Mac users out there have long been asking for and waiting for a rich and secure remote access experience with Access Gateway solutions. Now the wait is over. Mac users can now download the Access Gateway plug-in for Mac from MyCitrix.

Access Gateway team has made available Mac OX X plug-in for Access Gateway 4.6 Standard Edition and Access Gateway 9.1 Enterprise Edition:

- The user experience of the plug-in conforms to the native Mac experience, providing rich user experience.

- Mac users can securely connect to their remote applications, leveraging pre- and post-authentication endpoint scans to confirm to their corporate security policies. For stronger security, when the remote Mac user logs off,  the plug-in also destroys any session data (cache, cookies, etc) on the client.

- With globalization features, the plug-in brings this new experience to English, French, German, Spanish and Japanese users.

If you are a Mac user, I encourage you to go to the downloads section on MyCitrix and select Citrix Access Gateway from the drop-down menu of 'Search Downloads by Product", then find "Access Gateway Plug-in for Mac OS X, Version 1.0.2.23" under the Clients section.

If you are using this new plug-in, please share your experience with me and what you would like to see next.

Sai

Citrix Support is focused on ensuring Customer and Partner satisfaction with our products.
One of our initiatives is to increase the ability of our Partners and Customers to leverage self-service avenues via our Knowledge Center.

Our Licensing team in Citrix Support receive lots of questions everyday around How to retrieve licenses for XenApp Platinum or How to license XenServer, etc...

The most common questions asked are documented in the Citrix Knowledge Center.

Below you will find a list of the most common questions asked.

David
Twitter - http://twitter.com/citrixreadiness
Citrix Support on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/citrixsupport

When Citrix first announced NetScaler VPX at Synergy in May, we also announced that we would offer a virtual appliance for Branch Repeater that will be generally available in the first half of 2010. We want to get your input on where, when and how you will use Branch Repeater VPX.

Keep in mind that Branch Repeater is a symmetric solution which means it requires an appliance at both ends of a WAN connection. Today these must be physical appliances but with the upcoming VPX form-factor, one or both could be virtual appliances.

So when, where and how will you use a virtual Branch Repeater? Take our quick poll and then share your comments.

It's been a long time coming, but the Citrix Northeast team is pleased to announce the newest Citrix User Group. The New Jersey Citrix User Group (NJCUG) will be meeting on a quarterly basis, with the first meeting scheduled for this month. Everyone is invited, from Citrix users to administrators. Our goal is to foster a local community for peers to connect, share ideas and learn more about ALL Citrix products and our 3rd party partners. You can expect a wide range of content, from presentations to technical demonstrations and everything in between.

If you've never attended a CUG before, here are some of the things you can expect:

• Food!
• Citrix give-aways
• How to get involved
• Product Updates
• Product Presentations
• Tech Preview Briefings
• Technical Demonstrations
• Customer Deployment Overviews

And remember, just as Citrix has evolved beyond a single product, our CUGs have needed to do the same thing and you can expect to learn about all Citrix products (hardware platforms included!) at the NJCUG meetings.

The agenda for the first meeting is a good one, so come and join us to get the latest updates from Citrix and learn about the first enterprise application store (think iTunes for your Business Apps).

.........................................................................................................
REGISTER NOW!

CLICK HERE http://www.registerandcompute.com/CitrixUserGroup1009NJ
.........................................................................................................

What:
New Jersey Citrix User Group (NJCUG)

When:
October 21, 2009
9am-11am ET

Where:
194 Wood Avenue South (Prudential Building)
Sixth Floor
Iselin, NJ 08830

Follow the NJ Citrix User Group on Twitter to keep abreast of the latest news and updates: @njcug.

Citrix is sponsoring SAP TechEd 09 in Phoenix! Starting on October 13th at the Phoenix Convention Center, Citrix will showcase our desktop virtualization solutions and promote our recent Citrix Delivery Center POC produced jointly with SAP and onsite at SAP Labs in Palo Alto.

Don't miss your chance to learn about our desktop virtualization vision and how our solutions work alongside SAP solutions.

