Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6

Transcription

1 Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Version 1.0 May 2015

2 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Contents Contents Introduction...4 Key highlights... 4 About this document...5 Security... 6 Audience... 6 Feedback...6 Technology components... 7 VSS XAPP overview... 7 Storage components...7 Compute components...8 Network components... 8 Citrix components...9 Citrix XenDesktop... 9 XenApp NetScaler VMware components...12 VMware vsphere VMware vsphere ESXi VMware vcenter Server...12 Hardware and software components...13 Architecture...14 Environment profile...15 Citrix XenDesktop environment profile Citrix XenApp environment profile...16 Performance validation Performance validation...17 Workload Test procedure Citrix XenDesktop performance test results Cirix XenDesktop application response time Test results Desktop performance test results Citrix XenDesktop storage capacity...22 Citrix XenApp test results Citrix XenApp application response time Citrix XenApp vsphere ESXi host performance test results Citrix XenApp desktop performance test results

3 Contents VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Storage performance Design guidelines Virtual infrastructure design...28 Server sizing guidelines Storage capacity guidelines Cluster and storage design PVS server volume design Network design...33 IP network components PVS Server networking considerations...35 TFTP design Other settings VMware vsphere settings...37 VMware vstorage APIs for Array Integration (VAAI) settings...37 HBA queue depth adjustment...38 Citrix XenDesktop performance optimization...38 Citrix NetScaler design

4 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Introduction Introduction Virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) holds the promise of not only consolidating desktop computing in the data center for improved manageability, efficiency, and security, but also for supporting new services such as bring-your-own-device and desktop mobility. Companies are under increasing pressure to deliver enterprise applications on hosted virtual desktops with the user experience and reliability of a conventional physical desktop. The success of end-user computing deployments is dependent on user experience and how responsively virtual desktops perform. In addition to performance, a virtual desktop solution must be simple to deploy, manage, and scale, while delivering lower cost per desktop compared to a physical machine and enabling IT to continue using existing desktop management applications and tools. Storage is also a critical component of an effective virtual desktop solution. Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications from VCE provide the customer with a modern system capable of hosting a large number of virtual desktops at a consistent performance level. The compute and network components are designed to be redundant and sufficiently powerful to handle the processing and data needs of a large virtual desktop environment. EMC XtremIO storage delivers the extraordinary performance required for scalable VDI deployments, while dramatically lowering costs and enhancing the user experience. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate that Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications meet the functional and technical requirements of a 3500-user deployment in a Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 virtual desktop environment with Citrix Provisioning Services (PVS), Citrix XenApp 7.6, and VMware vsphere. Key highlights Extensive user-experience and operations testing, including Login VSI desktop performance benchmark testing, revealed exceptional operational performance of Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 and Citrix XenApp 7.6 on Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications. 4

5 Introduction VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 A simple design architecture and efficient use of storage preserved ease of use at an attractive price point. The results are summarized here and further described later in this paper. Figure 1: Key highlights Citrix XenDesktop Figure 2: Key highlights Citrix XenApp About this document This paper describes the architecture, design guidelines, validation, and performance data for Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications with a Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 deployment. The results of this validation were used to demonstrate that Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications meets the functional and technical requirements of a high-density user desktop deployment in Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 environments. 5

6 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Introduction Security Solution security is a substantial topic and is not within the scope of this document. In the interests of readability, discussion of security has been omitted. For production deployments, refer to the security guidance in the Citrix product documentation. Audience This paper is for enterprise and service provider decision makers and system administrators deploying large scale, end user computing environments with Citrix XenDesktop on Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications. Note: This paper contains a solution architecture intended for real-world deployment and a mix of desktop applications. As a result, the test metrics reflect a density of virtual desktops to blades in the current tests designed to show maximum potential VDI densities. The results outlined in this solution architecture are specific to the Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications. You may experience different results in your environment. Feedback To suggest documentation changes and provide feedback on this document, send an message to [email protected]. Include the name of the topic to which your feedback applies. 6

