VMware Horizon Version 2012

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What’s New in This Release

VMware Horizon version 2012 provides the following new features and enhancements. This information is grouped by installable component.

Beginning with this release, version numbering is based on the planned year and the month of the release. The actual release date can vary based on business needs and engineering schedule changes to address critical customer requirements.

Horizon Connection Server

Horizon Agent

  • The drag and drop, file association, and file copy and paste features are no longer dependent on the client drive redirection feature being enabled. See Managing Access to Client Drive Redirection.
  • Installation of the serial port redirection and scanner redirection features is changed to improve version flexibility when Horizon Client for Windows and Horizon Agent are installed in the same virtual machine.
  • You can configure media optimization for Microsoft Teams, which supports SILK audio codec. See Configuring Media Optimization for Microsoft Teams.
  • You can set log levels and generate log files in a Data Collection Tool (DCT) bundle for remote desktop features. See Collecting Logs for Remote Desktop Features and Components.
  • Internationalization support is added to the VMware Horizon URL Content Redirection extension for all supported browsers.
  • You can use the Microsoft Edge for Chromium browser with URL Content Redirection on a Mac. You must install a Web browser extension on the Mac client to use this feature. See Install the URL Content Redirection Helper Extension for Edge.

Horizon Agent for Linux

  • Operating Systems
    Horizon Agent for Linux 2012 adds support for the following Linux distributions:
    • Ubuntu 20.04
    • Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) Workstation 7.9 and 8.3
    • Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) Server 7.8, 7.9, 8.2, and 8.3
    • CentOS 8.3
    • SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop (SLED) 15 SP1 and 15 SP2
    • SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) 15 SP1 and 15 SP2
  • Configurable X Display Numbers
    Two new configuration options in the /etc/vmware/config file, Desktop.displayNumberMax and Desktop.displayNumberMin, let you define the range of X Windows System display numbers to allocate to user sessions. See Setting Options in Configuration Files on a Linux Desktop.
  • Display Scaling
    The Display Scaling feature allows Linux remote desktops and published applications to be displayed using a scale factor that matches the client system’s display. This feature is turned off by default. You can enable it by configuring the rdeSvc.allowDisplayScaling option in the /etc/vmware/config file. See Setting Options in Configuration Files on a Linux Desktop.
  • DPI Synchronization
    The DPI Synchronization feature ensures that the DPI setting in a Linux remote session changes to match the DPI setting of the client system. This feature is enabled by default and configured using the DPISyncEnable option in the /etc/vmware/viewagent-custom.conf file. See Setting Options in Configuration Files on a Linux Desktop.
  • Support for Unicode Input
    The RemoteDisplay.allowVMWKeyEvent2Unicode configuration option in the /etc/vmware/config file allows Horizon Agent for Linux to process and display Unicode keyboard input from clients. This feature is enabled by default. See Setting Options in Configuration Files on a Linux Desktop.
  • Enhancements to Session Collaboration
    Horizon Agent for Linux can now remember the names of users invited to join a collaboration session. The next time a client user begins to type the name of an invitee into the Session Collaboration text box, an auto-completion menu appears with a list of selectable user names.
  • Optimized Window Resizing for Published Applications
    New performance enhancements allow client users to resize published application windows without the unwanted artifacts encountered in previous versions of Horizon Agent for Linux. This feature greatly improves the experience of users working in a published application session. Administrators can turn this feature on and off using the rdeSvc.enableOptimizedResize option in the /etc/vmware/config file. This feature is enabled by default. See Setting Options in Configuration Files on a Linux Desktop.

Horizon GPO Bundle

  • The Do not redirect client printer(s) group policy setting stops client printers from being redirected. This setting is provided for the agent and the Windows client. For the agent setting, see VMware Integrated Printing Policy Settings. For the Windows client setting, see VMware Integrated Printing Settings for Client GPOs.
  • The Do not change default printer group policy setting stops the VMware Integrated Printing feature from changing the default printer in remote sessions. See VMware Integrated Printing Policy Settings.
  • The Printer Name for RDSH Agents group policy name is changed to Printer Name Schema. This setting now applies to virtual desktops as well as published desktops and published applications. See VMware Integrated Printing Policy Settings.
  • The Connect all ports automatically group policy setting connects all COM ports automatically, even if no individual group policy settings are enabled. See VMware View Agent Configuration ADMX Template Settings.
  • The Exclude Automatically Connection Device Family and Exclude Automatically Connection Vid/Pid Device group policy settings enable you to filter the USB devices that are forwarded automatically based on device family or vendor and product ID. For the client group policy settings, see USB Settings for GPOs. For the agent group policy settings, see USB Settings in the Horizon Agent Configuration ADMX Template.
  • You can optimize redirected USB HID devices with the Include HID Optimization Vid/Pid Device group policy setting. See USB Settings in the Horizon Agent Configuration ADMX Template.
  • Group policy settings are reorganized in the VMware View Agent Configuration folder Group Policy Management Editor. See VMware View Agent Configuration ADMX Template Settings.
  • The View Agent Direct-Connection Plug-in Configuration has a new GPO setting Allow NTLM Fallback for Log On As Current User.
  • In the Idle Time Until Disconnect (VDI) group policy setting, you can specify a minimum timeout value of 1 minute and a maximum timeout value of Never after which a desktop session will disconnect due to user inactivity.
  • The DPI Synchronization Per Monitor group policy setting adjusts the DPI settings in all monitors to match the client operating system’s DPI setting during a remote session. The DPI Synchronization Per Connection group policy setting has been removed. See VMware View Agent Configuration ADMX Template Settings.
  • The Allow user to skip Horizon Client update, Automatically check for updates and Update message pop-up group policy settings enable you to customize the Horizon Client for Windows online update feature. See General Settings for Client GPOs.
  • For the session collaboration feature, you can enable the Include Outlook-formatted URL in clipboard text group policy setting to include a Microsoft Outlook-formatted invitation URL in clipboard invitation text. See VMware View Agent Configuration ADMX Template Settings.

