Once customers realize the benefits they can get from application virtualization, one of their most common questions is about packaging. If you've got 500+ applications that need to be profiled, you want to find a fast, reliable way to do it without tying up too many resources. That's why Citrix has teamed up with Acresso (formerly Macrovision) to tightly integrate their AdminStudio product with Application Streaming.

AdminStudio simplifies the profiling process by eliminating several steps. It has a Citrix Assistant that batch-converts existing MSIs to streaming profiles. The MSI-to-Citrix conversion tool guides you through the entire process, smoothing out the learning curve and helping to avoid common mistakes. AdminStudio also makes it easy to repackage legacy EXEs into virtual profiles without wasting time on snapshots.

With a few mouse clicks you can customize Citrix virtual profiles using AdminStudio's comprehensive Editor tool, which is based on industry-standard InstallShield technology. The Editor's Citrix Assistant gives you complete control over every aspect of virtual profiles — from modifying registry settings to specifying Citrix isolation options — so profiles meet your specific needs and corporate standards. AdminStudio also automates the profile testing and validation process, ensuring virtual profiles behave reliably.

No one knows applications like Acresso. Their InstallShield technology is the undisputed industry standard and AdminStudio is the most widely used software packaging solution on the market. Leveraging this experience with their world-class solutions gives customers a great shortcut for making the move to application virtualization. It can reduce packaging time by over 90% and cut overall implementation costs by 50%.

You can learn more about it at their website: http://www.acresso.com/products/licensing/adminstudio.htm.

For those of you that have taken advantage of this combined solution already, I'd love to hear about your experiences.

Project Delaware is the code name for the next major release of Citrix XenApp™ (the new name for Presentation Server) and it will include some major improvements in application virtualization.You can pre-register for the upcoming Delaware early release program and try out all the new capabilities for yourself. The program will begin in late April, so don't miss out. You will receive an email as soon as the code is available for download from MyCitrix. Please note that in order to participate, you will need to have access to Windows Server 2008 RTM code from Microsoft.

I'd love to hear what you think about the new Delaware features after you try to them out.

It's been a month and a half since I suggested here using the respective Citrix and Microsoft application virtualization together on client devices and I curious what's on people's minds. I know, the idea sounds counter-intuitive, but my colleague Joe Nord explains how exactly it works in his post on the subject, so the mechanics are clear

People are picking up on it, including Ruben Spruijt who pointed it on in an article on BrianMadden.com. So did Chad Jones, the Product Manager for Microsoft Application Virtualization in a post on TechNet. In the last week alone, I've fielded questions from a couple of customers on the subject and the first question both times was why?

There are limitations for both solutions. MAV can't handle 64-bit environments and as I noted in my post on which applications not to virtualize, Application Streaming can't isolate all services. Both of these customers had these requirements so it makes perfect sense to leverage both solutions, especially if they can work together.

So why not try it? I'd love for somebody to prove me wrong.

"When are you going to publish the list of applications Citrix XenApp can virtualize with Application Streaming?"

It's a simple question, but the answer is not. There's just no way to test all of the applications that are out there, especially when you consider that some of the best candidates for virtualization are those troublesome homegrown apps that only exist in customers' environments.

The Application Streaming feature of Citrix XenApp (the new name for Presentation Server) is designed to support all Windows applications and most run just fine when virtualized on desktop machines. We'll do everything we can to make a Windows app run in isolation and there's a great article on the Citrix Knowledge Base with tips and tricks on troubleshooting problems, but there are exceptions.

It's a simple fact that certain kinds of applications cannot be isolated and therefore are not good candidates for client-side application virtualization. These applications contain components that cannot be successfully isolated, such as:

•         Device or kernel drivers: We are working on this, but as of today, isolation environments cannot isolate device or kernel drivers. For example, if the application installs and depends on a driver to function, it does not work in an isolation environment.

•         Windows services: Some applications install and rely on a Windows service to function correctly. These applications cannot be isolated. (We are also working on this. Stay tuned. To verify whether an application attempted to install a service, examine the Event Viewer's Application Log. Look for messages with source CtxSbxAppMsg)

•         Windows class names or window names: Isolation environments do not isolate Window class names or Window names. Applications that use Windows messages as an inter-process communication (IPC) mechanism will not work correctly with the Application Streaming feature.

•         COM+ applications: Support for COM+ is limited, but fortunately, this isn't a big hindrance to most applications. There's another Knowledge Base article on this. COM and OLE are fully supported.

Just because an application installs things in the above list does not necessarily mean that the application will not work to the customer's satisfaction.  One way to get around these limitations is to install the problematic component locally. The isolation environment in which the apps are virtualized can be tuned to allow communication between the application and local environment. This works with some license services that run in applications, for instance. When the service is installed locally, the application can be virtualized without a problem. Another workaround is to just turn the component off, if this can be done without impacting the application itself.

