Prerequisites:

· Install XenDesktop 7.1 and configure with a Site.

· Install PVS 7.1 and configure with a farm.

· Install and configure vCenter 5.1 and configure with XenDesktop Studio.

· Create appropriate security group to make the members of local admins.

· Create a Windows 7 VM to be used as the Master image and optimize as per the recommendation.

· Create appropriate a Group Policy and link to the OU that will contain the computer accounts created by the XenDesktop Setup Wizard.

The Write Cache drive is always created as Drive D and the Personal vDisk is created with the drive letter assigned during the Wizard.

1. Add 2 hard drives of difference sizes to the VM. For example, Write Cache: 10GB and PvD: 20GB.

2. Login to the VM, in Disk Management initialize the 2 new drives with MBR partition type. The two drives will be shown as unallocated disks, do not format the disks.

3. Mount the PVS 7.1 ISO to the VM and install Target Device.

4. After installing Target Device disconnect the PVS ISO and launch Imaging Wizard.

5. Create a vDisk and optimize the device. So now the vDisk has been created in the PVS and a Target Device is created with the MAC address of the VM.

6. Shutdown the VM and configure to boot from the network first and the hard drive second.

7. When the VM is powered on, login with the same account to continue the Imaging Wizard.

8. Once it is completed the Imaging Wizard has now copied the contents of the VM’s C drive into the vDisk.

9. Now detach the C drive from the VM. So the VM has no C drive.

10. Go to PVS console, in the Target Device’s properties; change the Boot from order to vDisk.

11. Do power on the VM and you can see the 10GB Write Cache and 20GB PvD drives and the C drive (vDisk) in the Disk Management.

12. Now install XenDesktop 7.1 Virtual Delivery Agent (VDA) for PVS and shutdown the VM.

13. Detach the XenDesktop 7.1 ISO and login to the VM.

14. Install PvD update 7.1.1, i.e., Personal vDisk 7.1.1 and reboot the VM.

By default, PvD uses two drive letters: V and P. V is hidden and is a merged view of the C drive with the PvD drive. If drive V is already used, the drive letter can be changed.

15. Now run the PvD Inventory, Click Start, All Programs, Citrix, Update personal vDisk and then shut down the VM.

16. Make a copy of the VM for safer side and create a template from the VM.

17. In the PVS console, go to vDisk properties and change the Access mode to Standard image and Cache type to Cache on device hard drive.

18. Do right-click the Site and select XenDesktop setup wizard.

19. While setup select The same (static) desktop, and also select Save changes and store them on a separate personal vDisk and click Next.

20. Provide the number of VMs to be created by the setup and you can also see the Local write cache disk and PvD disk.

21. Once you complete the Wizard it will start creating VMs and target devices. You can see the target devices in the Device Collect in PVS Console and the VMs in the AD OU.

22. In the XenDesktop Citrix Studio, you can see the new Machine Catalog which has been created now.

23. Create a Delivery Group with appropriate Machine Catalog, User Groups and the StoreFront server.

24. Now you can edit the Delivery Group to make it online according to your requirement.

25. It is ready for the users to login. The users can customize their desktop and after the reboot the customizations persist.