XenApp 5 Versus XenApp 6 - Key Incompatibilities and Architectural Differences
Article ID: CTX127440
Updated On:
Description
This article briefly outlines some of the differences between XenApp 5 and XenApp 6 (for Windows Server 2008 R2) which indicate that neither a traditional upgrade path nor mixed environments are possible.
Background
As Citrix users adopt XenApp 6 and Windows Server 2008 R2, many have enquired about the possibility of upgrading their existing farms. Citrix has also been asked about temporary mixed environments – such as, both XenApp 5 and XenApp 6 servers in a single farm. Because of fundamental differences in these products, neither of these is possible. This article explains some of these differences.
Note: These differences apply between all versions of XenApp 5 (Windows Server 2003 or 2008; 32-bit or 64-bit); and XenApp 6 (Windows Server 2008 R2 64-bit).
XenApp 5 Versus XenApp 6 – Key Incompatibilities and Architectural Differences
Data Store:
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Core data store changes make mixed farms incompatible because of the differences in the structure of and communications to a XenApp 6 and XenApp 5 data store. Consequently, mixed farms will most likely cause data store corruption.
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XenApp 6.0 is not capable of contacting an IBM DB2 or Access database.
Management Consoles:
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The new MMC 3.0 Delivery Services Console only works with XenApp 6.0 and is a requirement – it does not work with XenApp 5.0, nor does the 5.0 console work with XenApp 6.0.
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The XenApp Advanced configuration does not work on a XenApp 6.0 system.
Management and Configuration:
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Management and configuration infrastructure is policy-based for XenApp 6.0 and XenApp 5.0 and is not compatible with this and makes mixed communication impossible.
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Worker Groups are specific to XenApp 6.0 and this is a fundamental management change - making mixed farms a problem.
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Active Directory integration and management is not possible with XenApp 5.0 in a way that XenApp 6.0 allows, so management infrastructure could become massively complex in a mixed environment.
User Experience Consistency:
In a mixed environment with load balancing, configured users would get totally inconsistent options and experiences depending on whether they are connected to a XenApp 5.0 server one day and a XenApp 6.0 server the next.
License Server:
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Version 11.6.1 Build 9020 onwards is required for XenApp 6.0.
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Port options on the License Server and files have been removed as of license server 11.5 onwards – so management again would become ambiguous.
Operating System:
Windows Server 2008 R2 is required for XenApp 6.0 and is 64-bit only as is XenApp 6.0, so upgrading from any 32-bit operating system is not possible. XenApp 6 was specifically developed to operate on the 64-bit Windows Server 2008 R2 platform.
Additional Resources
Citrix eDocs - XenApp 6 Product Documentation
Citrix Support - XenApp 6 Public hotfixes
CTX124241 - Technical Guide for Upgrading/Migrating to XenApp 6 : Migrating to XenApp 6 Technical Guide for Upgrading/Migrating to XenApp 6.
CTX125471 - XenApp 6 Migration Tool : This tool enables customers to migrate their legacy XenApp farm to a XenApp 6 farm. It is a powerful tool built using PowerShell which is fast, and simple to use.
Citrix Blog - Blog Post by Jo Harder, Senior Architect
Issue/Introduction
