Foglight® for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp 5.8.2
Developed for Foglight Management Server 5.9.7/ Foglight for Virtualization, Enterprise Edition 8.9.2/ Foglight Evolve 9.2
Release Notes
March 2020
Welcome to Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp
Resolved issues and enhancements
Getting started with Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp
Foglight® for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp allows you to monitor Citrix® XenDesktop® and XenApp® environments, alerting you about infrastructure problems as soon as they develop, and allowing you to resolve issues proactively before end users are affected. Use Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp to monitor the health of your virtual system by tracking the levels of resource utilization such as CPU, network, and memory consumption of individual objects in your integrated environment.
These Release Notes cover the resolved issues, known issues, workarounds, and other important information about the 5.8.2 release of Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp. Review all sections before starting the installation.
This 5.8.2 release of Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop accompanies the release of Foglight Evolve 9.2 and Foglight for Virtualization, Enterprise Edition 8.9.2. It includes the following new feature or improvement:
Added support for FIPS-compliant mode in XenDesktop. (XD-651)
This 5.8.2 release of Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp accompanies the release of Foglight Evolve 9.2 and Foglight for Virtualization, Enterprise Edition 8.9.2. It includes the following resolved issues and enhancements:
Fixed an issue when monitoring large XenDesktop Environment it takes a long time to response. (XD-652)
Cleaned useless report templates. (XD-654)
Discovery wizard will check password length in FIPS-compliant mode. (XD-656)
The following is a list of issues known to exist at the time of this release.
Defect ID |
Known Issue |
VFOG-12047 |
The Logon Count Trend and Logon Duration values appearing on the XenDesktop Explorer do not reflect the current application session metric values. |
VFOG-7146 |
When a session is established for a long time, the NetScaler server transfer rate no longer appears in the Summary - Session view. |
There are no known third-party issues specific to this release of the Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp.
Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp supports the following versions of XenDesktop®, XenApp®, and NetScaler®.
Component |
Supported? |
XenApp and XenDesktop 7.7 to 7.18 |
Yes Note: NetScaler data is not available. |
XenApp and XenDesktop 7 to 7.6 |
Yes |
XenDesktop 5 |
No |
XenApp 6.5 |
No |
NetScaler 11 and later |
No |
NetScaler Enterprise or Platinum Edition 10.5 |
Yes |
NetScaler Enterprise or Platinum Edition 10.1, build 112.15 and later |
Yes |
The following is a list of Foglight product versions and platforms compatible with this release.
Product Name |
Product Version |
Platform |
Foglight Management Server |
5.9.7 |
All platforms supported by this version of the Foglight Management Server |
Foglight Agent Manager |
5.9.7 |
All platforms supported by this version of the Foglight Agent Manager |
Foglight Evolve |
9.2 |
All platforms supported by this version of the Foglight Evolve |
Foglight for Virtualization, Enterprise Edition |
8.9.2 |
All platforms supported by this version of the Foglight for Virtualization, Enterprise Edition |
To verify the versions of your XenDesktop and XenApp installations:
To verify the version of your NetScaler installation:
To upgrade to the latest version of Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp:
For cartridge installation instructions, see "Installing Foglight cartridges" in the Foglight Administration and Configuration Help.
Before installing Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp, ensure your system meets the following minimum hardware and software requirements.
Operating System |
Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp can be installed on any supported configuration listed in Upgrade and compatibility. |
Platform, Memory and Hard Disk Space | The platform, memory, and hard disk space requirements for the monitored servers must match the Agent Manager requirements. For complete information, see the System Requirements and Platform Support Guide. |
Foglight includes a licensing capability that restricts access to those features that are defined in the license. Any Management Server installation requires a license that grants access to server-specific parts of the browser interface and the features associated with them. Foglight cartridges are also license-protected. While some cartridges are covered by the base Foglight license (such as Foglight Agent Manager cartridges and Foglight for Infrastructure), others may require an additional license. Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp is covered by the Foglight Evolve Monitor, Operate, and Flex license.
To activate a trial or a purchased commercial license:
The Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp release package contains the following:
Foglight Evolve 9.2 or Foglight for Virtualization, Enterprise Edition 8.9.2 includes Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp 5.8.2. Once you installed Foglight Evolve 9.2 or Foglight for Virtualization, Enterprise Edition 8.9.2, Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp is also installed on the Foglight Management Server. You just need to go the XenDesktop Environment dashboard to activate the trial license or install a commercial license.
Note: Citrix XenDesktop requires Foglight for VMware 5.8.2 to be installed on the same Management Server.
To install the cartridge file, activate a license, and deploy monitoring agents:
For cartridge installation instructions, see "Installing Foglight cartridges" in the Foglight Administration and Configuration Help.