If you're planning to be at SAP TechEd, stop by the Citrix booth (#211) to meet with the team and learn how we're working with SAP to improve application delivery and user experience. Learn more about SAP TechEd or register to attend here.

Visit the Citrix Community for SAP to stay up-to-date on the latest partnership information...and don't forget to follow us on Twitter!

I started a video series on CitrixTV for tips & tricks for working with Workflow Studio. The first video is an explanation of how to use the If/Else activity and conditional logic in your workflows. I'll be posting more videos to the series over time, so if there is something you would like to know how to do then leave feedback in comments or email me directly and I will try to address it.

There are some new articles posted on the Workflow Studio section of CDN. These will probably only be of interest to the developers and advanced workflow gurus out there, but I found them interesting and wanted to share (yes, I am a geek )

• Configuring Workflow Studio to use SQL Server for Tracking and Persistence
• Tips, Tricks, and Best Practices

Keep in mind that most of the CDN sections for Workflow Studio are open to the general public to post and edit (be sure to share your workflows and activity libraries). The tips and tricks article was intentionally left open to all to edit - come on in and share. Make sure you bookmark the articles section, add it to your RSS reader, or just click on the Community tab from within Workflow Studio every time you open it.

With Workflow Studio 2.0 we officially support 8 different OS platforms (all on the latest service pack only):

• Windows XP x86
• Windows XP x64
• Windows Vista x86
• Windows Vista x64
• Windows Server 2003 R2 x86
• Windows Server 2003 R2 x64
• Windows Server 2008 x86
• Windows Server 2008 x64

We don't stop you from installing on unsupported platforms and the chances are pretty good that everything will work just fine. However, we know that everyone wants to use their product in a fully supported environment. As we plan for the next release, Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 will be available. To make sure we make the right decisions on which platforms we officially support I would like to get your feedback.

Please take the polls below to let us know which platform(s) you want to be able to use Workflow Studio with and whether you need 32-bit support only, 64-bit support only, or both:

If you would like to install Workflow Studio in an unattended fashion or if you just want to learn more about the installation process, there is now an article available on the community site:

http://community.citrix.com/display/wf/Workflow+Studio+2.0+Installation+Overview

Learn more about Citrix XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2

• Official Press Release - http://citrix.com/English/NE/news/news.asp?newsID=1857726
• XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2 release Web Site - http://citrix.com/xenapp/featurepack2
• XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2 Executive Video - http://citrix.com/xenapp/fp2/video
• XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2 Release Webinar - http://citrix.com/xenapp/fp2/techtalk
• XenApp Expert Series videos for this release - http://citrix.com/xenapp/fp2/expertseries
• XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2 Blogs- http://community.citrix.com/blogs/tag/xa5fp2
• Download XenApp technology previews - http://citrix.com/xenapp/techpreviews
• XenApp Product Page - http://citrix.com/xenapp/

Follow XenApp on | | |

A new whitepaper describing the XML firewall features available in NetScaler version 9.x is available here.
It includes a concise summary of the feature capabilities and the types of applications that the Application firewall can secure. Security is a core component of the Application Delivery Controller (ADC) platform. For a broad overview of the security related features available in the NetScaler, get Citrix NetScaler - A Comprehensive Application Security Solution.

Alessandro over at virtualization.info commented that we need to do a better job communicating the value and capabilities of Workflow Studio:
http://www.virtualization.info/2009/09/release-citrix-workflow-studio-20.html

I have to admit, I have been focused on talking about the new version and features (I'm excited about them.) There are lots of places though where we do talk about the capabilities that Workflow Studio enables for our customers:

On the main product page for Workflow Studio we cover the 5 use cases that customers typically use Workflow Studio for:

1. Power management - Reduce power consumption in the datacenter.
2. User provisioning - Automate the process of provisioning users.
3. Dynamic resource allocation - Detect changes in user traffic patterns and automatically re-configure server resources for on-demand access.
4. Disaster recovery - Automate failover and recovery procedures.
5. Product automation - Automate repetitive tasks and ensure best practices are followed.

