Recommendations for Ignite 2015

Better Dynamic Application Delivery through UE-V & App-V:

Aaron Ruckman and myself will be discussing recent and forthcoming innovations with App-V and UE-V as well as some general recommendations including some you may have never heard of before.

http://meme.ms/d5cdr3p

App-V 5.0 SP3: Advanced Connection Groups:

Briton Zircher and the Virtual Vibe Guy Thamim Karim will be discussing how to implement advanced Connection Groups and the recent development involving creating complex virtual environments.

http://meme.ms/d5ki5is

Fundamentals of Microsoft Azure RemoteApp Management and Administration:

You should turn out for this one as it is jammed pack full of information relating to Azure RemoteApp including some information on App-V possibilities.

http://meme.ms/d5jqcah

Microsoft Office 365 ProPlus: Have It Your Way!

Office365 offers many flexible options for deployment of the Office Client. This presentation will cover these options.

http://meme.ms/d5e74fu

Deploying Office 365 ProPlus Using System Center Configuration Manager:

This presentation outlines the pros/cons of the new Application-model versus Package-model deployment types and introduce a hybrid Application-model deployment using a Cloud DP.

http://ignite.microsoft.com/session/sessionmoreinfo/?topicid=1dd80124-2795-e411-b87f-00155d5066d7

MDOP 2014 R2 is now Available!

The latest version of the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack has been released! This release includes UE-V 2.1 plus App-V 5.0 SP3!

For UE-V, this includes some significant addition of features including:

• Credential Roaming Support
• Improved Office 2013 integration (especially email signatures)
• Support for cloud-based storage paths!?

For App-V 5.0 SP3, we have fixed several issues and added some key features such as:

• Mixed Targeted Connection Groups integrated into the Management/Publishing System
• User-Targeted RunVirtual
• Consolidated Event Logging
• Improved Connection Group Performance

See the official Windows for your Business Blog for more details:

http://blogs.windows.com/business/2014/12/08/mdop-2014-r2-now-available/

Important Note for App-V 4.6 Users Upgrading to Windows 8.1

If you have not already heard, today MDOP (Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack) 2013 R2 became generally available for download to our MDOP customers. More information can be found here:

http://blogs.windows.com/windows/b/business/archive/2013/12/02/mdop-2013-r2-now-available.aspx

and

http://blogs.windows.com/windows/b/springboard/archive/2013/12/02/announcing-mdop-2013-r2.aspx

This latest incarnation of MDOP includes the release of:

• Application Virtualization (App-V) 5.0 SP2 and the virtualization of Office 2013
• Application Virtualization (App-V) 4.6 SP3
• User Experience Virtualization (UE-V) 2.0
• Microsoft BitLocker Administration and Monitoring (MBAM) 2.0 SP1, which also offers multi-language support.
• Diagnostics and Recovery Toolset (DaRT) 8.1
• Advanced Policy Group Management (APGM) 4.0 SP2

Primary release pillars for MDOP 2013 R2 revolve around support for Windows 8.1.

If you are still using App-V 4.6 on Windows 7 (either 4.6 SP1 or SP2) or Windows 8 (4.6 SP2) you may also be aware that the installation of Windows 8.1 will be blocked if it detects the presence of any version of App-V 4.x. This will also include 4.6 SP3 if you decide to go ahead and pre-install SP3 prior to the upgrade to 8.1. This relates to the
operating-specific drivers that are used by App-V 4.6. If you are planning to use Windows 8.1 with App-V 4.6 SP3, you will need to first remove any installations of App-V 4.6. Then you can upgrade/install Windows 8.1. Once Windows 8.1 is installed, you can install App-V 4.6 SP3. Please note this approach only applies to App-V 4.6 and not App-V 5.0.

While the App-V Client settings and user application settings will be retained with the uninstallation/reinstallation approach, the App-V 4.6 cache will be reset so applications will have to be re-delivered (re-streamed, pre-cached, re-advertised, etc.) Normally to avoid having to do this in the past, administrators would simply do in-place upgrades. This one-time exception does not allow for this and will require likely adjustments if you have users currently using virtual applications with 4.6 and will be upgrading to Windows 8.1 from Windows 7 or Windows 8.

