Cannot install IE9 Czech Language Pack (KB982861) on Windows Server 2008 R2
January 17, 2012
Currently I am setting up a Citrix XenApp 6.5 farm, English Operating System, with multiple Language Packs included. To clarify: Dutch, Spanish, German, Czech, Chinese (simplified), French and Portuguese (Brazilian). This whole environment is automatically build up through Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2010 update 1.
During deployment all MUI packs for Windows, Office2010 and IE9 are installed just fine except Czech Language Pack for Internet Explorer 9. Czech Language Pack for Windows and Office2010 are no problem at all.
Microsoft Deployment Toolkit summarizes an unexpected return code: 1603 as shown below.
Afterwards installing by hand results in the same error message and even generates an error event ID 20 in Event Viewer with message: “Installation Failure: Windows failed to install the following update with error 0×80070643: Update for Windows (KB982861)”
Who is familiar with this issue and can help me to solve this problem?
Topics: Citrix, Microsoft | No Comments »
Scense Live Profiles – a completely new and innovative solution for your profile issues
January 14, 2012
This month Scense Live Profiles will be launched as part of Scense version 7.6. Scense is a user focused desktop management and application delivery solution for Microsoft Windows based environments.
![Scense-logo[7]](http://www.edwinfriesen.nl/picture_library/Uploads/b2c14f8ddf17_DBA3/Scense-logo7.jpg "Scense-logo[7]"){kind=logo}
Scense
Scense delivers workspace management in both physical and virtual environments. Scense eliminates all complexity within mixed environments by managing and delivering physical and virtual applications and desktops in the same transparent and elegant way. End users can work anywhere, anytime.
Scense Live Profiles
One of the most promising new features of Scense 7.6 is Scense Live Profiles. An innovative and completely new profile solution that we did not see before. Below is a short description of what Scense Live Profiles meant to be. After the official launch I will take some time to test this new profile solution and keep you updated on my blog.
Scense Live Profiles is a fire and forget solution for user profile virtualization. Workspace and application related user settings are separately and centrally stored but transparently available regardless of the version of the Microsoft Windows operating system and accessible throughout the entire landscape of physical and virtual desktops, laptops, terminal server sessions and unmanaged PC’s. Scense Live Profiles will deliver consistent and familiar behaviour across all types of applications, natively installed, streamed or virtualized, across all desktop types and across all Windows versions.
Scense Live Profiles is also network independent. When Internet is available, Scense Live Profiles is available. By using Scense Live Profiles, the users will always have their applications ready for use and personalized to fit their needs, in real time, wherever they happen to be.
Topics: Scense | No Comments »
What are your biggest IT challenges in 2012?
January 12, 2012
Information Technology is changing very fast from technical driven solutions into a more business to business use case in which the end-user requires the most important focus for a successful implementation.
Right now it is time to deliver freedom to task workers to excite them and to stimulate their brain for new innovation. Not only freedom in possibilities from where they work but also capabilities in how they work! How will those people get access to business critical information and how will they communicate with each other.
I do really think that leading software vendors such as Microsoft, Citrix and VMware have build top solutions to make things happen this year! Especially frontend solutions to provide better performance and high availability to applications and information but also to build scalable, secure, maintainable and extensible desktop solutions.
Nowadays there are many cool solutions who can help with “the new ways of working”. Solutions such as VDI using VMware View and Citrix XenDesktop. Optimized platforms like Microsoft Windows 7 and the upcoming Windows 8 and multiple User Workspace Management solutions.
We also must not forget all new client devices to access data from. Tablet computers such as the iPad and maybe the more discussed Cisco CIUS, a multi-functional and excellent device to expand Unified Communication integration.
However there is one major point to think about:
“How will your end-user make use of this Information Technology?”
Prepare yourself, your staff and your business processes for a more end-user focused IT in 2012. Keep it simple and stick to the project. Use modular building blocks and do not make IT more complex than necessary. And last but not least start implementing Self-Service support for the end-user.
So far my personal vision on challenges of IT in 2012!
What are your biggest IT challenges in 2012?
Topics: Citrix, Ictivity, Microsoft, RES Software, Scense, VMware | No Comments »
End-of-Maintenance (EOM) & End-of-Life (EOL) Dates for 2012 and early 2013
November 24, 2011
Below you will find an overview of End-of-Maintenance (EOM) and End-of-Life (EOL) dates for 2012 and early 2013. The products listed are related to application and desktop delivery. Of course there are many other products with their own product lifecycle, but these seem to be very important. The bold dates are critical!