I am also taking each of the bullets from the original post announcing the availability of Workflow Studio 2.0 and going into more detail. I just posted Automate XenApp with Workflow Studio where I talk about some of the use cases that we based the new XenApp libraries on. I will have some sample workflows posted with video tutorials as well.

I wrote The Three Audiences of Workflow Studio back in February, but it is still just as relevant with the current version of Workflow Studio. 'Scripting guys' and developers will find a lot to like in Workflow Studio, but you don't need to be one to benefit from Workflow Studio. The drag-and-drop interface and standard way of accessing all the Citrix product APIs (as well as PowerShell, Windows, WMI, etc.) opens up access to a much broader range of people.

The Workflow Studio 2.0 Video Tutorial Series provides an introduction, an architectural overview, and an installation/configuration guide for getting started and should help save you time as you consider how to deploy Workflow Studio.

Also, I want to clarify the availability of Workflow Studio as an anonymous comment left there indicates there may be some confusion. Workflow Studio is included as part of ALL editions of the Citrix Delivery Center products - not just Platinum. Workflow Studio comes with all of the below:

• XenApp Advanced, Enterprise, or Platinum edition
• XenDesktop Standard, Advanced, Enterprise, or Platinum edition
• NetScaler Standard, Enterprise, or Platinum edition
• Essentials for XenServer Enterprise and Platinum editions
• Essentials for Hyper-V Enterprise and Platinum editions

As always leave me your feedback in the comments or email me directly...

In a previous post announcing the availability of Workflow Studio 2.0 I listed the new features that are available. Here is a closer look at the first feature mentioned:

Native XenApp activity libraries

With the 2.0 release of Workflow Studio, we now include 18 activities for managing application virtualization scenarios with XenApp. These activities provide access to your XenApp farm, servers, applications, and even sessions.

These 18 activities were designed around two key use cases:

1. Backup/Restore of applications - By providing access to retrieve current published applications as well as publishing new applications, these activities provide the ability to do automated configuration backups, QA to Production migrations, and help automate version upgrades. View sample workflows that address this use case for backup and restore.
2. Manage logons - Many customers expressed the need to be able to automatically manage access to their XenApp servers. We also received feedback that the way customers most often manage logons is through the use of customized load evaluator rules. We included activities that help manage logons for automated maintenance of XenApp servers.

These activities are installed by the activity library installer and leverage the new Commands for PowerShell to interface with XenApp. Everything you need to build a XenApp workflow is included in the installer, but to run the workflow you will need to meet two requirements:

1. You must install either Workflow Studio or a Runtime on a XenApp server in your farm as these commands do not support remote connections. The XenApp server you install it on just needs to be a member of the farm and does not need to be serving applications.
2. These activities only support XenApp 4.5 HRP3 and later. If you need access to prior versions of XenApp, you will need to use MFCOM. More information on how to use Workflow Studio with MFCOM is available in this Workflow Studio SDK MFCOM example.

Keep in mind that we also support native activities that run VBScript and PowerShell scripts. If there is something missing from our activity libraries that you want to automate you may be able to do so through a script and not actually need a native activity for a given task.

The Workflow Studio 2.0 Video Tutorial Series provides an introduction, an architectural overview, and an installation/configuration guide for getting started and should help save you time as you consider how to deploy Workflow Studio.

I'm sure our customers and partners will find other unique use cases. Feel free to leave feedback in comments or email me directly to let me know what you are doing with the product (or what you would like to be able to do.)

Workflow Studio is included with XenApp Feature Pack 2

Learn more about Citrix XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2

• Official Press Release - http://citrix.com/English/NE/news/news.asp?newsID=1857726
• XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2 release Web Site - http://citrix.com/xenapp/featurepack2
• XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2 Executive Video - http://citrix.com/xenapp/fp2/video
• XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2 Release Webinar - http://citrix.com/xenapp/fp2/techtalk
• XenApp Expert Series videos for this release - http://citrix.com/xenapp/fp2/expertseries
• XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2 Blogs- http://community.citrix.com/blogs/tag/xa5fp2
• Download XenApp technology previews - http://citrix.com/xenapp/techpreviews
• XenApp Product Page - http://citrix.com/xenapp/

Follow XenApp on | | |

You can quote me! "Personally I have forgotten how to dial my office phone. And I never slave over SAP entering home phone expenses for expensive business calls. Every EasyCall saves me time and, more often than not, saves Citrix a ton on telephone expenses."

