How to configure & deploy vGPU powered Horizon VIEW Desktops

This video was done by Jason Southern. Jason has a whole series of videos specializing in GPU related topics. Definitely worth checking out.

Here's An overview of how to configure a VMware Horizon VIEW deployment to deliver vGPU enabled Windows 7 desktops using linked clones.




Thanks Jason!

Source:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Ybq0hPvYHk

Configuring SSL Certificates for View Servers

How do you apply SSL certificates to View Connection Servers and is a self signed certificate  adequate?

Official answer: Unsigned Certs in a lab environment are fine but in a Production Environment it's highly recommended that a cert signed by a trusted Certificate Authority  (CA) be used. Use of certificates that are not signed by a CA can allow untrusted parties to intercept traffic by masquerading as your server. Not a good thing. 


There are many documents online that go over the process of assigning a CA signed certificates. Here are the links that I use:

Understanding SSL Certificates for View Servers

Overview of Tasks for Setting Up SSL Certificates

Obtaining a Signed SSL Certificate from a CA

Configure View Connection Server, Security Server, or View Composer to Use a New SSL Certificate

Configure Client Endpoints to Trust Root and Intermediate Certificates

Configuring Certificate Revocation Checking on Server Certificates

Configure the PCoIP Secure Gateway to Use a New SSL Certificate

Setting View Administrator to Trust a vCenter Server or View Composer Certificate

Benefits of Using SSL Certificates Signed by a CA

Troubleshooting Certificate Issues on View Connection Server and Security Server

Source: Documentation Center for VMware Horizon 7

VMware Horizon Air Hybrid-mode aka Project Enzo

So what is Project Enzo aka VMware Horizon Air Hybrid-mode? My customers are asking me that magic question quite a bit lately . Here are some good resources to check out:

VMware Horizon Air Hybrid-mode combines the benefits of cloud based management, intelligent orchestration and hyperconverged infrastructure to radically transform virtual desktop and application delivery -making it easier and more cost effective than ever before to adopt, deploy and manage on-premises virtual desktops and apps.. (marketing Stuff)

VMware

So why do I want to take a look at this? Here's a quick summary:

• Simple Out of the Box Set-Up – Virtual desktops and applications can be up and running in less than an hour.

• Create and Scale Desktops at Cloud Speed – VMware Instant Clone technology integrated with VMware App Volumes™ and VMware User Environment Management technologies will allow IT administrators to create and scale desktops at cloud speed – allowing up to 2,000 virtual desktops to be created in under 20 minutes.

• Eliminate Maintenance Windows With Seamless Updates – Maintenance windows will be eliminated with seamless updates that can be applied instantly to Windows images and applications.

• Hybrid Cloud Flexibility – Desktop and applications can be moved back and forth from on-premises datacenters to the cloud, along with the flexibility of using the cloud as a primary use case for everyday productivity, or secondary use cases for desktop bursting or disaster recovery.

• Right-Sizing Infrastructure Needs – More efficient assessment combined with operational and capital cost savings will enable Project Enzo to transform the economics for enterprise desktops by avoiding over-provisioning of resources.

Here's the link for VMware Horizon Air Hybrid-mode aka Project Enzo.

http://www.vmwhorizonair.com/enzo

 Enjoy!

Source: http://www.vmwhorizonair.com/enzo

Cloud Pod Architecture - Part One

This is part one of a three part series that covers the Cloud Pod Architecture feature in Horizon 7.



Source: VMware Tech Pubs - YouTube

Configuring Real-Time Audio-Video (RTAV) in VMware Horizon 7

A customer asked me a question about configuring Real Time Audio Video (RTAV)  in VMware Horizon 7. The answer can be found on the VMware  Horizon 7 Documentation Center. It does a decent job explaining the concepts and goes over the necessary steps to setup RTAV correctly.

VMware Horizon 7 Document Center

Real-Time Audio-Video allows View users to run Skype, Webex, Google Hangouts, and other online conferencing applications on their remote desktops. With Real-Time Audio-Video, webcam and audio devices that are connected locally to the client system are redirected to the remote desktop. This feature redirects video and audio data to the desktop with a significantly lower bandwidth than can be achieved by using USB redirection.

Real-Time Audio-Video is compatible with standard conferencing applications and browser-based video applications, and supports standard webcams, audio USB devices, and analog audio input.

This feature installs the VMware Virtual Webcam and VMware Virtual Microphone on the desktop operating system. The VMware Virtual Webcam uses a kernel-mode webcam driver that provides enhanced compatibility with browser-based video applications and other 3rd-party conferencing software.

When a conferencing or video application is launched, it displays and uses these VMware virtual devices, which handle the audio-video redirection from the locally-connected devices on the client. The VMware Virtual Webcam and Microphone appear in the Device Manager on the desktop operating system.

The drivers for the audio and webcam devices must be installed on your Horizon Client systems to enable the redirection.

Subtopics

Configuration Choices for Real-Time Audio-Video

System Requirements for Real-Time Audio-Video

Ensuring That Real-Time Audio-Video Is Used Instead of USB Redirection

Selecting Preferred Webcams and Microphones

Configuring Real-Time Audio-Video Group Policy Settings

Real-Time Audio-Video Bandwidth

Source: VMware.com