7 Technology components VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Technology components Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications bring the benefits of the world's most advanced converged infrastructure to meet the demands of the most demanding applications. Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications are specifically designed to unlock the full potential of the EMC XtremIO all-flash storage array. The EMC XtremIO storage array delivers the extraordinary performance required for massively scalable, virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) and similar solutions while dramatically lowering costs and enhancing the user experience. Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications rely on the EMC XtremIO flash array to deliver performance in the millions of IOPS with sub-millisecond response times. This enables VDI users to boot up, log on quickly from anywhere, and enjoy better access to the applications and information they need to get work done. Virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) deployments with more than 1000 desktops are ideally suited to the power and flexibility of Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications. Benefits include: A superior end-user experience Lower cost per desktop Complete flexibility in view deployments, allowing the use of full- or linked-clone technology interchangeably without drawbacks Assured project success from pilot to large-scale production A fast, simple method of performing high-volume desktop cloning, even during production hours Storage components Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications use EMC XtremIO all-flash storage arrays as primary storage for Citrix XenDesktop virtual desktops and Citrix Provisioning Services (PVS) servers. EMC XtremIO is a highly scalable, all-flash storage array that combines multi-level cell flash with sophisticated wear leveling, data reduction, and write abatement technology to deliver extended flash endurance that makes the system enterprise-reliable and reasonably priced. The smallest unit of an EMC XtremIO system is an X-Brick. Additional uniformly sized X-Bricks can be added for scalability in an EMC XtremIO design. A simple user interface reduces the time required to design and provision storage. Enterprise resiliency is delivered through Fibre Channel (FC) connectivity, flash-specific dual-parity data protection, and storage presentation over the iscsi protocol. 7

8 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Technology components Key attributes of the EMC XtremIO platform are: High levels of I/O performance, particularly for random I/O workloads that are typical in virtualized environments Consistently low (sub-millisecond) latency True inline data reduction the ability to remove redundant information in the data path and write only unique data to the storage array, thus lowering the amount of capacity required. A full suite of enterprise capabilities, such as integration with VMware through VAAI A scale-out design, in which additional performance and capacity are added in a building block approach, with all the building blocks forming a single clustered system Compute components Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications use Cisco Unified Computing System (UCS) blade enclosures, interconnects, and blade servers. The UCS data center platform combines x86-architecture blade and rack servers with networking and storage access into a single system. Innovations in the platform include a standards-based, unified network fabric, Cisco Virtual Interface Card (VIC), and Cisco UCS Extended Memory Technology. A wireonce architecture with a self-aware, self-integrating, intelligent infrastructure eliminates the need for manual assembly of components into systems. Cisco UCS B-Series 2-socket blade servers deliver record-setting performance to a wide range of workloads. Based on Intel Xeon processor E7 and E5 product families and designed for virtualized applications, these servers reduce CapEx and OpEx through converged network fabrics and integrated systems management, and deliver record-setting performance to a wide range of workloads. Networking components The network infrastructure for Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications includes Cisco Nexus 5548UP Switches, fabric interconnects, and Cisco Nexus 3064-T Ethernet Switches. The Cisco Nexus 5548UP Switches provide 10 GbE connectivity: Between the Vblock System internal components To the external network To the AMP for Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications through redundant connections to the Cisco Nexus 3064-T Switches in the AMP The two Cisco Nexus 5548UP Switches support low-latency line-rate 10 GbE and Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) connectivity on up to 48 ports. Unified port expansion modules are available and provide an extra 16 ports of 10 GbE or Fibre Channel (FC) connectivity. The FC ports are licensed in packs of eight in an on-demand basis. 8

9 Technology components VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 The Cisco Nexus 5548UP Switches have 32 integrated low latency unified ports. Each port provides linerate 10GbE or FC connectivity. The Cisco Nexus 5548UP switches have one expansion slot that can be populated with a 16-port unified port expansion module. The Cisco Nexus 5548UP Switch is the only network switch supported for Vblock System data connectivity in the AMP for Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications. Ports are reserved or identified for special Vblock System services such as backup, replication, or aggregation uplink connectivity. Cisco Nexus 5548UP Switches provide a number of line-rate ports for non-blocking 10 Gb/sec throughput. Citrix components Citrix XenDesktop In this solution, we used Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 to provision, manage, broker, and monitor the desktop virtualization environment. Citrix XenDesktop is the desktop virtualization solution from Citrix that enables virtual desktops to run on the vsphere virtualization environment. Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 integrates Citrix XenApp application delivery technologies and Citrix XenDesktop desktop virtualization technologies into a single architecture and management experience. Unifying management and delivery components enables a scalable, simple, efficient, and manageable solution for delivering Windows desktops and applications as secure mobile services to users anywhere on any device. The Citrix XenDesktop architecture includes the following components: Component Citrix Director Citrix Receiver Citrix StoreFront Citrix Studio Description Web-based tool that enables IT support and help desk teams to monitor an environment, troubleshoot issues before they become system-critical, and perform support tasks for end users. Installed on the user devices, provides users with quick, secure, self-service access to documents, applications, and desktops from any of the user s devices including smartphones, tablets, and PCs. Receiver provides on-demand access to Windows, web, and software as a service (SaaS) applications. Provides authentication and resource delivery services for Citrix Receiver. It enables centralized control of resources and provides users with on-demand, self-service access to their desktops and applications. Management console that enables configuration and management of a deployment, eliminating the need for separate consoles for managing delivery of desktops and applications. Studio provides various wizards to guide you through the process of setting up your environment, creating workloads to host applications and desktops, and assigning applications and desktops to users. 9

