RAS Delivery Methods
Overview
The power of providing access to your Parallels resources through AppsAnywhere comes when you combine delivery methods to create a delivery strategy that works best for the user in each of the environments they may be using. To create the best strategy, it's important to understand what tools you have at your disposal and how they relate to the user experience. There are six delivery methods in total made available by the Parallels connector, each of which will be described in detail below.
Resource Types
There are three main types of resources that you can deliver from a Parallels RAS environment through AppsAnywhere:
Apps that are physically installed on the session hosts and published natively through RAS
Apps that are Cloudpaged to the session hosts on-demand using the AppsAnywhere Client
Virtual Desktops made available through Parallels
Client Possibilities
For each of the three resource types described above, there are two options for how you want that resource to be delivered:
The Parallels Client is available to install on Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, and Linux and offers the user an immersive experience when using the resource that is being provided to them. This includes clipboard integration, the ability to connect locally attached devices, link file systems, and a whole host of other benefits for the user. This is generally the preferred method for interacting with resources when it is available.
The HTML5 client is a great option to use when either the native client is not available, it's not desirable to install it on that particular device, or you want to provide the resource in a more locked-down manner. In this instance, the resource runs in any modern browser instead of the user needing to install the client software on their device.
Deciding which of these options to use is very much down to personal choice and your specific use cases. With AppsAnywhere you are not limited to choosing one or the other though. There's nothing to stop you defining one of each delivery method and applying them to different types of environments using restrictions and prioritization.
Application Delivery Methods
There are four different delivery methods that you can add to your application that utilize the Parallels RAS integration. You will see these when Adding delivery methods to an app if you select the Parallels category from the left-hand side of the Add New Delivery Method dialog.
Each of the available delivery methods is described in detail in this section.
Parallels: Native
The Parallels: Native delivery method triggers the standard (installed) Parallels Client on the user's device to launch a resource that is natively installed on the remote session host(s) (i.e. not Cloudpaged to it).
The following table describes each field and setting available when creating this type of delivery method, it's intended value and an example for each.
Field Name | Description | Intended Value | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
Display Name | A common field across all delivery methods, allowing you to assign a friendly name to the delivery method for your own reference | A name of your choosing to help you identify this delivery method in future | Mozilla Firefox |
Parallels Environment | The environment from which the app will be delivered, as defined in the Manage Parallels Environments section | The name of the parallels environment the resource is hosted in, selected from the list of options | Production RAS |
Resource ID | The ID that has been assigned to the published resource in Parallels. This is available through the RAS admin console (see note below) | The ID taken from the RAS admin console (see right) | 1 |
Arguments | Any command line arguments that you want to be supplied to the application when it is run | All required command line arguments written exactly as you would pass them to the app if running it directly |
The ID of a resource in Parallels can be found in the Parallels RAS Console. Click on Publishing, choose the resource you want to deploy under Published Resources and you will see the resource ID next to Application (between the hashtag and the colon)
Parallels: Cloudpaged
The Parallels: Cloudpaged delivery method triggers the standard (installed) Parallels Client on the user's device to initiate a Parallels session that then triggers the AppsAnywhere Client within that session to launch a Cloudpaged app on the remote session host. If the app has not been launched on that session host before then it will be delivered to it when the user initiates the session.
The Cloudpaging Delivery Method must be set with Windows Server OS compatibility (so it runs on the RDSH servers)
This process can be a little bit confusing as the AppsAnywhere Client is involved twice, both on the user's device and on the remote server, so let's break it down:
The user clicks launch in the browser and a message is sent to the AppsAnywhere Client running on the user's device
The AppsAnywhere Client on the user's device, first of all, makes sure that the Parallels Client is installed and then initiates an application session
Once the session is initiated, a message is passed from the AppsAnywhere Client on the user's device to the AppsAnywhere Client running on the remote session host with details about which Cloudpaged app needs to be launched
The AppsAnywhere Client on the remote session host Cloudpages the app onto that server and then presents it to the user through the session.
You will need two things in place before you can create this kind of delivery method:
You will need to have published the AppsAnywhereLauncher as a published resource in your Parallels environment
You will need to have already created a Cloudpaging delivery method for this app which links in the package you want to deliver onto the server
The Cloudpaging delivery method must be set with Windows Server OS compatibility (so it runs on the RDSH servers)
The following table describes each field and setting available when creating this type of delivery method, its intended value, and an example for each.
Field Name | Description | Intended Value | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
Display Name | A common field across all delivery methods, allowing you to assign a friendly name to the delivery method for your own reference | A name of your choosing to help you identify this delivery method in future | Mozilla Firefox |
Parallels Environment | The environment from which the app will be delivered, as defined in the Manage Parallels Environments section | The name of the parallels environment the resource is hosted in, selected from the list of options | Production RAS |
Resource ID | The ID that has been assigned to the published resource in Parallels. This is available through the RAS admin console (see note below) | The ID taken from the RAS admin console . | 1 |
Arguments | Any command line arguments that you want to be supplied to the application when it is run | All required command line arguments written exactly as you would pass them to the app if running it directly |
The ID of a resource in Parallels can be found in the Parallels RAS Console. Click on Publishing, choose the resource you want to deploy under Published Resources and you will see the resource ID next to Application (between the hashtag and the colon)
Parallels HTML5: Native
The Parallels HTML5: Native delivery method opens up a new tab in the user's browser with the Parallels HTML5 Client and launches a resource that is natively installed on the remote session host(s) (i.e. not Cloudpaged to it) for the user to use from within the browser.
The following table describes each field and setting available when creating this type of delivery method, it's intended value and an example for each.
Field Name | Description | Intended Value | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
Display Name | A common field across all delivery methods, allowing you to assign a friendly name to the delivery method for your own reference | A name of your choosing to help you identify this delivery method in future | VLC |
Parallels Environment | The environment from which the app will be delivered, as defined in the Manage Parallels Environments section | The name of the parallels environment the resource is hosted in, selected from the list of options | Production RAS |
Resource ID | The ID that has been assigned to the AppsAnywhereLauncher published resource in Parallels. (see note below) | The ID taken from the RAS admin console | 2 |
Cloudpaging Delivery Method | The Cloudpaging delivery method that AppsAnywhere should use to deliver the app into the remote session | Select one of the Cloudpaging delivery methods that is currently defined for the app | VLC [License ID] |
The ID of a resource in Parallels can be found in the Parallels RAS Console. Click on Publishing, choose the AppsAnywhereLauncher resource under Published Resources and you will see the resource ID next to Application (between the hashtag and the colon)
Parallels HTML5: Cloudpaged
The Parallels HTML5: Cloudpaged delivery method opens up a new tab in the user's browser with the Parallels HTML5 Client and triggers the AppsAnywhere Client within that session to launch a Cloudpaged app on the remote session host for the user to use from within the browser. If the app has not been launched on that session host before then it will be delivered to it when the user initiates the session.
The Cloudpaging Delivery Method must be set with Windows Server OS compatibility (so it runs on the RDSH servers)
You will need two things in place before you can create this kind of delivery method:
You will need to have published the AppsAnywhereLauncher as a published resource in your Parallels environment
You will need to have already created a Cloudpaging delivery method for this app which links in the package you want to deliver onto the server
The Cloudpaging delivery method must be set with Windows Server OS compatibility (so it runs on the RDSH servers)
The following table describes each field and setting available when creating this type of delivery method, its intended value, and an example for each.
Field Name | Description | Intended Value | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
Display Name | A common field across all delivery methods, allowing you to assign a friendly name to the delivery method for your own reference | A name of your choosing to help you identify this delivery method in future | Mozilla Firefox |
Parallels Environment | The environment from which the app will be delivered, as defined in the Manage Parallels Environments section | The name of the parallels environment the resource is hosted in, selected from the list of options | Production RAS |
Resource ID | The ID that has been assigned to the published resource in Parallels. This is available through the RAS admin console (see note below) | The ID taken from the RAS admin console (see right) | 1 |
Arguments | Any command line arguments that you want to be supplied to the application when it is run | All required command line arguments written exactly as you would pass them to the app if running it directly |
The setup for the Native and Cloudpaged delivery methods is practically the same for both the standard and the HTML5 client, the only difference is the way in which it is delivered to the user.
Desktop Delivery Methods
In addition to the application delivery methods, there are two delivery methods that you can add to a desktop delivery that utilizes the Parallels RAS integration; which offers access to a full desktop to the user using either the installed or the HTML5 client. You will see these when adding delivery methods to a desktop if you select the Parallels category from the left-hand side of the Add New Delivery Method dialog.
Both of the available delivery methods are described in detail in this section, although they are exactly the same in terms of configuration, the only difference between them being the way in which they are delivered to the user.
Parallels: Desktop
The Parallels: Desktop delivery method triggers the standard (installed) Parallels Client on the user's device to launch a remote desktop that is provided through Parallels.
The following table describes each field and setting available when creating this type of delivery method, its intended value, and an example for each.
Field Name | Description | Intended Value | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
Display Name | A common field across all delivery methods, allowing you to assign a friendly name to the delivery method for your own reference | A name of your choosing to help you identify this delivery method in future | Staff Desktop |
Parallels Environment | The environment from which the desktop will be delivered, as defined in the Manage Parallels Environments section | The name of the parallels environment the resource is hosted in, selected from the list of options | Production RAS |
Resource ID | The ID that has been assigned to the published resource in Parallels. This is available through the RAS admin console | The ID taken from the RAS admin console | 5 |
Parallels HTML5: Desktop
The Parallels HTML5: Desktop delivery method opens up a new tab in the user's browser with the Parallels HTML5 Client and loads up a desktop session for the user to use from within the browser.
The following table describes each field and setting available when creating this type of delivery method, its intended value, and an example for each.
Field Name | Description | Intended Value | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
Display Name | A common field across all delivery methods, allowing you to assign a friendly name to the delivery method for your own reference | A name of your choosing to help you identify this delivery method in future | Staff Desktop |
Parallels Environment | The environment from which the desktop will be delivered, as defined in the Manage Parallels Environments section | The name of the parallels environment the resource is hosted in, selected from the list of options | Production RAS |
Resource ID | The ID that has been assigned to the published resource in Parallels. This is available through the RAS admin console | The ID taken from the RAS admin console | 5 |