Create and configure ESD update VMs

Last published : Oct 20, 2026
VMs that are used to update a Managed vDisk are first created on the hypervisor before configuring for vDisk Update Management in Citrix Provisioning. Supported hypervisors include:
  • XenServer®
  • Microsoft SCVMM/Hyper-V
  • VMware vSphere/ESX
The type of ESD determines the specific steps involved in creating and configuring the VM on the hypervisor.
The following ESD systems are supported:
  • WSUS
  • SCCM
Following are the general prerequisites to update VMs regardless of the ESD system selected:
  1. Download, install, and configure the appropriate ESD Server software on the server.
  2. Provide a unique to the VM on the hypervisor and follow naming conventions equivalent to a Citrix Provisioning target device name. The name can be up to 15 bytes in length.
  3. Make sure that only one VM exists for a Managed vDisk because only one update task can occur on that vDisk at any given time.
  4. Allocate at least 4GBs of memory for each VM.
  5. Make sure that appropriate ESD licenses are available and the ESD client software is properly installed and enabled on the vDisk.
    Note:
    Using Microsoft HyperV Server without SCVMM is not supported.
  6. Configure the update VM that is used to build the Update vdisk with a single NIC when streaming to SCVMM.
    Citrix® recommends only applying updates that can be downloaded and installed in 30 minutes or less.