The resources in this repository are to assist HP Amplify partners becoming certified in deploying HP Anyware products. This document is a curated guide through HP Anyware documentation, and should be read in tandem with the linked documentation.
Important
Ensure you read the guide links and understand the key takeaways identified in each section.
After completing the reading and practical application labs, readers should be able to:
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Navigate the HP Anyware Documentation.
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Explain the HP Anyware Products and Solutions.
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Download, Install, and Configure the HP Anyware Products.
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Debug common issues.
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Escalate issues.
There are a few key types of documentation on the HP Anyware Support site that you should be aware of. Knowing where to find specific information like system requirements, tutorials and, and changes is essential.
The reading and practical application will leverage these documents. All can be found at: https://anyware.hp.com/support.
- Specific to each product and version.
- Contain specific product information such as the: system requirements, features, steps for installing and configuring.
- Can be found in the Products section.
- Specific to products and version.
- Contains info pertaining to the product and version such as: new features, bug fixes, security updates, known issues.
- Can be found in the Products section.
- These articles provide more info regarding numerous topics. Some of the main topics include:
- Common issues and error codes.
- Additional info on complex topics.
- Can be found by searching the support site or browsing the knowledge centre: https://anyware.hp.com/knowledge.
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Contains guidance on network planning, performance optimization, PCoIP session tuning, workload and bandwidth estimation.
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This guide should be referenced to ensure best performance.
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Can be found in the Products section.
Tip
Key Takeaway: Reader should be able to explain the 4 document types and navigate the HP Anyware Support site.
In 2021, HP acquired Teradici and began integrating Teradici’s Cloud Access software, with HP RGS ZCentral. During this integration process, HP created a new remote protocol software suite, called HP Anyware that combined the best of both technologies into a single product.
HP Anyware/PCoIP is a UDP based protocol that is host rendered, multi-codec and dynamically adaptive. Images rendered on the server are captured as pixels, compressed, encoded, and then sent to the client for decryption and decompression. Depending on the image, different codecs are used to encode the pixels sent since techniques to compress video images differ in effectiveness compared to those for text. The protocol also dynamically adapts its encoding based on the available bandwidth. In low-bandwidth environments it uses lossy compression where a highly compressed image is quickly delivered, followed by additional data to refine that image, a process termed "build to perceptually lossless".
Note
Guide Link: What is PCoIP Technology?
Tip
Key Takeaway: Reader should be able to explain the PCoIP protocol and its key benefits.
HP Anyware enables PCoIP connections between users and remote workstations or desktops using any of several connection models dependent on number of users, location of users relative to remote workstations, your desire to incorporate public cloud workstations and your authentication requirements. Ultimately, your deployment architecture may be based on one or more of these connection models according to your corporate use case.
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Unmanaged
- Direct connections.
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Brokered
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Managed connections with HP Anyware Manager.
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Managed connections for on-site users.
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Managed connections for WAN users connecting to on-premises resources.
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Managed connections for on-site users and public cloud workstations.
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Managed connections for remote workstations in multi-cloud environments.
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Work-From-Home Options.
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Guide Link: HP Anyware Connection Models
Tip
Key Takeaway: Reader should be able differentiate between unmanaged (direct connect) and managed (brokered) environments.
- Unmanaged environments are typically faster to setup but lack centralized management.
- Managed environments simplify the management and connections but are typically more complex to deploy.
HP Anyware deployments are a combination of distinct components which make up the HP Anyware Solution. The documentation link provided below introduces the most common components you'll need to understand.
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Guide Link: HP Anyware Components
Tip
Key Takeaway: Reader should be able to explain the various HP Anyware components.
PCoIP Ultra protocol enhancements offer a significant step in PCoIP performance to meet the demands of next-generation remote workstation environments offering a faster, more interactive experience. PCoIP Ultra includes features such as CPU-Offload, GPU-Offload, Auto-Offload and AV-Lock that enable users in demanding industries such as media and entertainment, broadcast, game development or CAD to enjoy seamless access to graphics-intensive workloads delivered anywhere.
Tip
Key Takeaway: Reader should be able to explain the PCoIP Ultra Feature and how it can be leveraged to improve performance.