 

Come See Me at TechEd 2013 North America!

TechEd 2013 North America is 6/2 through 6/6 in New Orleans!

http://northamerica.msteched.com/?mtag=TENAC9TEPage

I’ll be there and I hope to see you there too! Alfred Ojukwu, Henry Schulman, and myself will be there from MCS presenting two sessions on App-V 5.0:

Sequencing Applications Using the New Microsoft Application Virtualization 5.0 Sequencer
https://channel9.msdn.com/Events/TechEd/NorthAmerica/2013/WCA-B205#fbid=UNR8sVE6CJM
June 5, 2013 from 3:15PM to 4:30PM

Integrating the New Microsoft Application Virtualization 5.0 with other Virtualization Solutions
https://channel9.msdn.com/Events/TechEd/NorthAmerica/2013/WCA-B324#fbid=UNR8sVE6CJM
June 6, 2013 from 8:30AM to 9:45AM

In addition, I’ll be manning the MDOP and Desktop Virtualization booths periodically through the week so feel free to stop by!

Must have (User Experience Virtualization) Deployment and Management Resources!

It was no coincidence that the inaugural release of Microsoft User Experience Virtualization (UE-V) directly coincided with the release of APP-V 5.0 For most modern enterprise user scenarios (BYOD, flexible workspace, mobile computing, etc.) the need to have portable applications that roam user settings across application delivery formats is an essential ask from customers. UE-V also allows more granularity to users and administrators allowing key applications to roam settings without the bloat and overhead of roaming user profiles (yes, I said it.)

As I have been doing with APP-V 5.0 and Office 2013, I am continuing on my theme of aggregating essential content for deploying key elements of newest Windows client solutions. I have compiled this list of essential UE-V resources and like the others, I will update this as additional key content becomes available.

 

White Papers:

UE-V deployment Guide:
http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=35495

UE-V Cmdlet Resources
http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=41195

Technet Resources:

Technet Online Administrative Guidance:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj680015.aspx

UE-V Technet Main Page:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/hh943107

UE-V Technet Forum:
http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/mdopuev/threads

Technet Lab: UE-V Deployment
https://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032537552&culture=en-US

 

UE-V Template Resources:

UE-V Community Template Gallery
http://gallery.technet.microsoft.com/site/search?f%5B0%5D.Type=RootCategory&f%5B0%5D.Value=UE-V&f%5B0%5D.Text=UE-V&sortBy=Date

 

UE-V TechNet Wiki Articles:

UE-V and SkyDrive Integration Not Supported
http://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/14425.ue-v-and-skydrive-integration-not-supported.aspx

How to repair an unsuccessful UE-V Uninstall
http://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/14489.how-to-repair-an-unsuccessful-ue-v-uninstall.aspx

UE-V and High Availability
http://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/16575.ue-v-and-high-availability.aspx

UE-V File Versions
http://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/16727.ue-v-file-versions.aspx

How to Verify a Successful UE-V Installation
http://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/16936.how-to-verify-a-successful-ue-v-installation.aspx

Technet Videos:

UE-V Overview:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/hh925634

UE-V Deployment and Setup:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/jj568979

Group Policy Management of UE-V:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/jj591520

Deploying the UE-V Agent with Config Manager
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/jj573734

Deploying the UE-V Agent with MDT
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/jj573733

 

KB Articles:

UE-V Template Verification Steps and Best Practices
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2769981

UE-V Registry Settings
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2770042

How to repair a corrupted UE-V install
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2769631

Microsoft Office Support in Microsoft User Experience Virtualization (UE-V)
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2841206/en-US

How to troubleshoot UE-V replication issues
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2844022/en-US

UE-V settings replicated by Internet Explorer
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2847017/en-US

UE-V Registry Settings
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2770042

UE-V Template Verification Steps and Best Practices
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2769981

UE-V Agent installation fails with error: The Offline Files service is not running
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2769614

UE-V does not update the theme on RDS or VDI sessions
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2769570

 

Add-on Downloads:

Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack Administrative Templates
http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=35516

System Center 2012 Configuration Pack for Microsoft User Experience Virtualization 2.0
http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=40913

 

 

Where Have I Been?