We can't guarantee that these will work for every application, but they will for many. Just be sure to test thoroughly to make sure that the application isn't adversely affected. And let me know what you find out. Some of the best feedback comes from people in the field under the gun to make something work.

Since the acquisition of Softricity by Microsoft, Citrix and Microsoft have continued to enjoy a close strategic partnership. Citrix has created a billion dollar business building value on top of Microsoft platforms like Terminal Services and this symbiotic relationship remains strong. Citrix is committed to finding innovative ways to add value to the Microsoft Application Virtualization (the new name for SoftGrid) platform and is actively working with Microsoft on this important technology.

The first step in this cooperative effort is to understand how the two application virtualization technologies work together. There are several scenarios in which the application virtualization capabilities of both Citrix and Microsoft work together:
1.     Complementary in the XenApp Server farm - Prior to its acquisition by Microsoft, Softricity was a Citrix Partner. In fact, a significant number of customers still use SoftGrid in conjunction with their XenApp server farms for application delivery.  The acquisition and name change to Microsoft Application Virtualization, does not change how well the two solutions work together.
2.     Simultaneous coexistence on the same platform - Customers can use both XenApp and Microsoft Application Virtualization on the same machine at the same time. Both clients will co-exist in the same environment so that customers can use both solutions simultaneously.
3.     Publish MS App Virtualization sequences in XenApp - In addition, it is possible for Citrix XenApp and Microsoft Application Virtualization to work together. Microsoft Application Virtualization packages can be published in XenApp.
4.     Apply XenApp policies to Microsoft Application Virtualization packages - This interoperability can be taken a step further. Existing Microsoft Application Virtualization sequences can interoperate with the XenApp policy features like SmartAccess and the XenApp Profiler, further extending the overall manageability of the joint solution.

Joe Nord the Citrix Architect of Application Virtualization has written a definitive account of how to make options 3 & 4 work.  Read about it here.

The inter-operability of the two technologies makes it easier for customers to leverage their existing investments in both Citrix XenApp and Microsoft Application Virtualization. Customers who have already expended the effort to sequence applications for Microsoft Application Virtualization can use these same packages in a XenApp environment. This allows customers to take advantage of the management capabilities built-in to XenApp which seamlessly switches between Microsoft Application Virtualization on the local desktop and in Terminal Services via the granular access control policies of SmartAccess.

Supporting Microsoft Application Virtualization makes it easier for customers to fully leverage their XenApp environments and reinforces our commitment to working closely with Microsoft to help customers realize the value in application virtualization.

VMware's announcement that it's buying Thinstall generated a lot of buzz this week. Brian Madden is calling it "a brilliant move" and Randall Kennedy from InfoWorld is wondering if it's "the 'hairball' that chokes VMware?"

All the color commentary aside, it's hard to think of the combined technologies as revolutionary when they have both been available for some time. It's also hard not to see the move as validation of the Citrix focus on applications, which Jay Tomlin points out"is what makes IT relevant to business."

Complete application virtualization requires both server-side and client-side application virtualization as well as application management tools. While this acquisition helps fill part of this gap for VMware, Thinstall only partially addresses the client-side of application virtualization equation.  Presentation Server provides both client-side and server-side application virtualization, which includes both isolation and robust streaming and management.

Certainly, both organizations see virtualization as a growth opportunity and the delivery of virtualized applications to managed and unmanaged desktop devices has to be part of the solution. With a proven solution for more than 70 million users and 98% of the Fortune 500, this plays to Citrix's strength.

Nick Rintalan from Citrix Consulting Services has pulled together some hard-earned lessons learned from the field into a Best Practices guide. Check it out on the Knowledge Base.

Momentum around application virtualization continues to build. Natalie Lambert, an analyst with Forrester recently wrote an excellent article on the virtualization landscape. It does a good job of laying out the challenges that organizations are struggling with and how more and more of them are turning to virtualization as an alterntive. If you have access to the report, it's worth the time. Check it out here.

Given this is the inaugural entry of the Citrix application virtualization blog, it only makes sense to begin at the beginning by defining exactly what we mean when we say application virtualization. This is something we know a fair bit about since we've been doing it for a long time. How Presentation Server works is the very definition of virtualization. It separates the application from where it runs. The apps execute in the data center, where IT managers can put their hands on them for fixes or updates. Only the screen displays, user mouse-clicks and keystrokes are sent back and forth. It's efficient, secure and proven.

The new Application Streaming feature just extends this centralized model out to desktops and laptops that are not necessarily connected to the network all the time. Applications are packaged up for delivery and stored in on a regular file share. Users stream them down to their local machines and run them in a protected environment that isolates them from conflicts with other apps. They are cached on the local machine and run as natively installed applications, just without all the headaches.

It's that simple. Manage the apps centrally, but give users the flexibility to use them however they want. I'm looking forward to exploring this topic with you further in this blog and will do my best to make regular contributions to the conversation. Until next time.