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Tintri XenDesktop Technical Solution Overview

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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
101 views8 pages

Tintri XenDesktop Technical Solution Overview

xendesktop solution

Uploaded by

Ediga Venkatadri
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Citrix XenDesktop

Deploying XenDesktop with Tintri VMstore


TECHNICAL SOLUTION OVERVIEW, Revision 1.1, November 2012

Table of Contents
Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 1
Before VDI and XenDesktop.......................................................................................................................... 1
Critical Success Factors ................................................................................................................................. 2
Planning for Desktops and Applications ................................................................................................... 2
Server and Storage Infrastructure ............................................................................................................ 2
Solution Architecture Overview.................................................................................................................... 3
Rapid Provisioning, Cloning and Recomposition .......................................................................................... 4
Key Operations Dependent on Storage .................................................................................................... 4
Uniquely Powerful and Efficient ................................................................................................................... 5
Thin provisioning, In-line Data Deduplication and Compression.............................................................. 5
Automatic VM Alignment ......................................................................................................................... 5
Additional Information.................................................................................................................................. 5
Tintri VMstore Overview........................................................................................................................... 5
NFS and vSphere Best Practices ................................................................................................................ 5
Summary ....................................................................................................................................................... 6

Introduction
CITRIX XenDesktop is a leading desktop virtualization solution that delivers users desktops and
applications to their favorite devices, whenever and wherever they needed. Centralized images at the
heart of a XenDesktop deployment are efficiently maintained and updated as-needed by system
administrators.
XenDesktop presents desktops and applications to client devices through Catalogs. Whether users are
accessing lightweight mobile applications or industrial strength engineering applications, the
concentrated demands on the core network, server, and storage resources necessitates a closer look at
how VDI works, and what steps must be taken to ensure a successful deployment.
Among the key pillars supporting a virtual desktop infrastructure, such as XenDesktop, the Hypervisor
(host) servers, and networking, the storage platform serves as the foundation upon which the entire
deployment is built. Poorly implemented, storage can cripple a VDI deployment. Consequently, many
companies over-provision costly traditional storage in an attempt to mitigate risks.
This paper briefly discusses how Tintri VMstore can empower XenDesktop in the most demanding of VDI
deployments, predictably, reliably, and cost effectively.

Before VDI and XenDesktop


The prevailing pre-VDI big picture largely consists of centralized servers, and thick clients, such as PCs.
The maturation of virtualization and VDI has turned the tables so that it is not only feasible to centralize
rich computing experiences like Windows and other desktops; it is becoming an economic imperative.
For some companies, the cycle of purchasing, maintaining and upgrading PC hardware has become a
costly and distressful exercise that leaves both management and workers frustrated. XenDesktop is
designed to optimize the VDI experience on both ends. Users enjoy an improved experience, their
choice of devices is expanded beyond just the PCs are their desks, and they always have access to their
data. The company saves money, and everyone sleeps better at night because the data is more secure.

Critical Success Factors


Adjusting conceptually to VDI is not difficult, but there are potential pitfalls lurking below that must be
factored into the planning and deployment processes.

Planning for Desktops and Applications


XenDesktop users enjoy a broad level of supported software and options, but it pays to verify that
legacy computing environments will work as-expected. Along with modern operating systems like
Windows 7 and Windows 8, most companies still employ a collection of legacy desktop operating
systems and application software.

Server and Storage Infrastructure


Moving desktop operating environments from the physical computers at workers desks to a centralized
XenDesktop infrastructure means that the computing and storage activity from those desktops is also
centralized. The processing and I/O of hosted virtual desktops runs on the servers and storage that
comprise the XenDesktop deployment.
Figure 1: Activity that was once on various PC's becomes
focused on the VDI infrastructure

A XenDesktop VDI infrastructure should be


deployed with a storage platform that has the
following characteristics:
High availability
Redundant controllers designed to
withstand multiple component failures.
Performance
Read and Write from Flash with low
latency, to accommodate peak VDI loads,
boot storms, etc.
Easy to Deploy and Manage
Simple to deploy, scale, and monitor.

