XenApp for Windows Server 2008 R2 has a new HDX Plug-n-Play feature called True Multi-monitor. First of all, why the heck is it called "True". Does it mean our existing Multi-monitor solution on Windows Server 2003 and Windows Server 2008 R1 we had for several years was "False" . Let me explain. Historically Terminal Services has not allowed the mapping of multiple display devices into a remote session. So we presented a single display to Windows that overlaps all of the display devices on the client. And XenApp had to hook (the infamous MMHOOK) the Windows APIs that deal with multiple monitors to fake the existence of different display devices where in reality there is only one.

With True Multi-monitor, our display driver can actually present multiple display devices to the host Windows OS server that match those on the client. This will enable Windows to completely handle the Multi-monitor behavior. There are several benefits with this approach as outlined below

• Improved application compatibility as we never have to deal with hooking conflicts with other applications
• Better performance as we delegate the Multi-monitor tasks to Windows
• Better quality as we don't have to work around specific application and monitor configuration bugs

And best of all, this feature relies on server side changes and hence you can use this feature with your existing online plug-in/client deployments.

"Learn more about XenApp for R2"
Download the tech preview for XenApp for Windows Server 2008 R2.
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