The architecture guide can be used by System Administrators to implement, install, and develop HP Anyware Solutions. It details information about PCoIP Protocol capabilities, components, and tips on how to architect HP Anyware Solutions for Public Cloud infrastructure and On-premises data-centres.
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Guide Link: HP Anyware Architecture Guide
Tip
Key Takeaway: Reader should be able navigate the Architecture guide.
IANA has assigned Port 4172 to the PCoIP Protocol. For a PCoIP Session to successfully start, certain ports must be opened to enable HP Anyware components to communicate.
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Guide Link: UDP Ports For PCoIP Technology
Tip
Key Takeaway: Reader should be able to explain the minimal port requirements.
The purpose of this guide is to prepare and provide capacity planning, optimization, and troubleshooting information for system administrators preparing their networks for PCoIP traffic or workloads for remote access using the PCoIP protocol. It acts as a troubleshooting and network planning guide.
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Guide Link: PCoIP Session Planning Guide
Tip
Key Takeaway: Reader should be able to provide guidance on PCoIP session capacity planning, optimization and troubleshooting steps.
The Anyware Software Client is an application that runs on the User’s local machine. It is used to establish PCoIP sessions with remote machines – virtual or physical. Remote connections can be made to machines running the Anyware Agents or equipped with a Remote Workstation Card. The Client is responsible for sending user input to the remote machine such as keyboard, mouse, microphone, etc.
This guide explains how to install, configure, and use the Software Client. Key Sections of the guide include the System requirements, Installing, Configuring, Features, Troubleshooting.
Tip
Key Takeaway: Reader should be able to describe the HP Anyware Client Software and navigate the administrator guide. Installation and Configuration steps will differ depending on the machines Operating System.
The Anyware Agent is a standalone software application installed on a remote machine that will securely encode the screen and efficiently stream (pixels-only) to the Anyware Client. There are two available Agent types for supporting both standard and graphics PC architectures.
This guide explains how to install, configure, and use the Anyware Agent. Key Sections of the guide include the System requirements, Installing, Configuring, Features, Troubleshooting.
Important
Please note that we only recommend using the Standard Agent on Virtual Machines.
Tip
Key Takeaway: Reader should be able to describe the HP Anyware Agent software and navigate the administrator guide. Installation and Configuration steps will differ depending on the machines Operating System.
HP Anyware Agents must be configured to communicate with a license server before connections can be made. HP Anyware offers two licensing models.
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Cloud Licensing Service: In this model the “License Server” is hosted for the customer by HP Anyware in the Cloud. Customers can quickly deploy Agents without the need to install, configure, and maintain a license server. Cloud Licensing Service requires that the Agents be able to reach the HP License Portal.
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Local License Server: Local License Model allows for the customer to deploy a license server inside their environment. Local Licensing should be used if your PCoIP agent runs in a restricted environment and cannot reach the HP License portal or if more control over the licensing is desired.
Below are some guidelines which can help you decide which licensing model to choose.
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Most PCoIP deployments can take advantage of the automated Cloud Licensing Service which eliminates the complexity of on-premises licensing infrastructure.
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If your deployment cannot use cloud licensing, either because the site is not connected to the public internet or local management of licenses is necessary then Local License Server based licensing may be the appropriate licensing model.
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With HP Anyware, you can choose to put all your licenses into a single cloud-based pool (Cloud Licensing) or if you need more additional pools, or control, you can deploy your own Local License Servers.
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You can use Cloud Licensing if you do not want the overhead of deploying or managing Local License Servers.
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You will need to use a Local License Servers if your use case includes one or more of these use cases:
- Remote machines/Agents do not have access to the internet.
- Need to use an offline (dark site) activation process.
- Need to divide your pool of licenses into multiple pools aimed at different users.
- Need more control over license usage.
Note
Guide Link:
Tip
Key Takeaway: Reader should be able to:
- Distinguish between the licensing models.
- Provide licensing guidance to customers based on their environment.
- Assist customers in managing their licenses via the license portal.
Anyware Manager is a management plane enabling users to configure, manage and monitor brokering of remote workstations. Anyware Manager enables highly scalable and cost-effective HP Anyware deployments by managing cloud compute costs by brokering PCoIP connections to remote Windows or Linux workstations.
