// Omnissa
Horizon Clients & Agents
Horizon Client
2512
Universal client for Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, ChromeOS. Blast Extreme + PCoIP. Required for UDP 8443 support.
Horizon Agent (Desktop)
2512
Installed on every desktop VM. Manages Blast/PCoIP sessions, USB, SSO, App Volumes integration. Windows 10/11 LTSC. Separate version for Linux.
VMware OS Optimization Tool
Free
Essential for gold image preparation. Disables 50+ unnecessary Windows services/features. Custom templates for Win 10/11 LTSC. Run before sealing.
App Volumes Agent
2512
Required on every VM for AppStack/Writable Volume delivery. Install during gold image prep. Pair with App Volumes Manager 4.13.
DEM FlexEngine (Agent)
2512
Dynamic Environment Manager client-side agent. Manages logon tasks, printers, drives, app settings, DirectFlex. Install on every desktop VM.
UAG OVA (Unified Access Gateway)
2512
OVA for vSphere deployment. External gateway for Blast UDP 8443, PCoIP, Workspace ONE. Requires valid SSL cert. Deploy 2+ for HA.
// Citrix
Citrix CVAD Clients & Components
Citrix Workspace App
2411+
Formerly Citrix Receiver. Client for Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, ChromeOS. HDX / ICA protocol. Required for EDT (UDP 443) WAN optimization.
Virtual Delivery Agent (VDA)
2511 / 2407 LTSR
Core CVAD agent for desktops and RDSH. Required on every VM. Separate installers for Desktop OS and Server OS. Install with matching CVAD version.
Citrix Optimizer
Free
Gold image optimizer for Citrix VDA environments. Applies Citrix-recommended optimizations for Win 10/11 LTSC, Server 2019/2022. Similar to VMware OSOT.
WEM Agent
2511
Workspace Environment Manager client agent. Install on all VDAs. Manages CPU/mem optimization, user environment (drives, printers), AppLocker policies.
NetScaler VPX (Trial)
Licensed
NetScaler ADC VPX virtual appliance. Required for HDX proxy, StoreFront LB, ICA proxy. 90-day trial available. VPX 200 for <500 users.
HDX Monitor
Free
Real-time HDX session diagnostics. Shows EDT vs TCP transport, audio channels, bandwidth utilization. Citrix fling — free.
// Azure Virtual Desktop
AVD Clients & Tools
Remote Desktop Client (Windows)
Free
Microsoft Remote Desktop client for AVD. Supports RDP Shortpath (UDP), multi-monitor, Teams media optimization. Required for best AVD experience.
Azure Virtual Desktop App (Store)
Free
Microsoft Store AVD client. Recommended for W11 22H2+. Auto-updates, Entra ID integration, RDP Shortpath support. Separate from legacy MSRDC.
FSLogix Agent (for AVD)
26.01 CU1 Critical
v3.26.126.19110 — required for all AVD deployments. Install in every session host image. Profile + ODFC containers. Critical update for stability.
AVD Shortpath Test
Free
Microsoft network analysis tool to verify RDP Shortpath connectivity (UDP) between client and session host. Run before go-live.
Azure Image Builder (AIB) Templates
Free
Official Microsoft AIB JSON templates for AVD session host images. Automates custom image builds with FSLogix + Office 365 + teams optimization.
AVD Landing Zone Accelerator
Free
Microsoft official Bicep/Terraform templates for enterprise AVD deployment. Host pools, session hosts, FSLogix on Azure Files, autoscale.
// Profile Management
FSLogix & Profile Tools
FSLogix 26.01 CU1
CriticalLatest
v3.26.126.19110 — Critical stability update. Required for all VDI platforms. Profile Container + ODFC + Cloud Cache. Upgrade from 2.x era immediately.
Version: 3.26.126.19110 · Feb 2026
Profile Migrator (UPMTOOL)
Free
Microsoft tool to migrate traditional roaming profiles to FSLogix containers. Wraps existing profile in VHDX. Supports bulk migration via PowerShell.
Citrix Profile Management (UPM)
With VDA
Bundled with Citrix VDA. On-demand streaming profile alternative to FSLogix. Works alongside FSLogix for Office/ODFC containers. Configure via GPO or WEM.
// App Packaging
MSIX, App Layering & Packaging Tools
MSIX Packaging Tool
Free · Microsoft Store
Official Microsoft tool to convert installers (EXE/MSI) to MSIX packages. Required for MSIX App Attach. Use a clean packaging VM. Available in Microsoft Store.
