There are online services which give best presentations. This is very easy to share with others also and these are free of cost. How amazing right! Let us know about this in detail.
Online Presentation services:
- 1.Empressr:
This is an online presentation service in which we just need to register and prepare a presentation. Then we can share it with social networking websites like flicker, Google, yahoo. Facebook and photobucket. In Photobucket. we can access presentation directly through website and we can even view others presentations also. These presentations can be viewed in slideshow form. In this we can prepare slide show with the effects of photos, music, video and audio. By utilizing transition properties, we can add animation to the presentation. We can view preview and share it. By using embed code we can install presentations in blogs and website.
For more details and to use this service please visit http://www.empressr.com.
- 2.Zoho show:
In this online presentation service we can login through our mail ids of yahoo, Google and Facebook. The presentations which we prepare in Microsoft office power point, which can be uploaded in this service very easily. We can edit and even share it.
This service contains a create new presentation option also. So that we can create new presentation instantly. This service provides us numerous designs and themes. For including animation there is a slide transition has been provided. We can share presentation by sending requests to others who subscribed in this service. Therefore, for more details and to use this service please visit http://show.zoho.com.
- 3.280 slides:
In this service we can share any presentation. We can upload our slides and save. In this service, we need to click on free and login. Then upload the presentation by import an existing presentation. This online service supports pptx file format. We can insert our desired images and videos directly. This is the main specialty of this service. It even contains Google search also. Therefore, for more details and to use this service please visit http://www.280slides.com.
- 4.Prezentit:
This is a best way to prepare presentation. We can prepare presentation by including images and text in the desired templates which are available in this service. There is also a facility of decreasing the speed of the animation in the presentation. Once the presentation designing is completed then it can be shared and even downloaded. Therefore, for more details and to use this service please visit http://www.prezentit.com.
- 5.Vcasmo:
In this service, you can need to register. Then you can even attach your videos to your slides and share them at a time. So one side slide show and the other side videos will be running. By using timeline bar we can set video time. This service has a facility of inserting web links in the presentation. Through embed code we can get the presentation and videos into our blog and websites also. Therefore, for more details and to use this service please visit http://www.vcasmo.com
- 6.Slide boom
This service can share presentations without registering and we can share our presentation with the url and we can even mail. The file can be downloaded. We can even download our desired file according to the category. Therefore, for more details and to use this service please visit http://www.slideboom.com.
Some more online presentation websites are:
Apart from having all the benefits mentioned above there still remains a question mark whether XenApp 6 is the most stable version that CITRIX have brought in. There still remain so many bugs and glitches in XenApp6 that sometimes the administrators have to pluck the hairs from their head off to get the resolution or a Workaround. Some of the well known issues are as follows:
•XenApp 6 only runs on Windows Server 2008 R2
•Problem with any 32-bit applications
•Schedule Reboot Problem
•Servers undergoing Blue Screen of Death
•Problems while launching applications
•Issues with the Administrative Console
1.1. XenApp 6 only runs on Windows Server 2008 R2
The new Product of Citrix XenApp 6 only runs on Windows Server 2008 R2 (x64 bit Operating System) and not on Windows Server 2003 or Windows Server 2008. So, if a Company want to migrate their existent Citrix environment from XenApp 5 or PS 4.5 to XenApp 6, it is essential to build a whole new XenApp 6 Farm then after a full fledged testing operation migrate all the users to the new Farm. It’s not possible to go into a mixed mode operation which was possible till XenApp 5. No registry twigs or any patches will allow a mixed mode in XenApp 6.
So, before migration to XenApp 6 all the companies need to keep in mind that a new XenApp6 Farm is needed and the previous version is of no use. After Migration to the new XenApp 6 Farm and the old one could either be used for testing purposes or scraped.
1.2. Problem with any 32-bit applications
As XenApp6 only runs on Windows Server 2008 R2 which is a 64-bit OS, there may be some issues when a 32 bit application is hosted on XenApp6. The main issue that can be faced is high memory consumption by a particular session which can go up to 1.8 GB.
