Greetings friends and current Remote Desktop Commander customers! We’ve just released Version 4.0 of Remote Desktop Commander, both the Lite and Suite editions, so we want to tell you what’s new under the hood in terms of features.
In this RDPSoft E-Newsletter:
New Remote Desktop Commander 4.0 Features
Introducing RDS Performance Audits, Custom Report Design Work, and White Glove Installation
Our Technology Alliance Partner, FSLogix, Is Simply the Best Solution for Office 365 Deployments Inside RDS, Citrix, and VDI
RDC 4.0 Download and Upgrade Links
New features include:
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Pinpoint Historic CPU, Memory, and Other Session Load Bottlenecks on Servers Instantly With “Historical Performance and Load Across the Farm” Dashboard
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Quickly Filter Dashboards By Date Range and RDS Collection Name or Server Group
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Azure and Standard SQL Server Authentication Support
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Adjust RDP Permissions on Session Hosts Directly In the Session Navigator
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Speed Improvements and Other Bug Fixes
Pinpoint Historic CPU, Memory, and Other Session Load Bottlenecks on Servers Instantly With “Historical Performance and Load Across the Farm” Dashboard
This Feature Is Present In the Following Editions: Suite
Previous versions of Remote Desktop Commander allowed you to view recent performance metrics across your servers, as well as pull up snapshots of performance for all user sessions given a specific period of time. However, the new Historical Performance And Load Across The Farm Dashboard allows you to scroll through hour-by-hour graphs of when your RDS session host servers were under peak load, in terms of memory, CPU, or session count. The graph is interactive, so you can click on a point of interest, and be immediately transported to another dashboard that shows all of the sessions active in that time frame- so you can review the user session(s) that contributed most to the server load and determine what they were doing at the time.
Quickly Filter Dashboards By Date Range and RDS Collection Name / Server Groups
This Feature Is Present In the Following Editions: Suite
For organizations with larger RDS deployments, attempting to review all of the session host servers in a single dashboard can get complicated. Version 4 of Remote Desktop Commander allows you to quickly filter dashboards by a 1.) RDS collection name, 2.) user-defined group of RDS servers, and 3.) in some cases, a date range lookback. By doing so, you can keep multiple dashboards up and running inside the Remote Desktop Commander Client, with one dashboard per RDS collection.
Azure and Standard SQL Server Authentication Support
This Feature Is Present In the Following Editions: Suite
Previous versions of Remote Desktop Commander required use of a local SQL Server deployment with Windows Integrated Authentication. Version 4 now also allows you to use a.) an on-premise SQL server with Standard (explicit username/password) Authentication and/or b.) a Microsoft Azure SQL Server deployment. This provides organizations with the flexibility to create multiple SQL databases for multiple RDS deployments on a single SQL Server, even when each deployment is isolated in a different, non-trusting Windows domain.
Adjust RDP Permissions on Session Hosts Directly In the Session Navigator
This Feature Is Present In the Following Editions: Lite and Suite
In the summer of 2017, Andy Milford, CEO of RDPSoft and Microsoft MVP in the Remote Desktop Services category, released the beta version of the new free tool called RDSConfig at the PureRDS.org resource site he maintains. Just as TSAdmin was removed from Windows Server 2012, TSConfig was similarly removed, making it very difficult for RDS admins to adjust the RDP permissions on session hosts. This has prevented many organizations from being able to delegate certain RDS management roles to non-admin users, such as shadowing users for support purposes. In Version 4 of Remote Desktop Commander, this tool has been integrated into the Session Navigator area of both the Lite and Suite versions. Now admins can easily view and adjust RDP permissions on their session hosts any time they wish.
Speed Improvements and Other Bug Fixes
In version 4 of Remote Desktop Commander, we have optimized many SQL queries to speed the retrieval of historic performance data to the Client. Also, we have repaired a few bugs, including one that affected the ability to record screenshots from multiple monitor sessions in certain instances.
New RDS Consulting Services: Schedule an RDS Performance Audit, Request Custom Reports, or Schedule White Glove Installation
2017 was a great year for RDPSoft, and to celebrate our continuing growth, we’re now pleased to offer additional services to go along with our Remote Desktop Commander Suite solution.
- RDS Performance Audit
- Custom Report Design
- White Glove Installation
Administrator time is at a premium these days. Often, you may know there is a performance issue with your RDS farm, but you don’t have the time to figure it out on your own. Let RDPSoft do that for you. We will install our Remote Desktop Commander Suite software in your environment, and then gather up key performance metrics, including data from RDS-related event logs and installed Hotfixes. After gathering data for a week, we will build a comprehensive report that benchmarks performance in your farm and offers suggestions on how to improve it. You don’t even need to have your own instance of Microsoft SQL available for data collection – we can provide you with a secure connection to an Azure SQL database as part of this service. For more detailed information, and to request a quote, click here.
Do you need a report that’s not available out of the box? Let the RDPSoft team build that for you. Using the free Microsoft Report Builder tool, we can design custom SQL queries and RDLC templates that connect into our Remote Desktop Commander database. Click here for more information and to request a quote.
For only $99, an RDPSoft technician will establish a remote support session with you and install the Remote Desktop Commander Suite software. This service includes a.) installing the software, b.) linking it to a SQL Server Express, SQL Server, or Azure SQL database, c.) adding session hosts / workstations for monitoring, d.) verifying that data is being collected properly, and e.) verifying that the data is displayed properly in reports and the Remote Desktop Commander Client. Click here to purchase this service and schedule a time with an RDPSoft support expert.
Rolling Out Office 365 in RDS, Citrix, or VDI? FSLogix Is Your Lifesaver.
If you attempt an Office 365 deployment inside a virtualized environment, including RDS and VDI, you will be hit with lots of snags. Our technology alliance partner, FSLogix, pioneered the solution to these issues, and they remain the best solution in the market for virtualized Office 365 roll outs. Please read this wonderful article and product comparison that details why they remain the best-of-breed solution.