DVS Simplified. Reference Architecture for. VDI-in-a-Box. 8/23/2013 Phase 4 Version 2.2

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DVS Simplified

Reference Architecture for

VDI-in-a-Box

8/23/2013 Phase 4 Version 2.2

THIS DOCUMENT IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY, AND MAY CONTAIN TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS AND TECHNICAL INACCURACIES. THE CONTENT IS PROVIDED AS IS, WITHOUT EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND.

Copyright © 2013 Dell Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction of this material in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of Dell Inc. is strictly forbidden. For more information, contact Dell.

Dell, the Dell logo, and the Dell badge are trademarks of Dell Inc. Microsoft and Windows are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. VMware is a registered trademark of VMware, Inc. Citrix and XenDesktop are registered trademarks of Citrix Systems, Inc. Other trademarks and trade names may be used in this document to refer to either the entities claiming the marks and names or their products. Dell Inc. disclaims any proprietary interest in trademarks and trade names other than its own.

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Executive Summary

Dell and Citrix have taken another significant step toward eliminating the complexity of desktop virtualization. Together, we have developed an improved turn-key solution – the DVS Simplified Appliance – to help enterprise customers leverage this compelling

technology. For those new to the space, desktop virtualization is a proven methodology for delivering a rich computing experience to users from centralized data centers. These data centers can be on-site or cloud-based, in either customer-hosted or Dell-managed configurations. In desktop virtualization the OS, applications, user preferences, and user data are decoupled from the client device. As a result, IT departments have the ability to deliver standardized desktops to multiple end points, to improve operational efficiency and security, and to ultimately enhance user productivity.

Dell’s Desktop Virtualization and Cloud Client Computing solutions meet the needs of a rapidly changing and increasingly mobile workforce by providing near universal access to corporate apps and data. They also provide IT departments with a greater degree of control by delivering a flexible user experience without compromising security. With Citrix VDI-in-a-Box 5.3, the Dell DVS Simplified Appliance provides a simplified, cost effective solution in a convenient appliance. This allows companies with limited budgets and IT staff to leverage the benefits of desktop virtualization at as few as 50 users.

VDI-in-a-Box 5.3 integrates connection brokering, load balancing, desktop provisioning, high-availability, and user personalization features using Citrix Personal vDisk (PVD). VDI-in-a-Box 5.3 also delivers preferred management functions in a single package running on standard Dell servers with local storage while enabling anytime anywhere access with built-in support for the Citrix® HDX™ high definition desktop virtualization experience to users for any application, device, or network. Finally, VDI-in-a-Box offers hypervisor support for Citrix XenServer, VMware vSphere and Microsoft Hyper-V.

This reference architecture provides an introduction to the technology, benefits, general sizing guidance and configuration recommendations for implementing a Dell virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) solution powered by Citrix VDI-in-a-Box 5.3 with a Citrix XenServer, VMware vSphere or Microsoft Hyper-V infrastructure. This configuration combines Dell PowerEdge R720 rack or Dell PowerEdge T620 tower servers with VDI-in-a-Box software to create a flexible VDI solution capable of providing a user experience that is the same or better than a traditional PC desktop.

Solution flexibility allows us to support smaller deployments of only 50 users and broader deployments supporting 100 users on either a tower or a rack based server. The smaller configuration provides virtual desktops at the same cost per seat but with a lower overall cost of entry than the 100 user deployment. In this way, Dell’s Desktop Virtualization Solutions (DVS) are indeed giving you the power to do more.

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2

Introduction

2.1

Introducing the DVS Simplified Appliance

Dell’s DVS Simplified Appliance is a simple, practical VDI appliance designed

specifically to help you address the business and technical challenges of mid-sized virtual desktop deployments and unlock innovation and productivity enabled by the mobile “consumerization” era. The pre-configured DVS Simplified Appliance pre-integrates hardware and software, simplifying your implementation and accelerating your time to value.

The DVS Simplified Appliance also delivers the core benefits of the best VDI solutions including: streamlined desktop management, enhanced security, added agility and

flexibility and a rich user experience that can allow your IT organization to transition from traditional tasks such as answering break/fix calls and patching software to addressing more strategic projects.

The DVS Simplified Appliance includes the following key features:

• Easy to deploy and manage – with an all in one appliance and single server based grid architecture.

• Rich end user experience – maximum leverage of Citrix HDX technologies. • Simple grid infrastructure – provides for linear and predictable expansion. • Available in both rack and tower server configurations.

• Support for Microsoft Hyper-V and Citrix XenServer hypervisors.

• Available in a lower cost-of-entry initial configuration for deployments of 50 users.

2.2

Value Proposition

The DVS Simplified Appliance is architected to support the needs of your simple non-enterprise deployments with an appliance-based solution with the following attributes:

• Affordable – can be purchased with existing PC refresh budgets – less than $500 per seat depending on user count.

• Easy to deploy – wizard-based four-step setup, factory-installed software and pre-configured hardware.

• Easy to manage – all in one software, server based grid architecture. • Easy to operate – single intuitive management console.

• Easy to expand – modular, provides linear and predictable expansion. • Rich end user experience – leverages Citrix HDX for a rich user experience. • Justifiable capital expense – rapid ROI for deployments of 25+ desktops. • Practical – no specialized IT experience required to deploy and manage.

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Simple

• VDI Appliance: – Integrates pre-configured hardware and Citrix VIAB 5.3 software eliminates implementation and operational complexity.

• Quick and Simple deployment: – Provides wizard-driven setup and configuration – rapidly deploy in hours to a few days, no special expertise required.

• Simplified desktop operations: – The solution’s “All-in-one” VDI software consolidates connection brokering, load balancing, provisioning and VDI management functions with Dell server hardware to radically simplify management and provisioning of desktops.

Affordable

• All in one appliance –Integrates VDI Manager software, Dell ProSupport and Dell PowerEdge servers to create a cost-efficient simple appliance with no requirement for network storage

• Ideal balance of cost and performance –Designed specifically with

no-compromise solution components for simple IT environments and medium-sized deployments

• A La Carte Dell Services – Dell JumpStart Remote training and Remote Configuration Services are available to get you up and running in one to three days.

Practical

• Rich user experience – Delivers a rich end-user experience with built-in Citrix HDX® technology for optimizing a user’s virtual desktop experience. Users can access their virtual desktops and work resources from virtually anywhere, seamlessly across different locations and with the device of their choosing. • N+1 Grid Architecture – Implements an easy to manage server grid architecture

with integrated server redundancy. Scales linearly and predictably in a modular fashion.

• End to end solution – Dell’s single integrated solution contains components that are pre-integrated to save time. Dell provides end-to-end support on the appliance and software that utilizes the solution. The solution is complemented by the extensive portfolio of Citrix-validated Dell Wyse thin and zero clients like the new Dell Wyse Xenith 2.

2.3

“Why Dell”

Benefit:

• Significantly decreases “Time to Value” return versus DIY or competitor solutions. • Designed to fit within customer’s environment regardless of current infrastructure.

Also allows for flexibility in terms of services and ownership models.

• Select competitors offer proprietary solutions that lock their customers into certain technologies, limiting future expansion and increasing cost over time.

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• Offers increased productivity, better end user experience and higher levels of efficiency.

• Addresses the whole solution to meet both planned and unplanned future growth requirements.

Value:

• Removes the inherent complexity and allows you to realize value and efficiencies versus customer DIY and competitors.

