Citrix Tested Hardware for the HDX 3D Pro Feature in XenDesktop 5.5

Summary

This article lists the hardware used by Citrix to test the HDX 3D Pro feature for the August, 2011 release of XenDesktop 5.5. It is intended that this article provide guidance for customers when choosing hardware to be used with HDX 3D Pro and XenDesktop 5.5. Note that this is not an exhaustive list of all the hardware that can be used with HDX 3D Pro, just a list of the hardware that was specifically used for testing by Citrix Engineering. Other hardware not listed below that meets the system requirements for HDX 3D Pro may also be used.

Graphics Processing Units

GPUs Tested with HDX 3D Pro Virtual Desktop Agent
Manufacturer Model Deployment Recommendations Tested by Citrix GPU-Based Deep Compression
Standalone Passthrough Standalone Passthrough Single Monitor Dual Monitor
NVIDIA Tesla M2070Q E Y N Y Y Y
Quadro 6000 Y Y N Y Y Y
Quadro 5000 Y Y Y Y Y Y
Quadro 4000 Y Y N Y Y Y
Quadro 2000 Y Y N Y Y Y
Quadro FX 3800 Y E Y N Y Y
Quadro FX 4800 Y E Y N Y Y
Quadro FX 5800 Y E Y N Y Y
Quadro FX 4600 Y E Y N Y N
Quadro FX 2800m Y E Y N Y N
GeForce GTX 480 Y E Y N Y Y
Quadro NVS 210S Y N Y N N N
GeForce 6150 LE Y N Y N N N
ATI-AMD Radeon HD 6870 Y E Y N N N
Firepro MV 2450 Y E Y N N N
Standalone = Physical machine with GPU; Passthrough = XenServer VM with GPU passthrough;

Y = Yes, tested and recommended; N = No, not tested or recommended; E = Experimental, not tested but expected to work.

Based on the testing carried out by Citrix, most NVIDIA Quadro and Quadro FX graphics cards should work in standalone mode with HDX 3D Pro. Citrix has tested only a few NVIDIA Tesla and GeForce graphics cards. Although it is expected that these classes of graphics cards will work, Citrix recommends that you carry out your own testing before putting such graphics cards into a production environment.

Although Citrix has only tested a few ATI-AMD graphics cards, it is expected that they will work with CPU-based compression.

Hardware for Application Host and User Device

The hardware requirements for both the computers hosting the graphical application (along with the HDX 3D Pro Virtual Desktop Agent) and the devices from which users access the host are given in the System Requirements for HDX 3D Pro[http://support.citrix.com/proddocs/topic/xendesktop-als/hd-3d-sys-req.html]. Any hardware that matches these specifications can be used. Citrix tested the HDX 3D Pro feature using the following hardware.

 

Tested Host Hardware Testing Mode
Physical Machine Virtual Machine
HP ws460cG6 Blade Workstation Y Y
HP z800 Workstation Y Y
HP z400 Workstation Y N
HP xw6600 Workstation Y N
HP xw6400 Workstation Y N
Dell Precision T3500 Y Y

The following machines were used as endpoints for testing.

  • HP xw4400 Workstation
  • HP xw4600 Workstation
  • HP z400 Workstation

Monitors Used for Testing

There are no restrictions on the monitors that can be attached to the user device and the computer hosting the graphical application, provided that they support the required resolution. Citrix used the following monitors for testing.

 

Monitor Maximum Supported Resolution (pixels)
HP LP2475w 1920 x 1200
HP LP 2465 1920 x 1200
Apple Cinema HD Display 1920 x 1200
HP L1906 1280 x 1024

Tested 3D Mice

Citrix used the following 3D mice for testing.

  • 3DConnexion Space Navigator
  • 3DConnexion Space Explorer
  • 3DConnexion Space Pilot

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