Solution Architecture Overview


XenDesktop includes components designed to broker connections between clients and catalogs, to
manage provisioning, and to maintain images of desktops and applications. This paper discusses only a
few common components. For detailed information on XenDesktop, please visit the Citrix
website: http://www.citrix.com/xendesktop.
Figure 2: High-level model of a XenDesktop deployment with VMware vSphere and Tintri VMstore
Heterogeneous Clients
Desktop Catalog A
HVD C at alog Types
Pooled
Pooled with
Personal vDisk
Dedicated
Existing

Desktop Catalog B

Desktop Catalog C

Xen Desktop

Hypervisor Hosts
(vSphere)

Tintri VMstore T540


3 rack U per VMstore

700-1000 Desktops per 3U (~70,000 low-latency IOPS)


Fully redundant dual-controllers (HA)
Fast, granular Snapshots and Cloning
XenDesktop accelerated cloning through vSphere with VAAI
Inline Deduplication and Compression
VM auto-alignment
Fuel gauges show space and performance reserves (headroom)
Instant per-VM bottleneck visualization and statistics

Figure 2 depicts a typical scenario in which Tintri VMstore is deployed with VMware vSphere Hypervisor
servers, and XenDesktop. Tintri VMstore devices are added to vSphere as datastores, allowing vSphere
and XenDesktop to leverage Tintri VMstore for VM and virtual desktop deployments and operations.
VMs that are pre-existing or created dynamically, with or without persistent user settings, are published
to XenDesktop clients through Catalogs. Tintri VMstore operates as the fast, high-density, and scalable
engine that empowers XenDesktop to efficiently service its clients.

Rapid Provisioning, Cloning and Recomposition


When creating or refreshing/recomposing catalogs, the creation of VMs should occur quickly, and
without taxing the servers and without suffering delays related to poor storage performance.
Figure 3: Creating a new XenDesktop Catalog

Tintri VMstore has proven performance supporting 1,000 Hosted Virtual Desktops and in excess of
45,000 to 70,000 low-latency IOPS per 3-U, 13.5TB appliance. This includes the provisioning,
operational, and boot storm loads associated with the virtual desktops, not just the steady state
operational workloads. Factoring in the ability to handle the large spikes of activity that occur during
provisioning and booting operations is a major consideration that cannot be overlooked.

Key Operations Dependent on Storage

Catalog creation and provisioning operations


User acceptance is sure to suffer if it takes an excessive amount of time to log in and gain access
to their desktops
Catalog refresh or recompose operations require at the very least at least one reboot
operation for each virtual desktop

Storage that cant efficiently handle these loads will negatively impact the entire XenDesktop
environment. Tintri VMstore is purpose-built for aggregated and demanding virtualization workloads.

Uniquely Powerful and Efficient


Tintri VMstore incorporates intrinsic features; purpose built for VMs, which combine to provide a tightly
integrated, high-performance and easily managed storage platform for XenDesktop VDI deployments.

Thin provisioning, In-line Data Deduplication and Compression


Thin provisioning, inline data deduplication, and compression, are all automatic on Tintri VMstore.
Thick-provisioned vDisks are supported, but thin-provisioned vDisks are preferable because they allow
for a much greater potential of automatic space savings.

Automatic VM Alignment
Tintri VMstore intrinsically understands each virtual disk, and dynamically
adapts on-the-fly to each guests internal (vDisk) file system layout when VMs
are created, copied, or vMotioned onto the VMstore. No special software is
required in the guests. Tintri VMstores user interface even includes an Aligned
I/O % column to visually verify alignment in real-time for each individual VM.

Additional Information
This paper provides a quick glance at the full power of Tintri VMstore. For more detailed information,
please see the following documents on Tintris website:

Tintri VMstore Overview


http://info.tintri.com/vmstore-whitepaper/

NFS and vSphere Best Practices


http://www.tintri.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/Tintri-NFS-best-practices-whitepaper-Aug2012.pdf

Summary
Deploying a Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) with XenDesktop provides numerous benefits to
organizations, system administrators, and end users, by delivering desktops and applications to devices
whenever and wherever they are needed.
Two of the critical success factors that should be considered in a XenDesktop deployment are the
planning and validation of desktops and application software, and the infrastructure that will provide
the foundation responsible for the operational success of XenDesktop.
Tintri VMstore is purpose-built for virtualization and offers a highly available, scalable, and easily
deployable storage foundation for VDI in a tightly integrated, compact, high-performance package.

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