• Removes economic barriers of entry and mitigates risk due to our extensive experience in cloud computing models.

• Offers you the choice from data center to end point clients/devices, ease of expansion and mitigates cost by providing a scalable architecture for future growth.

• Fosters IT alignment to core business objectives and needs increasing overall business performance.

• The solution will maintain long term agility and financial viability for years to come. Differentiation:

• Only Dell offers an end-to-end solution.

• Single point of contact for all hardware, software and services support.

2.4

Feature Overview

2.4.1

Design Principles

The design principles for the flexible computing solution are:

● Secure – Security risks, concerns and policies are addressed or mitigated.

● Manageable – The solution includes the tools and software services required to manage the environment.

● Standards based – Makes use of commodity, off-the-shelf components wherever possible.

● Distributed – Non-blocking and built with distributed components to maximise the use of available computing resources and eliminate bottlenecks.

● Scalable – Capable of scaling up / down to support business needs.

● Resilient – The solution must be able to withstand the failure of a single infrastructure component.

2.4.2

Architecture Scalability

The architecture is designed to provide a scalable platform:

● The components can be scaled either horizontally or vertically by adding additional DVS Simplified appliances to the VDI-in-a-box grid.

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● The architecture has been designed to eliminate bandwidth and performance bottlenecks as much as possible.

● The architecture has been designed to allow future horizontal and vertical scaling with the objective of reducing the future cost of ownership of the infrastructure.

2.5

Ideal Deployments

The Dell DVS Simplified Appliance is designed for the progressive mid-market VDI

customer supporting anywhere from 50 to hundreds of users. While these customers may have considerable IT expertise, they may not have the resources to design and implement a highly flexible and scalable desktop virtualization solution. This design helps drive

optimizations in the simplicity and agility of the solution and help customers address these common business needs:

DVS Simplified is ideal for IT professionals who are:

• IT Managers in private and public sector organizations spanning all sectors including all core verticals.

• Those responsible for management and operations of client computing and/or desktop computing infrastructure in the IT organization.

Those whose responsibilities include:

• Operations of IT systems and related hardware for client computing.

• Providing maintenance, update and break/fix support services for IT systems and equipment.

• Design and implementation of end user computing infrastructure and systems. • Ensure compliance with relevant governmental regulations and mandates. • Establish organization policies and procedures for secure and safe end user

computing.

• Develop requests/proposal for IT budgets, both capital expenditures and operating. expenses for end user computing systems, hardware and services.

• Managing operating expenditures. Influencers:

• CIO, CFO and related staff.

• Data center management and operations. • Network management and operations. • Security management and operations. • Business unit decision makers.

• Employees and users (users may not be employed by the organization –users can include; students, partners, contractors, vendors, regulators, associates or

stakeholders external to the organization). Use cases for the Dell DVS Simplified Appliance:

• Organizations that lack in-house server and storage virtualization expertise - SMBs such as accounting firms, law firms, mortgage companies, insurance brokers, K-12 and higher education, credit unions, regional banks.

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• Organizations that must limit capital outlay or who must fit VDI into their PC refresh budget – State/Local government libraries, county/community hospitals, financial brokerages, community banks.

• Companies that want to employ VDI for a specific user group – department deployment, specific work group, or non-enterprise wide rollouts - VDI desktops for retail stations, call centers, for departments in larger organizations such as the administration staff at a branch office, tellers at credit union retail offices.

• Non-primary desktops or access scenarios – home office, office “hotel-ing,” mobile user access via tablets, remote service technicians, office desktop pools

2.6

When is DVS Simplified Appliance Right for Me?

The Dell DVS Simplified Appliance is specifically targeted at customers that have hundreds of users versus the DVS Enterprise customers that have thousands of users. DVS Simplified is an architecture that has been perfected to meet the features and requirements of small and medium business. Refer to the charts below to determine if DVS Simplified is right for you.

The DVS Simplified Appliance is typically best suited to IT professionals who agree with the following statements:

• I only have a small IT staff of primarily IT generalists.

• I am willing to forego advanced VDI features (e.g. image management or automation) in order to have simplified deployment and management. • I don’t need application virtualization or application streaming.

• I am comfortable with basic high availability.

• I only need virtual desktops for a few hundred users. • My budget for VDI deployment is severely constrained. • I don’t anticipate needing an upgrade path to XenDesktop.

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DVS Simplified versus DVS Enterprise Options:

DVS Simplified

Appliance

DVS Enterprise

Advanced Image

Management

No

Yes

High Availability Option

(HA)

Basic (Failover)

Enterprise class

Live Migration

No

Optional

Application Streaming

No

Optional

Application

Virtualization

No

Optional

Shared Storage

Optional

Yes

Persistent and Non

Persistent Desktops

Yes

Integrated Profile

Persistence

Basic

2.7

New Features

Citrix VDI‑in‑a‑Box 5.3 makes deploying virtual desktops easier, more intuitive and simpler than ever before. With an enhanced single management console, the latest HDX technology stack, a choice of hypervisors between Citrix XenServer, VMware vSphere and Microsoft Hyper-V and a completely integrated Citrix offering, VDI‑in‑a‑Box 5.3 makes pooled and personalized virtual desktops easy to deploy.

Full Windows 8 support

VDI-in-a-Box 5.3 now supports HDX connections to Windows 8 virtual desktops. This will provide the best user experience with enhancements in 3D application support, new H.264 SuperCodec, and reduced bandwidth consumption. With the VDI-in-a-Box 5.3 release, personal desktops (PVD) will be available on both Windows 7 and Windows 8, providing a personalized user experience on the latest Windows desktop OS. It also allows users to take advantage of the new Windows 2012 VHDX format by providing native support.

Better supportability

For IT and support organizations, the VDI-in-a-Box login experience is improved with licensing, JGroup, and HV connector. Log collection is also easier – now you can collect logs from all the vdiManagers on any one vdiManager with just the click of a button.

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For the end user, VDI-in-a-Box 5.3 provides better, more specific error messages and self-service buttons so that they can identify and troubleshoot issues. Remote users can now perform single sign-on (SSO) to virtual desktops via the NetScaler Access Gateway web interface.

Enhanced IT experience

VDI-in-a-Box 5.3 comes with a new wizard-driven SSL certificate installation and

management. IT no longer needs to install a trusted SSL certificate on the vdiManagers for each appliance to avoid security warnings in end user browsers. Version 5.3 allows you to install and manage both trusted and self-signed SSL certificates from the admin console. You can distribute installed certificates to other servers in a grid from the same UI. VDI-in-a-Box 5.3 is now compatible with the Citrix Universal Print Server. IT no longer needs to install multiple network printer drivers in the golden images. Universal Printing requires no driver install.

Stay current with latest technologies

VDI-in-a-Box 5.3 supports the latest Windows and hypervisor technologies including XenServer 6.2, Microsoft Hyper-V 2012, and VMware vSphere / ESX 5.1. No matter what platform you run, VDI-in-a-Box takes advantage of the best that these platforms have to offer. Version 5.3 also provides Windows Server 2012 as virtual desktop in a Windows 8 skin and allows IT to leverage Microsoft SPLA licensing.

2.8

Dell ProSupport and Professional Services Overview

Dell ProSupport is included with the DVS Simplified Appliance, providing

comprehensive hardware and software support for three years. This allows your support staff to spend less time on issue resolution and more time on strategic initiatives. With Dell ProSupport, customers can access highly trained experts to help resolve any issue quickly and effectively 24 hours a day, 365 days per year. Additionally, Dell ProSupport provides access to software updates, bug fixes/patches and product updates for Citrix VDI-in-a-Box and Citrix XenServer.

