In the evolving world of hybrid work, Citrix is focused on delivering technologies that support organizations with streamlined maintenance and enhanced security, while ensuring users stay productive with high-performing access to corporate resources. Whether you decide to adopt on-premises virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) or modernize your infrastructure with desktop as a service (DaaS), Citrix solutions can support your business however you choose to deploy.
Citrix DaaS and Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops deliver new features and enhancements that make it easier than ever for organizations to create agile work environments with apps and desktops delivered securely anywhere, on any device.
Please use the following links to help you quickly navigate between sections in this announcement:
- Now Available: Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops 7 2209 Current Release
- Citrix DaaS cloud partner updates
- Citrix DaaS enhancements
- Workspace Environment Management (WEM) enhancements
Now Available: Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops 7 2209 Current Release
New Current Releases give our Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops customers an opportunity to update to the latest functionality. We’re excited to share that the Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops 7 2209 Current Release is now available! This IT-managed release comes packed with new purpose-built solutions that seamlessly integrate with your hybrid work environments at scale. For a comprehensive list of what we’ve added in this latest release, visit the “What’s New” section of our product documentation.
Let’s look at some highlights of what’s new in the Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops 7 2209 CR:
Expanded Citrix HDX Optimizations
A lot of work went into optimizing our Citrix HDX graphics stack so that DaaS and VDI users can get the most compelling high-definition experience possible. Improvements we’ve made this quarter include:
- 10-Bit High Dynamic Range (HDR): With 10-bit High Dynamic Range (HDR) virtual desktop sessions, you can use enhanced encoding and decoding capabilities to render high-quality images and videos with an extended range of colors, greater contrast and brightness, and customizable white luminance level to improve the overall user experience and enable scenarios like sophisticated remote medical imaging.
- Virtual Channel Allow List Feature Update: We’ve made it easier for customers to streamline the addition of custom virtual channels by using new system environment variables that act as a shortcut to critical resources on their machines.
- Microsoft Teams Background Blurring*: This long-awaited feature enables users on Citrix virtual sessions to blur their backgrounds or replace them with an image during calls on Microsoft Teams (version 1.5.00.11865 or higher). Please note, this requires Citrix Workspace app for Windows 2207 and VDA 2109 or higher.
- Microsoft Teams App Sharing in Linux*: This feature now offers the ability to screen share apps with others using Microsoft Teams within a Citrix session in Linux. Please note, this requires Citrix Workspace app for Linux 2209 and VDA 2109 or higher.
*These Microsoft Teams features depend on our partner Microsoft for support. See the Microsoft roadmap for release details.
More to Experience with Linux VDA
We’ve also brought additions to our Linux VDA for improved performance and ease of use. Here are the latest features in this release:
- Support for Ubuntu 22.04, RHEL 8.6, and Rocky Linux 8.6: The Citrix Linux VDA will support Ubuntu 22.04, RHEL 8.6, and Rocky Linux 8.6 upon their release. Additionally, it will support Rocky Linux for RHEL free edition as a CentOS replacement.
- Session Watermark Enhancements: We’ve added new options to the Watermark custom text policy, allowing you to further customize session watermarks. For example, you can set Watermark custom text to <image=path to a PNG image on the VDA> to make a PNG watermark. For more information, see our product documentation on session watermarking.
- Desktop Environment Quick Switching Enhancement: This enhancement enables Linux desktop end users to configure and use their personal preferred desktop environment, such as MATE, KDE, Gnome, and Gnome Classic.
- Support for Additional User Authentication Methods in Non-SSO Scenarios: Previously, with single sign-on disabled, users could log on to Citrix Workspace app and to sessions using different user names. Starting with this release, users can log on using user names or smart cards. For more information, see our non-SSO authentication product documentation.
- KVM Hypervisor Support: Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM) is the leading open-source virtualization technology for Linux. With the 2209 release, Linux VDA now supports KVM hypervisors. Please note, KVM hypervisors are not supported for use with MCS to create VMs.
- File copy and paste available for all supported Linux distributions: Previously, the file-copy-and-paste feature was available only for Debian 10, RHEL 7.9, and Ubuntu 18.04. Starting with this release, the feature is extended to all Linux distributions that the Linux VDA supports.
Greater Access Control for Session Recording on Premises
Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops continues to add granular security capabilities within the on-premises Session Recording policy console to help administrators gain granular access control when viewing recorded files. With the 2209 release, admins can now restrict access to specific recordings by an authorized group of admins. This allows for consistent security and management that provides the right levels of access within your organization.
