Citrix Education is hosting the following 1-hour virtual sessions to scope the next generation of XenServer training:

• For Citrix customers: Tuesday, November 17, 1:00pm Eastern/10:00 Pacific
• For Citrix partners: Wednesday, November 18, 1:00pm Eastern/10:00 Pacific

If you would like to participate in one of these sessions, then email me at mark.carter@citrix.com for registration information. In your email, state whether you are a customer or a partner and what level of XenServer experience you have.

Each session is limited to 5 participants, so don't delay!

Also, feel free to email me if you would like to participate in this discussion but cannot attend one of the scheduled sessions. Citrix Education will look to schedule additional sessions depending on interest and availability of participants.

Thank you for your interest, and we look forward to hearing your input.

Hey, everyone. I have posted a new how-to video on configuring cookie consistency using the Application Firewall feature of Citrix NetScaler.

I based my tutorial on a lab exercise that I took from the recently released CNS-300-21 Advanced Administration for Citrix NetScaler 9.0 Platinum Edition instructor-led training course. Click here if you like the video and are ready to take your NetScaler skills and knowledge to the next level.

Have you ever wanted to take a peek inside a training manual before registering for an instructor-led training course? You now have the opportunity with the our new Courseware Peek Inside online feature. This feature is currently available for the new CNS-300 Advanced Administration for Citrix Netscaler 9.0 Platinum Edition. Click here to check it out, and stay tuned as we roll this feature out for our other instructor-led training courses!

Citrix Education would like to invite you to participate in a workshop to scope the next generation of XenServer curriculum.  This workshop is a great opportunity for you to help shape the XenServer courses and exams for 2010 based on your own experiences and needs.

The workshop will be held October 20-21, 2009, at Citrix Silicon Valley Headquarters in Santa Clara, CA.  The workshop will have the following objectives:

• Discuss/review key new product features
• Brainstorm topics to be taught and tested
• Identify topics and scenarios for hands-on practice exercises
• Discuss and document best practices

If you are an experienced XenServer administrator and would like to participate in this workshop, then please respond to:

• Mark Carter
• Courseware Development Lead
• Citrix Education
• Email: mark.carter@citrix.com

Someone from Citrix Education team will then reach out to you to discuss next steps.

As an incentive for participating in the workshop, customers and partners will receive:

• Preview of upcoming features for Essentials for XenServer, Platinum Edition
• A voucher for a Citrix Certified Administrator exam of their choice
• A Citrix courseware manual of their choice
• A guaranteed spot in a 2010 beta class

Don't miss out on this great networking opportunity and a chance to help shape new Citrix training offerings!

Before I head off for a two-week vacation, I wanted to share a NetScaler VPX how-to video on compression that I posted to Citrix TV.

This video shows how configuring a virtual NetScaler system is very similar to configuring a physical system. If this video piques your interest, then be sure to check out our CNS-200-1I Basic Administration for Citrix NetScaler 9.0 5-day instructor-led training course, which is a great way to prepare yourself to administer any NetScaler implementation. Click here for more information.

I also wanted to let everyone know that we are still on target to release the updated CNS-300-2I Advanced Administration for Citrix NetScaler 9.0 Platinum Edition five-day instructor-led training class in Q4 2009. This course is a great way for experienced NetScaler administrators who have already taken our basic NetScaler administration to enhance their knowledge and skills further. Check out my last blog for more information.

Talk to you in two weeks!

Hi, everyone. I am a courseware development lead for Citrix Education, based in Santa Clara, CA. This blog entry is my first, and I am eager to start giving everyone in the Citrix blogosphere a behind-the-scenes look at what we in Citrix Education do and to solicit customer and partner input on new training in development.

We just completed the beta delivery of the new CNS-300-2I Advanced NetScaler 9.0 for Citrix NetScaler 9.0 Platinum Edition five-day instructor-led training class. As the "2I" denotes, this course is the second release of the currently offered CNS-300-1I course. We had a great turnout of customers, partner and Citrites, with students coming as far away as the UK and Argentina. Todd Hurst of Layer8 Training was our instructor. Todd is an experienced NetScaler instructor and helped developed the course for its initial release. We also had a number of NetScaler subject-matter experts popping in and out of the beta class to provide additional insight and commentary on key topics.

The CNS-300 course is the logical next step for experienced NetScaler administrators who have completed the basic NetScaler administration course and are looking to deepen their skills and knowledge further. The CNS-300 course covers the following topics:

• • Advanced Troubleshooting
  • Application Firewall, including:
    • Feature Overview
    • Policies and Profiles
    • Regular Expressions
    • Attacks and Protections
    • Application Firewall Troubleshooting
  • Connection Tuning and Queuing
  • HTTP Service Callouts
  • AAA
  • EdgeSight for NetScaler
  • Command Center
  • NetScaler Web Logging

The course also includes content on the new NetScaler 9.1 release, in particular nCore and VPX. Course lecture is interspersed with hands-on labs, in which students administer fully functioning NetScaler systems based on real-life scenarios. Furthermore, the course ends with an extended practicum giving students additional opportunity to show what they know with minimal guidance.

As I write this, Citrix Education is busy incorporating all the great student and instructor feedback we received during the beta delivery. Look for the "2I" release of the CNS-300 course to occur in Q4 2009.