EasyCall is a simple solution from Citrix and, quite frankly, a hidden gem of a feature. Using a client plugin and a Xen-based virtual appliance that brokers calls with your VoIP system, EasyCall makes calls for users with a simple click anywhere on their screen. It even enables conference calls for up to 50 users! Now in EasyCall 3.0, users can even configure the Follow Me feature which tries to find them using a list of numbers they configure. Did I mention that it works with a lot of different telephone systems? And did I mention that users just need a phone that rings? No need to mess with softphones for remote access....though it works with those too. And now, NetScaler users can add click to call numbers to web applications..it's simple with EasyCall. What it all comes down to is that EasyCall is like a softphone, but without any additional cost.

To get EasyCall, just download and install XenServer and add the EasyCall Virtual Appliance to your XenApp, XenDesktop or NetScaler setup. Download it and go.

What's new in EasyCall 3.0? Call forwarding so you can both make and receive calls remotely; authentication supports for BYOC (Bring your own computer) users; a user portal accessible from browsers and even iPhones for managing conferencing, call forwarding, and locations; Win 7 and Snow Leopard support; dial-in access to EasyCall conferences; net call links for EasyCalling specific company telephone numbers; and delivery via Citrix Receiver 1.1! All in five languages!

Congratulations and thank you to all those folks that created this new version! Please check it out and let us know what you think. We welcome any and all feedback!

Learn more about Citrix XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2

• XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2 Blogs- http://community.citrix.com/blogs/tag/xa5fp2
• Official Press Release - http://citrix.com/English/NE/news/news.asp?newsID=1857726
• XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2 release Web Site - http://citrix.com/xenapp/featurepack2
• XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2 Executive Video - http://citrix.com/xenapp/fp2/video
• XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2 Release Webinar - http://citrix.com/xenapp/fp2/techtalk
• XenApp Expert Series videos for this release - http://citrix.com/xenapp/fp2/expertseries
• Download XenApp technology previews - http://citrix.com/xenapp/techpreviews
• XenApp Product Page - http://citrix.com/xenapp/

Follow XenApp on | | |

Sometimes we are so focused on what the (technical) media tells us that we can lose perspective on reality and market dynamics that can (and often do) affect our businesses.  Analysts are great and perform a valuable role, but they are not entrepreneurs, inventors or architects.  This being the case, if we put too much stock in what they say or where the market will go, we can mislead ourselves. This could result in a false sense of direction leading us to the wrong conclusions about our roadmaps.  Such is the case with Cloud Computing and mass delivery of Internet Protocol applications and services.

To set the stage let me start with the misconception that Cloud Computing has somehow been isolated to large ISPs such as Google and Amazon.  We could include Microsoft in the mix but they are currently not offering a consumable solution yet.  Why would we believe that these companies are the only focus of the market?  What about the Fortune 100 communications companies that have already been in business for many years providing IP communications and services in mass?  Isn't it possible that these are the "real" contenders in the Cloud Computing space and we keep listening to analysts tell us 'they don't belong' or large service providers are in a different segment and therefore aren't on their radar.

I have to admit I've found this to be the case.  Within the large analyst firms there are specializations of expertise; IT, Virtualization, Infrastructure, Networks, and Communications to name a few.  These analysts often don't communicate or collaborate with each other and as a result we get a very monolithic view of an industry.  Since IT has evolved to be in every sector from Energy to Entertainment, gaining a holistic view of future offerings (Cloud Computing included) is difficult to say the least when confronting "experts" in individual sectors.  All the while huge communications and entertainment companies such as AT&T, Verizon, Deutsche Telekom, and Comcast are building out massive IP networks and services that would dwarf any Enterprise, ISP or Software company.