Introducing Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops REST APIs (Preview)
This release provides customers with a set of REST APIs that can be leveraged to automate the management of resources within Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops deployments. Developers can program the automation system once, and it can then work across your cloud, on-premises, or hybrid deployments!
For more information about SDKs and APIs, see our product documentation. To view the list of Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops REST APIs and configuration details, see our developer documentation.
Updates and Key Integrations with Leading Public Cloud Providers
New Citrix Capabilities on Microsoft Azure
We are pleased to share new features and capabilities with Citrix on Azure that help organizations meet their ever-changing business demands. Some of the latest enhancements include:
- Significantly Reduce Storage Costs for Powered-Down VMs: When a VM is powered down, admins can now save storage costs by switching their storage type to a lower tier (e.g., from Premium SSD to Standard HDD).
- Support for Azure AD Dynamic Security Group for Azure AD-joined VM: Citrix now supports Azure AD dynamic security groups for a machine catalog. Dynamic membership rules, which are based on the naming scheme of a catalog, assign a dynamic security group to the VMs in the catalog.
- Support for Azure VM Extensions: When using an ARM template spec as a machine profile to create a machine catalog, you can now add Azure VM extensions to the VMs in the catalog, view the list of supported extensions, and remove extensions you added. Get more information on how to enable Azure VM extensions in our product documentation.
- Trusted Launch Support for Azure Ephemeral OS Disk: You can now create provisioning schemes using ephemeral OS disks on Windows with trusted launch. Trusted launch protects against attacks by enabling technologies like secure boot and virtualized trusted platform module (vTPM).
- Support for Machine Catalog Creation from a Different Azure Subscription: Previously, in Azure environments, you could only select an image within your subscription to create a machine catalog. Now, you can choose an image from Shared Image Gallery (SIG) that belongs to a different shared subscription to create and update MCS catalogs using PowerShell commands.
New Citrix Capabilities on Google Cloud
Get a 7-day Free Trial of Citrix DaaS Premium for Google Cloud
Citrix has worked closely with Google to enable a desktop as a service solution that allows customers to enjoy faster and easier procurement and onboarding, greater control, and increased cost savings. We are excited to offer free 7-day trials of Citrix DaaS Premium for Google Cloud, with limited Google Cloud compute included, so customers can experience the power that Citrix and Google can unlock for your organization. Sign up and get started today.
Google Cloud Identity Support for Citrix Workspace (Preview)
Now in preview, Citrix supports Google Identity Authentication, enabling Citrix Workspace authentication using both native Google Identity accounts and Active Directory-backed accounts. It also allows non-domain joined Citrix DaaS workloads with Workspace Authentication configured to Google IdP, simplifying deployments and reducing costs for organizations that have invested in Google Workspace and Identity by eliminating the need for Active Directory and Cloud Connectors. Learn more in our blog post.
New Citrix Capabilities on AWS
To increase your capabilities on AWS, Citrix is continuing to deliver enhancements that make it easier than ever to simplify your cloud deployment and management. These new features include:
- AWS Scale Increase to 1,500 VMs: We have now fully increased the scale of virtual machines to 1,500. This is great for organizations that want to scale environments up and out on demand.
- AWS Throttling: Optimize Start Instances: This improves scale and performance by aiming to reduce number of Start Instances by batching them during power on action.
Citrix DaaS Enhancements
Over the last few months, we’ve introduced dozens of new features and capabilities for Citrix DaaS that help our customers drive innovation across their organization with the a great end-user experience. Here are some notable enhancements that you can take advantage of today:
Support for MSIX and MSIX App Attach (Preview)
At Citrix, we continuously look at ways to strengthen our partnership with Microsoft and bring greater value to our Citrix DaaS offerings. With increasing demand around Microsoft’s MSIX packaging format, we’re pleased to share that, now in preview, Citrix DaaS supports launching applications contained in MSIX packages or MSIX packages mounted onto AppAttach disks. This offers a seamless and modern packaging experience that helps lower admin effort and maintenance, reduces infrastructure requirements and cost, and improves the overall user launch experience. Sign up for the preview.
SAML Group-Based Administration
We’re excited to announce that SAML AD-backed groups can now be directly onboarded into the Citrix Cloud console, allowing organizations to easily manage access to DaaS based on Active Directory (AD) group memberships. Currently, we support more than 20 SAML providers that will be able to add their AD groups for Citrix Cloud administration. This feature is now available for all Citrix DaaS control planes, including Citrix Government and Citrix Japan.