Advanced Installer (MSIX)
Commercial
Best-in-class commercial MSIX authoring and repackaging tool. More powerful than Microsoft's tool for complex apps. Also handles MSI, EXE, Appx.
Revo Uninstaller Pro
Commercial
Used in app packaging pipelines to cleanly capture pre/post install snapshots. Helps identify registry and file changes for MSIX packaging.
App-V Sequencer (Legacy)
Deprecated
Microsoft App-V 5.x sequencer. Still used in some orgs but deprecated in favor of MSIX. Included in MDOP. Support ends in 2026.
MSIX Hero
Free / Open Source
Free open-source MSIX management tool. View, sign, modify MSIX packages. Great for troubleshooting MSIX App Attach packages. GitHub.
Process Monitor (Procmon)
Free · Sysinternals
Essential for app packaging — captures file/registry/process activity during install. Critical for MSIX capture and troubleshooting app failures in VDI.
// Monitoring & Analytics
Monitoring, Analytics & Performance
Lakeside SysTrack
Commercial
Industry-leading DEX (Digital Employee Experience) platform. VDI-specific dashboards for logon time analysis, resource utilization, user experience scoring. Essential for large deployments.
Nexthink
Commercial
End-user experience monitoring with AI-powered analysis. Horizon/Citrix/AVD deep integration. Root cause analysis, logon time telemetry, proactive remediation.
Horizon Logon Monitor
Free · Omnissa
Free Omnissa utility to break down logon time by stage (Kerberos, profile mount, GPO, shell). Essential baseline tool before any logon optimization project.
Performance Monitor (perfmon)
Free · Built-in
Windows built-in. Critical counters for VDI:
Processor\% Processor Time, Memory\Available MBytes, LogicalDisk\Avg. Disk Queue Length.vROps (Aria Operations)
Licensed
VMware vRealize Operations — VDI-aware monitoring for Horizon environments. Lagoon dashboards for VDI capacity, CPU ready, memory balloon, logon storms.
Windows Admin Center
Free · Microsoft
Modern web-based Windows server management. Useful for remote VDI host management, performance monitoring, event log access. Install on management server.
// Admin Tools
Sysinternals & Admin Utilities
Sysinternals Suite
Free · Microsoft
Essential toolkit: Process Explorer (Task Manager++), Autoruns (startup), TCPView (network), PsExec (remote exec), Strings, Handle, VMMap. Every VDI admin needs this.
Process Explorer
Free · Sysinternals
Advanced Task Manager. Essential for identifying CPU hogs, hung processes, DLL injection issues in VDI sessions. Replace Task Manager with this on management VMs.
BGInfo
Free · Sysinternals
Sets desktop wallpaper with system info (hostname, IP, vCPU, RAM, OS). Invaluable in VDI — users can tell which VM they're on. Deploy via GPO startup script.
RSAT Tools
Free · Windows Feature
Remote Server Administration Tools. AD Users & Computers, Group Policy Management, DNS Manager. Essential on management workstations and jump hosts.
Notepad++ + XML Tools
Free
Essential for editing redirections.xml, DEM config XMLs, App Volumes policies, Citrix policies. XML Tools plugin formats and validates XML.
Registry Workshop / RegEdit++
Commercial (trial)
Advanced registry editor with search, bookmarks, multi-hive comparison, undo. Dramatically faster than native regedit for FSLogix/Citrix/Horizon registry work.
// AWS WorkSpaces
AWS WorkSpaces Clients & Tools
WorkSpaces Client
Free · AWS
Official AWS WorkSpaces client for Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Chromebook. Uses PCoIP or DCV (NICE) protocol. Available from AWS.
AWS CLI v2
Free
Required for WorkSpaces automation, FSx provisioning, bundle management. Use with PowerShell AWS module for comprehensive WorkSpaces management scripts.
WorkSpaces Connection Checker
Free · AWS
Validates network connectivity from client to AWS WorkSpaces endpoints. Checks PCoIP/DCV ports, DNS, HTTPS. Run before deploying clients.
All links go to official vendor/GitHub sources. The VDI Guy is not affiliated with any vendor. Versions and URLs are validated as of March 2026 but change frequently — always verify on vendor sites. Need help with installation or configuration? Book a consultation or ask the AI troubleshooter.