For once, I will switch gears and talk a little bit about myself personally. For the past several weeks, I have been contacted by several people wanted to know what happened and why there haven’t been any blog posts lately. Many also wanted to know if I would be continuing this blog.

The short answers are as follows:

1) Yes, I have been off the blog for a while.
2) Yes, the blog will continue and it will happen shortly.

Truth be told, I changed jobs at Microsoft. I switched from a primarily reactive support role over into a more proactive solutions-based role as a consultant with MCS (Microsoft Consulting Services.) I am very proud to be part of the Services organization at Microsoft and for the past two months I have been ramping in my role while working with customers in a new capacity. This has taken up a lot of my time but rest assured, I have been working in the background on new content and I will continue to work with and give as much insight as a can to the MDOP and Virtualization communities – that part will never change. It is this new opportunity, helping industry customers get in front of their various virtualization and application strategies, which will be both a new challenge and a way for me to continue to develop by taking myself out of my comfort zone. In order for us to grow, we must be willing to avoid resting on our laurels. We have to take ourselves out of our comfort zone in order for us to continue to develop and grow.

So keep checking in and stay tuned for more articles on not just Application, Desktop, and Server Virtualization (App-V, MED-V, Hyper-V, and VMM) but also look for more content to come on Server AppV, Application Management, User State Virtualization, and Automation.

Latest MDOP Developments Regarding Virtualization (App-V/MED-V)

I really need to do something about my tardiness when it comes to these announcements. Once again, I am late on the subject of a key announcement regarding App-V and MED-V.

First off: On May 25th, the MDOP team announced the release of App-V 4.5 Service Pack 2. This is a comprehensive service pack for all components (Client, Server, Sequencer)

Here is the App-V team’s posting:

http://blogs.technet.com/b/appv/archive/2010/05/25/microsoft-app-v-4-5-service-pack-2-is-now-available.aspx

The Documentation update information is also available. The “About SP2” topic is http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff699129.aspx and the SP2 release notes topic is http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff699130.aspx. 

Another interesting item – This will be the first release of App-V to be available through Windows Update/Microsoft Update/WSUS. To quote the product team:

"We will be adding a new product family to your WSUS server – Microsoft Application Virtualization.  The Microsoft Application Virtualization product family will include updates for all Microsoft Application Virtualization products. It will include a variety of update types, e.g. service packs, optional updates, critical updates and security updates.  Additionally, Microsoft Application Virtualization updates will be available through Microsoft Update and the Microsoft Update Catalog http://catalog.update.microsoft.com. "

To read all the details see New Category and Product Family for Microsoft Application Virtualization 4.5 on the WSUS product team blog:

http://blogs.technet.com/b/wsus/archive/2010/05/24/new-category-and-product-family-for-microsoft-application-virtualization-4-5.aspx

MED-V v2 development is well underway and a TAP program followed by an open beat is soon to follow. According to the MED-V product team, the positioning of MED-V v2 will revolve around Windows 7 migration and application compatibility.

MED-V v2 Beta will enable customers to pre-configure MED-V workspaces that can be delivered to user desktops via System Center Configuration Manager or any electronic software distribution (ESD) tools, and will also provide users with all the functionality of Windows XP Mode including seamless applications, USB support and printer capabilities.

Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization (MED-V) v2 Beta will be available in CYQ4, Customers wishing to participate in the TAP program that begins Mid-June can email medvtap@microsoft.com.

The MED-V v2 TAP program benefits you with:

•Designated point of contact on the product team
•Regular communications with the product team
•Opportunity to provide feedback for the MED-V v2 release
•Access to pre-release versions of the product and the ability to deploy into production before the product ships
•Priority 24×7 product support up until the shipping of the product, plus 30 days