Anyware Manager is offered in two variants: Anyware Manager as a service where your Anyware Manager is hosted by HP in the Cloud; and as an installable instance deployed and managed by the customer, in their on-premises or cloud environment.
Tip
Key Takeaways: Reader should be able to:
- Explain the Brokered Solution using HP Anyware Manager
- Provide guidance regarding Saas vs On-premises Manager given a customers use case.
- Explain the prerequisites for both Manager SaaS and on premises.
- Provide guidance on key features such as Mutli Admin login, Anyware Monitor, and MFA.
- Understand the Manager’s role in the “Brokered Solution”.
Multi Factor Authentication: Can configured in your Identity provider of choice when using Federated Authentication. Alternatively, you a radius server can be used. https://anyware.hp.com/web-help/cas_manager_as_a_service/anyware_manager_service/reference/awm_cam_duo/
Mutli Admin via SAML: Multi admin feature gives the main administrator the ability to add additional admins to the Manager Dashboard. Configuration is done in your SAML Identity Provider: https://anyware.hp.com/web-help/cas_manager_as_a_service/anyware_manager_service/admin_console/awm_saml_configuration/
Single Sign On: If using a non-federated authentication flow, single sign on is expected to work by default. When using Federated Authentication Single Sign On must be configured - https://anyware.hp.com/web-help/cas_manager_as_a_service/anyware_manager_service/admin_console/fed_auth/awm_fed_auth_sso_overview/
Tip
Key Takeaways: Reader should be able explain the major Anyware Manager features.
The HP Anyware Connector is an access hub installed in the customer environment which facilitates Anyware Client connections to remote workstations. The HP Anyware Connector operates in conjunction with the HP Anyware Manager Service to provide user authentication and entitlement for remote workstation access, including MFA. It enables secure connectivity between users and the remote workstations by eliminating the need for a dedicated Virtual private network (VPN) by providing Network Address Translation (NAT) services for external users.
Anyware Connector enables Anyware Manager to broker desktops or workstations based in AWS, Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure, and on-premises environments. Based on your infrastructure, you may need more than one instance of the Connector.
Tip
Key Takeaway: Reader should be able to:
- Explain the Connector’s role in the brokered solution.
- Navigate the Connector administration guide.
- Explain the system, network, and port requirements.
- Install and configure the Anyware Connector for the customer’s use case.
- Provide guidance on key configuration options – authentication, Federated Authentication, MFA, Internal vs External traffic.
- Debug common issues.
HP Anyware Products provide native and customizable security features. Once of the most important and often customized are the certificates. All HP Anyware products come installed with certificates to ensure end-to-end encryption out of the box. It is important to note that the default certificates generated by HP Anyware are self-signed. It is recommended that customers replace the self-signed certificates with their own TLS certificates signed by a Trusted Root CA to ensure certificate verification in production.
One of the most common cert customizations is on the HP Anyware Connector as it is a hub between client machines and the remote machines and facilitates authentication between Client, Manager, Identity Provider, and Agents.
Connector certificates:
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TLS certificate for connections
- This is the certificate used when making connections between the Client and the Connector via HTTPS. You can think of this as the “connection certificate”.
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Certificate for LDAPS communication
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This is the certificate on the Domain Controller and enables secure communication between Connector and DC/Active Directory
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If the DC cert is self signed, verification can be skipped by running the --ldaps-insecure flag.
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TLS certificate for Manager communication [Only when using Manager On-premises]
Certificates must be in PEM format. Certificate validation can be skipped to use self-signed certificates, especially when testing or troubleshooting, but not recommended for production use.
Read:
- FAQ Security
- Architecture Guide | Security
- General certificate info
- Connector Certificate Preparation
The PCoIP Connection Broker Protocol (hereafter referred to as the Broker Protocol) is a web application program interface (API) used by PCoIP clients to securely communicate with connection brokers that manage PCoIP sessions and resources.
Included in the links below is the Leostream Broker quick start guide. This guide is managed by Leostream, but we have included the link as it is one of the most common brokers used with PCoIP software.
Note
Tip
Key Takeaway: Reader should be able to explain the function of a 3rd party Connection Broker.
