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  • Documenting a Citrix XenDesktop 4 Farm with Microsoft PowerShell

    March 12, 2012

    PowerShell, XenDesktop 5.x

    A customer site I was at recently needed their XenDesktop 4 farm documented.  Since I had already created PowerShell scripts to document the various versions of XenApp, I figured a XenDesktop script should be easy to create.  This article and the script were written for “SR” at the customer site.

    This article will focus only on XenDesktop 4.  I am planning on writing articles and scripts for XenDesktop 5.x.

    The prerequisites to follow along with this article are:

    • A computer, physical or virtual, running Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Server 2008, Server 2008 R2, or Microsoft Windows XP, Vista, or 7 for running the XenDesktop Desktop Delivery Controller SDK.
    • Citrix XenDesktop 4 Desktop Delivery Controller (DDC) installed with at least one Desktop Group created.

    In this article, we will be installing the Citrix Delivery Controller SDK.  You can install the SDK from either the XenDesktop 4 installation media or download it from citrix.com.  Since I am at a customer site creating this script on a production network, I do not have access to the installation media.  Therefore, I will be downloading the SDK.

    My initial goal was to see if I could walk down the nodes in the Delivery Services Console (DSC) (Figure 1) and see if I could document every nook and cranny.

    Figure 1
    Figure 1

    Note:  For instructions on how to install the SDK from the XenDesktop 4 installation media, please see http://blogs.citrix.com/2010/08/11/xendesktop-4-powershell-sdk-primer-part-1-getting-started/.

    Update 7-July-2021: Citrix, obviously, killed these old XD4 links.

    For the SDK install, go to https://carlwebster.sharefile.com/d-s6239e1f90eb043d7a2642fbc61db997a

    For the SDK Welcome, go to https://carlwebster.sharefile.com/d-s559804f9b3244ff58669263ab1e7dc06

    Figure 2
    Figure 2

    Click Start, Run, type in C:\XD4SDK\XenDesktopControllerSDK.msi and press Enter.

    Click Run (Figure 3).

    Figure 3
    Figure 3
    Figure 4
    Figure 4

    Select I accept the terms in the License Agreement and click Next (Figure 5).

    Figure 5
    Figure 5
    Figure 6
    Figure 6

    Click Install (Figure 7).

    Figure 7
    Figure 7
    Figure 8
    Figure 8

    You now have new Start Menu items under All Programs, Citrix.  Windows 7 is shown in Figure 9.

    Figure 9
    Figure 9

    Everything is now set up for us to get started.  The download page for the SDK says to get a listing of the available XenDesktop commands to enter the following command:

    Get-Command -psSnapin XdCommands

    Typing that line into the PowerShell session returns a list of Citrix XenDesktop PowerShell commands.  A sample is shown in Figure 10.

    Figure 10
    Figure 10

    To get a list of the Get commands, showing just the Name, where the noun starts with “Xd”, type the following in the PowerShell session (results are shown in Figure 11):

    Get-Command –Noun Xd* -Verb Get | Select-Object Name

    Figure 11
    Figure 11

    Of the eight Get-Xd* commands listed, only three are usable for documenting the Farm:

    • Get-XdFarm
    • Get-XdController
    • Get-XdDesktopGroup

    One feature I like about the XenDesktop PowerShell commands is that you are not required to run them directly on a Controller.  You can use the –AdminAddress parameter to give the name or IP address of a Controller to run the command against.  Since I am developing this script on a production Farm, I am being safe and staying off the customer’s production Controllers.

    Typing each of the commands into the PowerShell session gave me the results shown in Figure 12, Figure 13, and Figure 14.

    Note:  I am using a Formatted List (| fl) to see all the properties returned by each command.

    Figure 12
    Figure 12
    Figure 13
    Figure 13
    Figure 14
    Figure 14

    My goal is to use the same wording as what is seen in the DSC for headings, captions, and text.  In order to do that, I needed a way to format the output text.  Michael B. Smith (MBS) developed a function for me to use called Line.