Note that the convergence of IT services for a "utility" offering is the core definition of Cloud Computing and yet Utility type companies are not usually included as contenders in the space.  I would venture to guess that companies such as AT&T for instance should be considered players in the Cloud Computing business. Wouldn't you? To prove the point, one only has to look at the offerings available in the market today and see that there is a huge potential to fulfill the promise (and demand) of Cloud Computing. 

The diagram below is a depiction of the current AT&T U-verse network.  Note that it is a pure Internet Protocol (IP) network and provides utility based data and communications to a mass population with Service Level Agreements (SLAs) capable of providing High Definition Video Entertainment services, IP Voice services, and Internet Applications services.  AT&T has two major data centers which aggregate traffic from Video Head Ends as well as their own ISP connections and contracts to Internet asset providers such as Yahoo!. The IP traffic flows from the data center via fiber optic cable to Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexers (DSLAM) within a neighborhood or office complex.  These DSLAMs then provide network access to the individual home or office via Very High Speed Digital Subscriber Lines (VHDSL) capable of carrying high bandwidth IP applications such as HDTV or heavily intensive graphics applications.  VHDSL is an asynchronous network technology meaning there is a disparity between upstream and downstream bandwidth.  However, the upstream path is still very capable of providing certain types of real-time communication and high bandwidth IP data/applications paths. 

Further, if we take a look at the AT&T U-verse home/office extension we'll note that Cisco has partnered with AT&T to provide a low cost, high speed (100 GB) combination wireline/wireless router. They have also created an extended end point Set Top Box (STB) which is really a Central Processing Unit (CPU) with both volatile and non volatile memory.  Further, Microsoft is included in this partnership and has written a light version of their Operating System (O/S) called Mediaroom in order to provide a platform for services from the data center.  These include custom applications that can be accessed from any PC/Mac in the world and used to control both Entertainment and Communications applications rendered either on the IPTV or on the local PC.  Mediaroom resides on the STB and communicates to the data center through the Cisco router using IP.  Microsoft has installations of Mediaroom in (25) major service providers around the world in every geography (including China).

Applications can be on-boarded through this network into the home/office by merely sending the code over the IP network to each individual STB in the home/office.  One has to wonder will it be long before AT&T, partnering with Microsoft and Cisco begins to offer applications for home/office use over this network as well.  All of the elements are already in place, being used and a billing model producing revenues.  This is not the case with Google, Amazon or any other emerging Cloud provider.

Similar types of services are available from other large communications companies around the world but they do not seem to be captured as companies worthy of being on the Cloud Computing radar.  Cloud Computing will evolve that is for sure and many companies will either opt out or be pushed to the side by the real contenders.  However, the convergence of IP technologies and the emergence of utility based computing is much broader than just a few ISPs and the sooner all the players are brought into the mix, the better for those of us who are attempting to set future roadmaps to enable the Cloud to be real.

I posted the first 3 videos for the Workflow Studio 2.0 video tutorial series on CitrixTV:

1. Getting Started with Workflow Studio 2.0
2. Workflow Studio 2.0 Architecture and Components
3. Installing and Configuring Workflow Studio 2.0

You can access the series and watch them all in a playlist format from here:
http://www.citrix.com/tv/series/109

I plan to add some more video tutorials to this series and also plan to do a series that explores the new features in 2.0 specifically. Let me know what you think and what other topics you want me to cover...

One of the new exclusive Windows 7 feature is the use of search connectors. Users have the ability to search remote file repositories on the local network or web using Windows Explorer. I've created a Windows 7 search connector to search content into the Citrix Knowledgebase.

Download the CitrixKB CitrixKB.zip search Connector and add http://support.citrix.com and http://api.bing.com to your trusted sites in your Internet Explorer. (Tools -> Internet Options -> Security)

Now you can start your Windows Explorer, click Citrix on the left favorite pane and enter your search string.

The Citrix Cloud offers users the ability to experience the power of Citrix solutions without having to setup and configure their own environemnt. The Citrix Cloud demo environment utilize a number of key Citrix solutions including Citrix XenServer, Citrix XenApp, Citrix NetScaler and Citrix Access Gateway.

