The latest release from Citrix in their Metaframe line of products is Citrix Metaframe for Windows 2000 servers version 1.8. The Metaframe requires that Terminal services for Windows be installed. It allows clients working on different platforms such as Mac, Linux, DOS, etc, to connect to it and run Windows applications. Clients could be old machines that you have condemned to lie in a corner. They would then be able to run the latest Windows applications because all the processing is done at the server end. On the flip side, to support so many clients and allow them to run applications simultaneously, the server on which Metaframe will run must have a hefty configuration. If it fails, your entire network will come down. To prevent such a mishap, you can create a server farm for load balancing. 

Metaframe offers a variety of options to connect your clients to the server. These range from normal telephone lines, ISDN lines, and your LAN to broadband connections and the Internet. Connections can be made over TCP/IP, NetBIOS, or IPX/SPX protocols. To make the whole setup work quickly and efficiently, Metaframe uses ICA (Independent Computing Architecture) for client/server communication. ICA sends only keystrokes and mouse clicks from the client. After the computing at the server end is over, it sends back the refreshed screen with the results. To speed up the process further, it uses disk caching and data compression.

Disk caching stores commonly used portions of your screen, such as the Windows toolbar or your desktop icons locally, so they don't have to be retransmitted every time. Data compression is used to reduce the size of the data sent over the  network. 

During installation, you can set up TAPI (Telephony Application Programming Interface)-compliant modems on your server if you have clients that will access it over a telephone line. Once installed, you have to follow a rather tedious process to activate your license, which involves getting connected to the Citrix Activation server through the Internet and filling in a few details. You’ll then receive an activation code for your server. You can now create client diskettes for Win 3.x/95/98/NT and DOS through the ICA client creator or use the client software included on the CD, which also includes clients for Mac and Linux. It also contains plug-ins for IE and Netscape, which allow clients to connect to the server through a Web browser. 

Clients have to simply install the software and they’re ready to connect. The client will search the entire network for Metaframe servers and you can choose the one you want to connect to (if there’s more than one on your network). You don’t have to create separate accounts for Metaframe users, as it works with the accounts you’ve created in Windows 2000. It also allows you to choose the color depth and screen resolution at which you want to connect. Metaframe also has support for remote audio for DOS, Win16 and Win32 clients. For this, your client must have a Sound Blaster Pro compatible sound card. 

Another feature of Metaframe is Application publishing, which lets you create published applications that are stored at a central location and can be run from any client. You need to use Application publishing for all applications that you want clients to be able to access. This can easily be done using its Published Application Manager. Application publishing supports load balancing; so if you have more than one Metaframe server, you can specify the servers that will host it. You can also choose things like color depth, resolution, sound support, compression, and the users who’ll be allowed to access the application. You can enable users from different domains to access the application, by creating trust relationships between domains. 

After you’ve published an application, sitting at the server, you can create desktop icons for it and send them to Win32 client machines. Other clients can create a connection to that application and then manually create shortcuts on their desktops. Now, with one click, clients can access this application from their desktops, and it will run as if it’s running locally. It will even integrate with your Windows environment so you can use the Alt+ Tab keys to switch between local and remote applications. 

Overall, the new version of Metaframe works pretty well with its new features. It could be used for networks spread over a large campus, where maintenance becomes difficult. Since everything runs at the server end, the entire setup becomes easier to manage. 

Sachin Makhija at PCQ Labs