    Function line
    #function created by Michael B. Smith, Exchange MVP
    #@essentialexchange on Twitter
    #http://TheEssentialExchange.com
    
    {
    	Param( [int]$tabs = 0, [string]$name = ’’, [string]$value = ’’, [string]$newline = “`n”, [switch]$nonewline )
    
    	While( $tabs –gt 0 ) { $global:output += “`t”; $tabs--; }
    
    	If( $nonewline )
    	{
    		$global:output += $name + $value
    	}
    	Else
    	{
    		$global:output += $name + $value + $newline
    	}
    }
    

    Another lesson MBS taught me is to check to see if each cmdlet used returned an error and how to tell the cmdlet how I wanted to proceed if there was an error.  This is done by using –ErrorAction, or –EA.  ErrorAction has four values (Table 1):

    Table 1

    Enumeration Value Description
    SilentlyContinue 0 The Windows PowerShell runtime will continue processing without notifying the user that an action has occurred.
    Stop 1 The Windows PowerShell runtime will stop processing when an action occurs.
    Continue 2 The Windows PowerShell runtime will continue processing and notify the user that an action has occurred.
    Inquire 3 The Windows PowerShell runtime will stop processing and ask the user how it should proceed.

    For this documentation script, I always use 0.  If an error occurs, I want the rest of the script to continue.

    Next, I needed to know how to test to see if an action, like Get-XdFarm, succeeded or had an error.  MBS said to use $? to test if the most recent action succeeded (True) or had an error (False).  For example:

    $farm = Get-XdFarm -EA 0
    If( $? )
    {
    	#success
    }
    Else
    {
    	#error
    }
    

    Because this script does not have to run on a Controller, a parameter is created to allow a Controller name or IP address to be used.

    Let’s get started.  We will build the script node by node.  Some of the lines may wrap.

    The beginning of the script:

    #Carl Webster, CTP and independent consultant
    #webster@carlwebster.com
    #@carlwebster on Twitter
    #https://www.carlwebster.com
    #This script written for "SR", March 9, 2012
    #Thanks to Michael B. Smith, Joe Shock, Jarian Gibson and James Rankin
    #for testing and fine-tuning tips
    
    Param(
    [string]$DDCAddress = ""
    )
    
    Function line
    #function created by Michael B. Smith, Exchange MVP
    #@essentialexchange on Twitter
    #http://TheEssentialExchange.com
    
    {
    	Param( [int]$tabs = 0, [string]$name = ’’, [string]$value = ’’, [string]$newline = “`n”, [switch]$nonewline )
    
    	While( $tabs –gt 0 ) { $global:output += “`t”; $tabs--; }
    
    	If( $nonewline )
    	{
    		$global:output += $name + $value
    	}
    	Else
    	{
    		$global:output += $name + $value + $newline
    	}
    }
    
    #script begins
    

    The first node in the DSC is the Farm itself.

    #get farm information
    $global:output = ""
    
    If($DDCAddress)
    {
    	$farm = Get-XdFarm -adminaddress $DDCAddress -EA 0
    }
    Else
    {
    	$farm = Get-XdFarm -EA 0
    }
    
    If( $? )
    {
    	line 0 "XenDesktop Farm Name: " $farm.Name
    	line 1 "XenDesktop Edition: " -nonewline
    	switch ($farm.edition)
    	{
    		"PLT"   {line 0 "Platinum"  }
    		"STD"   {line 0 "VDI"       }
    		"ADV"   {line 0 "Advanced"  }
    		"ENT"   {line 0 "Enterprise"}
    		default {line 0 "Farm Edition could not be determined: $($farm.edition)"}
    	}
    
    	line 1 "Base OU: " $farm.BaseOU
    	line 1 "License server"
    	line 2 "Name: " $farm.LicenseServerName
    	line 2 "Port number: " $farm.LicenseServerPort
    	line 1 "Session reliability"
    	line 2 "Allow users to view sessions during broken connections: " $farm.EnableSessionReliability
    
    	If($farm.EnableSessionReliability)
    	{
    		line 3 "Port number: " $farm.SessionReliabilityPort
    		line 3 "Seconds to keep sessions active: " $farm.SessionReliabilityDurationSeconds
    	}
    } 
    Else 
    {
    	line 0 "XenDesktop Farm information could not be retrieved"
    }
    write-output $global:output
    $farm = $null
    $global:output = $null
    
    $global:output = ""
    

    Sample script output:

    XenDesktop Farm Name: SAMPLEXD4
            XenDesktop Edition: Platinum
            Base OU: XD4BaseOU
            License server
                    Name: CTXLICENSE
                    Port number: 0
            Session reliability
                    Allow users to view sessions during broken connections: True
                            Port number: 2598
                            Seconds to keep sessions active: 60
    

    Even though the license server port number is displayed as 27000 in the console, the Citrix cmdlet returns  0.

    The next node in the DSC is Administrators, but Citrix does not provide a way to retrieve any information about the Administrators.

    The next node is the Controllers.  Even though Controllers can be in folders, Citrix does not provide a way to retrieve Folder information.