10 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Technology components Component Delivery Controller Provisioning Services License Server Virtual Delivery Agent Personal vdisk Description Core component of Citrix that enables you to deliver and broker virtual desktops to the end user. Installed as a standalone server, the controller consists of services that communicate with the hypervisor to distribute applications and desktops, authenticate and manage user access, and broker connections between users and their virtual desktops and applications. Citrix Provisioning Services (PVS) allows a single master image that can be streamed to hundreds or thousands of desktops. The master image is updated in private mode with the required application install or security patches and is sealed and promoted to a standard production image. This image is then streamed down to the target devices. Because machines stream disk data dynamically in real time from a single shared image, machine image consistency is ensured. Assigns user or device licenses to the Citrix XenDesktop environment. License Server can be installed with other Citrix XenDesktop components or on a separate virtual/ physical machine. Installed on server or workstation operating systems, enables connections for desktops and applications. Enables users to preserve customization settings and user-installed applications in a pooled desktop by redirecting the changes from the user's pooled virtual machines to a separate Citrix Personal vdisk (PvDisk or PvD). During runtime, the content of the PvDisk is blended with the content from the base virtual machine to provide a unified experience to the user. Citrix XenApp Citrix XenApp is an application and desktop virtualization solution built on a unified architecture so that it is simple to manage and flexible enough to meet the needs of all users in the organization. Citrix XenApp and Citrix XenDesktop have a common set of management tools that simplify and automate IT tasks. The same architecture and management tools are used to manage the deployments. Citrix XenApp delivers: Citrix XenApp published apps, also known as server-based hosted applications. These are applications hosted from Windows servers to any type of device, including Windows PCs, Macs, smartphones, and tablets. Some Citrix XenApp editions include technologies that further optimize the experience of using Windows applications on a mobile device by automatically translating native mobile-device display, navigation, and controls to Windows applications; enhancing performance over mobile networks; and enabling developers to optimize any custom Windows application for any mobile environment. Citrix XenApp published desktops, also known as server-hosted desktops. These are inexpensive, locked-down Windows virtual desktops hosted from Windows server operating systems. They are ideal for users, such as call center employees, who perform a standard set of tasks. 10

11 Technology components VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 VM-hosted apps. These are applications hosted from machines running Windows desktop operating systems for applications that can't be hosted in a server environment. The following diagram illustrates a Citrix XenApp deployment: Figure 3: Citrix XenApp deployment Citrix NetScaler Citrix NetScaler offers a multi-tenant network appliance that provides a platform to run multiple instances of NetScaler on completely isolated networks. It provides secure delivery of Citrix XenDesktop and Citrix XenApp applications, load balancing, content switching, monitoring of Citrix XenDesktop and Citrix XenApp traffic, dynamic security and application policies, content caching, SSL acceleration, network optimization, and many more features. NetScaler consolidates networking services and collapses multiple network appliances into a single, scalable platform that supports data center requirements. 11

12 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Technology components In addition to the load balancing capability used to validate the VCE solution, NetScaler also offers: HDX Insight for full end-to-end monitoring ofcitrix XenDesktop and Citrix XenApp traffic, which allows instant triage of network and application issues. With HDX Insight, this traffic can be viewed an individual user and application level. SmartControl, which provides dynamic access control based on a variety of attributes such as user role, state of the user device, strength of authentication, and so on. All these policies can be managed and enforced on the NetScaler appliance to improve security at the network edge and allows administrators to manage these policies from a centralized location. VMware components VMware vsphere 5.5 When using VMware vsphere 5.5 as the hypervisor for Citrix XenDesktop, the vsphere 5.5 components are built on an infrastructure incorporating VMware ESXi 5 hosts connected to local and shared storage. Shared storage can be on a Network File System (NFS), iscsi, or Fibre Channel SAN, as dictated by the enterprise. VMware vsphere ESXi VMware vsphere ESXi runs on the AMP for Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications and in a Vblock System using VMware vsphere Server Enterprise Plus. This lightweight hypervisor requires very little space to run (less than 6 GB of storage required to install) and has minimal management overhead. VMware vsphere ESXi does not contain a console operating system. It boots from SAN through an independent 20 GB FC LUN. The FC LUN also contains the hypervisor's locker for persistent storage of logs and other diagnostic files to provide stateless computing in the VSS XAPP. The stateless hypervisor is not supported. VMware vsphere ESXi hosts and their resources are pooled together into clusters. These clusters contain the CPU, memory, network, and storage resources available for allocation to virtual machines. Clusters scale up to a maximum of 32 hosts. Clusters support thousands of virtual machines. Note: Some advanced CPU functionality might be unavailable if more than one blade model is running in a given cluster. VMware vcenter Server VMware vcenter Server provides the infrastructure to manage multiple ESXi hypervisors as a single infrastructure cluster. The vcenter Server allows administrators to configure resource clusters and manage storage and high-availability functions across the environment. In a XenDesktop configuration, 12