The PCoIP Connection Manager and the PCoIP Security Gateway are components of HP Anyware and can be deployed together as a set or individually. The PCoIP Connection Manager enables connections between PCoIP clients and PCoIP agents installed on remote desktops. It works together with a third-party connection broker to authenticate users, query available desktops and applications, and then establish a PCoIP connection between the client and the selected desktop.
The PCoIP Security Gateway enables WAN users to securely access their remote desktops via the Internet without a VPN connection. Multiple instances of the Connection Manager and/or the Security Gateway can be deployed to handle mixed LAN and WAN access points, enable security gateway failover, or for scaling large systems.
Note
Guide Link: PCoIP Connection Manager And Security Gateway
Tip
Key Takeaway: Reader should be able to:
- Explain the role of the Connection Manager/Security Gateway in the brokered solution (3rd party broker).
- Provide guidance on system and network/port requirements.
- Install and configure the CMSG for use with a 3rd party broker.
HP Anyware is fully compatible with third-party brokers without the deployment of Anyware Connectors or features included with Anyware Manager. When using a third-party connection broker, PCoIP connections are brokered in conjunction with the Connection Manager and Security Gateway.
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Guide Link: Using Third Party Connection Brokers
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Key Takeaway: Reader should be able to provide guidance on third-party connection brokers and how they interface with the Anyware Connection Manager and Security Gateway (CMSG).
The following section contains the relevant links for prerequisites, downloading, and installing each product. Each can be found in the specific products Adminstrator’s Guide.
Please refer back to these links when completing the Practical Application section.
| Download Link | Windows | Linux | MacOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Installation Link | Windows | Linux | MacOS |
| OS | Download Link | Installation Link | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Windows | Standard Agent | Graphics Agent | Standard Agent | Graphics Agent |
| Linux | Standard Agent | Graphics Agent | Standard Agent (Ubuntu) | Graphics Agent (Ubuntu) |
| Standard Agent (RHEL/Rocky) | Graphics Agent (RHEL/Rocky) | |||
| macOS | Graphics Agent | Graphics Agent |
| Note: Please make sure to adhere to the system requirements, pre-requisites and network configurations as mentioned in the Client and Agent Admin Guides before installation. |
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Download and Install the Client and Agent above.
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Anyware Connector Download Link
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Anyware Connector Installation Link
There is no need to deploy a “Manager” machine when using the Cloud Manager (SaaS). Instead, please verify the following:
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Please try logging into cas.teradici.com with your enterprise email address. The manager allows for 1 main administrator. When we install the connector, whosever account was used will be the main admin, additional administrators can be given access to the Manager Dashboard via SAML. Alternatively, some customers opt to use a “group” account such as [email protected]
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When logging in for the first time it will ask for a registration code. This is the same which will be used to activate the Agents if using Cloud Licensing.
(Kindly select the dark site installer package from the link)
If you encounter an issue while installing or using HP Anyware Components, it is possible to generate a support bundle to investigate and resolve the issue. The support bundle gathers statistical and diagnostic information and packages them into a single, compressed file. The statistics are logged at different detail levels on different products. Understanding how to read these log file entries can assist in troubleshooting potential network issues impacting a user's experience.
This guide can provide instructions on how we can set the appropriate logging level for different PCoIP products and extract the required log files for investigation. Another guide example can help you understand the support bundle for HP Anyware Windows PCoIP Agent and the type of logs it generates.
Any issue which disrupts the normal functioning of a network leading to a degraded performance, partial or complete loss of connectivity and affecting LAN’s, WAN’s or even home networks fall under this category. The most common causes are hardware failures, network congestion, configuration errors, ISP Issues etc.
All HP Anyware PCoIP Agents and Software Clients log network statistics in the logs such as latency, round trip time, bandwidth, average receive/transmit bandwidth, packet loss etc. All these network statistics are stored in the PCoIP server logs. Refer to the guide on how to identify the network issues in the PCoIP logs.
A session disconnect occurs when an active HP Anyware Session is unexpectedly terminated. This can happen due to issues such as VPN Connection, network connectivity, session timeout etc. There are several disconnect codes used in event logs to identify the cause of a session disconnect for HP Anyware PCoIP Agent.