    #get controller information
    If($DDCAddress)
    {
    	$XDControllers = Get-XdController -adminaddress $DDCAddress -EA 0
    }
    Else
    {
    	$XDControllers = Get-XdController -EA 0
    }
    
    If( $? )
    {
    	line 0 "Desktop Delivery Controllers:"
    	ForEach($XDController in $XDControllers)
    	{
    		line 1 "Controller: " $XDController.Name
    		line 1 "Version: " $XDController.Version
    		line 1 "Zone Election Preference: " $XDController.ZoneElectionPreference
    		line 1 "License Server"
    		If($XDController.UseFarmLicenseServerSettings)
    		{
    			line 2 "Using Farm Setting"
    		}
    		Else
    		{
    			Line 2 "License server"
    			line 3 "Name: " $XDController.LicenseServerName
    			line 3 "Port number: " $XDController.LicenseServerPort
    		}
    		line 1 ""
    	}
    } 
    Else 
    {
    	line 0 "Desktop Delivery Controller information could not be retrieved"
    }
    write-output $global:output
    $XDControllers = $null
    $global:output = $null
    

    Sample script output:

    Desktop Delivery Controllers:
            Controller: DDC1
            Version: 4.0
            Zone Election Preference: Member
            License Server
                    Using Farm Setting
    
            Controller: DDC2
            Version: 4.0
            Zone Election Preference: Member
            License Server
                    Using Farm Setting
    

    The last node is Desktop Groups. There are different options available depending on if the Desktop Group is Pooled or Assigned.  Instead, I returned the AD Computer Account name as shown in the console, and the cmdlet returns the Machine SID.  Also, not every user account returned a name, but the User SID was always returned.  MBS showed me how to convert a Machine or User Account SID to the Machine or User Name.

    $objSID = New-Object System.Security.Principal.SecurityIdentifier ($Desktop.MachineSid.Value)
    $objComputer = $objSID.Translate([System.Security.Principal.NTAccount])
    "AD Computer Account: " $objComputer.Value
    

    And

    $objSID = New-Object System.Security.Principal.SecurityIdentifier($Desktop.AssignedUserSid.Value)
    $objUser = $objSID.Translate([System.Security.Principal.NTAccount])
    “Assigned User: “ $objUser.Value
    
    #get desktop group information
    $global:output = ""
    
    If($DDCAddress)
    {
    	$XDGroups = Get-XdDesktopGroup -adminaddress $DDCAddress -EA 0
    }
    Else
    {
    	$XDGroups = Get-XdDesktopGroup -EA 0
    }
    
    If( $? )
    {
    	line 0 "Desktop Groups:"
    	ForEach($XDGroup in $XDGroups)
    	{
    		line 1 "Basic"
    		line 2 "Desktop Group Name"
    		line 3 "Display name: " $XDGroup.Name
    		line 3 "Description: " $XDGroup.Description
    		line 3 "Desktop Group name: " $XDGroup.InternalName
    		line 3 "Disable desktop group: " -nonewline
    		If($XDGroup.Enabled)
    		{
    			line 0 "group is enabled"
    		}
    		Else
    		{
    			line 0 "group is disabled"
    		}
    
    		line 2 "Assignment Type"
    		line 3 "Assignment Behavior: " $XDGroup.AssignmentBehavior
    
    		If($XDGroup.IsHosted)
    		{
    			line 2 "Hosting infrastructure: " $XDGroup.HostingSettings.HostingServer
    		}
    
    
    		line 2 "Users"
    		line 3 "Configured users:"
    		ForEach($User in $XDGroup.Users)
    		{
    			line 4 $User
    			#line 4 "SID: " $User.Sid
    			line 4 "Group or User: " -nonewline
    			If($User.IsSecurityGroup)
    			{
    				line 0 "Group"
    			}
    			Else
    			{
    				line 0 "User"
    			}
    		}
    		line 2 "Virtual Desktops"
    		line 3 "Virtual desktops:"
    		ForEach($Desktop in $XDGroup.Desktops)
    		{
    			line 4 "Folder: " $XDGroup.Folder
    			line 4 "Virtual Machine: " $Desktop
    			$objSID = New-Object System.Security.Principal.SecurityIdentifier ($Desktop.MachineSid.Value)
    			$objComputer = $objSID.Translate([System.Security.Principal.NTAccount])
    			line 4 "AD Computer Account: " $objComputer.Value
    			line 4 "Desktop State: " $Desktop.State
    			line 4 "Assigned User: " -nonewline
    			If($Desktop.AssignUserName)
    			{
    				line 0 $Desktop.AssignUserName
    			}
    			ElseIf($Desktop.AssignedUserSid)
    			{
    				$objSID = New-Object System.Security.Principal.SecurityIdentifier ($Desktop.AssignedUserSid.Value)
    				$objUser = $objSID.Translate([System.Security.Principal.NTAccount])
    				line 0 $objUser.Value
    			}
    			Else
    			{
    				line 0 ""
    			}
    			line 4 "Maintenance Mode: " $Desktop.MaintenanceMode
    			line 4 "Machine State: " $Desktop.PowerState
    			line 4 "Controller: " $Desktop.Controller
    			line 4 "Agent Version: " $Desktop.AgentVersion
    			line 1 ""
    		}
    		line 1 "Advanced"
    		line 2 "Access Control"
    
