Certification Objective 1.03: Identifying the Benefits of MetaFrame Interoperability

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MetaFrame XP is fully backwards-compatible with WinFrame and MetaFrame 1.x. This allows you to upgrade your servers incrementally and still maintain full capacity. MetaFrame XP supports two modes of operation: native mode and mixed mode. Mixed mode allows you to operate your new XP server in a MetaFrame 1.8 server farm seamlessly. Table 1-2 lists the different versions of MetaFrame XP available and the features each one supports. With XP in mixed mode, you do however lose some of the advanced functionality. Table 1-3 outlines these issues. It is recommended to have at least Service Pack 2 for MetaFrame 1.8 installed on all MetaFrame 1.8 servers before adding MetaFrame XP to the farm.

Table 1-2: MetaFrame Versions and Their Supported Features

	XPs	XPa	XPe
Citrix Management Console (CMC)	X	X	X
Active Directory Support	X	X	X
Enterprise-class Scalability	X	X	X
Centralized Printer Management	X	X	X
Application Publishing	X	X	X
Centralized License Management	X	X	X
Advanced Load Management		X	X
Application Packaging and Delivery			X
System Monitoring and Analysis			X
Monitoring and Analysis			X
Network Management			X

Table 1-3: Mixed Mode Limitations

ICA browser election	The MetaFrame XP server becomes the master ICA browser.
ICA license gateways	In mixed mode, license gateways do not function for license pooling. License pooling must be set up using CMC.
Program Neighborhood service	The Program Neighborhood service must be stopped and started on all pre-Service Pack 2 MetaFrame 1.8 servers if you migrate the farm to native mode before all the servers are upgraded.
Farm names	The server farm name must be exactly the same as the MetaFrame 1.8 farm name.
Subnet issues	You must have at least one MetaFrame 1.8 server in every subnet that contains MetaFrame XP servers to run in mixed mode.
Active Directory and user logons	MetaFrame 1.8 does not support Active Directory. In mixed mode, users cannot enter their username as a user principal name (UPN) (user@domain).

When operating in mixed mode, MetaFrame is actually two separate farms. One farm is the XP servers, and the other is the 1.8 servers. Mixed mode allows up to two farms to operate together in what appears to be one unit to ICA clients. Mixed mode configures one server to be the master ICA browser to respond to broadcasts, and the pre-server option to respond to broadcast requests when the master ICA browser is disabled. To optimize your browsing, Citrix recommends that ICA clients be configured to use TCP/IP+HTTP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol+HyperText Tranfer Protocol) for browsing and that you log multiple servers in the address list. These servers must have both the Extended Markup Language (XML) Service and Feature Release 1 installed if they are to use MetaFrame 1.8.

The limitations of mixed mode can be seen in Table 1-3, which follows.

Exam Watch 

Be sure to acquaint yourself with the limitations of mixed mode.

Exercise 1-3: Switching MetaFrame XP from Mixed to Native Mode

Once a farm has been fully migrated to MetaFrame XP, the XP farm can be switched to native mode. This allows you to take full advantage of all the new features in MetaFrame XP.

1. Open Citrix Management Console by going to Start½Programs½Citrix and choosing Citrix Management Console.

2. Log in to the farm that needs to be switched.

3. Select the farm at the root of the tree, as shown in Figure 1-4.

   
   Figure 1-4: Farm Properties

4. Switch to the Interoperability tab, as shown in Figure 1-5.

   
   Figure 1-5: Setting interoperability

5. Uncheck the Work With MetaFrame 1.8 Servers In The Farm check box to place the farm in native mode.

6. Click OK to close the dialog box.

Master Browser Elections

MetaFrame follows specific criteria when selecting a master ICA browser. The following measures determine the new master browser:

1. ICA browser version

2. Manual master browser designation by an administrator

3. Domain controller

4. Longest uptime

5. Server name in alphabetical order

A new master browser is chosen when:

1. Two master browsers are detected on the same subnet

2. A Citrix Server is started

3. The master browser does not respond to another ICA browser

4. The master browser does not respond to an ICA client

You can use the qserver or query server command to determine which server is acting as the master browser. The master will have a capital M at the end of its line.

On The Job 

Take care in implementing your first XP server, as it will try to take over as master ICA browser. If you have users accessing published applications, you may experience problems if the master ICA browser suddenly changes.

Exam Watch 

Be familiar with the causes for ICA browser elections.

Exam Watch 

Be sure to know what features each version provides.

Interoperability is an important feature of XP; so here are a few points to review for the exam.

Scenario & Solutions

What is native mode?	Native mode is a pure XP environment that gives you all the benefits of XP.
What is mixed mode?	Mixed mode allows an XP farm to operate with a 1.8 farm and presents the two farms as one to the clients.
What are some limitations of mixed mode?	ICA browser elections, license gateways, farm names, AD and subnet requirements.
What version contains all the Citrix products?	XPe

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