Friday, May 25, 2012

Symantec Endpoint Protection - Operation maintenance on Citrix Servers


S

1.                  Logon to the server you wish to configure with an administrator account
2.                  Click Start, Run and type “smc –stop” then click OK.
Wait for the shield to disappear from the system tray

3.                  Browse to the SEP Client installation location
(Normally C:\Program Files\Symantec\Symantec Endpoint Protection)

4.                   Find the file SmcGui.exe under this folder and right click it
5.                  Click Copy
6.                  Create a folder under root drive name it as “SEP_Change#”
7.                  Paste the SmcGui.exe to this folder
8.                  Again Browse to the SEP Client installation location Find the file SmcGui.exe under this folder
9.                  Click Rename
10.              Rename the file “xSmcGui.exe” press Enter
11.              On the same location Click File, New and select Text Document
12.              Call the document “SmcGui.exe” press Enter, save it in C:\Program Files\Symantec\Symantec Endpoint Protection
13.              At the prompt to change the file extension, click Yes
14.               Click Start, Run and type “smc –start” then click OK. You will notice from
Task Manager that SMC starts as SYSTEM, but SmcGui does not load.

SEP Step2 _ CCApp

1.       Logon to the server you wish to configure with an administrator account
2.       Click Start, Run and type “regedit” then click OK
3.       Browse to HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
4.      Export the registry key to root drive folder “SEP_Change#” and name it as “Reg_SEP”
5.       Confirm the registry export successful
6.      Find the entry ccApp and delete it

Modify Registry as per Citrix recommendation for IMA service slow start



1. Login to the server.
2. Stop the IMA service.
3. Take a Backup of the Registry key HKLM\Software\Citrix\MSLicensing or HKLM\Software\Wow6432Node\Citrix\MSLicensing
4. Delete the MS Licensing Key
5. Recreate the Local Host Cache (LHC) and restart IMA

Monday, May 14, 2012

Guide to Citrix CCEE and CCIA certfication – Part 5


Get CCEE certified in 4-5 months and CCIA certified in 6 months
Month 5/next three weeks: CCEE for Virtualization
Apply study rule #1 and #2 from Part1:

Study rule 1#: Book the exam before you start studying, this will make sure that you have a deadline to work to. Do not reschedule the exam unless absolutely necessary, use the time pressure that you might experience to put more effort into studying.

Study rule 2#: Once you get studying and you pass the 1st exam/module then continue with studying for the other required exams/models right away. If you take a break between the exams that is longer than 1-2 two weeks it will take you more effort to get used to studying and you will forget what you learned from the previous exams.

The CCEE exam will be more difficult than the CCA level exams and will require more real life experience on combining multiple Citrix products in one environment to pass this exam.

This exam will also contain some live simulations that you need to pass. Make sure you have passed all the CCA level exams that are required for the CCEE certification. If you have not been able to integrate and use all the product that have been included in the CCEE requirements track (XenApp, XenServer, XenDeskop, Provisioning server) then you will need to find a way to get the required experience.

Building a virtual lab might help. In your lab you will need to integrate all the products and evaluate the Citrix best practices for each product separately and on how to combine them.

Following the online training for CCEE that Citrix Education provides can also be a good way to get the required knowledge. The estimated time required to follow the online training is 30 hours so reserve sufficient time to follow this training if you need it. The training includes an online lab environment and
hands-on learning.

The version of the Citrix products used in the exam will be older then the latest releases on these products. The actual versions used during the exam development have been listed in the enablement guide.