Dell ProSupport benefits:

• Maximize uptime with the help of expert DVS Simplified Appliance technicians.

• Software support for Citrix VDI-In-A-Box 5.3 and XenServer 6.2.

• Maintain productivity with Dell ProSupport Next Business Day and optional 4-hour response time.

Additionally, Dell offers the following optional value-add services in support of its DVS Simplified Appliance:

Highly recommended:

• JumpStart Training – Jumpstart training for Dell DVS Simplified Appliance is available as a 4-hour* Web-based course that includes the guidance and hands-on exercises necessary for IT administrators of all levels to master appliance

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configuration and administration activities quickly and effectively. The curriculum can be customized to fit your specific needs.

*The training is also available as a 2-hour option when combined with Remote Advisory/Configuration Services.

• Remote Advisory Services – Dell Remote Advisory Services are available to

remotely configure the DVS Simplified Appliance. The 4-hour service also includes an option for knowledge transfer.

• Blueprint Assessment Services – Dell’s Blueprint Assessment Service uses a virtual appliance and agent software, deployed on the customer’s network, to gather detailed data from every desktop targeted for virtualization. The outcome is an expansive and detailed report of the desktop environment and user profiles. This data-driven feedback is used as a basis for a productive virtual desktop

environment. This information also helps Dell create a detailed and accurate design and implementation plan for delivering virtual desktops.

• Blueprint Assessment Lite Services –Dell’s Blueprint Assessment Lite Service is similar to the Blueprint Assessment Service with the exception that the customer executes data collection activities and engages Dell to conduct the data analysis. • Network Optimization Services – Dell’s Network Optimization Service includes a

comprehensive assessment of your network with detailed recommendations to optimize performance and availability.

• Image Creation Services – Dell’s Image Creation Service converts physical desktop images into virtual images in accordance with Dell or customer-defined specifications, for use with the Dell DVS Simplified Appliance.

2.9

Desktop Virtualization Solutions Overview

A typical Dell DVS Enterprise VDI deployment requires components that are not needed for the typical DVS Simplified Appliance customer. An illustration of a typical DVS

Enterprise deployment is shown in Figure 1 and described below:

Provisioning Servers: These management servers control the dynamic provisioning and de-allocation of virtual desktops. Typically, a minimum of two provisioning servers are required for high-availability.

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Delivery controllers: These servers manage and broker the end-user connections to the virtual desktops. Typically, a minimum of two delivery controllers/connection brokers is required for high-availability.

Virtual desktop hosts: These are the servers that run the virtual desktop workload and the number of these depends on their capacity and the sizing guidelines of the VDI solution.

Load balancers: A minimum of two load balancers are typically placed in front of the delivery controllers to evenly distribute the desktop workload.

Shared storage SAN: Shared storage is required to create a centralized storage resource pool for the running virtual desktops, so that in the event of a server failure, a different VM host can pick up the desktop state from the SAN and run the desktops.

High-speed interconnects: Typically, for performance reasons, high-speed interconnects are used among these components.

While this DVS Enterprise VDI architecture is cost-effective for large deployments, it requires a sizable investment that may not be efficient for smaller deployments. Dell configures the solution for customers and provides a thoroughly-tested, well-integrated appliance.

Figure 1: Enterprise VDI

While a DVS Enterprise VDI architecture is cost-effective for large deployments, it requires a sizable investment that may not be efficient or ideal for smaller deployments. Either way however, we configure the solution for you and provide a thoroughly-tested,

well-integrated appliance that will fit your needs.

Figure 2 below references a Citrix “VDI-in-a-Box” deployment using a grid architecture that makes expansion easy and delivers high-availability (HA) without requiring externally attached shared storage (such as a SAN). This results in a significant cost savings. To expand a VDI-in-a-Box deployment, simply load the Citrix software on additional Dell

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PowerEdge servers. Then add the new servers to the VDI-in-a-Box grid by answering two simple questions posed by the Citrix management software. VDI-in-a-Box automatically prepares the new servers with the appropriate desktop images and load balances the desktop workload across the grid.

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3

Solution Architecture

3.1

Architecture Overview

Dell’s Desktop Virtualization Solutions are a combination of purpose-built horizontal architectures designed to be modular and scalable for an array of customer needs and a defined and tested services methodology. To provide this scalable and predictive solution stack, Dell developed specific design criteria based on extensive testing and validation within our Engineering Solutions Lab. This drove the design criteria to allow modular scalability which requires certain design constraints as outlined in this document. The DVS Simplified base configuration provides customers with the following choices:

● Appliance hardware form factor

o Rack-based or Tower-based ● Base hypervisor platform

o Citrix XenServer, VMware vSphere or Microsoft Hyper-V ● Appliance scale level

o Large appliance (up to 150 users) or small appliance (up to 75 users)

Customers can be assured that no matter what hypervisor, appliance hardware platform, or scale level they choose, the DVS Simplified solution will meet and/or exceed all

performance levels and provide users with the best possible VDI experience. 3.1.1

Simplified Appliance Form Factor Options

Customers can now choose between two appliance hardware form factors. The DVS Simplified appliance can either be ordered as a rack-based solution based on Dell’s PowerEdge R720 platform, or as a tower-based solution based on Dell’s PowerEdge T620 platform.

3.1.2

Hypervisor Platform Options

Additionally, customers can now choose between three hypervisor platforms. The DVS Simplified solution now supports and can be configured with Citrix XenServer 6.2, Microsoft Hyper-V 2012 or VMware vSphere 5.1. All three choices have been tested and validated to provide the same high level of performance, while adhering to the customer’s standard or preference.

3.1.3

Appliance Scale Configuration Options

The DVS Simplified appliance can now be ordered in two hardware scale configurations, regardless of appliance form factor; depending on deployment size and purpose. While the two configurations share the same rack-based and tower-based hardware platform(s), the differences between the two are as follows;

● Large Appliance Configuration

o Chassis for Up to 16 x 2.5-Inch Hard Drives o Dual Intel Xeon® ES-2680v2 2.8Ghz, 10 Cores

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o 256 GB (16x16GB) DDR3 1666MHz

o 16 x 300 GB 15K RPM SAS 6 Gbps 2.5 Inch Hot plug Hard Drives ● Small Appliance Configuration

o Chassis for Up to 8 x 2.5-Inch Hard Drives o Dual Intel Xeon® ES-2640v2 2.0Ghz, 8 Cores o 128 GB (12x8GB) DDR3 1333MHz

o 8 x 300 GB 10K RPM SAS 6 Gbps 2.5 Inch Hot plug Hard Drives

3.1.4

Appliance User Loads

The DVS Simplified solution is marketed as a simplified VDI configuration that can serve as a great entry point for customers into the VDI market. All management roles will be virtualized on the DVS Simplified appliances. Maximum per large appliance user

estimations are based on one of the following:

● 150 users per server running a basic workload.

● 125 users per server running a standard workload.

● 114 users per server running a premium workload.

Maximum per small appliance user estimations are based on one of the following:

● 75 users per server running a basic workload.

● 63 users per server running a standard workload.

● 56 users per server running a premium workload.

