Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops

Deprecation

The announcements in this article are intended to give you advanced notice of platforms, Citrix products, and features that are being phased out so that you can make timely business decisions. Citrix monitors customer use and feedback to determine when they are withdrawn. Announcements can change in subsequent releases and might not include every deprecated feature or functionality. For details about product lifecycle support, see the Product Lifecycle Support Policy article. For information about the Long Term Service Release (LTSR) servicing option, see https://support.citrix.com/article/CTX205549.

Deprecations and removals

The following table shows the platforms, Citrix products, and features that are deprecated or removed. Dates in bold face indicate changes at this release.

Deprecations

Deprecated items are not removed immediately. Citrix continues to support them, but they will be removed in a future release.

Item Deprecation announced in version Removed in version Alternative
Import Citrix Provisions target devices into Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops catalogs for management 1912 LTSR - Use the Citrix Provisioning Export Devices Wizard
License Server VPX 2206 11.17.2 build 35000
Unmanaged disk to provision VMs in Azure environments. 2206   Use managed disks
Host to Client (URL) redirection 2203 Bidirectional content redirection
Support for four AWS specific commands: Revoke-HypSecurityGroupIngress, Revoke-HypSecurityGroupEgress, Grant-HypSecuritygroupegress, and Grant-HypSecurityGroupIngress used in Cloud and on-premises environment. 2203
Citrix Files for Windows and Citrix Files for Outlook from the VDA metainstaller. 2203 Use the standalone installers.
WEM Agent component from the VDA metainstaller. 2203
SCCM-integrated Wake on LAN option for Remote PC Access. 2012 Use the standalone Wake on LAN feature.
Citrix SCOM Management Packs for XenApp and XenDesktop, Provisioning Services, and StoreFront. For the product versions that can be monitored, see Citrix SCOM Management Packs documentation. 1912 Use Director for monitoring and managing your deployment. For more information on SCOM EOL and alternatives, see https://support.citrix.com/article/CTX266943.
Mobility SDK / Mobile SDK (from the former Citrix Labs) 7.16 Superseded by mobile experience policy settings, and native experiences for hosted desktops/apps.

Removals

Removed items are either removed, or are no longer supported, in Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops.