  • Book exam 1Y0-A15 (CCEE for virtualization). If you plan on taking the online training then make sure you have enough time to go through the online training before you have the exam. You can always change the exam schedule at vue.com to take the exam on an earlier date if you have too much time between the training and the exam date after you finished the online training.
  • Read the enablement guide carefully and make sure you have sufficient knowledge about all the topics listed in the guide. Also read all the documents and articles that have been listed in the guide, these items have been used during the exam development.
  • Also study the objectives listed in the enablement guide per section, you will get questions about all objectives listed.
  • 1Y0-A15 Enablement guide
  • Use Citrix eDocs and Citrix white papers for more in-depth information.
  • Follow the Citrix online e-learning training for CCEE (CVE-400) if you need more training.
  • Optionally you can build a test lab with all the components that the CCEE exam will cover
    • Citrix XenServer
      (XenServer requires Intel-VT or AMD-V support from the hardware and CPU. It will work with most onboard SATA controllers and onboard Network cards used in common laptops and PC’s). Although XenServer 6.0 can be downloaded it is recommended to install XenServer 5.5 or 5.6 as this version will match better with the exam. See the Citrix XenServer 5.6 installation guide for more info on requirements and how to install XenServer.
    • To emulate shared storage on XenServer you can use the free OpenFiler appliance for XenServer.
    • You can emulate a NFS or iSCSI NAS/SAN with the OpenFiler virtual appliance

Part 6 will describe how to study for the CCIA exam.
This article has also been posted on the Citrix Blogs in the education section.

A Guide to Citrix CCEE and CCIA certfication – Part 4


Get CCEE certified in 4-5 months and CCIA certified in 6 months
Month 2/next three weeks: CCAA XenApp Advanced Administration
Apply study rule #1 and #2 from Part1:
Study rule 1#: Book the exam before you start studying, this will make sure that you have a deadline to work to. Do not reschedule the exam unless absolutely necessary, use the time pressure that you might experience to put more effort into studying.
Study rule 2#: Once you get studying and you pass the 1st exam/module then continue with studying for the other required exams/models right away. If you take a break between the exams that is longer than 1-2 two weeks it will take you more effort to get used to studying and you will forget what you learned from the previous exams.
Study Advanced Administration for XenApp 5.0 for Windows Server 2008 (you can skip this if you already passed the exam 1Y0-A08)
For the full CCAA certification you need to follow the training for CCAA and pass the exam. To achieve the CCEE certification you only need to pass the exam, following the training is not required.
Exam 1Y0-A08 is the most recent available Advanced Administration available for XenApp.
  • Book exam 1Y0-A08 (XenApp 5 for Server 2008 Advanced Administration)
  • Read the enablement guide carefully and make sure you have sufficient knowledge about all the topics listed in the guide.
  • A08 enablement guide
  • Purchase the Citrix Live virtual e-learning training for XenApp 5 Advanced Administrationcourse CXA-300-1 if you need more training. The online training for XenApp 6.5 Advanced Administration is also available but the exam for XenApp 6.5 Advanced Administration is not yet available and has not yet been added to the CCEE required exams. For XenApp 6.5 Advanced Administration course CXA-301-1 is available.
  • Use Citrix eDocs and Citrix white papers for more in-depth information or to find answers to questions you might have.
  • XenApp 6.5 is the most recent version but most of the guides and whitepapers currently available will be based on XenApp 5.0 and 6.0. You will need to use XenApp 5.0 guides and whitepapers only for this exam as the newer XenApp versions might differ too much and the exam is based on XenApp 5.0.
  • Build a (virtual) test XenApp 5.0 on Server 2008 farm with the default components
  • Make sure you have played/experimented with all the settings and features listed in the Exam objectives part in the Enablement guide.
Part 5 / Month 4-5 will describe how to study for the Citrix Certified Enterprise
This article has also been posted on the Citrix blogs in the education section.