Users can register for a demonstration account good for a 2 hour session, or expires 24 hours from the time of the registration. Currently the Citrix Cloud offers demos for the PC's & Mac's plus Citrix Receiver on iPhone and Citrix Receiver for Windows Mobile Professional devices. You can use the link below to register for a demo account from you PC or your mobile device.

Registration URL http://www.citrixcloud.net

When you're ready to meet your local Citrix Field team let us know and we will set up a time to show you why Citrix has always been and will always be the leader in simplified virtualization!

NetScaler Application Firewall devices are commonly deployed as a cluster of devices behind (hopefully) a NetScaler loadbalancer or Application Delivery Controller (ADC), as we like to call them now. Content Switching or URL based routing decisions are typically done on the load balancer, but some topologies require the flexibility of performing this action from the firewall tier itself. In this case, the firewall is directly connected to the web server tier without a loadbalancer in between.

The NetScaler Application Firewall can do content switching using the AppExpert policy engine based on any incoming request parameters to direct traffic to backend servers. Upgrading to the Platinum edition will make all NetScaler features available in an integrated platform enabling consolidation of server tiers. This feature is available in NetScaler 9.0 Build 69.x onwards as well as the 9.1 release.

Citrix is sponsoring Oracle OpenWorld! Starting on October 11th at San Francisco's Moscone Center, Citrix will showcase our desktop virtualization solutions and promote recent Oracle application validations with Citrix NetScaler and Citrix XenApp. At the event we'll also feature Citrix Receiver for the iPhone running Oracle applications.
Don't miss your chance to learn about our desktop virtualization vision and how our solutions work alongside Oracle solutions.

The following are the Citrix speaking sessions at Oracle OpenWorld:

Delivering Oracle Applications with Citrix Desktop Virtualization Solutions
Different users have different computing needs. Learn how desktop delivery solutions from Citrix can provide cost-effective application and desktop management solutions for all users.
@ October 12th - 11:30am (Booth #2137)

Desktop Virtualization - Five Years Forward
Desktop virtualization will have a pivotal impact over the next five years. Learn how your organization can use these solutions today and to plan for the future.
@ October 13th - 3:30pm (Booth #2137)

If you're planning to be at Oracle OpenWorld, attend our speaking sessions or stop by the Citrix booth (#229) to meet with the team and learn how we're working with Oracle to improve application delivery and user experience. Learn more about Oracle OpenWorld or register to attend here.

And...drum roll please...here's your chance to attend the event at no cost! If you're a Citrix customer and are interested in attending Oracle OpenWorld, we are offering 50 "Discover" passes to the event. These are available on a first come, first served basis. Contact the Oracle Alliance Team today to secure your pass and take advantage of this offer!
 

I'm pleased to announce that Workflow Studio 2.0 is now available:

Download Workflow Studio 2.0 (MyCitrix login required)

This release has a number of great new features and is a seamless upgrade from version 1.x. Here are some of the key new features:

• Native XenApp activity libraries (and many other additional activities)
• Remote runtimes
• Simplified management interface
• Enhanced security features
• Simplified installation and configuration
• Improved SDK
• Simplified workflow Designer
• Globalization support

I will post some more blogs over the next few days with more details on the above features and will also be updating the CDN site with many new articles, so subscribe to the Workflow Studio blog and head over to the Workflow Studio CDN site and subscribe for updates on CDN as well.

Feel free to leave feedback in comments or email me directly.

Workflow Studio will be included with XenApp Feature Pack 2

Learn more about Citrix XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2

• Official Press Release - http://citrix.com/English/NE/news/news.asp?newsID=1857726
• XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2 release Web Site - http://citrix.com/xenapp/featurepack2
• XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2 Executive Video - http://citrix.com/xenapp/fp2/video
• XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2 Release Webinar - http://citrix.com/xenapp/fp2/techtalk
• XenApp Expert Series videos for this release - http://citrix.com/xenapp/fp2/expertseries
• XenApp 5 Feature Pack 2 Blogs- http://community.citrix.com/blogs/tag/xa5fp2
• Download XenApp technology previews - http://citrix.com/xenapp/techpreviews
• XenApp Product Page - http://citrix.com/xenapp/

Follow XenApp on | | |