The solution is based on Citrix VDI-in-a-Box. Citrix VDI-in-a-Box provides a complete end-to-end solution that delivers Microsoft Windows XP, Windows 7 or 8 virtual desktops to users on a wide variety of endpoint devices. Citrix VDI-in-a-Box provides a complete virtual desktop delivery system by combining management and virtual desktops onto a single server.

3.2

VDI-in-a-box Core Components

DVS Simplified Appliance

VDI-in-a-box

Citrix vdiManager

Load Balancing

Common Base OS Image

Template Manager

VDI Desktop Pool

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The core components that encompass VDI-in-a-Box are:

● VDI-in-a-Box 5.3 Broker

o Installed on servers either in the data center or branch office, the broker

authenticates users, manages the assembly of users’ virtual desktop environments and brokers connections between users and their virtual desktops.

● Provisioning Service

o Enables and controls dynamic provisioning and de-allocation of virtual

desktops.

● High Availability

o vdiManager instances on physical servers communicate with each other to

share key operational and configuration information. When a physical server fails, the remaining servers in the grid have the needed information to create extra desktops to replace those on the failed server. When the failed server is repaired and re-joins the grid, the key operational and configuration information is sent to it and it then resumes desktop provisioning.

● Load Balancing

o Desktops are created across servers running vdiManager based on how

many desktops are currently running on each server and the availability of computing resources (memory and cores) on each server. When a user logs on, vdiManager provisions a desktop from a lightly loaded server.

● Virtual Desktop Agent

o Installed on virtual desktops, the agent enables direct ICA (Independent

Computing Architecture) connections between the virtual desktop and users’ endpoint devices.

● Template Management

o Virtual desktops are created from templates. Templates consist of:

 An image that includes a desktop operating system, a set of applications and the VDI-in-a-Box Desktop Agent

 Policies that specify how many desktops to create, how much RAM to allocate to each, whether local USB peripherals can be accessed by the virtual desktop and the desktop refresh policy.

● Citrix Desktop Receiver

o Software running on an endpoint that enables the device to connect to a

virtual Windows XP, Windows 7 or desktop running on a server

● Additional VDI-in-a-Box components

o Hypervisor Integration. The Citrix VDI-in-a-Box solution can be used in

conjunction with Citrix XenServer, VMware vSphere or Microsoft Hyper-V for the provisioning of virtual machines.

o Active Directory Integration. VDI-in-a-Box optionally uses Active Directory

for security services like authentication.

o Antivirus Management - An optional component that is not built into the solution but is highly recommended.

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4

Hardware Components

4.1

The Simplified Appliances

4.1.1

PowerEdge R720 Rack-Based Solution

The PowerEdge R720 dramatically boosts

application performance with next-generation Intel® Xeon® E5-2600 family processing power and up to 24 DIMMs. Built with 32-nanometer process technology with up to 8 cores per processor, it enables super-fast processing for computing-intensive tasks.

Click for more information on the R720 rack mount server.

PowerEdge R720 Large Appliance PowerEdge R720 Small Appliance

2x Intel Xeon E5-2680v2 @ 2.8ghz – 10 cores 2x Intel Xeon E5-2640v2 @2.0ghz – 8 cores

256GB Memory @ 1666mhz 128GB Memory @ 1333mhz

16x 300GB SAS 6Gbps 15k Disks - RAID10 8x 300 GB SAS 6Gbps 10k Disks - RAID10 PERC H710P Integrated RAID Controller 1Gb

RAM

PERC H710P Integrated RAID Controller 1Gb RAM

Broadcom GbE Quad Port Daughter-card Broadcom GbE Quad Port Daughter-card

iDRAC7 Enterprise iDRAC7 Enterprise

DVS Simplified running on the PowerEdge T620 is the same compelling technology in a different form factor that runs exactly the same as the PowerEdge R720. We offer the R720 and the T620 in a large appliance user configuration and we offer a R720 and a T620 in the small appliance user version. This second option is a compelling offering for IT departments anticipating a lower seat count and who want to enter this space on a trial basis at a lower cost.

Dell’s newest 12G PowerEdge R720 servers feature energy-tuned technologies designed to reduce power consumption while increasing performance and capacity.

Enhancements include:

• Efficient power supply units right-sized for system requirements. • Improved system-level efficiency.

• Policy-driven power and thermal management.

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4.1.2

PowerEdge T620 Tower-Based Solution

The PowerEdge T620 stands in the same class

of performance and shares the same hardware configuration options as the R720; only

delivering it in Dell’s tower-based form factor. The T620 tower-based form factor is ideal for deployments where rack and power resources are unavailable (small branch offices or remote locations), or in VDI pilots/proofs of concept where the appliance location may be

temporary.

Click for more information on the T620 tower server.

PowerEdge T620 Large Appliance PowerEdge T620 Small Appliance

2x Intel Xeon E5-2680v2 @2.8ghz – 10 cores 2x Intel Xeon E5-2640v2 @2.0ghz – 8 cores

256GB Memory @ 1666mhz 128GB Memory @ 1333mhz

16x 300GB SAS 6Gbps 10k Disks - RAID10 8x 300GB SAS 6Gbps 10k Disks - RAID10 PERC H710P Integrated RAID Controller 1Gb

RAM

PERC H710P Integrated RAID Controller 1Gb RAM

Broadcom GbE Quad Port Daughter-card Broadcom GbE Quad Port Daughter-card

iDRAC7 Enterprise iDRAC7 Enterprise

4.1.3

Compliant Dell PowerEdge Servers

Customers with available Dell servers or those who do not want to purchase an R720 or T620 can purchase one of the Dell servers listed below. While DVS does not provide any guidance or sizing on VDI-in-a-Box 5.3 compliant servers the appropriate Citrix software is available for order using our OEM software SKU and is certified to run on the servers in the following categories.

RACK • PowerEdge R210 II • PowerEdge R310 • PowerEdge R320 • PowerEdge R415 • PowerEdge R420 • PowerEdge R515 • PowerEdge R520 • PowerEdge R610 • PowerEdge R620 • PowerEdge R715 • PowerEdge R720 • PowerEdge R720xd • PowerEdge R815 • PowerEdge R820 • PowerEdge R910 BLADE • PowerEdge M420

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• PowerEdge M520 • PowerEdge M610x • PowerEdge M620 • PowerEdge M820 • PowerEdge M915 TOWER • PowerEdge T110 II • PowerEdge T320 • PowerEdge T420 • PowerEdge T620 • PowerEdge T710 C-SERIES • PowerEdge C1100 • PowerEdge C2100 • PowerEdge C410x • PowerEdge C5000 • PowerEdge C5125 • PowerEdge C5220 • PowerEdge C6100 • PowerEdge C6105 • PowerEdge C6145 • PowerEdge C6220 • PowerEdge C8000 • PowerEdge C8000XD • PowerEdge C8220 • PowerEdge C8220X 4.2

Storage

Since VDI-in-a-Box only supports local storage, determining the correct size and type of disk is crucial. The following table details the methods by which to assume storage capacity:

Storage Disk Space

Golden Desktop Images 2x Golden Image size

VM Storage 15% x Image size x #VMs

VDI-in-a-box VM 75GB

Recommended Swap Space VM RAM size x VM # Thin clone expansion

buffer

10% x Golden Image Size x Number of VMs

Also note that VDI-in-a-Box utilizes linked clones technology to further reduce the amount of storage required. This means the virtual machine is a copy of the golden image and in turn, shares virtual disks of the parent clone (i.e., golden image). This is why the storage required per VM is only 15% of the golden image as opposed to 100%. In order to provide linked clones, VDI-in-a-box must copy the golden images to each server on the grid so that linked clones can be created on each host server. Note that the hypervisor must be

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reduction. Otherwise, each VM would require 100% of the disk space reservation used by the golden image.