Thursday, May 10, 2012

A Guide to Citrix CCEE and CCIA certfication – Part 3


Get CCEE certified in 4-5 months and CCIA certified in 6 months
Month 3/next three weeks: CCA XenDesktop
Apply study rule #1 and #2 from Part1:
Study rule 1#: Book the exam before you start studying, this will make sure that you have a deadline to work to. Do not reschedule the exam unless absolutely necessary, use the time pressure that you might experience to put more effort into studying.
Study rule 2#: Once you get studying and you pass the 1st exam/module then continue with studying for the other required exams/models right away. If you take a break between the exams that is longer than 1-2 two weeks it will take you more effort to get used to studying and you will forget what you learned from the previous exams.
Study XenDesktop 5 (you can skip this if you already passed the exam for XenDesktop 4 or 5)
The exam for XenDesktop 5 is the most recent XenDesktop exam currently available.
The XenDesktop exam will require some knowledge about XenServer, Provisioning server and XenApp
- Hypervisor (XenServer)
- Citrix XenDeskop 5 on Server 2008(R2)
- Citrix Provisioning server 5.6 SP1 on Server 2008(R2)
- Windows 7 VM to use as a VDI or master template for MCS/PVS
- If you have the hardware to install a Citrix XenServer then it is recommended to install Citrix XenServer to host all the components required for this setup. Use both Machine Creation Service (MCS) and Provisioning Server (PVS) deployment methods so you understand both of them.
- XenDesktop will require a license server with (evaluation) licenses. You can sign up for a free trail with 10 users here
- Have a look at the New XenDesktop Design Handbook to understand how to setup XenDesktop for production environments:
Part 4 / Month 4 will describe how to study for Citrix XenApp Advanced.
This article is also posted in the Citrix Blogs in the education section.

A Guide to Citrix CCEE and CCIA certification – Part 2


Get CCEE certified in 4-5 months and CCIA certified in 6 months
Month 2/next three weeks: CCA XenServer
Apply study rule #1 and #2 from Part1:
Study rule 1#: Book the exam before you start studying, this will make sure that you have a deadline to work to. Do not reschedule the exam unless absolutely necessary, use the time pressure that you might experience to put more effort into studying.
Study rule 2#: Once you get studying and you pass the 1st exam/module then continue with studying for the other required exams/models right away. If you take a break between the exams that is longer than 1-2 two weeks it will take you more effort to get used to studying and you will forget what you learned from the previous exams.
Study XenServer 5.6 or (you can skip this if you already passed the exam for XenServer 5 or passed the exam for XenServer 5.6)
The exam for XenServer 5.6 is the most recent XenServer exam currently available.
The XenServer exam will require basic knowledge about storage solutions, high availability and command line interface (CLI) commands.
  • Book exam 1Y0-A024 (XenServer 5.6)
  • Read the enablement guide carefully and make sure you have sufficient knowledge about all the topics listed in the guide. Also read all the documents and articles that have been listed in the guide, these items have been used during the exam development.
  • 1Y0-A24 Enablement guide
  • Follow the free Citrix XenServer 5.6 Technology Overview and the if you are going to study for XenServer 5.6
  • Use Citrix eDocs and Citrix white papers for more in-depth information.
  • White papers
  • XenServer admin guide for XenServer 5.6
  • Purchase Citrix online e-learning for XenServer course CXS-202 for Administering XenServer 5.6 if you need more training on XenServer 5.6
  • XenServer 6.0 is the most recent version of but most of the guides and whitepapers currently available will be based on XenServer 5.0 or 5.6 FP1.
  • Build a test server with the following components:
    • Citrix XenServer (XenServer requires Intel-VT or AMD-V support from the hardware and CPU. It will work with most onboard SATA controllers and onboard Network cards used in common laptops and PC’s). Although XenServer 6.0 can be downloaded it is recommended to install XenServer 5.6 as this version will match with the exam. See theCitrix XenServer 5.6 installation guide for more info on requirements and how to install XenServer.
    • To Emulated shared storage on XenServer you can use the free OpenFiler appliance for XenServer.
    • You can emulate a NFS or iSCSI NAS/SAN with the OpenFiler virtual appliance
Part 3 / month 3 will describe how to study for Citrix XenDesktop 5
This article is also posted in the Citrix Blogs in the education section