Horizon Client

For information about new features in Horizon Client 2012, including HTML Access 2012, see the release notes on the VMware Horizon Client Documentation page.

No Longer Supported Features in This Release

The following features are no longer supported in this release:

  • View Composer
    • ??View Composer linked clones and persistent disks are no longer supported.

Horizon Cloud Connector

Applicable to VMware Horizon Universal License customers. The Horizon Cloud Connector virtual appliance is a required component for VMware Horizon to support the management of Horizon pods using Horizon Cloud Service.

Horizon Deployed on VMware Cloud on AWS

For a list of VMware Horizon features supported on VMware Cloud on AWS, see the VMware Knowledge Base article 58539.

Horizon Deployed on Azure VMware Solution

You can select Azure as an installation option to deploy Horizon on Azure VMware Solution (AVS). See Deploying VMware Horizon on Azure VMware Solution.

Before You Begin

  • Important note about installing VMware Tools
    If you plan to install a version of VMware Tools downloaded from VMware Product Downloads, rather than the default version provided with vSphere, make sure that the VMware Tools version is supported. To determine which VMware Tools versions are supported, go to the VMware Product Interoperability Matrix. (Supported versions: 11.1.0, 11.0.6, 10.3.22, 10.3.21).There are also performance issues with the 11.x versions of VMware Tools. For more information, see https://kb.vmware.com/s/article/78434.
  • This VMware Horizon release includes new configuration requirements that differ from some earlier releases. 
  • If you intend to upgrade a pre-6.2 installation of VMware Horizon, and the Connection Server, or View Composer Server uses the self-signed certificate that was installed by default, you must remove the existing self-signed certificate before you perform the upgrade. Connections might not work if the existing self-signed certificates remain in place. During an upgrade, the installer does not replace any existing certificate. Removing the old self-signed certificate ensures that a new certificate is installed. The self-signed certificate in this release has a longer RSA key (2048 bits instead of 1024) and a stronger signature (SHA-256 with RSA instead of SHA-1 with RSA) than in pre-6.2 releases. Note that self-signed certificates are insecure and should be replaced by CA-signed certificates as soon as possible, and that SHA-1 certificates are no longer considered secure and should be replaced by SHA-2 certificates.
    Do not remove CA-signed certificates that were installed for production use, as recommended by VMware. CA-signed certificates will continue to work after you upgrade to this release.
  • Downgrading Connection Server instances is not supported. To revert to a previous version after an upgrade, restore from backup. For more information, see Create a Replicated Group After Reverting Connection Server to a Snapshot.
  • VMware Horizon uses only TLSv1.1 and TLSv1.2. In FIPS mode, it uses only TLSv1.2. You might not be able to connect to vSphere unless you apply vSphere patches. 
  • It is possible that the ordering of cipher suites can be enforced by Connection Server. For more information, see the Horizon Security document.
  • Connection Server must be able to communicate on port 32111 with other Connection Servers in the same pod. If this traffic is blocked during installation or upgrade, installation will not succeed.
  • TLS handshakes on port 443 must complete within 10 seconds, or within 100 seconds if smart card authentication is enabled. In previous releases of VMware Horizon, TLS handshakes on port 443 were allowed 100 seconds to complete in all situations. You can adjust the time for TLS handshakes on port 443 by setting the configuration property handshakeLifetime. Optionally, the client that is responsible for an over-running TLS handshake can be automatically added to a blacklist. New connections from blacklisted clients are delayed for a configurable period before being processed so that connections from other clients take priority. You can enable this feature by setting the configuration property secureHandshakeDelay. For more information about setting configuration properties, see the Horizon Security document.