When connecting to a PCoIP Standard Agent for Windows, PCoIP Graphics Agent for Windows, PCoIP Standard Agent for Linux or PCoIP Graphics Agent for Linux the connection fails with one of the following messages:
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Error: Unable to connect to myhost.cloudaccesslabs.com. Please enter a new name or IP address.
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HP Anyware PCoIP Software Client - Error: The network connection has been lost
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HP Anyware PCoIP Software Client - Alert: This desktop has no sources available or it has timed out. Please try connecting to this desktop again later.
Please refer to the guide for various causes and resolution steps which can be applied to resolve the issue.
HP Anyware allows configuring the Anyware Agent to optimize the PCoIP protocol behaviour for local network conditions. If fine tuning of user experience is needed, PCoIP session parameters impacting frame rate, image quality and bandwidth can be tuned by adjusting “Windows GPO variables” for Windows Agents, “pcoip-agent.conf” file on Linux Agents and “com.teradici.pcoip-agent.plist” on macOS Agent
Apart from the above hyperlinked guides, you can also utilize the session performance optimization guide and review the user experience profiles in it and configure the session parameters as per your respective environment usage.
Log Analyzer is triggered by an Azure function and parses log files present in the uploaded support bundle to search for any warnings/problems using the signature files. Once parsing is completed, Log Analyzer will map knowledge base articles from https://help.teradici.com for these warnings/problems using diagnostics files and outputs or emails the report file with summary information in .html format.
LogAI Uploader: https://help.teradici.com/s/loguploader
Example of the LogAI generated reports and KBs:
In the event a technical issue cannot be resolved, issues can be escalated via a support ticket. To escalate a technical issue:
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Browse to https://anyware.hp.com
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Select Contact Support and login. Register if needed.
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Select the Technical Support category. You will be prompted for information about your deployment and the topic of your issue.
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If the populated KB article does not resolve your issue, please select I need additional guidance to create a support ticket
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When submitting the ticket, include relevent info such as products used, error codes, and logs. Be sure to set the serverity
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A Support Representitive will reach out to assist you as soon as possible.
Tip
Key Takeaway: Reader should be able to describe how and when to escalate a technical issue.
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How do I find the PCoIP log files and set logging level for different PCoIP products?
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Error: The Certificate for the Domain Controller is Untrusted or Invalid
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Cannot connect: Get an ERROR: Failed to communicate with Connection Manager
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Cannot connect to multiple monitors when using NVidia GRID GPU
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Steps to activate HP Anyware licenses in offline environment
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HP Anyware Instructions for Consumer Grade NVIDIA GPUs (e.g. GeForce RTX 2080)
The goal of this simulation Lab is to setup and establish an Internal unmanaged (direct connection) between Windows Client and Windows Standard Agent. The steps are similar for Linux and Mac OS (Operating System).
If the target remote machine is a desktop, please use the Graphics Agent.
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Please check the System requirements of both Software Client, and Standard Agent before proceeding further
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Browse to the download site https://anyware.hp.com/find/product/hp-anyware and select the Windows Client and click on “Downloads and Scripts” to download the latest version of Client.
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Browse to the download site, ideally on the Agent machine itself, and select the Windows Standard Agent to download the latest version. You may be prompted to login.
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Once both software’s have been downloaded and installed, kindly ensure to check the necessary TCP/UDP ports opened/configured between Client and Agent as per the guide
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Before connections can be made, the Agent must have an active license. Please follow the steps in the Agent Admin Guide to use your Cloud License Registration Code.
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Open the client software and follow the steps here Admin Guide to create a new connection to the Windows Agent
The goal of this simulation is to establish an internal brokered connection between Windows Client and Windows Agent using Anyware Connector and Anyware Manager as a Service
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From the Simulation Lab 1, we already have a Client and Agent setup ready. Kindly note that the Agent machine should be domain joined for this simulation.
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Next, we need a new machine which will host the Anyware Connector. Kindly follow the system requirements, prerequisites, network and firewall configurations, DNS Name resolution required and create a new machine accordingly.
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Download and install the Connector on the new machine by following Steps 1 - 3 in the installation guide.
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To install a new Connector, you must generate a token from the Manager Admin Dashboard. Kindly log into “cas.teradici.com” and follow steps 4 & 5 from the guide to configure the Connector as per your environmental requirement.