Other new features and capabilities you can immediately leverage in your Citrix DaaS deployment include:
- Active Directory with Connector Appliance: With this feature, the Connector Appliance can be used to connect a resource location to forests that do not contain AD-joined resources. Previously a customer would need two Cloud Connectors per domain. This feature will change that to two connector appliances across all domains. This can significantly reduce the customer’s on-premises infrastructure needs and bring down the Total Cost of Ownership of Citrix solutions.
- Non-Cloud Admin Email Notifications: We are introducing the ability to allow non-Cloud admins to receive relevant and timely information related to their Citrix Cloud deployments for management, auditing, and monitoring purposes. These users can be alerted with new information, warnings, and errors. Admins can now share Citrix Cloud alerts widely to any user who needs to be notified through new email notifications.
- Improved Search in Citrix DaaS Web Studio: New enhancements to the Search functionality in our Citrix DaaS Web Studio management console make it easier for admins to view and find accurate information quickly. New capabilities include exporting search results to a CSV file, adding “does not contain” search capabilities for select items, and more advanced filtering. For more information, check out our product documentation.
Session Recording Service (Preview)
In case you missed it, we recently announced a preview of Citrix Session Recording service, available for all Citrix DaaS offerings globally across our U.S., EMEA, and APS control planes. With the Session Recording policy console and web player in the cloud, you can take advantage of offloaded maintenance and ease of management of Citrix resources from one location.
This quarter, we’ve introduced new features to the preview, including backward compatibility with the Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops 1912 LTSR, support for archiving or deleting recordings automatically, and restricting recording file access to specific groups of Citrix Cloud administrators.
Extend ITSM Capabilities with the Citrix ITSM Adapter for ServiceNow
Through the Citrix ITSM Adapter for ServiceNow, we’ve developed tighter integrations for the joint solution with ServiceNow to provide fast IT resolutions with advanced capabilities for our customers.
- Automatic Deprovisioning of Idle Static Desktops: Static desktops can be configured to automatically deprovision after being idle for a preconfigured number of days.
- Automatic Approval of Self-Service App and Desktop Requests: When enabled and configured, the Citrix ITSM Adapter for ServiceNow can now automatically approve user requests for apps or desktops and add the users to corresponding resource groups.
- Custom Workflow for Handling Employee Separation: With this release, a new workflow is available to process scenarios of employee separation that can log outgoing employees off launched sessions, deprovision their VDIs, and remove them from their associated resource groups.
- Ability to Import Citrix DaaS License Information to ServiceNow: A new data import policy enables admins to import license information from Citrix DaaS to their ServiceNow instance.
- Enhanced Policy Settings for Citrix DaaS Notifications: We’ve introduced enhanced policy options that allow admins to better filter and process Citrix DaaS notifications.
Enhancing Workspace Environment Management (WEM) service
Enhancements to Workspace Environment Management (WEM) service this quarter include:
- Support for Performing Administrative Tasks for Non-Domain Joined and Enrolled Agents: You can now perform administrative tasks (such as refreshing the cache, resetting settings, and retrieving agent information) for non-domain-joined and enrolled agents through the administration console.
- Configure Windows GPOs by using Group Policy Administrative Templates (Preview): In the web console, a template-based tab is now available in Group Policy Settings under each configuration set. The tab lets you configure Windows GPOs by using Group Policy Administrative Templates.
- Invite Users to Enroll Agents (Preview): The Enrollment node lists enrolled agents for you to manage and lets you use the enrollment method to enroll agents. The enrollment method is one of the three setup methods you can use to connect the Workspace Environment Management (WEM) agent to the WEM service.
- Contextualize Scripted Tasks (Preview): A Filter option is now available when configuring a scripted task. The option lets you use a filter to contextualize the task, and as a result, the WEM agent runs the task only when all conditions in the selected filter are met.
Get Started
Ready to take advantage of all the new features and enhancements we’ve released? Download Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops 7 2209 CR today, or contact Citrix Sales to find out how you can get even more by transitioning to Citrix DaaS. For the most up-to-date information about new and upcoming features in Citrix DaaS, check out our Citrix Cloud Updates page.
Disclaimer: The development, release and timing of any features or functionality described for our products remains at our sole discretion and are subject to change without notice or consultation. The information provided is for informational purposes only and is not a commitment, promise or legal obligation to deliver any material, code or functionality and should not be relied upon in making purchasing decisions or incorporated into any contract.