13 Technology components VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 VMware vcenter can be configured as a VM running on the ESXi infrastructure or on a physical server, based on high-availability requirements. Hardware and software components The following table lists the hardware components used to validate this solution: Layer Hardware Quantity Compute Cisco UCS C220 M3 Rack Server 3 Cisco UCS 5108 Blade Server chassis 3 Cisco UCS B200 M4 Blade Server 24 Network Cisco Nexus 3064-T Switch 2 Cisco UCS 6248UP Series Fabric Interconnect 2 Cisco Nexus 5548UP Series IP Switch 2 Storage EMC VNXe 3150 Series Unified Storage System 1 EMC XtremIO Storage System 1 NetScaler SDX Version Note: Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications provide either single or dual cabinet solutions. We used the single cabinet solution in this test environment. The following table lists the software components used to validate this solution: Software Version Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 VMware vsphere 5.5 Citrix Provisioning Services (PVS) 7.6 Citrix StoreFront Server 2.6 Citrix Receiver 4.1 Microsoft SQL Server Microsoft Windows Server operating system Microsoft Windows desktop operating system 2012 R2 Enterprise 2012 R2 Standard Windows 7 Enterprise 13

14 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Logical architecture Logical architecture This diagram illustrates the logical architecture of the environment we used to validate this solution. Figure 4: Logical architecture 14

15 Environment profiles VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Environment profiles We used a factory-built, single-cabinet Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications system to validate this solution. The single-cabinet system consists of a dedicated three chassis, 24-blade Cisco UCS environment. Infrastructure and management servers are isolated on three Cisco UCS C220 rack-mount servers, with storage for all virtual desktops and infrastructure servers hosted on the same EMC XtremIO (single X- Brick) storage environment. Figure 5: Environment profile Citrix XenDesktop environment profile For Citrix XenDesktop validation, the environment was set up as follows: Three hosts for management and catalogs on the Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications (Cisco UCS C220 servers) Three vsphere clusters: one for XenDesktop management, one for PVS management, and one for desktops Three Cisco UCS blade chassis, total 24 blades. All UCS blades are Cisco UCS B-series Blade Servers Two vcenter Servers: one for management servers and one for desktops Desktop image: Windows 7 64-bit, 2 vcpu, 4 GB of RAM, 40 GB vhdd Standard LUN size: 2 TB 15

16 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Environment profiles With a Power user workload, each blade can support up to 165 users Citrix XenApp environment profile For validation of Citrix XenApp, the environment was set up as follows: 140 Citrix XenApp Servers built on 22 Cisco B200 M4 blade servers Each Citrix XenApp Server had 4 vcpu and 8 GB RAM All the Citrix XenApp Servers contain the Virtual Desktop Agent. The Desktop Delivery Controllers (DDC) help broker the server-hosted desktops to the users. The 3500 Power user sessions were load balanced across the XenApp Servers. 16

17 Performance test results VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Performance test results Workload generation and measurement To validate this solution, we used the Login Virtual Session Indexer (Login VSI) 4.1 workload generation and measurement tool to generate and measure rigorous and realistic desktop workloads Login VSI is an industry-standard tool designed to measure the maximum capacity of virtual desktop infrastructures by simulating unique user application workloads and measuring in-session resource utilization and response times. Simulated users work with the same applications as typical employees, such as Microsoft Internet Explorer, Microsoft Office applications, and Adobe Flash video. The results of several testing measurements are compiled into a metric known as VSImax. VSImax quantifies the maximum capacity of virtual desktops running on a given infrastructure while delivering an acceptable user experience. We used a Power worker workload to validate the solution. The objective of the testing was to determine how many virtual desktop users, or sessions, that the solution can support on the system under test. Test methodology We configured Login VSI to run a pre-defined Power user workload against a Citrix XenDesktop catalog of virtual desktops. We used a Power user workload because it consumes more memory and CPU resources due to the increased number of applications running concurrently, and addresses most hosted virtual desktop user classes. Workload parameters We set up the test to log users in to the virtual desktops incrementally every 30 seconds between sessions per physical host (blade). During testing, Login VSI sessions were initiated by launchers that ran on separate compute and storage infrastructure. Forty launchers were utilized, each running an average of 25 sessions. Each launcher was configured with four vcpus and 8 GB of vram, following Login VSI sizing guidelines. Other Power user workload test parameters included: Once a session started, the workload repeated every 12 minutes. During each loop, the response time was measured every two minutes. Up to nine applications were opened simultaneously. Type rate was 160 ms per character. About two minutes of idle time was added to simulate real-world users. 17

18 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Performance test results Workload applications We generated workloads using the following applications: Application Microsoft Outlook Internet Explorer Microsoft Word Microsoft Excel Microsoft PowerPoint 7-Zip Workload Browse 10 messages. Leave one instance open and continuously browse a second instance. Measure response time for one instance. Review and edit a document in a second instance. Open a very large randomized spreadsheet. Review and edit a presentation. Use the CLI to zip all session output. Metrics We measured response times for the following transactions: Transaction FCTS FCTL NSLD NFO NFP ZHC ZLC Description File Copy Text Share. Copy a txt (plain text) file locally. File Copy Text Local. Copy a txt (plain text) file locally. Notepad Start/Load file. Start Notepad by file type association, loading a text file. Measure how long it takes to show the file-open dialog in VSI notepad. Notepad File Print. Open the print dialog in Notepad. Zip High Compression. Zip a PST (Outlook Personal Folder) file, which is approximately 5 MB in size, using high compression Zip Low Compression. Zip a PST (Outlook Personal Folder) file, which is approximately 5 MB in size, using low compression. Test procedure During testing, we measured CPU utilization, memory utilization, storage processor utilization, and application response times. 18

19 Performance test results VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 We used the following test procedure to ensure consistent results. 1 Clean start of all desktop virtual machines (VMs) and clients before each test. 2 Restart all the launchers before the test. 3 Idle all desktop VMs and client launchers until startup services on the operating system settle down and memory and CPU on the launchers show no usage. 4 Execute at least two Login VSI loops in each active test phase session. 5 Log off all users after VSI completion. 6 Generate test run reports and data. Citrix XenDesktop performance test results We performed performance testing of Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 on a 3500 desktop configuration deployed on 22 vsphere Servers. Desktops ran a Power user workload. Highlights: With 3200 active sessions, VSIMax was not reached. Maximum CPU usage: ESXi host - 50% to 60% Desktop - 17% Disk latency and transfer times: ESXi host - less than 10 ms Desktop - less than 20 ms Peak of (Write) and (Read) IOPs on EMC XtremIO storage 19

20 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Performance test results Application response time and VSIMax During testing of Citrix XenDesktop, we measured the application response time for each transaction. Figure 6: Citrix XenDesktop - Application Response Times 20

21 Performance test results VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Citrix XenDesktop ESXi host performance test results We conducted performance testing of the ESXi servers hosting the Citrix XenDesktop desktops. Figure 7: Citrix XenDesktop - ESXi host performance 21

22 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Performance test results Citrix XenDesktop desktop performance test results We conducted performance testing on 1000 Citrix XenDesktop desktops running Power user workloads. Figure 8: Citrix XenDesktop - Desktop performance Citrix XenDesktop storage capacity The volume capacity configured and presented to VMware vsphere was TB. The actual storage footprint for 3500 desktops and infrastructure servers was approximately 1.53 TB. Due to the efficiency of the EMC XtremIO inline data reduction capability, desktop and server virtual machines occupied a physical storage footprint of only GB. This represents: Overall Efficiency Ratio: 288:1 Data Reduction Ratio: 7.5:1 vsphere Thin Provisioning Saving: 97% 22

23 Performance test results VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Note: After a Power user workload was run against the 3500 desktops, the total data reduction ratios were 3.0:1. However, this number will vary depending on the environment (user profile, workload generated, and so on). Figure 9: Citrix XenDesktop storage capacity Citrix XenApp performance test results We conducted performance testing of Citrix XenApp 7.6 on 4000 server-hosted desktops running a Power user workload. Highlights: \With 3500 active sessions running a Power user workload, VSIMax was reached Maximum CPU usage: ESXi host - 35% Desktop - 80% Disk latency and transfer times: ESXi host - less than 10 ms 23

24 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Performance test results Desktop - less than 20 ms Application response time During testing of Citrix XenApp, we measured the application response time for each transaction. Figure 10: Citrix XenApp - Application Response Time 24

25 Performance test results VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Citrix XenApp ESXi host performance test results We conducted performance testing of server-hosted desktops using Citrix XenApp deployed on ESXi hosts. Figure 11: Citrix XenApp - ESXi host performance 25

26 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Performance test results Citrix XenApp desktop performance test results We conducted performance testing of server-hosted desktops using Citrix XenApp deployed on ESXi hosts. Figure 12: Citrix XenApp - Desktop performance Citrix XenApp storage capacity The volume capacity configured and presented to VMware vsphere was TB. The actual storage footprint for 4000 desktops and infrastructure servers was approximately GB. Due to the efficiency of the EMC XtremIO inline data reduction capability, desktop and server virtual machines occupied a physical storage footprint of only GB. This represents: Overall Efficiency Ratio: 146:1 Data Reduction Ratio: 5.2:1 26

27 Performance test results VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 vsphere Thin Provisioning Saving: 96% Figure 13: Citrix XenApp storage capacity 27

28 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Design guidelines Design guidelines VDI infrastructure design In conformance with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 planning guidelines, we deployed two VMware vcenter instances: one for infrastructure and management servers and one for desktops. The AMP for Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications manages the three management hosts and the datastore. Figure 14: VDI management design 28

29 Design guidelines VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 The Cisco UCS C220 servers manage the virtual machines and the UCS B-Series servers host the desktops and the Citrix PVS servers. Figure 15: VDI desktop design Server sizing guidelines All server resources were sized according to current best practices from VMware and Citrix. Separate VMware vcenters were deployed: one to manage and monitor servers and one to host desktops. This is the standard, recommended configuration for most production Citrix XenDesktop deployments. The Cisco UCS C220 M3 servers manage the virtual machines, and the Cisco UCS B200 M4 servers host the desktops. The AMP for Vblock Specialized Systems for Extreme Applications manages the management hosts and the datastore. The datastore resides in the EMC VNXe array. All additional vcenter roles (Inventory Services, Single Sign-On) for the desktops were installed on separate servers to prevent resource contention on a busy vcenter Server. Table 1: Server resources Server role vcpu RAM (GB) Storage (GB) Operating system SQL database server Windows Server bit R2 Notes For Citrix desktops vcenter 29

30 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Design guidelines Table 1: Server resources Server role vcpu RAM (GB) Storage (GB) Operating system vcenter Server - VDI Windows Server bit R2 vcenter SSO - VDI Windows Server bit R2 vcenter Inventory -VDI Windows Server bit R2 Notes For Citrix desktops For Citrix desktops vcenter For Citrix desktops vcenter vcenter Update Manager SQL database for Citrix Desktop Delivery Controller and Provisioning Services Desktop Delivery Controller 1 Desktop Delivery Controller Windows Server bit R C:40 E:100 Windows Server bit R C:40 E:60 Windows Server bit R C:40 E:60 Windows Server 2012 R2 For Citrix desktops vcenter StoreFront C:40 E:60 Windows Server bit R2 StoreFront C:40 E:60 Windows Server bit R2 License Server 2 4 C:40 E:60 Windows Server bit R2 Director 2 4 C:40 E:60 Windows Server bit R2 PVS Server C:40 F:200 Windows Server bit R2 PVS Server C:40 F:200 Windows Server bit R2 PVS Server C:40 F:200 Windows Server bit R2 PVS Server C:40 F:200 Windows Server bit R2 Storage sizing guidelines The amount of storage allocated for a deployment depends on the amount of storage required by the Citrix XenDesktop components, the desktop profile used, and the number of desktops. 30

31 Design guidelines VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 For validation of the solution, we allocated 56 TB of storage (28 LUNs at 2 TB each) to support 3500 Citrix XenDesktop desktops. The following table shows the values used to calculate the amount. Table 2: Citrix XenDesktop storage requirements Purpose Number of datastores/ LUNs Size of datastore Total capacity Desktop pool/citrix PVS Write cache Citrix PVS vdisk store and management Master image and templates 24 2 TB 56 TB 1 2 TB 2 TB 1 4 TB 4 TB The total amount of storage required for validation of the solution was calculated as follows: The Master virtual machine is 40 GB. The total volume capacity configured and presented to VMware vsphere was TB. The actual storage footprint for 3500 desktops and infrastructure servers was approximately 1.53 TB. Due to the efficiency of the EMC XtremIO inline data reduction capability, desktop and server virtual machines occupied a physical storage footprint of only GB. The number of desktops supported per datastore is 150. The number of datastores required is 24. Each datastore (LUN) is 2 TB. The total data reduction ratio for the EMC XtremIO storage array after 3500 virtual machines were provisioned was 7.5:1. Note: After a Power user workload was run against the 3500 desktops, the total data reduction ratios were 3.0:1. However, this number will vary depending on the environment ( user profile, workload generated, and so on). Cluster and storage design For desktop virtual machines, we deployed two vsphere clusters with 24 nodes (with n+1 HA readiness). The Citrix Provisioning Services (PVS) servers used two hosts and the streaming desktops used 22 hosts. The Citrix PVS cluster has two hosts with one 2 TB LUN mapped for the PVS vdisk store and PVS application. The VDI cluster has 22 hosts with the following LUNs: Twenty-four 2 TB LUNs mapped for the hosts 31

32 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Design guidelines One 4 TB LUN mapped for the master image and templates To simplify the storage design, the EMC XtremIO storage was configured with logical unit numbers (LUNs) for infrastructure virtual machines. Figure 16: Cluster and storage design Citrix PVS Server volume design Each Citrix PVS server has specific volumes mapped so that each can support specific workloads to provide optimum performance. We used the following volumes for the four Citrix PVS servers we used for this solution: C: for the operating system disk and the Citrix PVS application D: for data 32

33 Design guidelines VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 F: for the vdisk store (mapped to each individual LUN in the EMC XtremIO X-Brick) Figure 17: PVS Server volume design Network design Each fabric interconnect has multiple ports reserved for 10 GbE ports. These connections form a port channel to the Cisco Nexus switch and carry IP traffic destined for the desktop network 10 GbE links. In a unified storage configuration, this port channel also carries IP traffic to the X-Blades within the storage layer. The Cisco Nexus 5548UP switches in the network layer provides 10 GbE IP connectivity between the infrastructure and the outside world. In unified storage architecture, the switches connect the fabric interconnects in the compute layer to the XtremIO X-Bricks in the storage layer. 33

34 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Design guidelines In a segregated architecture, the Cisco Nexus 5548UP series switches in the network layer provide Fibre Channel (FC) links between the Cisco fabric interconnects and the EMC XtremIO storage array. These FC connections provide block-level devices to blades in the compute layer. Figure 18: Networking infrastructure IP network components and requirements To support the Ethernet and storage area network (SAN) requirements in the traditional segregated network architecture, two Cisco Nexus 5548UP switches provide 10 Gb Ethernet (10 GbE) and FC connectivity. The Cisco Nexus 5548UP switches have 32 integrated, low-latency unified ports, each providing line-rate 10 GbE or FC connectivity. The Cisco Nexus 5548UP switches each have one expansion slot that can be populated with a 16-port unified port expansion module. 34

35 Design guidelines VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Validation of this solution required: An IP subnet capable of hosting 3500 DHCP addresses for Citrix XenDesktop desktops The IP infrastructure for the Citrix XenDesktop infrastructure and desktop pools must be 10 GbE The following table shows the IP network components used to validate the solution: Purpose VLAN ID IP range Subnet mask Gateway Citrix management to Desktop pools to Citrix PVS server networking considerations Each Citrix PVS Server has two network interface cards (NICs), each of which connects to a distributed switch inside vcenter. The NICs are assigned as follows: NIC1 is assigned a management VLAN network to take only management traffic through management port group (PG-Mgmt). It handles all management work, including talking to Desktop Delivery Controller (DDC) and Active Directory (AD). 35

36 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Design guidelines NIC2 is assigned a VLAN subnet that is dedicated for streaming and DHCP network. It is connected with a port group on a distributed switch dedicated to desktops (PG-Desktop). This controls all DHCP/TFTP traffic between desktops and Citrix PVS servers. Figure 19: PVS Server networking Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) design Citrix PVS is a software streaming technology that allows servers and desktops to be provisioned and reprovisioned in real time from a single shared-disk image. The service is commonly integrated with Citrix virtualization solutions to optimize operating system delivery and management. Often these solutions are critical to the operation of organizations and require high availability. Providing high availability for PVS requires designed each component of the service without a single point of failure across the network. The bootstrap file, named ardbp32.bin, is a key component that may be delivered to PVS target devices in order for them to communicate with PVS over the network. The bootstrap file is typically delivered by means of Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) services hosted on provisioning servers. 36

