Enhancement request for 2X AppServer - anyone agrees?

I posted this as a reply to another topic, but I'm posting it here under this subject to see if other people would be interested as well in these enhancements.

Regarding 2X AppServer, I would suggest two ways of enhancing this product that can increase its applicability to thin clients without having to use 2X ThinClientOS for those of us that would like to avoid using two products to get apps into a thin client:

First method- Provide a 2X Client that can be installed in the Terminal Server. This client would not start an RDP session when launching an app since it's already running in an RDP session. This client would just connect to 2X AppServer, list the applications, and launch them directly from the current RDP session. Another way can be using the same existing client but having 2X AppServer recognize that the client is running from the Terminal Server and provide the apps directly and not through another RDP session. It all depends on which component (2X Client or 2X AppServer) is the one that establishes the RDP session when apps are launched. I tried this installing 2X Client in a different Terminal Server than the one that has 2X AppServer and it works fine except that if you minimize the 2X Client screen, you can't make it come back and switching between apps inside the RDP session is cumbersome. This would have to be fixed. Then, you can configure a thin client with a regular RDP connection to autostart the 2X Client installed at the Terminal Server and will get just the published apps.

Second method - Leverage on the fact that Citrix client is available for thin clients and that 2X AppServer can respond to Citrix client requests. Provide capability to 2X AppServer to answer requests from Citrix clients (either thin clients or PCs) but provide the apps from regular Terminal Servers. 2X AppServer would be a gateway between Citrix clients and applications in Terminal Servers. When I think about this approach, a 2X Client is not needed at all, just an enhanced 2X AppServer.

 

I don't really quite like the idea of tunnelling an RDP connection over an RDP connection.

What is the issue blocking you from using the ApplicationServer client bundled with the 2X ThinClientOS ?

 

You would not tunnel an RDP connection inside another because the requested modification to the 2X Client or 2X AppServer would need to recognize that 2X Client is already running inside an RDP session and start the apps directly without trying to open another RDP session.

With regards to the 2X ThinClient OS client, it doesn't work. I tested the latest build of 4.1 against 2X AppServer 4.3 and Windows Active Directory authentication. I'm able to boot from CD an old PC and logon to the 2X ThinClientServer and since I defined Published Apps from the 2X AppServer, I'm shown the published apps that I'm allowed. So far so good. But I can't run them. Nothing happens when I select them.

 

I found the problem of apps being shown but not launching from 2X ThinClient OS. In the 2X AppServer console, Terminal Server Properties, Direct Adress field I had PRGATSR002. I changed this to PRGATSR002.GLOBAL.BAXTER.COM and now I'm getting the apps. This worked fine with the 2X App Server Client for Windows because my Windows machines are in domain GLOBAL.BAXTER.COM already, but the thin clients not. Now, with the fully qualified host name, the thin clients are getting the apps.


Still, I think a Citrix Client/Terminal Server kind of gateway adds value to the 2X AppServer product.

Finally, another suggestion for the 2X AppServer product is to make a copy of the RDP-Tcp connection and to use that exclusively for the 2X AppServer. That way I can remove Users group from the default RDP-Tcp connection and avoid users using the regular RDP client to the Terminal Server. Of course, if the first suggestion in the original message is available, this is not needed because I would be getting just the published apps with a regular RDP client.

 

Good to hear it was just a miconfiguration of your hostname settings.

 

I have published applications within groups in the 2X AppServer Console. In the 2X AppServer client for Windows, the apps are shown inside folders as expected. In the 2X ThinClientOS, they are shown scattered in the screen, no folders.

Is there a way they are shown inside folders, like with 2X AppServer client for Windows.

 

That feature will be availabile in the next version of ThinClientOS next quarter.

 

File Associations

I totally agree with 'srodrigu' about the 2X app server realizing that the user is already in an RDP session and launching the "published" apps locally if available on that particular server. Right now I have the 2X AppServer Client installed on all the Terminal Servers, and when they launch a published app it starts yet another RDP session to another terminal server. REDUNDANT!

Anyway, was wondering if it was possible to make locally stored files on worstations (for example a .PDF) associate with published Apps, so when the user clicks the local file.pdf it will start the published "ADOBE ACROBAT READER" application.[/i][/code]