutes

So I got some free time now to continue setting up my homelab. I decided to start with a basic setup and configuration of Citrix Provisioning Services 7.6 (PVS). I will be needing this component to stream my desktops and servers. Citrix Provisioning Services (PVS) eliminates the need to manage, update and patch individual systems. Instead it allows us to use a master image to provision computers. This master image (vDisk) can be used simultaneously by multiple computers.

In this post I will show you how to:

Install PVS
Basic configuration using the PVS wizard
Creating a farm

My lab setup:

Host running Citrix XenServer 6.5 SP1
Windows 2012 R2 server with patches and updates which I will be using to installÃ‚Â PVS
Downloaded PVS ISO fromÃ‚Â www.citrix.com
Service Account in Active Directory

Install Citrix Provisioning Services 7.6

Using XenCenter mount the ISO on the Windows 2012 Server VM and start the setup. The setup will start. Click on Server Installation.

If there are additional items to be installed, you will be prompted for them. Click on Install.

Click on YES.

Click on Next.

Accept the License Agreement and click on Next.

Enter your customer information in the User Name field and the Organization field. Select the option you need for “Install this application for”. Click Next.

Select the installation folder. In my case I left it default. Click Next.

Then click on Install to begin the installation.

Click on Finish the start the configuration wizard.

You will get a warning about the PVS console not detected on your system. Just click on OK, we will deal with this later.

The configuration wizards start, click on Next to begin configuration.

Configure the DHCP options according to your infrastructure. I have selected the option “The service that runs on another server”. Select this option is you have a separate DHCP server installed. Click on Next.

For the PXE services I have selected “The service that runs on another computer”. This is the scenario I see in most of the cases with customers running PVS. In many cases they have a seperate PXE server running for Thin-Clients. Select the option you see fit for your infrastructure. Click on Next.

Now we have to create the PVS farm. In another post I will cover the “Join existing farm” option. For now let’s create a new one. Click on Next.

Enter the information to setup the PVS database on the SQL server. Select the appropriate instance, otherwise leave blank. Click on Next.

In the New Farm windows enter the information according to your company/infrastructure. It will already suggest the database name. You can change it, or select the appropriate database. I also added the Active Directory Administrators group. Click on Next.

Enter the Store name and the path where you vDisks will be stored. Click on Next.

Enter the hostname or ipadress of you licensen server. I also checked the option “Validate license server version and communication”. Ã‚Â Click on Next.

Enter the service account you created in Active Directory to setup the Stream and Soap services. This service account will also be used to setup the database. Note that this user must have db_writerÃ‚Â and db_reader access, so I made this account the owner of the PVS database. Click on Next.

I use the default to updateÃ‚Â the computer password in the Active Directory. Click on Next.

Select the network card for management and streaming, in my case there is only one. Check the communication ports. I left them default. Click on Next.

I choose not to install TFTP server, as I will be booting using an ISO. This ISO tells my client device (target) where my PVS server is. I will cover this in a later post. Click on Next.

Check the information on the overview screen. Click on Finish.

You will get a notification about the firewall. Click on OK.

Now wait for the wizard to complete the configuration. It should end with all the green checkmarks. Click on Done.

Install Provisioning Services Management Console

Now we need to install the PVS Console for management purpose. This console can be installed on a remote server (like a management server). I choose to install this on my local PVS server.

Start the setup from the Provisioning Services installation ISO. Click on Console Installation.

Click on Next in the Welcome screen.

Accept the license agreement. Click on Next.

Enter your customer information in the User Name field and the Organization field. Select the option you need for “Install this application for”. Click Next.

Choose the installation folder. I left mine default. Click on Next.

Select the setup type. Click on Next.

We are now ready to install. Click on Install.

Click on Finish.

Start the PVS console and enter the information of the PVS server. Click on Connect.

We now have a working Provisioning Services server. In another post I will show you how to create and configure master images using Provisioning Services.

You can also follow me on twitter or add the rss feed from the blog and you will be notified when I add new posts. If you have any questions feel free to contact me.

XenDesktop

Basic setup Citrix XenDesktop 7.6

July 4, 2015February 10, 2017 - by Vikash Jhagroe - Leave a Comment

Reading Time: 3 minutes

In this post I will show you how to do a basic installatoin of Citrix XenDesktop 7.6. I will be needing this to publish my desktops and applications. I will cover the configuration in another post, check back again for that. So for now let’s start the setup.

In this post I will show you how to:

Basic installation of XenDesktop 7.6

My lab setup:

Host running Citrix XenServer 6.5 SP1.
Windows 2012 R2 server with patches and updates which I will be using to install XenDesktop Delivery Controller.
Downloaded PVS ISO fromÃ‚Â www.citrix.com

Install Citrix XenDesktop 7.6

Using XenCenter mount the ISO on the Windows 2012 Server VM and start the setup. The setup will start. Click on Start in the XenDesktop option:

Click on Delivery Controller to start the setup.

Accept the License Agreement. Click on Next.

Select the components you want to install. I already have my setupÃ‚Â license server. I will setup a dedicated StoreFront server, covered in another post. Click on Next.