Virtual Application Solutions
| Product Released |
End of Maintenance |
End of Life |
| Microsoft App-V 4.5 | 14/01/2014 | 08/01/2019 |
| Microsoft App-V 4.6 | 14/07/2015 | 14/07/2020 |
| VMware ThinApp 4.0 | - | EOL |
| VMware ThinApp 4.5 | - | 17/03/2012 |
| VMware ThinApp 4.6 /4.7 | Unknown | Unknown |
Operating Systems
| Product Released |
End of Maintenance |
End of Life |
| Windows XP Embedded | 11/01/2011 | 12/01/2016 |
| Windows XP | 14/04/2009 | 08/04/2014 |
| Windows Vista | 10/04/2012 | 11/04/2017 |
| Windows 7 | 13/01/2015 | 14/01/2020 |
| Windows Server 2003 | 13/07/2010 | 14/07/2015 |
| Windows Server 2008 | 09/07/2013 | 10/07/2018 |
Virtual Desktop Solutions
| Product Released |
End of Maintenance |
End of Life |
| Citrix XenDesktop 3 | EOM | EOL |
| Citrix XenDesktop 4 | 16/11/2013 | 16/05/2014 |
| Citrix XenDesktop 5 | 17/12/2014 | 17/06/2015 |
| Citrix XenApp 4.5 on W2k3 | 30/09/2012 | 31/03/2013 |
| Citrix XenApp 5.0 on W2k8 | 15/01/2013 | 15/07/2013 |
| Citrix XenApp 6.0 | 15/01/2013 | 15/07/2013 |
| Citrix XenApp 6.5 | 23/01/2015 | 24/07/2015 |
| Citrix Provisioning Server 5.0 | EOM | EOL |
| Citrix Provisioning Server 5.1 | EOM | EOL |
| Citrix Provisioning Services 5.6 | 30/06/2012 | 31/03/2014 |
| Citrix Provisioning Services 6.0 | Unknown | Unknown |
| VMware View 3.x | - | EOL |
| VMware View 4.x | 16/11/2012 | 16/11/2014 |
| VMware View 5.x | 14/09/2014 | 14/09/2016 |
Hypervisors
| Product Released |
End of Maintenance |
End of Life |
| Microsoft Hyper-V R2 | 14/01/2014 | 08/01/2019 |
| Citirx XenServer 5.0 & 5.5 | 14/09/2011 | 14/09/2013 |
| Citrix XenServer 5.6 | 30/06/2012 | 31/03/2014 |
| Citrix XenServer 6.x | 26/09/2014 | 26/09/2016 |
| VMware ESX 3.0 | 10/12/2011 | 10/12/2013 |
| VMware ESX(i) 3.5 | 21/05/2013 | 21/05/2015 |
| VMware ESX(i) 4.0 | 21/05/2014 | 21/05/2016 |
| VMware ESX(i) 5.0 | 24/08/2016 | 24/08/2018 |
Topics: Citrix, Microsoft, VMware | No Comments »
Group Policy Management Console (GPMC) Error–Windows cannot find the network path..
November 23, 2011
Sometimes Windows problems are very hard to troubleshoot. A few weeks ago I had the problem below at a customers site with two Domain Controllers within one single Active Directory domain. Both DC’s are working fine with no events and no replication issues.
However, if you try to open Microsoft Group Policy Management Console (GPMC) on one of two DC’s you get the following information box: “Windows cannot find the network path. Verify that the network path is correct and the destination computer is not busy or turned off. If Windows still cannot find the network path, contact your administrator”
Although you cannot use GPMC to have an overview of Group Policy Objects (GPOs) it is possible to edit them using gpedit.msc. To be sure GPMC works fine on the other DC. Therefore I first expected that the GPMC software was corrupted. But also after a reinstall of GPMC the problem still exists.
Topics: Microsoft | No Comments »
Ictivity Training Appointed Exclusive Training Partner of Scense
November 21, 2011
Evolving business models and increasingly flexible working practices are placing new and complex pressures on IT management. To function effectively, a new generation of users demands access to its personal workspace, wherever and whenever they choose to work. At the same time, the need for a decrease in IT complexity, concerns with data access and the demand of IT compliancy remain as urgent as ever.
The rapid growth of Scense User Workspace Management Solution creates an increasing demand for a practical hands-on training. Ictivity Training and Scense put there hands together and developed a completely new Scense Workspace Management Training Course.
