I have recently returned from Gartner ITExpo in Orlando.  It was quite interesting, especially some of the thoughts they had around the economy and impending recovery.  One thing stated during the conference should not be a surprise to anyone, during a recession you save your money by not taking on any new projects. By not implementing beneficial upgrades to your systems. By not delivering newer versions of your applications to users.  

This does have the benefit of saving money, but this can only go on for so long.  Eventually, your competitors will stop saving and start expanding. Where will you be?  

We are at a very unique inflection point that can have lasting ramifications to your IT infrastructure.  We are:

1. Coming out of a recession. We are very likely to see a slew of projects going across the tables to install this or upgrade that. So it is looking like the next 1-2 years will have IT taking on a lot of tactical projects.
2. Getting ready for a major operating system upgrade with Windows 7. Whether you are ready or not, Windows XP doesn't have much time left, and most people are skipping Windows Vista. How are you going to migrate?
3. Able to do things that were unheard of in previous years. We can virtualize a massive server into small chunks, we can do the same to an operating system, applications, and the user's personalization layer and deliver it to any type of device imaginable (phones, PCs, MACs).  

So what does this mean? It means you can continue running your environment like you have for the last 10-20-30 years, or you can ask yourself one simple questions: "Is there a better way?"

We have a very profound opportunity to correct the issues of the past.  And if we do it correctly, the resources required to update, maintain and support our environment will greatly reduce.  So when the next recession comes around, your organization will be ready with a fast and streamlined approach towards maintaining your IT environment as well as continuously providing new services.  But where to begin?  

Take a look at your infrastructure. What area requires a lot of time and resources to maintain?  Probably your desktop environment.  Let's investigate and fix it, but let's do it right.  Make sure you look at all aspects

1. The users: what do they need and how do they work
2. The devices: what type of devices, what capabilities
3. The locations: where are they located, what bandwidth pipes are available
4. The applications: how many are there, what level of dependencies do they have, who uses what

This information is critical.  This is what you need if you want to do the desktop virtualization solution correctly, from day 1.  Is it going to be something you can do in 10 minutes? No. Is it something you can implement in 1 hour? No. Why?  Because we are taking something that is seriously complex and trying to create a solution that can scale and simplify our lives. So during the next recession, we won't have to stop delivering new services, but can forge ahead and beat your competition with an entirely new delivery solution.  
Daniel - Lead Architect - Worldwide Consulting Solutions

• Twitter: @djfeller
• Ask the Architect - Next-Generation site
• Questions - Then Ask The Architect

The launch of Windows 7 fills me with dread and excitement. The dread comes from coordinating Citrix Global Platinum sponsorship of this launch with North America Roadshows, Virtual Live Events, TechEd EMEA and local launch events. The excitement comes from the promise of Windows 7 after the relative disappointment of Vista (I must stress the word "relative"), as the performance of Windows 7 is definitely promising to live up to the hype.  

So, why would Microsoft invite Citrix to be a Global Launch Partner for an operating system launch?

Normally when you want a new OS, you just go on the web, buy a new PC, and use the CD to install the OS or, if you are like me and technologically incompetent, you get your IT Department to install it. However, the technology landscape has shifted. Now there is an alternative way to get your instant Windows 7 desktop with Citrix and Microsoft Desktop Virtualization, which delivers Windows desktops as an on-demand service to any user, on any device, anywhere.

The combination of Citrix and Microsoft gives customers the fastest way to deliver Windows 7 realizing benefits of increased efficiency and simplified IT Management. In addition Citrix HDX Technology offers up to 10X better Flash multimedia performance compared to alternative solutions, delivering a user experience that is indistinguishable from a local PC.

7 Ways to get up to speed on Citrix and Microsoft Desktop Virtualization for Windows 7

1. Check out the Citrix Desktop Virtualization Live, "Secrets, Lies and VDI" event on the 20^th October - register here

2. Attend the "Harness The Power of Virtualization" events with guest speakers from Citrix, Microsoft, Intel and HP - register here

3. Microsoft New Efficiency Virtual Live Event

4. North America Windows 7 Roadshows in 65 Cities for Technical Decision Makers and IT Professionals

5. Microsoft Tech EMEA

6. Check out your local events

7. Check out Win7 Community Central to see how the Citrix Partner Ecosystem helps deliver Windows 7 - Click here

Intro: 

You've probably seen all my Mac and iPhone development activity and blog posts, but the RTM of Windows 7 was something I couldn't just ignore, Windows 7 is huge for Microsoft and it brought back some memories of my old Windows days, back then I created a little gadget called Remote Desktop; I had in mind allowing rapid access to my remote servers and desktops right from the Windows 7's sidebar.

It's been well over a year since version 2.1 of the Remote Desktop gadget was released on our former site Frameworkx.com, and this app summed up a bit over 1,000,000 downloads. It was built streamlined and simple as an extension to the Microsoft's Remote Desktop Client. Now on version 3.0 I simply added support for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2

I decided to share it with our Citrix audience, since we are all about access, and I believe this is can be neat way to connect to your XenApp servers.

Installation:

Remote Desktop Gadget can be downloaded straight to your Windows 7's sidebar. No extra software or component is required.

Remote Desktop Feature Set

• Version 3.0:
  
  • Choose from 3 Themes
  • Dropdown list of server history
  • Favorites list
  • Manageable server history
  • Compact docked interface
  • Expandable docked interface
  • Support for Windows 7
  • Support for Windows Server 2008 R2

Download:  Remote Desktop Gadget 3.0



Enjoy this little app, and if you need support ping me on twitter: twitter/GusPinto

best,
Gus Pinto
Microsoft MVP

I moved to California from London just over 11 months ago. Obviously there is a significant cultural and climatic shift involved and a settling in period is a necessity to find your feet. Having travelled all over the world I have embraced as many aspects of different cultures and enjoyed experimenting.

One such aspect I have noticed here in California and in fact right throughout the US is the love of cheese.  A meal  smothered in cheese is normally accompanied by a side dish of, guess what, MORE cheese. Normally I reserve this dairy delight for a cracker or with some wine but 'Here' it is on everything.

Ordering a Cheeseburger with no cheese always raises a quizzical look from the waitress and a thought process which starts with "You are weird" and progresses to "Is he a serial killer?". Even the lactose intolerant demand that their lunch, dinners and daily snacks have heavy cheese content. Asking colleagues, "why do they have so much cheese on their food?" the simple answer was, "it tastes so good with cheese".

One technically gifted colleague decided to explain this using the analogy that Citrix XenApp and Microsoft Remote Desktop Services(the technology formerly known as Terminal Services) have the same relationship as cheese and hot meals(zzzz). The hot meal is the platform, Microsoft, and the cheese is the value-add, XenApp, which brings the  meal to life. Beating this analogy to a quick death, then Citrix has a number of cheeses, Citrix XenDesktop, Essentials for Hyper-V and Branch Repeater which embrace and extend the Microsoft Platform to supply a sumptuous meal.

All of these great combos can be found here at the New Microsoft/Citrix Community Portal where we've consolidated all related news, blogs, articles, videos, etc... into the feeds section of this page. We've also created an area that highlights all related forum threads and postings. Look for answers to your burning questions, participate in an existing discussion, or you can tell us if our cheese is good or if it stinks - let me remind you that all the best cheeses stink  

PS Does eating cheese in the evening give you nightmares? 

The Windows 7 Beta is out in the wild and what better way to try it out than running it as a virtual machine. While the latest version of XenServer shipped well before Windows 7 beta in this month's first XenServer Tips and Tricks you can learn how to get it running on Citrix XenServer 5.

Let me start out by saying this is totally unsupported and experimental. You could blow-up your server, your server room, your building, your car, you know the drill. If you call support they would likely laugh and hang up the phone.

There are two ways to do this, the easy way and the hard way. Just do it the easy way unless you want to know the details.

The Easy Way

The easy way is to download the Windows 7 Beta x64 Experimental Template.

After downloading and unzipping the template follow the steps below.

Getting it onto your XenServer system:

1.       In XenCenter right-click on your server and select Import VM
2.       Browse to the file and select Exported Template as the Import Type

Building a Windows 7 Beta VM:

1.       Once the template is installed just click New VM button and the Windows 7 Template will show up at the top of the first screen
2.       The rest is business as usual just be sure to add a disk drive and a NIC as you are creating the VM

The Hard Way

The hard way is to create a new VM using the existing Windows Server 2008 x64 template. Create a new VM and point to your Windows 7 Beta install source. On the last page of the New VM wizard in XenCenter unclick the "Start VM Automatically" option. Also make a note of the VM name as you will need this in a second.

We run Windows 2008 enlightened on the XenServer 5 platform. Enlightened means the VM knows it's running virtual and we can make it run faster! Microsoft is still working on the Windows 7 Beta so we just need to turn off the enlightenment support for now to get it working.

So to do this we need to use the XenServer CLI. Just click on your XenServer system in the left hand tree view of XenCenter and select the console tab and get ready to type a few command lines. Hit <enter> to get to the command prompt and then type xe vm-list name-label=<Your VM name Here>, just type the first few letters and hit the <tab> key to save having to type the whole name. Now you will get a display showing you the unique ID (uuid) of your virtual machine. Make a note of the UUID and then type xe vm-param-set uuid=<uuid of your VM> platform:viridian=false. Then you can go startup the VM and start installing Windows 7 Beta.