I have a dedicated MS SQL Server running, so I won’t install SQL Express. Click on Next.

Check the firewall port configuration. I left this default. Click on Next.

Check the summary window. Click on Install.

After the installation has finished you will get an overview. Click on Finish.

Citrix Studio will launch and from here you can start by configuring your XenDesktop infrastructure. I will cover this in another post, so please check back soon.

You can also follow me on twitter or add the rss feed from the blog and you will be notified when I add new posts.

Licensing Server

How to setup and configure Citrix Licensing Server 11.12.1

May 26, 2015February 10, 2017 - by Vikash Jhagroe - 1 Comment

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Reading Time: 4 minutes

Adding a Citrix License Server to your environmentÃ‚Â is important if you areÃ‚Â going to setup and useÃ‚Â Citrix products and solutions. So let me show you how to:

install the license server
configure the license server
add a license file to the license server

My environmentÃ‚Â for the installation:

downloaded the Citrix License Server 11.12.1 (Build 14100) for Windows (www.citrix.com)
Windows 2012 R2
domain name: VIKASH (vikash.nl)
account for setup: Administrator (VIKASH\Administrator)

Installing Citrix License Server 11.12.1

Unpack the .zip file and start the installer. You will be presented with the next screen. Accept the license agreement and click on Next:

Accept (or change) the installation location and click on Next:

Accept the defaults for the port configuration. If you change the port numbers here, make sure you enter them correctly in other Citrix product which will make use of this License Server (e.g. XenDesktop). Also note that the domain account which I am using for this setup is automatically added to manage the License Server. Click on Install:

Wait for the installation to finish. I selected the option to send License Server Usage information. Citrix uses it to optimize Citrix License Server, so we all benefit from this. Of course you can opt-out if you wish. Click then in Finish:

Configure Citrix License Server

If you search in the start menu you will notice 2 Citrix programs. The Citrix Simple License Service and the Citrix License Administration Console. The Simple consoleÃ‚Â gives you a fast overview of you license status. You will need to enter your License Access Code. Obtain that from the Citrix License Portal using your MyCitrix account.

I use the Citrix License Administration Console:

The Citrix License Administration console is a web-gui. When started you will be shown the Dashboard page, which gives you an overview of the License Server. Click on Administration on the top-right corner:

You will be prompted to login. Use the same credentials used duringÃ‚Â setup (in my case Domain Administrator) to login:

After successful login you will be presented with the System Information page:

Let’s add the Domain Admins group for management. Click on User Configuration and then on New User:

Select Domain Administrator Group in the drop-down menu. The fields will change automatically to accommodate this option. Then type in the Active Directory group name. The format is <DOMAIN>\GroupName. In my case it is VIKASH\Domain Admins. Click on Save:

Check that the Domain Admins group is now added:

Next I configure the default behavior of the license models displayed on the Dashboard page upon login. Click on Server Configuration and then User Interface. Select Both and then click on Save:

Adding a license file

Obtain a Citrix License File using your MyCitrix account (www.citrix.com/account).

Click on Vendor Deamon Configuration and then on Import License:

Browse to the license file and click on Import License:

After the license file is successfully imported click on OK:

Now at this point you can restart your server so the Citrix License Server reads the newly uploaded license file. In my case I am running the License Server on my domain controller, so I don’t want any downtime. So to get the license file active just restart the Citrix License Service using Windows Service Console:

license_server_11.2-25

Now re-open the Citrix License Administration Console to check that the license file is being read correctly:

That’s it. Citrix products can now use the License Server to allocate licenses.

You can also follow me on twitter or add the rss feed from the blog and you will be notified when I add new posts. If you have any questions feel free to contact me.

XenServer

How to update XenServer 6.5 host with SP1

May 22, 2015February 10, 2017 - by Vikash Jhagroe - Leave a Comment

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Reading Time: 3 minutes

With Citrix XenServer Supplemental Pack 1 (SP1) just released by Citrix I thought it would be nice to have a little tutorial on how to update your Citrix XenServer 6.5 hosts with SP1 using Citrix XenCenter.

What’s newÃ‚Â in SP1:

more vm’s per host
Intel GVT-d GPU pass-through for Windows virtual machines
nVIDIA GPU pass-through for Linux virtual machines
support for new guest OS (Windows 10 and CoreOs)
improved performance for nVIDIA GRID

Requirements for the update:

Citrix XenCenter 6.5 (minimum)
Host running Citrix XenServer 6.5
Download SP1 for Citrix XenServer 6.5 from www.citrix.com

Homelab setup

My homelab setup is not that complex. I have just one host running Citrix XenServer 6.5, so let’s get to it. The hostname is:

xs01.vikash.nl

Installing SP1

Start up Citrix XenCenter and connect to the host. Check Citrix XenServer version in General -> Version Details:

In XenCenter click on Tools -> Install Update:

The Install Update wizard starts. Click on Next:

Remember to unpack the SP1 update. Then click on Add and browse to the update file (XS65ESP1.xsupdate). In the status column you will see Not. This means that this update is not yet applied to the selected host. Then click on Next: