Registry Key Entries Used by XenDesktop

Description

This article contains information about new and changed registry entries of XenApp components in the XenDesktop product.

Background

XenDesktop uses a number of registry entries in various computers in the farm to broker and manage its virtual desktops. Several Desktop Delivery Controller (DDC) server components are inherited from equivalent XenApp components. The registry entries that XenApp components use are also applied to the DDC server.

Notes:

The DDC server registry entries listed in this article do not apply to XenDesktop 5 DDCs.
Refer to CTX126704 – Registry Entries Used by XenDesktop 5.x Broker Service for an equivalent XenDesktop 5 information.

The Virtual Desktop Agent (VDA) registry entries for session timers do not apply for XenDesktop 5.

Session timers for XenDesktop 5 are configured through user policy in the DDC server.

DDC Server Controller Service Entries

Note: The information in this section is not applicable to XenDesktop 5 DDCs.

Caution! Refer to the Disclaimer at the end of this article before using Registry Editor.

The following table contains a number of registry entries that Citrix DDC Service adds and uses on the DDC servers:

Entry	Type	Default Value	Description
HKLM\Software\Citrix\DesktopServer\HeartbeatPeriodMS	REG_DWORD	60000	The maximum time (in milliseconds) available for a Virtual Desktop Agent (VDA) to send a ping message to the DDC server before it is automatically unregistered.
HKLM\Software\Citrix\DesktopServer\PrepareSessionConnectionTimeoutSec	REG_DWORD	None	The maximum time (in seconds) available for a client to connect to a desktop before the connection of a VDA stops listening to the client connection. If this registry entry is not set, the timeout value from the Web Interface configuration is used.
HKLM\Software\Citrix\DesktopServer\MaxWorkers	REG_DWORD	10000	The maximum number of VDA ‘worker’ computers that can be registered with the DDC controller at any given time.
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Citrix\DesktopServer\InstallData\WCF_PORT	REG_SZ	None	Set on install to the user specified Windows Communication Foundation (WCF) Port. This registry entry is purely for use in later installation actions, such as modify, repair, and uninstall, and should not be manually changed.
HKLM\Software\Citrix\ADConfig\ServersGroupGuid Note: For XenDesktop versions 3.0 and later, this registry entry has changed to: HKLM\Software\Citrix\ADConfig\ControllersGroupGuid	REG_SZ	None	The Globally Unique Identifier (GUID) to an Active Directory (AD) security group object to be used as the 'Controllers' security group instead of using the defaulted group object in the farm Organizational Unit (OU).
HKLM\Software\Citrix\DesktopServer\BuildNumber	REG_DWORD	None	The build number of the installed version. Installer sets this value.
HKLM\Software\Citrix\DesktopServer\FarmSettingsRefreshPeriodMS	REG_DWORD	-1	The time (in milliseconds) between forced updates of the cached farm settings to be sent to workers, irrespective of the settings being changed or not. A negative value means that no regular forced updates will be done, and settings only update when these are changed.

Note: Registry key values are typically listed in decimal format, unless specified otherwise.

DDC Server IMA Entries

Note: The information in this section does not apply to XenDesktop 5 DDCs.

The Independent Management Architecture (IMA) service uses a number of registry entries, added or changed, on the DDC servers. The following table is not a comprehensive list of registry entries that the IMA service uses, but highlights the entries that have been added or changed for the XenDesktop product.

Note: Refer to the XenApp documentation for descriptions of IMA registry entries that are common to both XenDesktop and XenApp.

Entry	Type	Default Value	Description
HKLM\Software\Citrix\Desktop Delivery Controller\DisableActiveSessionReconnect	REG_DWORD	0	This registry prevents active sessions that DDC server reconnects. This registry is queried at IMA startup. Set this value to 1 to trigger reconnection prevention.
HKLM\Software\Citrix\Desktop Delivery Controller\SuppressResolveFailureLogging	REG_DWORD	0	Disables generation of event log entries for failures to resolve VDA devices to be used for brokered launches. This registry is queried at IMA startup. Set this value to 1 to prevent the generation of event log entries.
HKLM\Software\Citrix\Desktop Delivery Controller\InitialEdition	REG_SZ	‘PLT’	The XenDesktop edition value. This registry is used by the installer to set the edition value if IMA is creating persistent store objects during the initial creation of the farm.