Another significant point is that the vdiManager virtual machine must be installed on each host machine. This requirement expands the storage necessity by 75 GB per server for the vdiManager VM as well as an additional amount for swap and other transient activity that varies based on the number of virtual desktops and memory allocated to each virtual desktop.

The next important factor when considering storage capacity is the type of local storage (e.g., SATA or SAS) to utilize for virtual machines. The type of storage must be able to accommodate the amount of input/output operations per second (i.e., IOPS) that originate from the virtual machines. Note that each virtual machine may be allocated differently and therefore must take into account the user profile assigned.

As guidance for the solution, disk IOPS and user profile IOPS were used to calculate the type of drive needed. The following tables outline the estimated IOPS profile per drive and per user type, respectively.

Drive Type IOPS per Drive

7200 RPM SATA Hard Drive 75 IOPS 10k RPM SAS Hard Drive 150 IOPS 15K RPM SAS Hard Drive 200 IOPS

User Type IOPS per User Type

Basic Workload 10 IOPS

Standard Workload 12 IOPS

Premium Workload 15 IOPS

4.2.1

Disk Space Requirement by Workload

Given these listed storage considerations, we can calculate the amount of storage required to house the 150, 125 and 114 desktop VM configurations for the standard level system and the 75, 63 and 56 desktop VM configurations for the entry level system. Using 2 golden images that are the same size, it is straight forward to calculate the amount of storage required:

Large Appliance

User Type Storage Type Space Requirements

Basic Workload Golden Images 2 x 20GB × 2 Golden Images = 80GB Virtual Machines 15% × 20 GB × 150 VMs = 450GB Total Server Capacity 80GB + 450GB + 225GB(Swap) + 75GB

(vdiManager VM) = 830GB per Server Recommended Buffer Space 10% × 20GB × 150 VMs = 300 GB Standard

Workload

Golden Images 2 x 25GB × 2 Golden Images = 100GB Virtual Machines 15% × 25GB × 125 VMs = 313GB Total Server Capacity 100GB + 469GB + 188GB(Swap) + 75GB

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Large Appliance

(vdiManager VM) = 832GB per Server Recommended Buffer Space 10% × 25GB × 125 VMs = 313GB Premium

Workload

(vdiManager VM) = 936GB per Server Recommended Buffer Space 10% × 30GB × 114 VMs = 342GB

Small Appliance

Basic Workload Golden Images 2 x 20GB × 2 Golden Images = 80GB Virtual Machines 15% × 20 GB × 75 VMs = 225GB Total Server Capacity 80GB + 225GB + 113GB(Swap) + 75GB

(vdiManager VM) = 493GB per Server Recommended Buffer Space 10% × 20GB × 75 VMs = 150 GB Standard

Workload

(vdiManager VM) = 507GB per Server Recommended Buffer Space 10% × 25GB × 63 VMs = 158GB Premium

Workload

(vdiManager VM) = 559GB per Server Recommended Buffer Space 10% × 30GB × 56 VMs = 168GB

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4.2.2

Drive IOPS Requirement by Workload

The next step is to determine how approximately many drives can satisfy both the storage and the average IOPS requirement for each workload.

Large Appliance

User Type Drive Metrics Drive Requirements

Basic Workload Average IOPS per Server 150 Desktops x10 Average IOPS = 1500 IOPS # of 15k RPM SAS Drives 1500 IOPS ÷ 200 IOPS per Disk = ~7.5

15k RPM SAS Drive Size 1130 GB ÷ 7.5 = ~150GB Standard

Workload

Average IOPS per Server 125 Desktops x12 Average IOPS = 1500 IOPS # of 15k RPM SAS Drives 1500 IOPS ÷ 200 IOPS per Disk = ~7.5

15k RPM SAS Drive Size 1145 GB ÷ 7.5 = ~153GB Premium

Workload

Average IOPS per Server 114 Desktops x15 Average IOPS = 1710 IOPS # of 15k RPM SAS Drives 1710 IOPS ÷ 200 IOPS per Disk = ~8.5

15k RPM SAS Drive Size 1278 GB ÷ 8.5 = ~150GB

The large appliance configuration was built using 16 x 300GB 15K SAS to not only satisfy these calculations but to allow for more space for persistent and PVD desktop users as well as to support an increase in IOPS without a dramatic increase in the price of the system. These additional drives will also allow the array to be configured as RAID-10, thereby adding fault tolerance to the storage array while minimizing performance degradation.

Small Appliance

User Type Drive Metrics Drive Requirements

Basic Workload Average IOPS per Server 75 Desktops x10 Average IOPS = 750 IOPS # of 10k RPM SAS Drives 750 IOPS ÷ 150 IOPS per Disk = ~5

10k RPM SAS Drive Size 643GB ÷ 5 = ~129GB Standard

Workload

Average IOPS per Server 63 Desktops x12 Average IOPS = 756 IOPS # of 10k RPM SAS Drives 756 IOPS ÷ 150 IOPS per Disk = ~5

10k RPM SAS Drive Size 665GB ÷ 5 = ~133GB Premium

Workload

Average IOPS per Server 56 Desktops x15 Average IOPS = 840 IOPS # of 10k RPM SAS Drives 840 IOPS ÷ 150 IOPS per Disk = ~6

10k RPM SAS Drive Size 727GB ÷ 6 = ~121GB

The small appliance Configuration was built using eight 300GB 10K SAS to not only satisfy these calculations but to allow for more space for persistent and PVD desktop users as well as to support an increase in IOPS without a dramatic increase in the price of the solution.

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These additional drives will also allow the array to be configured as RAID-10, thereby adding fault tolerance to the storage array while minimizing performance degradation.

While the solution offers high availability when multiple servers are joined to a grid, not using a RAID configuration with redundancy would allow a single point of failure for the entire solution for single server deployments. Even with multiple servers in a grid, desktop failover is not instantaneous as each failed desktop will have to be provisioned as new desktops on the remaining servers.

4.2.3

Persistent and Non-Persistent Desktops Defined

Persistent Desktops:

• Gives users the flexibility to have their own customized workspace. This

workspace allows users to install applications, customize settings and make other workspace related changes that are saved between sessions. Persistent desktops give users the benefit of having a customized workspace while still enjoying all the security and manageability benefits of desktop virtualization. The downside is that they use substantially more storage than non-persistent. Non-persistent Desktops:

• Non-persistent virtualized desktops revert back to the golden image between

sessions. All desktop-related modifications, such as user installed applications, are removed when the user logs off, reverting back to a clean image on reboot. User-specific settings (persona/profile) that are recorded in the user profile, however, can optionally be stored and re-used.

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4.2.4

Persistent vs. Non-Persistent Desktop Characteristics

4.2.5

Persistent vs. Shared Image Disk Space Planning

When planning a DVS Simplified deployment with persistent desktops, we must assume that users can potentially utilize 100% of the disk space given to the golden image. As the

number of, or size of the golden image increases, the amount of persistent users supported decreases. Below are examples of how the maximum number of users per server varies by workload as you increase the number of golden images.

Note: Any number of golden images can be supported. The table below is displaying three data points of 2, 5 and 10 golden images for example purposes only.

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Persistent Image Disk Space Planning Chart: Large Appliance

Workload Golden Images Golden Image Size Desktop Memory Maximum User Count Basic 2 20 GB 1 GB 98 Standard 2 25 GB 1.5 GB 72 Premium 2 30 GB 2.5 GB 56 Basic 5 20 GB 1 GB 93 Standard 5 25 GB 1.5 GB 67 Premium 5 30 GB 2.5 GB 51 Basic 10 20 GB 1 GB 84 Standard 10 25 GB 1.5 GB 59 Premium 10 30 GB 2.5 GB 43

Persistent Image Disk Space Planning Chart: Small Appliance

Workload Golden Images Golden Image Size Desktop Memory Maximum User Count Basic 2 20 GB 1 GB 49 Standard 2 25 GB 1.5 GB 36 Premium 2 30 GB 2.5 GB 27 Basic 5 20 GB 1 GB 44 Standard 5 25 GB 1.5 GB 31 Premium 5 30 GB 2.5 GB 22 Basic 10 20 GB 1 GB 35 Standard 10 25 GB 1.5 GB 22 Premium 10 30 GB 2.5 GB 14

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4.3

Dell Wyse Xenith 2 and Xenith Pro Zero Clients

Establishing a new price/performance standard for zero

clients for Citrix, the new Dell Wyse Xenith 2 provides an exceptional user experience at a highly affordable price for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp environments. With zero attack surface, the ultra-secure Xenith 2 offers network-borne viruses and malware zero target for attacks. Xenith 2 boots up in just seconds and delivers exceptional

performance for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp users while offering usability and management features found in premium Dell Wyse cloud client devices. Xenith 2 delivers

outstanding performance based on its system-on-chip (SoC) design optimized with its Dell Wyse zero architecture and a built-in media processor delivers smooth multimedia, bi-directional audio and Flash playback. Flexible mounting options let you position Xenith 2 vertically or horizontally on your desk, on the wall or behind your display. Using about 7 Watts of power in full operation, the Xenith 2 creates very little heat for a greener, more comfortable working environment.

Dell Wyse Xenith Pro is the next-generation zero client for Citrix HDX and Citrix XenDesktop, delivering ultimate performance, security and simplicity. With a powerful AMD G-series processor, Xenith Pro is three times faster than competing devices. This additional computing horsepower allows dazzling HD multimedia delivery without overtaxing your server or network. The Wyse Xenith Pro requires no configuration and management—your Citrix XenDesktop server configures it out-of-the-box to your preferences for plug-and-play speed and ease of use. The Xenith Pro draws under 14 watts of power in full operation—less than almost any PC.

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5

Software Components

5.1

Citrix VDI-in-a-Box 5.3

The DVS Simplified appliance is based on the Citrix VDI-in-a-box solution. VDI-in-a-Box is an easy, affordable, all-in-one desktop virtualization solution that makes the benefits of desktop virtualization available to every business. VDI-in-a-Box is the virtualization solution that makes the benefits of desktop virtualization available to every business. Customers of VDI-in-a-Box are radically improving PC management and availability by replacing

traditional PCs with virtual desktops that are centrally managed and provisioned. Since VDI-in-a-Box costs less than PCs to deploy, and scales on demand, organizations are able to repurpose existing PC budgets to deploy it. Desktop administrators manage a grid of VDI-in-a-Box servers centrally with an intuitive wizard-driven interface that abstracts virtualization details. Automated policy-based management cuts desktop support costs.

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5.2

The DVS Simplified Hypervisors

5.2.1

Microsoft Windows Server 2012 Hyper-V

Hyper-V builds on the architecture and functionality of Windows Server 2012 by adding multiple new features that enhance product flexibility. Hyper-V provides a dynamic, reliable and scalable virtualization platform combined with a single set of integrated management tools to manage both physical and virtual resources, enabling you to create an agile and dynamic data center. The benefits of using Windows Server 2012 Hyper-V include: • Monitoring, management, and general administration.

• The Hyper-V Manager is a snap-in for the Microsoft Management Console (MMC) that Windows administrators are familiar with.

• Comes pre-loaded in the Server Manager console on all Hyper-V versions of the appliance.

• Can be loaded on Windows 7 (and above) clients that have “Remote Server Administration Tools” installed (as a free download from Microsoft).

VDI with Windows Server 2012 with Hyper-V Role benefits from a rich end user experience with support for rich media and USB devices with Microsoft RemoteFX as well as a great better together story with Windows 8 as the guest OS due to increased VM density with Dynamic Memory and near-invisible integration of virtualized desktops in Windows 8.

5.2.2

Citrix XenServer 6.2

Citrix XenServer is a complete, managed server virtualization platform built on the powerful Xen hypervisor. Citrix XenServer technology is widely acknowledged as the fastest and most secure virtualization software in the industry. XenServer is designed for efficient

management of Windows® and Linux® virtual servers and delivers cost-effective server consolidation and business continuity.

XenServer is the enterprise-ready, cloud-proven virtualization platform that contains all the capabilities required to create and manage a virtual infrastructure. It is trusted by

demanding organizations to run the most mission critical applications and used by the largest clouds.

● Cuts costs. By reducing the number of physical servers required in the datacenter, organizations are able to save on their power and cooling costs.

● Increases IT agility and efficiency. Customers can easily adapt to changing datacenter and computing needs by dynamically flexing capacity, optimizing VM placement, and automating repetitive management tasks.

● Improves performance and user

productivity. By enabling ‘zero downtime’ maintenance, automatically recovering from hardware failure, and providing

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failover capabilities in disaster situations, end users are ensured access to mission critical applications in all scenarios.

The free edition of XenServer starts with a 64-bit hypervisor and centralized management, live migration, and conversion tools to create a virtual platform that maximizes guest

density and performance. The premium editions of XenServer extend the platform to enable organizations of any size to integrate and automate management processes, delivering a virtual data center solution.

Citrix XenServer 6.2 will be installed with thin provisioning enabled. Click HERE for a Citrix XenServer product overview.

Click HERE for Citrix XenServer documentation and FAQ. 5.2.3

VMware vSphere 5.1

VMware ESXi—the industry’s first x86 “bare-metal” hypervisor—is the most reliable and robust hypervisor. Launched in 2001 and now in its fifth generation, VMware ESXi has been production-proven in tens of thousands of customer deployments all over the world. The purpose-built, thin ESXi hypervisor at the core of vSphere is the base software layer on each host and it is designed for the sole purpose of virtualization. With vSphere 5.1, VMware has completed its transition to the truly thin ESXi architecture, which completely eliminates any reliance on a general-purpose operating system.

5.3

Microsoft Licensing with DVS Simplified

5.3.1

Microsoft Windows Licensing

VDI-in-a-Box 5.3 supports both KMS and MAK Volume Licensing for Windows 7 or Windows 8 desktops. Volume Activation methods were introduced with Windows 7 and do not apply to Windows XP. VDI-in-a-Box only supports Volume License versions of Windows XP, which do not require activation with Microsoft. KMS activation is the preferred method for most customers that have at least 25 unique Windows activations across both physical and virtual (VDI-in-a-Box) machines every 30 days. KMS allows for unlimited number of activations, can be easily managed a KMS host and VAMT and usually requires no change to the golden image.

VDI-in-a-Box 5.3 offers a new setting at the template level to reset the KMS activation timer. Leaving this unchecked implies that the image’s activation clock is not rearmed during prepare. Checking the box implies that the image’s activation clock is rearmed during prepare, decrementing the activation count. If the image’s activation clock is rearmed more than 3 times before the image is activated by KMS (Microsoft activation Key Management Service), the image cannot be prepared because the /generalize will fail.

If your environment is already using a KMS Host, the only thing an administrator needs to do is ensure the DNS SRV records are available to the VDI-in-a-Box virtual desktops. The administrator can also configure the golden image to contact a KMS Host manually. For these details and more information on Windows KMS activation, please refer to the “VDI-in-a-Box Best Practices for Windows Activation:” http://support.citrix.com/article/CTX134349

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5.3.2

Microsoft Office Licensing

Microsoft Office 2010 can be activated using the same KMS Host used by the Windows machines using KMS activations. Unlike Windows 7 activations which require at least 25 requests to activate, Office 2010 only requires 5 requests to activate when using KMS. Using KMS for both Microsoft Windows and Microsoft Office works like a charm and typically requires no modification of the Office installation. However, it is important to trigger the activation on the golden image before publishing it.

For more information, please refer to “VDI-in-a-Box Best Practices for Microsoft Office Activation:” http://support.citrix.com/article/CTX134351.

5.4

Citrix Desktop Receiver

The Citrix Desktop Receiver is a client-based plug-in that is installed on the user’s endpoint device. This is to be used in-conjunction with Citrix VDI-in-a-box when the user requires the ability to interact with their local desktop as well as the virtual desktop. This package provides the toolbar functionality, allowing the user to pan and scale their virtual desktop inside their local desktop. When a user logs into a VDI-in-a-box site to access a virtual desktop, the web site can detect that the Citrix Desktop Receiver is absent from endpoint devices and automatically prompt users to download and install it from the site.

Click for more information on the Citrix Desktop Receiver.

5.5

Citrix XenCenter

The DVS Simplified Appliance virtual machine environment provided by Citrix XenServer is monitored, managed and configured using Citrix XenCenter. Citrix XenCenter provides all the VM monitoring, management and general administration functions in a single interface including configuration, patch management and virtual machine libraries. A DVS Simplified Appliance administrator can easily manage hundreds of virtual machines from a centralized, highly available management console that installs on any Windows client desktop. Citrix XenCenter’s highly resilient distributed management architecture leverages resource pooling to ensure that there is no single point of management failure.

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5.6

Citrix TCP/UDP Port Communication

Component

Port

Notes

Citrix XenServer

TCP 80/443

Communication with XenServer

infrastructure

VDI-in-a-box VDI

TCP

1494/2598

Citrix ICA/HDX Client Communication

VDI-in-a-box Web

UI

TCP 80/443

VDI-in-a-box Web UI for admin and user

access

Click for more information on VDI-in-a-Box and XenDesktop port communication.

5.7

Citrix Desktop Receiver

The Citrix Desktop Receiver is a client-based plug-in that is installed on the user’s endpoint device. This is to be used in-conjunction with Citrix VDI-in-a-Box when the user requires the ability to interact with their local desktop as well as the virtual desktop. This package provides the toolbar functionality, allowing the user to pan and scale their virtual desktop inside their local desktop. When a user logs into a VDI-in-a-Box site to access a virtual desktop, the web site can detect that the Citrix Desktop Receiver is absent from endpoint devices and automatically prompt users to download and install it from the site.

Click for more information on the Citrix Desktop Receiver.

5.8

Virtual Desktop Antivirus

When using hosted VM-based VDI desktops, those virtual desktops are located within the data center and/or on the network with other critical systems. If a virus makes it into the data center, the entire infrastructure can be at serious risk. Therefore, it is highly

recommended to employ an agent-based anti-virus solution that has the ability to scan and monitor the DVS Simplified Appliance appliance(s) as well.

Since the virtual desktops will be based on a single read-only image streamed from the DVS Simplified appliance, there are a number of exclusions that can be configured to optimize performance of the on-access or real-time scanning.

Exclusion

Exclude

Sub-folders

Read/Write

Notes

C:\*.*

Yes

Read

Prevents files from the C:

drive of the desktops

being scanned since

these are scanned prior

to setting the drive as

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Exclusion

Exclude

Sub-folders

Read/Write

Notes

read only, from which

point on no permanent

changes will be

maintained across

reboots of a machine.

Any files written (e.g.

temporary files will be

scanned on write)

Pagefile.sys

No

Read/Write Windows swap file

C:\windows\system32\spool

Yes

Read/Write Print spooler directory –

Best practice

5.9

Windows Active Directory Integration

Active Directory (AD) is required for user authentication for desktops in the Windows Domain. You can use any read-only user account from AD to provide authentication. You may want to consider creating a separate account such ‘VDI read’ for this purpose. Active Directory is also not needed if the VDI desktops are part of a Workgroup. In this case you can maintain the list of users in the VDI-in-a-Box internal database.

Active Directory can also be used to provide “roaming profiles,” keeping user application configurations and their My Documents folders in a central location outside of the desktop. With this approach users are presented with a personalized desktop each time they log on. While the use of roaming profiles is optional, it provides personalization that makes the user experience for virtual desktops nearly identical to that for a physical desktop. Use of third-party profile management tools with VDI-in-a-Box requires only the deployment of their agents on each VDI-in-a-Box image.1

Each server running VDI Manager requires sufficient local storage to keep images, templates and configuration information needed for a highly available system. VDI-in-a-Box does not back up user data stored on virtual desktops. Typical usage is to create desktops

dynamically from a template and destroy them based on a refresh policy. A simple network file system is sufficient to keep user data outside the desktop.

For sites using Workgroups, VDI-in-a-Box includes a user database for authentication.

5.10

Network Architecture

5.10.1

Physical Network Connectivity

The network will comprise of single 1 Gbps network. The physical configuration of the network is shown below.

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6

End-User Workload Characterization

It is important to understand the user workloads when designing a Desktop Virtualization Solution. The Dell Desktop Virtualization Solution methodology includes a blueprint process to assess and categorize a customer’s environment according to the workloads defined in this section. In the Dell Desktop Virtualization solution this will map directly to the SLA levels we offer in our Integrated Stack. There are three levels, each of which is bound by specific metrics and capabilities.

6.1

Characterization Overview

6.1.1

Basic Workload Characterization

The Basic User workload profile consists of simple task worker workloads. Typically a repetitive application use profile with a non-personalized virtual desktop image. Sample use cases may be a kiosk or call-center use cases which do not require a personalized desktop environment and the application stack is static. In a virtual desktop environment the image is dynamically created from a template for each user and returned to the desktop pool for reuse by other users. The workload requirements for a basic user is the lowest in terms of CPU, memory, network and Disk I/O

requirements and will allow the greatest density and scalability of the infrastructure.

User Workload VM vCPU VM Memory Allocation Approx. IOPS VDI Session Disk Space OS Image Notes

Basic 1 1.5GB 7-8 3GB This user workload leverages a

shared desktop image emulates a task worker. Only two apps are open simultaneously and session idle time is approximately one hour and forty-five minutes.

6.1.2

Standard Workload Characterization

The Standard User workload profile consists of email, typical office productivity applications and web browsing for research/training. There is minimal image personalization required in a standard user workload profile. The workload

requirement for a Standard User is moderate and most closely matches the majority of office worker profiles in terms of CPU, memory, network and Disk I/O. This will allow moderate density and scalability of the infrastructure.

