ghannahuk

HI, Merlin, I understand, is based on the RM Kaleidos Learning Platform and VLE system. It is worth asking if any schools are using this as standard (ie not a part of Merlin). This is based on SharePoint but with the "RM Magic" and their VLE element is their own so I hope this helps you out. George

Hi, For Citrix XenApp Advanced, you are looking at about £150 with today's dollar rate. How many XenApp clients? Unless you are expecting many hundreds of remote connections, you just do not need the Citrix Access Gateway. We do not have any schools with this installed with some major thin clients (600+). Windows TS CALs about £12-£13 on a SELECT agreement, if you have a specialism, then you can get SELECT pricing or the local authority is bound to be subscribed so SELECT pricing should be OK with yourselves. You will need to look at MS Server CALs too. If you are converting existing PCs, then you are covered. You will also need one CAL for every machine that connects including remotely as a CAL will be assigned for up to 90 days. Citrix XenApp is based on concurrency so should not be an issue. I hope this helps. George [email protected]

Hi Rob, No, there is no server charge for Citrix XenApp. Also bear in mind that if you are having a number of Citrix XenApp servers to allow for a Citrix DataStore (no licensing cost). George

Not 100% sure how much of the following involves primary but here are some that I know at a LA level: Ashford Rural Cluster (ARC) in Kent - RM Kaleidos Kent (BSF Waves 3-4) - Fronter through Northgate West Sussex - Moodle East Sussex - Uniservity Brighton and Hove - Uniservity Medway - Uniservity Hertfordshire - RM Kaleidos Kent (General) - Kent Learning Zone (based on ScarePoint) London Boroughs - Fronter through LGfL That's all I can think of now. G.

Free VMware Server Download for Server Consolidation - VMware I just downloaded the free VMware Server 1.0.8. Or you could use the Citrix XenServer at: https://www.citrix.com/English/ps2/products/product.asp?contentID=683148

You will need to purchase PCs with Vista Business with a downgrade to licence to Windows XP. Many suppliers still do this, including RM. You can connect Vista Business stations to CC3, providing you have the Client Connect Pack but they will not be managed clients (ie no application deployment, etc.). Therefore, it is probably best to stick with XP Pro (downgraded from Vista) but you should have many choices as to where to buy these. ghannahuk

As a reseller (or Solution Advisor) solely to the education market, I do agree with torledo, you need to find what you can easily support within school and ascertain how students and staff are likely to use it. If you are looking to offer access to less resource hungry applications on a blended thin client/standard network, then terminal services is one of the best ways. If the demand is for more graphics and a need for load balancing for remote access, then products like Citrix XenApp will help you to do this so will offers (at a higher cost, of course). With regard to XenDesktop, it is like thin clients (ie operating system from a central server), but uses the local resources of the computer. A good way to avoid MSIs and other application deployment and its easy for roll back, just in case an upgrade or patch didn't work. There are loads of schools that I know that are using Terminal Services (even through RM's Client Connect), Citrix XenApp, Sun Global Desktop, Linux alternatives or others. If you want some honest and non-supplier related schools (ie from different products and vendors), I will be more than happy to share these details. In fact, it gives me a good excuse to get them to join EduGeek! Before investing in hardware and licensing, I strongly recommend that you make contact with existing schools to learn from them the best way to deploy. Thin clients are not for everyone for a variety of reasons so worth understanding the options before embarking. Good Luck!

Hi, Microsoft say that you will need a terminal service CAL for every device connecting to the servers within a given period of 56-90 days. You can do it per user but this is expensive and does not take in to consideration two students at the same home using the same computer. The MS TS management will capture device information so you can see who is using the licenses. We have completed many Citrix installations across the UK and not one of our schools does it "per user" but by device and they have never run out of licenses yet. Per device is an outright licensing cost (unless your have a MSA). It would appear that our customers need about 10% more CALS than they do Citrix XenApp licenses. On another note, are you aware of Citrix XenApp Streaming Applications? For £24 per concurrent connection, home users can not only access applications but can use them off-line too. I hope this helps. ghannahuk

Hi, For thin clients, then XenServer is not the server product needed, this is for virtualisation. You need to decide on the protocol, MS Terminal Services uses RDP and Citrix XenApp uses ICA. With each, you need a dedicated server for the thin clients to connect to, a typical server will support about 30 terminal services and 40-60 for a Citrix XenApp install. The server will run Windows 2003/2008 Server Enterprise because of the amount of RAM you will need. The server will also have the tools needed to configure (ie terminal services and Citrix XenApp). You thin clients must be able to support ICA or RDP protocols so if you are converting existing PCs then they will need a client tool to help you to use onboard features such as USB. No advertising please! - Ric_ I would not recommend virtualising thin client servers but you can the Citrix DataStore. I hope this helps. Regards, ghannahuk

Hi David, Okay, so what advantages does the paid-for XenServer offer over the open source version? For the different editions, click on the following link: Citrix Systems XenServer Editions Basically, the key differences from the Express to the chargeable licenses are: Multiple Server Support VLAN Support XenMotion (live migrations) Unlimited CPUs (handy for support on Quad processors) If not, what do you use? DRBD. See this other thread Many thanks for that, I will certainly go through this. Have you had any episodes where XenServer saved your network from being down for more than an hour? Or, are you using XenServer to save on server hardware (or both)? George

Hi, I work for Precedence Technologies, a Citrix Silver Partner, and we ar elooking to offer a package for XenServer to address the need for zero downtime as a disaster recover solution. I am very interested to hear of your stories and the benefits that XenServer has brough to your school. Have you had a major hardware issue that XenServer made easier to address? Do you have SANs for your virtual images? If not, what do you use? Is your SLT aware of the solution is place and appreciates what it can do? We are working directly with Citrix in positioning the Citrix portfolio to be more applicable to schools and I will be very grateful for your feedback. George