    		$test = $XDGroup.AccessGatewayControl.ToString()
    		$test1 = $test.replace(", ","`n`t`t")
    
    		line 3 $test1
    		line 2 "Access Gateway Conditions: "
    		ForEach($Condition in $XDGroup.AccessGatewayConditions)
    		{
    			line 3 $Condition
    		}
    		line 2 "Client Options"
    		line 3 "Appearance"
    		line 4 "Colors: " -nonewline
    		switch ($XDGroup.DefaultColorDepth)
    		{
    			"FourBit"       {line 0 "16 colors"          }
    			"EightBit"      {line 0 "256 colors"         }
    			"SixteenBit"    {line 0 "High color (16-bit)"}
    			"TwentyFourBit" {line 0 "True color (24-bit)"}
    			default         {line 0 "Color depth could not be determined: $($XDGroup.DefaultColorDepth)"}
    
    		}
    		line 3 "Connection"
    		line 4 "Encryption: " -nonewline
    		switch ($XDGroup.DefaultEncryptionLevel)
    		{
    			"Basic"               {line 0 "Basic"                    }
    			"LogOnRC5Using128Bit" {line 0 "128-Bit Login Only (RC-5)"}
    			"RC5Using40Bit"       {line 0 "40-Bit (RC-5)"            }
    			"RC5Using56Bit"       {line 0 "56-Bit (RC-5)"            }
    			"RC5Using128Bit"      {line 0 "128-Bit (RC-5)"           }
    			default               {line 0 "Encryption level could not be determined: $($XDGroup.DefaultEncryptionLevel)"}
    
    		}
    		line 3 "Connection Protocols: "
    		ForEach($Protocol in $XDGroup.Protocols)
    		{
    			line 4 "Name: " $Protocol.Protocol
    			line 4 "Enabled: " $Protocol.Enabled
    		}
    
    		#only show the next section if the Desktop Group is Pooled
    		If($XDGroup.AssignmentBehavior -eq "Pooled")
    		{
    			line 2 "Idle Pool Settings"
    			line 3 "Business Hours"
    			line 4 "Business days "
    			ForEach($Day in $XDGroup.HostingSettings.BusinessDays)
    			{
    				line 5 $Day
    			}
    			line 4 "Time zone "  $XDGroup.HostingSettings.IdleTimesTimeZone
    			IF($XDGroup.HostingSettings.PeakHoursStart)
    			{
    				line 4 "Day start "  $XDGroup.HostingSettings.PeakHoursStart.ToString()
    			}
    			If($XDGroup.HostingSettings.PeakHoursEnd)
    			{
    				line 4 "Peak end "  $XDGroup.HostingSettings.PeakHoursEnd.ToString()
    			}
    			If($XDGroup.HostingSettings.BusinessHoursEnd)
    			{
    				line 4 "Day end " $XDGroup.HostingSettings.BusinessHoursEnd.ToString()
    			}
    			line 3 "Idle Desktop Count"
    			line 2 "Business hours " $XDGroup.HostingSettings.BusinessHoursIdleCount
    			line 2 "Peak time " $XDGroup.HostingSettings.PeakHoursIdleCount
    			line 2 "Out of hours " $XDGroup.HostingSettings.OutOfHoursIdleCount
    		}
    		
    		# I can't find these settings in the console
    		line 1 "Other settings"
    		line 2 "Allow User Desktop Restart: " $XDGroup.AllowUserDesktopRestart
    		line 2 "Tainted Machine Action: " $XDGroup.HostingSettings.TaintedMachineAction
    		line 3 "Actions: "
    		ForEach($Action in  $XDGroup.HostingSettings.Actions)
    		{
    			line 4 "Action point: " $Action.ActionPoint
    			line 4 "Action: " $Action.Action
    			line 4 "Delay: " $Action.Delay
    			line 4 ""
    		}
    
    
    		line 1 ""
    	}
    } 
    Else 
    {
    	line 0 "Desktop Group information could not be retrieved"
    }
    write-output $global:output
    $XDGroups = $null
    $test = $null
    $test1 = $null
    $global:output = $null
    

