What's new in XenDesktop® 7.x?
With the release of Citrix XenDesktop 7, Citrix has introduced a lot of improvements over the previous releases. With every new product release, there is a lot of information published and sometimes it becomes very difficult to get the key information that all the system administrators will be looking for in order to understand what has been changed and what are the key benefits of the new release.
The purpose of this section is to highlight the new key features that XenDesktop 7.x brings to the fore for all Citrix administrators.
Note
This section does not provide you with all the details regarding the new features and changes that XenDesktop 7.x has introduced but highlights the key points that every Citrix administrator should be aware of while administrating XenDesktop 7.
The key highlights of XenDesktop 7.x are as follows:
- XenApp and XenDesktop are now a part of a single setup
- Cloud integration to support desktop deployments on the cloud
- The IMA database doesn't exist anymore
- The IMA is replaced by FlexCast Management Architecture (FMA)
- Zone concept—there are no more zones or ZDC (data collectors)
- Database support—Microsoft SQL is the only supported database
- Sites are used instead of farms
- Console integration—XenApp and XenDesktop can now share consoles; Citrix Studio and Desktop Director are used for both products
- Shadowing feature is deprecated; Citrix recommends Microsoft Remote Assistance for use
- Locally installed applications integrated to be used with server-based desktops
- HDX and mobility features
- Profile management is included
- MCS can now be leveraged for both server and desktop OS
- MCS now works with KMS
- Storefront replaces Web Interface
- Remote PC access
- No more Citrix streaming Profile Manager; Citrix recommends that you use MS App-V
- XenApp installation—core component is replaced by a VDA agent