VDA Workstation Service Entries

The following table contains a number of registry entries on the VDA ‘worker’ computers relate to the VDA Workstation Service:

Entry	Type	Default Value	Description
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Citrix\VirtualDesktopAgent\StartUpRetryDelaySec	REG_DWORD	600	The minimum delay (in seconds) between start up attempts of the Desktop Service.
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Citrix\VirtualDesktopAgent\MaxStartUpRetryDelayDeltaSec	REG_DWORD	240	The maximum time interval (in seconds) between StartUpRetryDelaySec and the next actual Desktop Service start up attempt.
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Citrix\VirtualDesktopAgent\FarmGUID	REG_SZ	None	The GUID of the AD object of the farm base OU. This defines the farm to which the VDA device belongs. This is only used if a policy based FarmGUID has not been set.
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Citrix\VirtualDesktopAgent\FarmGUID	REG_SZ	None	The GUID of the AD object of the farm base OU. This defines the farm to which the VDA machine belongs.
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Citrix\VirtualDesktopAgent\InstallData\WCF_PORT	REG_SZ	None	Set on install to the user specified WCF Port. This is purely later install actions such as, modify, repair, and uninstall to use, and should not be manually changed.
HKLM\Software\Citrix\ADConfig\ServersGroupGuid Note: For XenDesktop versions 3.0 and later, this registry entry has changed to: HKLM\Software\Citrix\ADConfig\ControllersGroupGuid	REG_SZ	None	The GUID of the AD security group object to be used to define which DDC servers are members of the farm. If this entry is not set, the default ‘Controllers’ security group in the farm base OU is used.
HKLM\Software\Citrix\PortICA\Session\IdleTimer\Enabled (this key ignored in XenDesktop 5)	REG_DWORD	1	If non-zero, cause XenDesktop sessions to be automatically disconnected after a defined period of idleness.
HKLM\Software\Citrix\PortICA\Session\IdleTimer\MaxIdleTime (this key ignored in XenDesktop 5)	REG_DWORD	1440	The number of minutes of continuous idle state before an automatic disconnection, if enabled.
HKLM\Software\Citrix\PortICA\Session\ConnectionTimer\Enabled (this key ignored in XenDesktop 5)	REG_DWORD	0	If non-zero, cause XenDesktop sessions to be automatically disconnected after a defined period of being connected.
HKLM\Software\Citrix\PortICA\Session\ConnectionTimer\MaxConnectionTime (this key ignored in XenDesktop 5)	REG_DWORD	1440	Number of minutes of being in a continuously connected state before an automatic disconnection, if enabled.
HKLM\Software\Citrix\PortICA\Session\DisconnectTimer\Enabled (this key ignored in XenDesktop 5)	REG_DWORD	0	If non-zero, causes the XenDesktop sessions to be automatically logged out after a defined period of being in a disconnected state.
HKLM\Software\Citrix\PortICA\Session\DisconnectTimer\MaxDisconnectTime (this key ignored in XenDesktop 5)	REG_DWORD	1440	Number of minutes in continuous disconnected state before an automatic log off, if enabled.

VDA CGP Service Entries

The following table contains the only install-related entry present for the Common Gateway Protocol (CGP) service on each VDA device:

Entry	Type	Default Value	Description
HKLM\Software\Citrix\Citrix CGP Server Service\Install\Location	REG_SZ	None	The absolute path where the CGP service files are installed on the VDA machine.

Other Components

The tables in this article do not cover the registry entries for the following components of the XenDesktop product:

Web Interface, XTE service, Management Consoles, and the License server on the DDC server.

ICA service (PortICA) and Universal Printing support on the VDA device.

Environment

Caution! Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that might require you to reinstall your operating system. Citrix cannot guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk. Be sure to back up the registry before you edit it.

Issue/Introduction

This article contains information about new and changed registry entries of XenApp components in the XenDesktop product.

Additional Information

CTX138738 - Registry Key Entries Used by XenDesktop7.x

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