    Sample script output:

    Desktop Groups:
    Basic
    		Desktop Group Name
    			Display name: WebstersLab
    			Description: Used in Webster’s Lab for writing purposes
    			Desktop Group name: WebstersLab
    			Disable desktop group: group is enabled
    		Assignment Type
    			Assignment Behavior: Pooled
    		Hosting infrastructure: http://msvirtualcenter.carls.com/sdk
    		Users
    			Configured users:
    				CARLS\TS_XD_Lab
    				Group or User: Group
    				CARLS\TS_XD_Lab_Admin
    				Group or User: Group
    		Virtual Desktops
    			Virtual desktops:
    				Folder: \
    				Virtual Machine: CARLS\COMPUTER01$
    				AD Computer Account: CARLS\COMPUTER01$
    				Desktop State: Available
    				Assigned User: 
    				Maintenance Mode: False
    				Machine State: On
    				Controller: DDC1
    				Agent Version: 4.0.4522
    	
    				Folder: \
    				Virtual Machine: CARLS\COMPUTER06$
    				AD Computer Account: CARLS\COMPUTER06$
    				Desktop State: NotRegistered
    				Assigned User: 
    				Maintenance Mode: False
    				Machine State: On
    				Controller: 
    				Agent Version: 
    
    	Advanced
    		Access Control
    			AllowGatewayNoConditionsDefined
    		AllowGatewayAnyCondition
    		Access Gateway Conditions: 
    		Client Options
    			Appearance
    				Colors: High color (16-bit)
    			Connection
    				Encryption: Basic
    			Connection Protocols: 
    				Name: ICA30
    				Enabled: True
    		Idle Pool Settings
    			Business Hours
    				Business days 
    					Sunday
    					Monday
    					Tuesday
    					Wednesday
    					Thursday
    					Friday
    					Saturday
    				Time zone (UTC-05:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada)
    				Day start 01:00:00
    				Peak end 20:30:00
    				Day end 23:30:00
    			Idle Desktop Count
    		Business hours 7
    		Peak time 7
    		Out of hours 7
    	Other settings
    		Allow User Desktop Restart: False
    		Tainted Machine Action: Restart
    			Actions: 
    				Action point: Disconnect
    				Action: DoNothing
    				Delay: 300
    				
    				Action point: LogOff
    				Action: Shutdown
    				Delay: 420
    		
    

    How to use this script?

    I saved the script as XD4_Inventory.ps1 in the Z:\ folder.  From the PowerShell prompt, change to the Z:\ folder or the folder where you saved the script.  From the PowerShell prompt, type in:

    .\XD4_Inventory.ps1 |out-file Z:\XD4Farm.txt and press Enter, or

    .\XD4_Inventory.ps1 DDCName|out-file Z:\XD4Farm.txt and press Enter, or

    .\XD4_Inventory.ps1 DDCIPAddress|out-file Z:\XD4Farm.txt and press Enter.

    Open XD4Farm.txt in either WordPad or Microsoft Word (Figure 15).

    Figure 15
    Figure 15

    You can always find the most current script by going to https://www.carlwebster.com/where-to-get-copies-of-the-documentation-scripts/

    Thanks

    Webster

    , ,





    About Carl Webster

    Webster is a Sr. Solutions Architect for Choice Solutions, LLC and specializes in Citrix, Active Directory and Technical Documentation. Webster has been working with Citrix products for many years starting with Multi-User OS/2 in 1990.

    View all posts by Carl Webster

    2 Responses to “Documenting a Citrix XenDesktop 4 Farm with Microsoft PowerShell”

    1. Yvan Scigala Says:

      Hi Carl,

      Thanks for your articles, always brilliant and detailled ! They really help us, we, poor quarks lost in the Citrix Known Universe 😉

      Do you know when an XD56 version of the documentation scripts will be released ?

      May the force be with you

      Cheers

      e-Van

      Reply

      • Carl Webster Says:

        as soon as I can get access to a XD5.6 environment I can write the script. None of my customers use XD and I am too busy with paid work to have the time to build up a XD lab.

        Thanks

        Webster

        Reply

    Leave a Reply to Carl Webster