Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops

Profile handling policy settings

This section includes policy settings that specify how Profile Management handles user profiles.

Delay before deleting cached profiles

This setting specifies an optional extension to the delay, in minutes, before Profile Management deletes locally cached profiles at logoff.

A value of 0 deletes the profiles immediately at the end of the logoff process. Profile Management checks for logoffs every minute. As as result, a value of 60 ensures that profiles are deleted between one and two minutes after users log off. This action depends on when the last check occurred. Extending the delay is useful if you know that a process keeps files or the user registry hive open during logoff. With large profiles, this process can also speed up logoff.

By default, this value is set to 0 and Profile Management deletes locally cached profiles immediately.

When enabling this setting, ensure the Delete locally cached profiles on logoff is also enabled.

If this setting is not configured here, the value from the .ini file is used.

If this setting is not configured here or in the .ini file, profiles are deleted immediately.

Delete locally cached profiles on logoff

This setting specifies whether locally cached profiles are deleted after a user logs off.

When this setting is enabled, a user’s local profile cache is deleted after they have logged off. Citrix recommends enabling this setting for terminal servers.

By default, this setting is disabled and a users local profile cache is retained after they log off.

If this setting is not configured here, the value from the .ini file is used.

If this setting is not configured here or in the .ini file, cached profiles are not deleted.

Local profile conflict handling

This setting configures how Profile Management behaves if a user profile exists in both of the following:

  • User store
  • Local Windows user profile (not a Citrix user profile)

By default, Profile Management uses the local Windows profile, but does not change it in any way.

To control how Profile Management behaves, choose one of the following options:

  • Use local profile. Profile Management uses the local profile, but does not change it in any way.
  • Delete local profile. Profile Management deletes the local Windows user profile, and then imports the Citrix user profile from the user store.
  • Rename local profile. Profile Management renames the local Windows user profile (for backup purposes) and then imports the Citrix user profile from the user store.

If this setting is not configured here, the value from the .ini file is used.

If this setting is not configured here or in the .ini file, existing local profiles are used.

Migration of existing profiles

This setting specifies the types of profile migrated to the user store during logon if a user has no current profile in the user store.

Profile Management can migrate existing profiles “on the fly” during logon if a user has no profile in the user store. After that, the user store profile is used by Profile Management in both of the following:

  • Current session
  • Any other session configured with the path to the same user store

By default, both local and roaming profiles are migrated to the user store during logon.

To specify the types of profile migrated to the user store during logon, choose one of the following options:

  • Local and roaming profiles
  • Local
  • Roaming
  • None (Disabled)

If you select None, the system uses the existing Windows mechanism to create profiles, as if in an environment where Profile Management is not installed.

If this setting is not configured here, the value from the .ini file is used.

If this setting is not configured here or in the .ini file, existing local and roaming profiles are migrated.

Automatic migration of existing application profiles

This setting enables or disables the automatic migration of existing application profiles across different operating systems. The application profiles include both the application data in the AppData folder and the registry entries under HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE. This setting can be useful in cases where you want to migrate your application profiles across different operating systems.

For example, suppose you upgrade your operating system (OS) from Windows 10 version 1803 to Windows 10 version 1809. If this setting is enabled, Profile Management automatically migrates the existing application settings to Windows 10 version 1809 the first time each user logs on. As a result, the application data in the AppData folder and the registry entries under HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE are migrated.

If there are multiple existing application profiles, Profile Management performs the migration in the following order of priority:

  1. Profiles of the same OS type (single-session OS to single-session OS and multi-session OS to multi-session OS).
  2. Profiles of the same Windows OS family; for example, Windows 10 to Windows 10, or Windows Server 2016 to Windows Server 2016).
  3. Profiles of an earlier version of the OS; for example, Windows 7 to Windows 10, or Windows Server 2012 to Windows 2016.
  4. Profiles of the closest OS.

Note: You must specify the short name of the OS by including the variable “!CTX_OSNAME!” in the user store path. Doing so lets Profile Management locate the existing application profiles.

If this setting is not configured here, the setting from the .ini file is used.

If this setting is not configured here or in the .ini file, it is disabled by default.

Path to the template profile

This setting specifies the path to the profile that you want Profile Management to use as a template to create user profiles.

The specified path must be the full path to the folder containing the NTUSER.DAT registry file and any other folders and files required for the template profile.

Note: Do not include NTUSER.DAT in the path. For example, with the file \\myservername\myprofiles\template\ntuser.dat, set the location as \\myservername\myprofiles\template.

Use absolute paths, which can be either UNC paths or paths on the local machine. Use the latter, for example, to specify a template profile permanently on a Citrix Provisioning Services image. Relative paths are not supported.

Note: This setting does not support expansion of Active Directory attributes, system environment variables, or the %USERNAME% and %USERDOMAIN% variables.

By default, this setting is disabled and new user profiles are created from the default user profile on the device where a user first logs on.

If this setting is not configured here, the value from the .ini file is used.

If this setting is not configured here or in the .ini file, no template is used.

Template profile overrides local profile

This setting enables the template profile to override the local profile when creating user profiles.

Consider that a user has no Citrix user profile, but has a local Windows user profile. In this case, by default the local profile is used and migrated to the user store, if this value is enabled. Enabling this policy setting allows the template profile to override the local profile used when creating user profiles.

If this setting is not configured here, the value from the .ini file is used.

If this setting is not configured here or in the .ini file, no template is used.

Template profile overrides roaming profile

This setting enables the template profile to override a roaming profile when creating user profiles.

Consider that a user has no Citrix user profile, but has a roaming Windows user profile. In this case, by default the roaming profile is used and migrated to the user store, if this value is enabled. Enabling this policy setting allows the template profile to override the roaming profile used when creating user profiles.

If this setting is not configured here, the value from the .ini file is used.

If this setting is not configured here or in the .ini file, no template is used.

Template profile used as a Citrix mandatory profile for all logons

This setting enables Profile Management to use the template profile as the default profile for creating all user profiles.

By default, this setting is disabled and new user profiles are created from the default user profile on the device where a user first logs on.

If this setting is not configured here, the value from the .ini file is used.

If this setting is not configured here or in the .ini file, no template is used.