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User Workload VM vCPU VM Memory Allocation Approx. IOPS User Data Disk Space OS Image Notes

Standard 1 2GB 9-10 3.75GB This user workload leverages a shared desktop image emulates a medium knowledge worker. Five applications are open

simultaneously and session idle time is approximately 45 seconds.

6.1.3

Premium Workload Characterization

The Premium User workload is an advanced knowledge worker. All office applications are configured and utilized. The user has moderate-to-large file size (access, save, transfer requirements). There is some graphics creation or editing done for

presentations or content creation tasks. Web browsing use is typically

research/training driven, similar to Standard Users. The Premium User requires extensive image personalization, for shortcuts, macros, menu layouts etc. The

workload requirements for a Premium User are heavier than typical office workers in terms of CPU, memory, Network and Disk I/O. This will limit density and scalability of the infrastructure. User Workload VM vCPU VM Memory Allocation Approx. IOPS User Data Disk Space OS Image Notes

Premium 2 2.5GB 10-12 6GB This user workload leverages a shared desktop image emulates a high level knowledge worker. Eight applications are open simultaneously and session idle time is approximately two minutes.

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6.2

Workload Characterization Testing Details

User Workload

VM Memory

OS Image Workload Description

Basic 1.5GB Shared This workload emulates a task worker.

• The light workload is very light in comparison to medium.

• Only 2 apps are open simultaneously.

• Only apps used are IE, Word and Outlook.

• Idle time total is about 1:45 minutes

Standard 1.5GB Shared This workload emulates a medium knowledge working using Office, IE and PDF.

• Once a session has been started the medium workload will repeat every 12 minutes.

• During each loop the response time is measured every 2 minutes.

• The medium workload opens up to 5 apps simultaneously.

• The type rate is 160ms for each character.

• Approximately 2 minutes of idle time is included to simulate real-world users.

Each loop will open and use:

• Outlook 2007, browse 10 messages.

• Internet Explorer, one instance is left open (BBC.co.uk), one instance is browsed to Wired.com, Lonelyplanet.com and heavy flash app gettheglass.com.

• Word 2007, one instance to measure response time, one instance to review and edit document.

• Bullzip PDF Printer & Acrobat Reader, the word document is printed and reviewed to PDF.

• Excel 2007, a very large randomized sheet is opened.

• PowerPoint 2007, a presentation is reviewed and edited.

• 7-zip: using the command line version the output of the session is zipped.

Premium 2.0GB Shared The heavy workload is based on the standard workload; the differences in comparison to the standard workload are:

• Type rate is 130ms per character.

• Idle time total is only 40 seconds.

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7

Performance and Testing

7.1

Load Generation and Monitoring

7.1.1

Login VSI – Login Consultants

The Login VSI tool (developed by Login Consultants) was used to generate the desktop workloads. It is a widely-used tool for testing VDI environments and server-based computing / terminal services environments. It installs a standard collection of desktop application software (e.g. Microsoft Office, Adobe Acrobat Reader, etc.) on each VDI desktop, it then uses launcher systems to connect a specified number of users to available desktops within the environment.

Once the user is connected the workload is started via a logon script which starts the test script once the user environment is configured by the login script. Each launcher system can launch connections to a number of ‘target’ machines (i.e. VDI desktops) the launchers are managed via a Microsoft Management Console which is used to configure where the sessions are launched in parallel (sessions are created from each launcher in a round robin mechanism) or sequential (all sessions to be connected from each launcher are connected before the next launcher is used).

7.1.2

Liquidware Labs Stratusphere UX

Stratusphere UX was used during each test run to gather data relating to User Experience and desktop performance. Data was gathered at the Host and Virtual Machine layers and reported back to a central server (Stratusphere Hub). The hub was then used to create a series of “Comma Separated Values” (.csv) reports which have then been used to generate graphs and summary tables of key information. In addition the Stratusphere Hub generates a magic quadrate style scatter plot showing the Machine and IO experience of the sessions. The Stratusphere hub was deployed onto the core network therefore its monitoring did not impact the servers being tested. This core network represents an existing customer

environment and also includes the following services;

● Active Directory

● DNS

● DHCP

● Anti-Virus

Stratusphere UX calculates the User Experience by monitoring key metrics within the Virtual Desktop environment, the metrics and their thresholds are shown in the following screen shot;

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7.1

Testing Summary

7.1.1

End User Experience Testing Summary

Stratusphere UX was used during each test run to gather data relating to User Experience and desktop performance. Data was gathered at the Host and Virtual Machine layers and reported back to a central server (Stratusphere Hub). The hub was then used to create a series of “Comma Separated Values” (.csv) reports which have then been used to generate graphs and summary tables of key information. In addition the Stratusphere Hub generates a magic qua

DVS Simplified. Reference Architecture for. VDI-in-a-Box. 8/23/2013 Phase 4 Version 2.2

DVS Simplified

THIS DOCUMENT IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY, AND MAY CONTAIN TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS AND TECHNICAL INACCURACIES. THE CONTENT IS PROVIDED AS IS, WITHOUT EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND.

Contents

1 Executive Summary ... 1

3 Solution Architecture ... 12

5 Software Components ... 9

6 End-User Workload Characterization ... 16

8 High Availability ... 58

Executive Summary

Introduction

Value Proposition

Simple

Practical

“Why Dell”

Value:

Feature Overview

Architecture Scalability

Ideal Deployments

DVS Simplified is ideal for IT professionals who are:

When is DVS Simplified Appliance Right for Me?

DVS Simplified versus DVS Enterprise Options:

Persistent Desktops

Full Windows 8 support

Enhanced IT experience

Dell ProSupport and Professional Services Overview

Dell ProSupport benefits:

Highly recommended:

Recommended:

Desktop Virtualization Solutions Overview

Figure 1: Enterprise VDI

Solution Architecture

Simplified Appliance Form Factor Options

Appliance Scale Configuration Options

Appliance User Loads

VDI-in-a-box Core Components

Hardware Components

PowerEdge R720 Large Appliance PowerEdge R720 Small Appliance

PowerEdge T620 Tower-Based Solution

PowerEdge T620 Large Appliance PowerEdge T620 Small Appliance

Compliant Dell PowerEdge Servers

Storage Disk Space

Drive Type IOPS per Drive

Disk Space Requirement by Workload

Large Appliance

Large Appliance

Drive IOPS Requirement by Workload

Large Appliance

Small Appliance

Persistent and Non-Persistent Desktops Defined

Persistent vs. Non-Persistent Desktop Characteristics

Persistent Image Disk Space Planning Chart: Large Appliance

Software Components

The DVS Simplified Hypervisors

Citrix XenServer 6.2

VMware vSphere 5.1

Microsoft Windows Licensing

Microsoft Office Licensing

Citrix XenCenter

Notes

Citrix Desktop Receiver

Exclusion

Notes

Read/Write Print spooler directory –

Network Architecture

Characterization Overview

User Workload VM vCPU VM Memory Allocation Approx. IOPS VDI Session Disk Space OS Image Notes

Standard Workload Characterization

User Workload VM vCPU VM Memory Allocation Approx. IOPS User Data Disk Space OS Image Notes

Premium Workload Characterization

Workload Characterization Testing Details

User Workload

Performance and Testing

Liquidware Labs Stratusphere UX

Testing Summary