Citrix Provisioning 7.7 with Support for Windows 10
Citrix have released a new version of Citrix Provisioning 7.7 which contains a lot of new improvements including support for Microsoft Windows 10, Yeah!.
The community have also embrased PVS 7.7 and Carl Webster have updated his PVS 7.7 Documentor Script and Sacha Thomet have developed a PVS 7.7 Health Check script that is also GA same day as PVS 7.7
New features in Citrix Provisioning service – PVS 7.7
The folllowing new features are available with Citrix Provisioning Services 7.7:
- Support for Microsoft Windows 10 Enterprise and Professional editions.
- In-place upgrade of target device software. Rather than reverse-imaging, you can install a new version of the target device software without having to manually uninstall the previous version. To do an in-place upgrade from version 7.6 to version 7.7 you must first install version 7.6.1.
- Support for UEFI pre-boot environments. This enables you to stream at startup time using gigabit network speeds, so users experience faster startups, and to use disks over 2 TB.
- The licensing grace period for Provisioning Services has changed from 96 hours to 30 days, for consistency with XenApp and XenDesktop.
- The Citrix Provisioning Services API has been enhanced to provide a standard object-oriented PowerShell interface that enables you to integrate your products and tools easily with Citrix Provisioning Services.
- vGPU-enabled XenDesktop machines can be provisioned using the Provisioning Services XenDesktop Setup Wizard, rather than manually or by using the Provisioning Services Streamed Virtual Machine Setup Wizard. You can provision machines on VMware vSphere 6.0 as well as on XenServer 6.2.
- System Center Virtual Machine Manager Generation 2 VMs can be provisioned through Citrix Provisioning Services. Generation 2 VMs are optimized for modern workloads: the operating system does not carry the overhead of legacy drivers, devices and x86 architectures.
Note: This feature has received limited testing, may not be present in future product releases and must not be enabled on production systems. Citrix may not respond to support requests regarding this feature.
- FIPS support. Citrix Provisioning Services uses a new algorithm that is compliant with Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS).
- XenApp Session Recording is automatically available by default on all machines: you do not need to use a manual workaround.
- Streaming VHDX formatted disks. This feature adds flexibility and efficiency to image and merging operations by letting you stream VHDX files as well as VHD files. Citrix Provisioning Services recognizes and uses the file format .vhdx as the extension for base disks and .avhdx for differencing disks (also known as versions). No configuration of this feature is necessary. You perform all image manipulation functions, such as deleting or merging vDisks, or creating new versions, in the Citrix Provisioning Services console the same way for both formats.
You must use the most recent version of the Citrix License server to get the latest features. When upgrading from an existing version of Provisioning Services to the newest version of Provisioning Services, the most recent version of the license server is usually available with the product software. If you do not upgrade to the latest version of the license server, the product license will enter the 30 day grace period.
Upgrading a Citrix Provisioning Services farm to 7.7
Provisioning Services supports upgrading to the latest product version from versions starting with 5.1 SP1.
Before attempting to upgrade a Citrix Provisioning Services farm:
- Select a maintenance window that has the least amount of traffic
- Back up the Provisioning Services database
- Back up all vDisks
To upgrade from a previous Citrix Provisioning Services farm, complete the following procedures:
- Upgrade the first Citrix Provisioning Server, which upgrades the Citrix Provisioning Services database.
- Upgrade Consoles. The Console is a separate executable that can be installed on upgraded servers (PVS_Console.exe or PVS_Console_64.exe). Citrix recommends upgrading Provisioning Services server and console software at the same time for each Provisioning Server system in the farm. Remote Consoles can be upgraded at any time.
- Upgrade the remaining Citrix Provisioning Servers within the farm.
- Upgrade vDisks.
Caution: If you are upgrading a Provisioning Services vDisk within a XenDesktop deployment, upgrade the Provisioning Services master target device software before upgrading the XenDesktop VDA software.
Upgrade Utilities
The Upgrade Wizard includes the following utilities:
- The UpgradeAgent.exe runs on the target device to upgrade previously installed product software.
- The UpgradeManager.exe runs on the Citrix Provisioning Server to control the upgrade process on the target device.
Source
Download Citrix PVS 7.7 here (Require MyCitrix ID)
Download Citrix PVS 7.7 Documentor here
Download Citrix PVS 7.7 health healthcheck script here
Other PVS 7.7 Guides
Citrix Provisioning Services 7.7 MCLI Programmer’s Guide
Citrix Provisioning Services 7.7 SOAP Server Programmer’s Guide
Citrix Provisioning Services 7.7 PowerShell with Objects Programmer’s Guide
Citrix Provisioning Services 7.7 Transition to PowerShell with Objects from PowerShell (Deprecated) Programmer’s Guide
Professional Services
Citrix technology professional – CTP, and Microsoft Most Valuable Professional MVP, Thomas Poppelgaard provides professional services. Write to me on my email thomas@poppelgaard.com or call on my cell +45 53540356
