When you try to launch an application from the Web Interface or Program Neighborhood Agent, the Launching window pops up. The launch itself is very slow, later it stays at “Starting” and then disappears completely. No errors are available regarding the application or interfaces on the Event Log.

Published desktops of the server still work with no problems.



This scenario can occur on a random basis depending on the environment setup.

UPDATE:
After updating to XenApp 6.5 Rollup 7, users are experiencing slow login times, launch timeouts, and performance issues. Task manager locks while the user's login is hung up on "Please wait for the Local Session Manager" logon screen. Login takes 1-3 minutes.

Example:
XenApp 6.5 Server with R06 and WMI Filter Enabled: 18 Seconds to login
XenApp 6.5 Server with R07 and WMI Filter Enabled: 2 Minutes to login

As WMI filters affect the time to launch the application, the recommendation would be not to use WMI filters to apply policies.

Move the servers to a separated Organizational Unit (OU) on the Active Directory and apply the desired policy to the OU. This way, no WMI filters will be required. If using WMI filter is a must, another recommendation would be to simplify the queries and amount of WMI filters being used on the environment. The more WMI filters being used or more complex the queries, the longer the application takes to launch, which also causes a timeout.

UPDATE:
This was previously fixed in XenApp 6.5 Rollup Pack 02. Currently is being experienced after upgrading to Rollup Pack 07 and is addressed by fix LC5661 which is available in update XA650R07W2K8R2X64003.

Problem Cause

This error might occur if WMI Filters are used in the Active Directory to apply group policies on the Citrix XenApp servers. When the application launches and the session is created, like any normal remote session, the policies are also being applied and prepared. This is why the launch procedure takes longer than usual. The WMI filter is being used to validate the policies to be applied and this depends on how the administrator has configured and applied the WMI filter. In some scenarios, it causes the launch to timeout because it takes too long.



Locate the Active Directory OU where the XenApp servers are located. This is what the WMI filters look for on the Group Policy Management.


 

Open the Group Policy Management, native to WMI Filters, and review the filters. Each one shows you that the Query is running to identify which computers or users the linked Group Policy in question will be applied to. At the bottom of the screen, the administrator also can see the policies that are being linked to this filter. Locate the WMI filter that is linked to the Group Policy being applied on the OU where the XenApp servers are located. This WMI filter is the cause of the problem.