Scense Workspace Management enables dynamic applications in a personalized workspace. By keeping the end user workspace and applications independent of the underlying Operating System, Scense transforms expensive, mixed and distributed desktop environments into cost-effective, manageable and transparent infrastructures.
Learn more about Scense? Go to: Scense Workspace Management Training Course
Topics: Ictivity, Scense | No Comments »
VMware ThinApp goes CLOUD with it’s newly released version 4.7.0!
November 17, 2011
VMware released ThinApp 4.7! Behind this new release VMware is introducing the enablement of ThinApp packages in a cloud-based deployment and management platform, VMware Horizon Application Manager.
VMware ThinApp simplifies application delivery by isolating applications from the underlying operating system and plugging directly into existing virtual and physical desktop management tools and infrastructure. VMware ThinApp encapsulates applications inside a Virtual OS that transparently merges a virtual system environment with the real system environment.
VMware Horizon Application Manager
One of the major new features in VMware ThinApp 4.7 is it’s seamlessly integration with VMware Horizon Application Manager. Applications packaged with VMware ThinApp can be easily managed and deployed to end users. Use VMware Horizon Application Manager to set policies, entitle users, and securely deliver applications via the cloud.
ThinReg and ThinDirect
If you compare the installed files between ThinApp 4.6.2 and ThinApp 4.7.0 you will find that there must have been something changed related to ThinReg and ThinDirect. These changes effect the integration of VMware Horizon Application Manager and will also contain some bug fixes.
See also VMware ThinApp 4.7 release notes
VMware ThinApp goes CLOUD!
VMware has introduced Horizon Application Manager, a hosted service that enables organizations to centrally manage the provisioning, access and usage of cloud applications.
Integration with ThinApp provides fast, easy delivery of virtualized Windows applications. With this turnkey solution, IT departments can extend users enterprise identities to the public cloud, simplifying the security of application access. In addition, strong policy management delivers robust user-activity reporting. Users, even those with multiple devices, each have a single login and simplified, self-service access to the organization’s application store.
“Horizon Application Manager bridges the gap between the private and public cloud for organizations of any size.”
Horizon Application Manager can be deployed immediately without costly hardware or complex, time-consuming integration efforts. IT managers can now effectively address security risks and infrastructure costs, dramatically reducing the TCO of cloud applications.
For more information go to: VMware ThinApp 4.7 – What’s new?
Topics: VMware | 1 Comment »
Updated Training Courses
November 15, 2011
Application Delivery has changed significantly in the past decade. Fat client became thin client, web applications were introduced and currently there is an industry movement towards Hybrid Cloud Infrastructure type solutions. These all offer significantly different approaches and solutions to the same problem:
“How do I deliver applications and information to my users?”
Our training courses at Ictivity Training have been updated to the latest product upgrades. A short overview of training courses related to Application and Desktop Delivery can be found here.
I have also updated the Manuals and Guides section with several interesting documents about Application and Desktop Virtualization solutions.
For a complete overview of Training Courses go to:
Topics: Citrix, Ictivity, Microsoft, RES Software, VMware | No Comments »
RES PowerFuse 2010 Bug Found: Unable to save File Download preferences using User Preferences
November 11, 2011
Today I found a bug in RES PowerFuse 2010 (SR5) that seems to be solved earlier in RES PowerFuse 2008 SR8. Actually that is not true!
The problem I have discovered comes from some registry keys that contain REG_NONE values. Due to a coding error, the support for these values is not working.
REG_NONE registry keys are used for example to store the value of the file download dialog box that appears when a file is downloaded in Internet Explorer.
On this dialog box a check box “Always ask before opening this type of file” is available to disable it. Within RES PowerFuse 2010 SR5 it is not possible to save this setting using User Preferences.
A hotfix is expected soon by excellent and very fast support from RES Software!
Topics: RES Software | No Comments »
Online VMware View 5.0 Documentation Center
November 9, 2011
This topic is meant for those who do not know about the existence of VMware View 5.0 Documentation Center. This documentation center describes how to use View components to create, configure, and manage your VMware View desktop deployment.
VMware View delivers virtual desktops that run in the datacenter to end users, who can access their desktops from any number of devices either within the enterprise or at home. Administrators gain centralized control, efficiency, and security by having desktop data in the datacenter.
VMware View 5.0 Documentation Center includes many features to help you quickly access important information and can be really helpful at each VMware View VDI implementation.
Go to: VMware View 5.0 Documentation Center
Topics: VMware | No Comments »