Altiris Application Streaming - HELP!!!!!
Hi everyone,
I am using Altiris Streaming server to provision virtual apps to individual users (on AD). Users are able to stream virtual apps which they are provisioned for. Virtual apps are automatically imported into SVS Admin and launched. Everything works fine up till this point.
HOWEVER! Once a user logs off, the next user is still able to see icons streamed by the previous user!!!!!
For example, if user-1 is provisioned for Virtualized WinZip. User-1 is able to stream Winzip, which is automatically imported into SVS Admin and launched. Once user-1 logs off and user-2 logs in, user-2 is still able to see Winzip icon (even if user-2 is not provisioned for WinZip). User-2 is not able to use Winzip but is still able to see Winzip icon!
I manually removed Winzip from the Altiris Streaming agent. This cleared cache and removed Winzip from SVS Admin. So when user-3 logged in, user-3 was able to stream and use Winzip again.
Just as a side note - Logon hook will not work in our enviroment as maintaining an XML file with thousands of users is just not feasible. Using command line switches (such as SVSCMD.EXE "WinZip" D -F) to deactivate virtual apps does not work either because Altiris Streaming agent still has cached data and so does not stream and activate virtual apps again. Deleting the AltirisCache folder does not work either as the streaming agent thinks the app has already been streamed. The only thing that has worked so far is to manually remove an app from the streaming agent.
Is there a way to remove an app from the streaming agent using command line switches? If there is, I am intending to run the script at user log off. This is about the only way I can see of getting around this problem...PLEASE help if someone knows a better solution.
Thanks for everyone's help in advance!
You encountered the non multiuser functionality
As already said a couple of times SVS and SVS Pro are not multiuser. You can prevent this behaviour by shutting down the computer before letting another user login or you can use DVs that makes SVS multiuser compliant.
DVS will keep the shortcuts inside the users profile so they are not visible in a situation when a user logsoff and another user logson.
Regards
Erik
www.DinamiQs.com
Regards
Erik
www.DinamiQs.com
Dinamiqs is the home of VirtualStorm (www.virtualstorm.org)
Try this
The best practice is to build packages that are current user only. In other words do not select the install for all users option at time of install. The streaming product does not change the way applications behave. If you install an application conventionally (all users), every user will see the shortcuts. The difference here is that provisioning will not allow restricted users from running the program.
We do have a functionality built into the streaming product called SLAM. This checks provisioning of virtualized apps prior to activating them. This might work for you. Here is how you enable it.
- Browse to the install directory of the streaming agent.
- Open AppstreamCfg.txt (w/Notepad.exe), inside the "bin" folder.
- Add the following line somewhere at the bottom
slam.enable = TRUE
- Restart the AWE service on the client or reboot, just to be sure.
I hope this helps. :)
__________________________________
Gene Kupfer
Senior Technical Support Engineer
Symantec™ Workspace Streaming, formerly AppStream
Symantec EndPoint Virtualization
Product Info
Facebook
Still trying...
Thanks for the information and help.
...I am able to use command line to deactivate v-apps on logout and activate on logon...however it does not resolve the issues I have...
1. Deactivating an v-app deactivates it for all users. Activating on the other hand activates it for all users. So how do I activate/deactivate apps based on individual users? Only solution I can thing off is to use logon hook. Logon hook does work. However I simply cannot manually maintain an XML file with 15,000 users.
2. If I deactivate a particular v-app on logout, it is not automatically activated (or even streamed again for that matter) if the next user goes to the steaming portal and clicks a v-app that is deactivated. I get an error mesg. This mesg is generated because the streaming agent already has the application cached.
The above is true for all virtual apps I tested. Once streamed v-apps are imported in svs admin, there doesn’t seem to be a way activate/deactivate "based on user credentials" - except to use logon hook...with 200 applications and 15,000 users...logon hook will be a nightmare to manage...
I am not sure what to do...any further suggestions will be muchly appreciated.
Thanks
Also
Gene, just letting you know that I have tried the steps you suggested and I am able to successfully target AD users and AD groups to stream virtual apps. The problem I have occurs when a user logs off and the next one logs in.
For example, if the first user was provisioned for WinZip (virtual app) then the first user has no problems streaming and using Winzip. Everything works fine.
However when the first user logs off and the second user logs in (who is not provisioned for WinZip for example), the second user is still able to see WinZip icons and directories.
If I deactivate Winzip (using any method), then when the first user logs back in, goes to the streaming portal and clicks on WinZip again, Winzip is not streamed and not activated again. As I understand, this behavior is due to the fact that WinZip is already cached by the streaming agent.
If I opened the steaming agent and removed Winzip from it, the first user is able to stream WinZip (virtual app) again and use it...
What am I doing wrong??
SLAM.ENABLE=True
Adding SLAM.ENABLE=True in the appstreamcfg.txt file is supposed to do just what you are looking for. Removing shortcuts from Start Menu when a user is not provisioned the application. We have the same requirement in my companies environment. I had very mixed results with this feature working consistently at first. I opened a support case and the last thing they had me try seems to have fixed the issue. I had to go to the AWE 5.2.2 Streaming Agent service click the log on tab and check the box to allow service to interact with desktop. After that removing shorcuts a user is not provisioned for seems to work pretty consistently using SLAM.
Would you like to reply?
Login or Register to post your comment.