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Since this connector will be serving internal connections, the connector must be configured with the “--enable-security-gateway" flag to “false” when executing the configure command on the connector (ex: --enable-security-gateway=false). When set to false, the connector/manager will handle pre-session, authentication, and entitlement of machines. Once the UDP 4172 session is ready to be initiated, the client will send traffic directly to the agent machine.
Note
When set to True for external, session traffic (4172) traverses the Connector
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Once the configure command has executed successfully and all of the containers have started, kindly verify the connector health status in the Anyware Manager (AWM) Dashboard
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Before connections can be made, the intended user must be entitled to a remote workstation/s. This can be done in the Anyware Manager (AWM) “Workstations Tab”. Follow the guide and add your agent and assign the testing user to the machine.
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Connect to a remote workstation using the PCoIP Client using the guide
Note
By default, security-gateway is set to true, which means both the internal and external clients can connect but beware that internal clients are passing through the security gateway which is not optimal. Hence, we recommend you deploy two Anyware Connectors, one with security gateway enabled to handle the external clients and one with security gateway disabled for the internal clients.
The goal of this simulation is to establish a brokered connection between Windows Client and Windows Agent using On-Premises installations of Local License Server, Anyware Manager and Anyware Connector
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From the Simulation Lab 1, we already have a Client and Agent setup ready. Kindly note that the Agent machine should be domain joined for this simulation as well.
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In the prior labs cloud licensing was used. In this lab, we will be using Local License Server. For this we will need to deploy a new Windows or Linux machine which will host the local license server (either offline or online) by following the system requirements guide . It is suggested that if using a Local License Server to use an “Online” LLS, but for customers with no internet access, the offline version can be used.
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Then, kindly proceed with installation of Offline LLS or Online LLS based on your environment's requirement. For this setup, we will proceed with offline setup.
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Offline setup can be done in 2 ways, opening a temporary internet-connection on the primary LLS machine OR installing with No Internet Connection machine, to download the LLS software and its dependencies and then manually transfer it to the primary LLS machine.
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The Local License Server hosts the activation codes and needs to match the license portal. Since this Local License Server (LLS) machine does not have access to the internet access, steps must be taken to ensure the information is consistent between the portal and Local License Server. Please use the guide to complete the offline activation.
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Now, we need to configure the Agent to use the Local License Server. This can be done in two ways: On each agent or on the Connector by using the flag “--local-license-server-url” with the configure command (Step xi) and entering the FQDN or IP Address of the LLS URL on the connector machine. Configuring on the Connector is typically recommended to avoid configuration on many agent machines. The flag will set the URL for PCoIP License Server to be used for all PCoIP Sessions. (As discussed, for direct connections we can configure the Agent to communicate with the the LLS via URL and port number. For Windows Agent see local group policy editor)
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Now that we have the License Server installed, we need to deploy a new machine which will host the On-Premise Anyware Manager. Please follow the system requirements, network and firewall configurations and create a new machine accordingly
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Proceed with installing the Anyware Manager with default configuration and then access the Admin Console of the Anyware Manager
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Lastly, we need a machine which will host the Anyware Connector. Kindly follow the system requirements, pre-requisites, network and firewall configurations, DNS Name resolution required and create a new machine accordingly
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Then, download and install the Anyware Connector on the machine by following the Steps 1 - 3 steps mentioned in the installation guide.
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We would now require a Anyware Connector token to be generated from the Anyware Manager Admin Console Dashboard. Kindly log into Anyware Manager Admin Console and follow steps 4 & 5 from the guide to configure the Anyware Connector as per your environmental requirement and the necessary flags.
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Since this setup is focused on external connections also, it is recommended to set the “enable-security-gateway" flag to “true” and set the Public IP using the “--external-pcoip-ip" flags when executing the configure command on the connector (ex: --enable-security-gateway=true)
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Once the connector configure command has executed successfully, verify the connector health status in the AWM Dashboard
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You will need to add the remote workstation/s via the AWM Workstations Tab before we can connect to the machine. Follow the guide and add your respective agent/s. You will also need to entitle the test user to this machine.
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Open the Anyware Client and create a new connection to the Anyware Connector, steps can be found in the guide