37 Design guidelines VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 in this design, we use the Manage Boot Device Utility. This an optional method for providing IP and boot information (boot device) to target devices. Using this method, when the target device starts, it obtains the boot information directly from the boot device. With this information, the target device is able to locate, communicate, and boot from the appropriate Provisioning server. After the user is authenticated, the Provisioning Server provides the target device with its vdisk image. Figure 20: Citrix PVS TFTP deign Other settings VMware vsphere settings VMware and storage vendor best practices recommend the following parameter adjustments to properly configure VMware vsphere to work with EMC XtremIO storage systems: Adjust the number of outstanding storage target commands to 256 Change the number of consecutive storage commands to 64 Change the hardware bus adapter (HBA) queue depth settings to 256 for each host HBA Change the native storage multipath policy in vsphere to Round Robin VMware vstorage APIs for Array Integration settings VMware vsphere Storage APIs Array Integration (VAAI) are a set of APIs to enable communication between VMware vsphere ESXi hosts and storage devices. VAAI lowers desktop provisioning time from 37

38 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Design guidelines hours to minutes by performing vsphere operations such as virtual machine provisioning and cloning within an array that supports VAAI. The XtremIO storage system fully supports VAAI. VAAI is enabled by default in vsphere version 5.x. No further action is required for VAAI to be used with XtremIO storage. Additional information about the integration is provided in the Implementation Recommendations section of this manual. HBA queue depth adjustment Adjust the maximum queue depth value of the host to rectify unsatisfactory performance of HBAs or overuse of SAN storage processors or heads. The maximum value refers to the queue depths reported for various paths to the LUN. Lowering this value throttles the throughput of the ESXi host, and alleviates SAN contention concerns if multiple hosts are over-utilizing the storage and are filling its command queue. Citrix XenDesktop performance optimization The following documents provide additional and relevant information: Windows 7 Optimization Guide for Desktop Virtualization Citrix XenApp 7.6 and Citrix XenDesktop

39 Citrix NetScaler VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Citrix NetScaler For validation of this solution, we used Citrix NetScaler for load balancing the StoreFront servers. Citrix NetScaler is an ideal choice for front-ending an organization's desktop virtualization infrastructure. An advanced solution for delivering both applications and services, it provides extensive high-availability, security, monitoring and performance-optimization capabilities. Its powerful core features can work well with any virtual desktop products you choose, but if your organization selects the Citrix XenDesktop desktop virtualization solution, you will also be able to take advantage of a number of more advanced features such as HDX Insight and SmartControl, made possible by the deeper level of integration between Citrix NetScaler and Citrix XenDesktop. For multiple server StoreFront deployments, external load balancing is required. You can use the Citrix NetScaler load balancing feature to optimize the distribution of tenant user connections across StoreFront servers in a multiple server deployment. The default, and recommended, configuration for StoreFront uses SSL to secure tenant user connections. To enable NetScaler to communicate with StoreFront, you must configure NetScaler with an SSL certificate. Citrix NetScaler Gateway enables you to apply endpoint analysis to user connection requests. You can use endpoint analysis to verify, for example, the operating system version and the presence of antivirus software before permitting user devices to connect to your network and provide access based on results from scanning the device. These policies can be enforced on the NetScaler appliance thereby improving security at the edge. It also allows administrators to centrally manage policy rather than multiple Citrix XenDesktop and Citrix XenApp instances. First, you must configure Citrix NetScaler Gateway with an SSL certificate. 39

40 VSS XAPP with Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 Citrix NetScaler Figure 21: Citrix NetScaler design 40

41 About VCE VCE accelerates the adoption of converged infrastructure and cloud-based computing models that dramatically reduce the cost of IT while improving time to market for enterprises and service providers globally. Through its leading Vblock Systems, VCE delivers the industry's only true converged infrastructure, leveraging Cisco compute and network technology, EMC storage and data protection, and VMware virtualization and virtualization management. VCE solutions are available through an extensive partner network and cover horizontal applications, vertical industry offerings and application development environments, enabling customers to focus on business innovation instead of integrating, validating, and managing IT infrastructure. For more information, go to All rights reserved. VCE, Vblock, VCE Vision, and the VCE logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of VCE Company, LLC. and/or its affiliates in the United States or other countries. All other trademarks used herein are the property of their respective owners. 41