Other issues that can creep in are slow performance of the application, low throughput and some latency issues. Even the performance of the Servers hosting those applications can degrade to a considerable extent. The Servers can hang now and then when the load goes up.
For example, the SAP GUI 7.1 is a 32-bit application and when it is published from a XenApp6 Server all the issues mentioned above can come live. So, its recommended to install and publish only 64-bit applications like SAP GUI 7.2 as in our example.
1.3. Schedule Reboot Problem
One of the problems of XenApp6 is that when it undergoes a scheduled reboot if any active or idle session is present in the Server, the Server will not come up freshly after the reboot. It has to be manually rebooted from the VM (in case of Virtual Server) or from the iLOM (in case of Physical Server).
CITRIX have released a Hotfix XA600W2K8R2X64003 which addresses the issue. But, the best way to resolve the issue is to reboot the Servers using the OS policy with a shutdown script which will logoff all the user sessions from the Server before rebooting the Server.
1.4. Servers undergoing Blue Screen of Death
One of the Major issue with XenApp6 is that the XenApp6 Servers can face Blue Screen of Death on a Random Basis. Citrix have already identified two different reasons for which the Servers can undergo BSoD. One of them is for Picadm.sys and the other one is for IMAAdvanceSrv.exe.
Citrix have released two Hotfixes to address the BSoD Issue. XenApp Hotfix XA600W2K8R2X64018 is for Picadm.sys and XA600W2K8R2X64029 is for IMAAdvanceSrv.exe.
Unfortunately, applying the Hotfixes don’t resolve the issue completely, it just lowers down the rate of occurrence.
1.5. Problems while launching applications
There are some loopholes too in XenApp6 which makes it behave weird when it comes to launching the applications. Sometimes it shows Black Screen when a published Desktop is launched or it may pop a message box saying “Remote Computer is Currently Busy” or “A device attached to the System is not working”. Every time the only way is to logoff and relogin after a few minutes which will clear up all the Weird things.
Sometimes XenApp6 cannot clear up some zombie user sessions which prevent the User from launching the same application. The Sessions needs to be cleared before he could further launch the application successfully.
1.6. Issues with the Administrative Console
There are some intermittent incidents which may occur while an administrator is trying to do some administrative task through the Delivery services Console. Forcefully Logging Off a session or to disconnect a session can sometimes be not possible. Moreover, the data provided in the Console about a particular session can sometimes be incomplete. Usually the application name which has been launched is not shown.
1.7. XenApp 6 doesn’t support MS Access or DB2
Till XenApp 5 the Data stores that were supported were MS SQL Server, MS SQL Server Express, Oracle, MS Access and DB2. But from XenApp6 MS Access and IBM DB2 are not supported as datastores.
Citrix came up with their new product XenApp 6 brings a bunch of new features that most emerging companies will need as the technology continues to evolve and the client requirements continues to expand. These features and benefits include:
•Simple Installation
•Single Administrative Console
•Introduction of Worker Groups
•Citrix Policies and GPO Integration
•Merchandizing Server and Dazzle
•HDX MediaStream for Flash
•Provisioning Server Technology
1.1. Simple Installation
With the introduction of XenApp 6, Citrix introduced a number of enhancements to the installation wizard. Replicating from Microsoft's "Manage your Server" and roles concepts, Citrix adopted a similar process for installing XenApp. The Figure below depicts a typical Citrix Farm Architecture.
At the time of installation of XenApp, the administrator is allowed to choose the specific roles of a particular server that it will play in the XenApp Farm. Small Citrix farms typically have the following roles.
•Web Server
•License Server
•Application Server
•Database Server
Although the Farm Data Store (Database Server) is an essential part of the Farm, it is not technically a role. In fact, it is not a Citrix Server at all. It is a database server, typically SQL (can be Oracle or MS Access) that contains critical Farm Data. At the time of configuring the wizard for XenApp6, the administrator can designate the place where the Data Store will be located.
In larger environments, the Citrix Farms are much more complex and compact in the architectural level. They include other essential and value adding components like Provisioning Services, EdgeSight monitoring, Dedicated Data Collectors, Remote Access Devices, Secure Access Gateway and increased redundancy with all essential servers.