Item Deprecation announced in version Removed in version Alternative
Citrix License Administration Console (last included in the Windows License Server 11.16.3 build 30000 and removed in the Windows License Server v11.16.6 build 31000). 2003 2006 Use the Citrix Licensing Manager.
Citrix Indirect Display Driver (IDD) graphics adapter support on Windows 10 version 1709 and earlier. 2003 2003 Use Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops 7 1912 LTSR VDAs.
Hardware encoding with Nvidia GPUs (NVENC) using GRID 9 or earlier display drivers. 2003 2003 Use GRID 10 display drivers with Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops 7 2003 or later VDAs, or use Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops 7 1912 LTSR VDAs.
Self-Service Password Reset (SSPR) feature. 2003 2006
Support for Microsoft .NET Framework versions prior to version 4.8 for VDAs and core server components. Includes Delivery Controller, Studio, Director, and StoreFront. 1912 2003 Upgrade to .NET Framework version 4.8.
VDAs on Windows Server 2012 R2. 1912 2003 Install VDAs on a supported operating system.
AppDNA application migration component of Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops Premium edition. 1909 2003
Installing Studio on 32-bit (x86) machines. 1909 2003 Install on a supported x64 operating system.
Support for the Excel hook in seamless applications. This was used for creating separate taskbar icons for each Microsoft Excel 2010 workbook. 1909 1909
Core server components on Windows Server 2012 R2 (including Service Packs). Includes: Delivery Controller, Studio and Director. 1906 2003 Install on a newer supported operating system.
Support for Site Configuration, Configuration Logging, and Monitoring databases on Microsoft SQL Server versions 2008 R2, 2012, and 2014 (including all Service Packs and editions). 1906 2003 Install databases on a supported Microsoft SQL Server version.
Support for VDAs on Windows 10 on x86 platforms. 1906 1909* Install VDAs on a supported x64 operating system. *This feature is still supported in Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops 7 1912 LTSR.
Removal of Citrix Smart Tools Agent from Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops installation media. 1903 1906
Removal of Delivery Controller options for the following end-of-life products within StoreFront: VDI-in-a-Box, and XenMobile (9.0 and earlier). 1903 1903
Support for Linux VDA on Red Hat Enterprise Linux/CentOS 7.5. 1903 1903 Install Linux VDA on a later version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux.
StoreFront support for TLS 1.0, and TLS 1.1 protocols between Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops (formerly XenApp and XenDesktop) and Citrix Receiver, and Workspace Hub. 7.17 2203 Upgrade Citrix Receivers to a Citrix Workspace app that supports the TLS 1.2 protocol. For more information on Citrix Workspace app, see https://docs.citrix.com/en-us/citrix-workspace-app.
StoreFront support for users to access desktops on Desktop Appliance sites 1811 1912 Use Desktop Lock for nondomain-joined use cases.
Support for Framehawk display remoting technology 1811 1903 Use Thinwire with adaptive transport enabled.
Support for Citrix Smart Scale in all Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops (and XenApp and XenDesktop) versions. This functionality will reach End of Life on 31 May 2019. 1808 1906 Consider using the Virtual Apps and Desktops Service on Citrix Cloud for improved power management functionality.
Support for Microsoft .NET Framework versions 4.5.1, 4.5.2, 4.6, 4.6.1, 4.6.2, and 4.7 by Citrix StoreFront, Citrix VDAs, Citrix Studio, Citrix Director, and Citrix Delivery Controller. 7.18 1808 Upgrade to .NET Framework version 4.7.1 or later. (The installer automatically installs .NET Framework 4.7.1 if it is not already installed.)
Support for Linux VDA on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.3. 7.18 1808 Install Linux VDA on a later version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux.
VDA support for policy setting “Automatic installation of in-box printer drivers”. 7.16 7.16 None. Policy setting supported with VDAs on earlier OSs only (Windows 7, Windows Server 2012 R2 and earlier).
Support for the Linux VDA on SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 Service Pack 4. 7.16 7.16 Install Linux VDA on supported SUSE version.
Support for Citrix WDDM driver on VDAs 7.16 7.16 The Citrix WDDM driver is no longer installed with VDAs.
VDAs on Windows 10 version 1511 (Threshold 2) and earlier Windows Single-session OS releases, including Windows 8.x and Windows 7 (see https://www.citrix.com/blogs/2018/01/08/the-citrix-strategy-for-windows-7-virtual-desktop-users/). 7.15 LTSR (and 7.12) 7.16 Install Single-session OS VDAs on Windows 10 minimum version 1607 (Redstone 1) or newer Semi-Annual Channels. If using 1607 LTSB, we recommend a 7.15 VDA. See CTX224843.
VDAs on Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows Server 2012 (including Service Packs) 7.15 LTSR (and 7.12) 7.16 Install VDAs on a supported operating system.
Desktop Composition Redirection ( previously known as DirectX Command Remoting) (DCR) 7.15 LTSR 7.16 Use Thinwire.
Citrix Receiver for Web classic experience (“green bubbles” user interface) 7.15 LTSR (and StoreFront 3.12) 1903 Citrix Receiver for Web unified experience.
Core components on Windows Server 2012 and Windows Server 2008 R2 (including Service Packs). Includes: Delivery Controller, Studio, Director, StoreFront, License Server, and Universal Print Server. 7.15 LTSR 7.18 Install components on a supported operating system.
Self-Service Password Reset (SSPR) feature on Windows Server 2012 and Windows Server 2008 R2 (including Service Packs) 7.15 LTSR 7.18 Install on a newer supported operating system.
Studio on Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1 (including Service Packs) 7.15 LTSR 7.18 Install Studio on a supported operating system.
Flash Redirection 7.15 LTSR 1912 Create video content as HTML5 Video. Use HTML5 Video Redirection for managed content, and Browser Content Redirection for public web sites. For more information, see the Flash Redirection End of Life note.
Citrix Online Integration (Goto product) with StoreFront 7.14 (and StoreFront 3.11) StoreFront 3.12
The user account, CtxAppVCOMAdmin, which was created during VDA installation and added to the Local Administrators Group on the VDA machine, is no longer created. The underlying “COM” mechanism is also removed. 7.14 7.14 The Windows service CtxAppVService performs the same function. It is automatically installed and configured and requires no user interaction.
Universal Print Server UpsServer component support on Windows Server 2008 32-bit 7.14 7.14 Install on a newer supported operating system.
StoreFront and Receiver for Web on Internet Explorer 8 7.13 7.13
VDA command line installation option /no_appv to prevent installation of the Citrix App-V components 7.13 7.13 Use the command line installation option /exclude “Citrix Personalization for App-V – VDA”.
The full-product installer no longer installs the Citrix.Common.Commands snap-in on new installations and automatically removes it when upgrading existing installations. 7.13 7.13 Some PowerShell commands that were provided by the Citrix.Common.Commands snap-in are still available in the XenApp 6.5 SDK.
Partial functionality to manipulate icon data that was provided by *-CtxIcon cmdlets. 7.13 7.13 Now provided by *-BrokerIcon cmdlets in the Broker Service.
Legacy Thinwire mode 7.12 7.16 Use Thinwire. If you are using Legacy Thinwire mode on Windows Server 2008 R2, migrate to Windows Server 2012 R2 or Windows Server 2016, and use Thinwire.
In-place upgrades from StoreFront 2.0, 2.1, 2.5, and 2.5.2 7.13 7.16 Upgrade from one of these versions to a later supported version and then to XenApp and XenDesktop 7.16.
In-place upgrades from XenDesktop 5.6 or 5.6 FP1 7.12 7.16 Migrate your XenDesktop 5.6 or 5.6 FP1 deployment to the current XenDesktop version. To do this, first upgrade to XenDesktop 7.6 LTSR (with the latest CU), then upgrade to the latest Citrix Virtual Desktops (formerly XenDesktop) release or LTSR version.
Installing Delivery Controller, Director, StoreFront, or License Server on 32-bit (x86) machines. 7.12 7.16 Install on a supported x64 operating system.
Connection leasing 7.12 7.16 Use Local Host Cache.
XenDesktop 5.6 used on Windows XP. VDA installations on Windows XP are not supported. 7.12 7.16 Install VDAs on a supported operating system.
Support for CloudPlatform connections 7.12 2003 Use a different supported hypervisor or cloud service.
Support for Azure Classic (also known as Azure Service Management) connections 7.12 2003 Consider using the Virtual Apps and Desktops Service on Citrix Cloud.
AppDisks functionality (and the AppDNA integration into Studio, which supports it) 7.13 2003 Use Citrix App Layering.
Personal vDisk functionality 7.15 2006† Use Citrix App Layering user layer or user personalization layer technology.

† At Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops 7 2003, the Personal vDisk driver was removed from the VDA installer. At Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops 7 2006, the Personal vDisk driver workflow was removed from Studio.

Deprecation