After installing the cartridge files, the following cartridge appears on the Cartridge Inventory dashboard:
To change the Session Timeout:
To change the Process Timeout:
To configure this, you need to specify the port and protocol in the FglAM configuration file:
vmparameter.0 = "-Dcom.dell.netscaler.10.30.180.70.protocol=https";
vmparameter.1 = "-Dcom.dell.netscaler.10.30.180.70.protocol.port=443";
To discover your XenDesktop environment for configuration, you must enable a remote connection to at least one of the XenDesktop Delivery Controllers in your XenDesktop site. Follow the instructions in Configuring a remote connection on a XenDesktop Delivery Controller to enable the remote connection for a XenDesktop Delivery Controller in each XenDesktop site.
To monitor the License Server, StoreFront Server, Database Server, Domain Controller Server, and Delivery Controllers that the XenDesktop Discovery Wizard detects in a XenDesktop environment, you must enable remote connections to the machines running these components. See Configuring remote connections on a License Server, StoreFront Server, Database Server, Domain Controller Server, and Multiple Delivery Controllers for instructions.
Monitoring process-level information for each virtual application requires that a remote connection to each virtual machine is enabled. To simplify the configuration process, it is recommended that you enable a remote connection on the XenDesktop virtual machine’s master image. For complete instructions on how to enable a remote connection on a master image and to update it, see Configuring XenDesktop Master Images for monitoring virtual applications.
XenDesktop agents rely on the Foglight Agent Manager services to collect data from the monitored system. These remote connections use Kerberos authentication. It is recommended that you verify the Kerberos configuration before creating XenDesktop agent instances. For more information, see Configuring the Agent Manager Kerberos settings.
Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp comes with scripts that allow you to automatically configure your WinRM or DCOM connection:
While both WinRM and DCOM connections are supported, WinRM is recommended. The scripts are available for download from the Foglight browser interface. Running a WinRM or DCOM script on the XenDesktop Delivery Controller allows you to automatically configure remote connections.
After obtaining a WinRM or DCOM script, use it to configure a remote connection on your XenDesktop Delivery Controller.
After obtaining a WinRM or DCOM script, use it to configure a remote connection on your Citrix components, including the License Server, StoreFront Server, Database Server, Domain Controller Server, and multiple Delivery Controllers.
To collect the performance metrics from a virtual application, Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp must connect to the virtual machines providing virtual application instances using a WinRM or DCOM connection in order to collect the virtual application process data.
Note: The configuration described in this step is optional. It is only required if you want to collect the virtual application process data.
To simplify this workflow, it is recommended to enable WinRM or DCOM connectivity on the XenDesktop machine’s master image. A master image is a template that you use to deploy your environment. Creating a master image involves installing and configuring the operating system and any software you want to include on your image.
Start by obtaining the WinRM or DCOM script. The scripts can be downloaded from the Components for Download dashboard. For more information, see Obtaining WinRM (or DCOM) Scripts.
Next, prepare a XenDesktop master image. This procedure must be applied to all master images that are the templates of those machines that you want to monitor (for virtual applications, more specifically).
Finally, update all master images that are the templates of the virtual machines that you want to monitor.
After a successful configuration of your XenDesktop system for monitoring, ensure that the following account privileges are granted to the Delivery Controller, NetScaler, and VMware accounts that the monitoring agents will use to connect to these systems.
Account Type |
Required Account Privileges |
Delivery Controller login domain account |
Read-only access for running:
|
Note: The XenDesktop management account includes the above privileges. |
|
NetScaler Management Account |
System advanced features (enable/disable AppFlow): Read, Modify AppFlow collectors/Policies/Actions: Read, Modify, Delete NetScaler Gateway:
|
Note: The NetScaler default Administrator account the above privileges. |
|
VMware vCenter Account |
|
Note: The vCenter default Administrator account includes the above privileges. |
To successfully you start monitoring your environment with Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp, ensure that there are no connectivity issues between the following connection points in your environment:
Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp uses the following ports. Make sure they are not blocked by your firewall.
Client |
Server |
Default Port |
Foglight Agent Manager |
Controller |
WinRM: 5985 |
Foglight Agent Manager |
NetScaler Server |
NetScaler SDK: 80 |
NetScaler Server |
Foglight Agent Manager |
AppFlow: customized port (UDP) |
Foglight Agent Manager |
License Server StoreFront Server Database Server Domain Controller Server Machine delivering virtual applications |
WinRM: 5985 |
Foglight Agent Manager |
vCenter® Server |
VMware® SDK: 443 |
If you are using the Foglight Evolve vApp, update the Foglight Management Server SuSE firewall UDP port setting before creating a NetScaler Agent instance.
From here, you can create a NetScaler Agent instance.
Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp agents use Foglight Agent Manager services to run cmdlets and queries on monitored hosts to collect data. This interface relies on Kerberos authentication. In most cases, the Agent Manager automatically generates required Kerberos configuration files. To ensure these services work as expected, after installing Foglight for Citrix XenDesktop and XenApp on the Management Server, and before running the Discover XenDesktop Infrastructure wizard, verify the Kerberos configuration on the Agent Manager. If you update any settings, restart the Agent Manager in order for these changes to take effect.
Open one of these files for editing:
<fgl_home>\fglam\state\default\config\fglam.config.xml (embedded Agent Managers)
<fglam_home>\state\default\config\fglam.config.xml (stand-alone Agent Managers)
In the fglam.config.xml file, locate the <config:krb5-config-file> element. It should point to the OS krb5.config file, or the Agent Manager's own krb5.config file, if the OS does not include one.
Locate and open the krb5.config file for editing. You can find this file in your Agent Manager installation directory: <fglam_home>/state/default/config.
In the
krb5.config file, ensure that the target
host’s domain (the XenDesktop Delivery Controller’s domain) is specified as
the default realm. For example, if the domain is
example.com, look for the
following lines in the file.
Tip: The KDC (Key
Distribution Center) IP address (or hostname) is usually same as the Active
Directory IP address (or host name).
[libdefaults]
default_realm =
EXAMPLE.COM
[realms]
EXAMPLE.COM = {
kdc =
192.0.2.0
}
[domain_realm]
.example.com = EXAMPLE.COM
If you make any changes to the krb5.config file, restart the Agent Manager.
Log in to the Foglight browser interface.
On the navigation panel, under Dashboards, choose Administration > Agents > Agent Managers.
Select the row containing the Agent Manger host, and click Restart.
For more information about this dashboard, see the Administration and Configuration Help. For more information about the Agent Manager, see the Agent Manager Guide.
This section presents the sizing formula used to calculate the memory needed for Foglight Agent Manager and Foglight Management Server to run stable.
VMWare® = 512 MB + 0.50 MB * Desktop(VM)#
XenDesktop® and XenApp® = 256 MB +0.25 MB * Session#
Session/Process Collection = 0.5 MB * Desktop(VM)#
Note: The VMware agent requires a minimum of 2.5 GB of memory.
Example: The first line in the following table shows a XenDesktop environment with 200 desktops.
The VMware agent was set up to collect full metrics, and consumes 512 MB + 0.5 MB * 200 = 612 MB for running stable.
XenDesktop consumes 256 MB + 0.25 MB * 200 = 306 MB for running stable.
The total cost is 612 MB + 306 MB = 918 MB of total memory.
When the Session/Process Collection is enabled, addition memory is consumed for the same environment: 200 * 0.5 = 100 MB. The total cost in this case is 918 + 100 = 1018 MB.
After the total memory (MB) is determined, you have the following two options:
vmparameter.0 = "-Xms1958m";
vmparameter.1 = "-Xmx1958m";
Example # |
Desktop Count |
VMware |
Session/Process Collection |
XenDesktop and XenApp Sessions |
Total Memory (MB) |
Example 1 |
200 |
612 |
0 |
306 |
918 |
Example 2 |
500 |
762 |
0 |
381 |
1143 |
Example 3 |
1000 |
1012 |
0 |
506 |
1518 |
Example 4 |
2000 |
1512 |
0 |
756 |
2268 |
5000 |
3012 |
0 |
1506 |
4518 |
|
Example 6 |
10000 |
5512 |
0 |
2756 |
8268 |
With Virtual Application enabled Session/Process collection |
|||||
Example 1 |
200 |
612 |
100 |
306 |
1018 |
Example 2 |
500 |
762 |
250 |
381 |
1393 |
Example 3 |
1000 |
1012 |
500 |
506 |
2018 |
Example 4 |
2000 |
1512 |
1000 |
756 |
3268 |
Example 5 |
5000 |
3012 |
2500 |
1506 |
7018 |
Example 6 |
10000 |
5512 |
5000 |
2756 |
13268 |
Desktop Count | Memory |
< 1000 |
8G |
2500 | 17G |
5000 | 25G |
10000 | 40G |
Additional information is available from the following:
This section contains information about installing and operating this product in non-English configurations, such as those needed by customers outside of North America. This section does not replace the materials about supported platforms and configurations found elsewhere in the product documentation.
This release is Unicode-enabled and supports any character set. In this release, all product components should be configured to use the same or compatible character encodings and should be installed to use the same locale and regional options. This release is targeted to support operations in the following regions: North America, Western Europe and Latin America, Central and Eastern Europe, Far-East Asia, Japan.
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