Another change to the install process is that there is no configuration required during installation. This makes the installation of each Server roles very easy to handle. Once the installation is completed, the administrator is prompted to configure each of the roles.
1.2. Single Administrative Console
Over the last decade one challenge for Citrix administrators has been the different consoles for doing different kinds of Farm management tasks. XenApp 6 has conglomerated almost all administrative tasks in one console called the Delivery Services Console.
With this new Citrix Delivery Services Console, a Citrix administrator can use one console to perform all the required tasks like Publishing Applications, Creating Policies, and Managing Worker Groups and Zones, along with many other tasks. With a single console, it became easy to manage hundreds of servers and applications in a Citrix Server Farm.
1.3. Introduction of Worker Groups
Generally, each and every XenApp Server in the Citrix Farm would look the same. It would have all of the same applications installed, and there would be no compatibility issues or DLL conflicts between applications. Unfortunately, it is not the case every time. In some cases, we have complicated environments that sometimes require different applications to be installed on different XenApp servers. We have to deal with huge Clients with world-wide offices with geographically dispersed data centers and file servers. There are Test Environments, Production Environments, Segregated Contractor DMZ Servers, and many other scenarios we refer to as Application Silos. Application Silos are common in Citrix Farms, not because they are preferred but because they are required.
In the former releases of Citrix, Application Silos were managed in a very manual way by only installing and publishing certain applications to some definite Citrix servers. But in XenApp 6, Citrix has introduced Worker Groups concept. Worker Groups paves the way to manage all servers within an Application Silo as one object. This allows us to publish applications and set a particular policy on a specific Worker Group rather than individual servers, making managing complex real-life Citrix environments much easier.
Moreover the Worker Groups can Perform Load Balancing between geographical locations or direct users to the XenApp servers closest to their current location.
1.4. Citrix Policies and GPO Integration
There must be a balance between allowing users to do what they need to do without exposing them to unnecessary risk and Outage. These controls are executed via policy. Before XenApp 6, the Microsoft policies (GPOs) were controlled with one console, and the Citrix policies were managed with another separate console. Citrix Administrators can now use GPOs and Organizational Units (OUs) to manage their Citrix Policies just like they do their Microsoft Policies, giving Administrators one tool to manage user rights.
If one doesn’t have rights at an Active Directory Level, XenApp6 does still allow for IMA-Based Polices, which is stored in the Citrix Data Store. These policies are created using the Delivery Services Console; however, they are superseded if GPO-Based Citrix Policies exist.
1.5. Merchandizing Server and Dazzle
Citrix Receiver for Windows, Receiver for Mac, and Merchandising Server are components of the Citrix Delivery Center solution. While Citrix Delivery Center provides the application delivery infrastructure to the IT administrator, Citrix Merchandising Server and Citrix Receiver for Windows work together to streamline the installation and management of application delivery to the user desktops. Merchandising Server provides the administrative interface for configuring, delivering, and upgrading plug-ins for your users' computers.
Dazzle provides users with self-service access to the applications and desktops they need to work productively. Icons for those applications and desktops can be presented on the local desktop, on the Dock, or in the Dazzle folder available from the Finder.
The new, easy-to-use interface allows users to subscribe to applications and desktops hosted on XenApp 6 and XenDesktop servers with a single click, replacing the need for individual connection files used by earlier versions of the plug-in.
1.6. HDX MediaStream for Flash
HDX MediaStream for Flash is an amazing feature of XenApp. It crept into XenApp 5 in the second and third feature packs and is installed by default in XenApp 6.
Essentially it offloads the processing of Flash content from the server to the client when using a Citrix distributed copy of Internet Explorer. The result is that the playback on the client PC is noticeably better than without it in most cases. It also hammers the CPU of the client PC instead of the CPU on the server so should improve the user experience for everyone else too and help get more users per server.
Despite being installed by default in modern clients and on XenApp 6 servers there are a few things that might trip it up. If any of these occur the client will generally silently fall back on the standard way of processing Flash content on the server.
1.7. Provisioning Server Technology
Provisioning Server technology allows Citrix administrators to create a single master virtual disk (vDisk) and then connect multiple desktops or servers to that vDisk and boot simultaneously.
With XenApp, we can leverage this technology to keep all of the Application Servers in a Citrix Farm consistent with the same applications, hotfixes, and patches. This ensures that users receive the same experience, regardless of which server they are load-balanced to. With this technology, administrators can now update many servers by updating a single vDisk, making administering large server farms much simpler.
1.8. Farm Properties Transformed into Citrix Policies
Till XenApp 5 Farm Properties were the only means by which all the settings on the Farm level was controlled of. From XenApp6 onwards there is no concept of Farm Properties. Everything is integrated in the Citrix Policy now. Citrix Policies have been made more compact and robust. With the help of Citrix Policies each and every settings at the Farm level can be controlled and modified. This new feature has made the life easier for the Citrix Administrators.
Virtualization
Definition: Virtualization cannot be defined clearly without a proper example as it is a concept and not a process. In brief, it can be said that Virtualization, in computing world, means a creation of a Virtual version of something, be it a Hardware device, an operating system, a network resource or an application.
Example: Suppose a computer is running on Windows XP and VMware Workstation is installed on it. With VMware three new Virtual Machines (VMs) could be set up on that Windows XP machine and each one of them can behave like an independent system.
One VM can run on Linux Operating System, one on Windows Server 2003 and the other one in Macintosh. So, three completely different Operating systems running on a single parent Operating System, i.e. Windows XP.
Types of Virtualization
There are various kinds of Virtualization that can be done in our technical arena. Lets discuss a few among them.
i) Server Virtualization: Server Virtualization is the concept where the resources of the Physical Server are masqueraded in front of the Users. Here there prevails a concept of Host and Guest. The Host is the original Physical Server with the base operating system and the Guests are the Virtual machines that are built on Top of it. It is also possible to mask the original resources present in the physical Server and allocate only the amount required to each the Virtual Machines. So when the Users logs into the Virtual machines they can only view the selected amount of resources allocated to it. It is also possible to allocate additional resources at any point of time to the Virtual Machines. So, the Server (Virtual Machines) that the Users are using and working on are hosted on another Physical Server. So, actually the users are on a virtual Server rather than on a Physical machine.
Example: XenServer, VMWare Workstation
ii) Desktop Virtualization: Desktop Virtualization is a concept where the personal desktop computing model has been enhanced to client-server architecture. Virtual Desktop Interface or the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure is the Server-Computing Model which allows the Virtualization of the Desktop model. It allows the users with different network subscribers to use the Virtual Machines and maintain an individualized central computer or Server. It can be located at any Residence, Data center or in a Server Room of any office Campus. The Users are located at different parts of the World but they will be using that same Computer (Desktop) by using a network connection be it LAN or WAN or a simple internet cloud.
Example: XenDesktop
iii) Application Virtualization: Application Virtualization is a concept which increases the portability of Heavyweight applications among all the Users who are located geographically at different corners of the globe. Let’s think of a situation where a user is out of his home and needs to prepare a PowerPoint presentation at that very moment. He can easily find a Cyber café or Cyber zone which may also not have the required software installed on the machine, he can easily login to a server which has the required software for him and he can complete his task successfully. May be that Server is Located at Los Angeles and he is sitting in Melbourne. So, if he has his Credentials he can easily use any of the applications that are hosted from the remote Servers.
Example: Citrix Presentation Server 4.5, XenApp5 and XenApp6.
iv) Memory Virtualization: Memory Virtualization is the concept to detach the volatile memory i.e. the Random Access Memory (RAM) of the individual computers present within a Cluster or Network and build a Memory pool with it. The advantage of the concept is that by doing this each machine within that cluster or network can use the memory from the pool. So, the memory utilization is now streamlined and the memory availability becomes more. A single machine can use the required amount of memory only and the spare memory of that machine can be used by other users ho really require it.