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Compatibility Notes

  • For the supported guest operating systems for Horizon Agent on single-user machines and RDS hosts, see VMware Knowledge Base (KB) article 78714 and VMware Knowledge Base (KB) article 78715.
  • For the supported Linux guest operating systems for Horizon Agent, see System Requirements for Horizon 7 for Linux in the Setting Up Horizon for Linux Desktops document.
  • For the supported operating systems for Connection Server, see the VMware Knowledge Base (KB) article article 78652. 
  • VMware Horizon functionality is enhanced by an updated set of Horizon Clients provided with this release. See the VMware Horizon Clients Documentation page for information about supported Horizon Clients.
  • The following vSphere and vSAN versions are supported with VMware Horizon 8 beta: vSphere 7.0, vSphere 6.7, vSphere 6.5.
  • For the supported Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS) domain functional levels, see the VMware Knowledge Base (KB) article 78652.
  • RC4, SSLv3, and TLSv1.0 are disabled by default in VMware Horizon components, in accordance with RFC 7465, “Prohibiting RC4 Cipher Suites,” RFC 7568, “Deprecating Secure Sockets Layer Version 3.0,” PCI-DSS 3.1, “Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standard”, and SP800-52r1, “Guidelines for the Selection, Configuration, and Use of Transport Layer Security (TLS) Implementations.” If you need to re-enable RC4, SSLv3, or TLSv1.0 on a Connection Server or Horizon Agent machine, see Older Protocols and Ciphers Disabled in View in the Horizon Security document.
  • If a PCoIP Secure Gateway (PSG) has been deployed for PCoIP connections, zero client firmware must be version 4.0 or later.
  • The USB Redirection setup option in the Horizon Agent installer is deselected by default. You must select this option to install the USB redirection feature. For guidance on using USB redirection securely, see Deploying USB Devices in a Secure View Environment in the Horizon Security document.
  • The Global Policy, Multimedia redirection (MMR), defaults to Deny. To use MMR, you must open Horizon Console, edit Global Policies, and explicitly set this value to Allow. To control access to MMR, you can enable or disable the Multimedia redirection (MMR) policy globally or for an individual pool or user. Multimedia Redirection (MMR) data is sent across the network without application-based encryption and might contain sensitive data, depending on the content being redirected. To ensure that this data cannot be monitored on the network, use MMR only on a secure network.
  • Before you set the level of Transparent Page Sharing (TPS), VMware recommends that the security implications be understood. For guidance, see the VMware Knowledge Base (KB) article 2080735, Security considerations and disallowing inter-Virtual Machine Transparent Page Sharing.
  • To use View Storage Accelerator in a vSphere 5.5 or later environment, a desktop virtual machine must be 512GB or smaller. View Storage Accelerator is disabled on virtual machines that are larger than 512GB. Virtual machine size is defined by the total VMDK capacity. For example, one VMDK file might be 512GB or a set of VMDK files might total 512GB. This requirement also applies to virtual machines that were created in an earlier vSphere release and upgraded to vSphere 5.5.
  • VMware Horizon does not support vSphere Flash Read Cache (formerly known as vFlash).
  • Screen DMA is disabled by default in virtual machines that are created in vSphere 6.0 and later. VMware Horizon requires screen DMA to be enabled. If screen DMA is disabled, users see a black screen when they connect to the remote desktop. When VMware Horizon provisions a desktop pool, it automatically enables screen DMA for all vCenter Server-managed virtual machines in the pool. However, if Horizon Agent is installed in a virtual machine in unmanaged mode (VDM_VC_MANAGED_AGENT=0), screen DMA is not enabled. For information about manually enabling screen DMA, see VMware Knowledge Base (KB) article 2144475, Manually enabling screen DMA in a virtual machine.
  • vGPU enabled instant clone desktop pools are supported for vSphere 6.0 and later.
  • Microsoft Windows Server requires a dynamic range of ports to be open between all Connection Servers in the VMware Horizon environment. These ports are required by Microsoft Windows for the normal operation of Remote Procedure Call (RPC) and Active Directory replication. For more information about the dynamic range of ports, see the Microsoft Windows Server documentation.
  • In VMware Horizon, the viewDBChk tool will not have access to vCenter credentials and will prompt for this information when needed.
  • The forwarding rules for HTTP requests received by Connection Server instances have changed at this release. If you have defined custom frontMapping entries in locked.properties, you should remove them before upgrading. If you wish to disallow administrator connections to certain Connection Server instances, then instead of defining custom frontMapping entries, add this entry to locked.properties: frontServiceWhitelist = tunnel|ajp:broker|ajp:portal|ajp:misc|moved:*|file:docroot
  • In VMware Horizon, internal validation checks determine if the instant clone and internal template have valid IP addresses and a network connection. If a virtual machine has a NIC that cannot be assigned an IP address during provisioning, instant-clone provisioning fails.
  • For information about the models of NVIDIA GPU cards supported by Horizon, see https://docs.nvidia.com/grid/9.0/product-support-matrix/index.html.
  • AMD v340 graphics cards are supported.
  • Real-Time Audio-Video (RTAV) is supported in an IPv6 environment.
  • See the VMware Product Interoperability Matrix for information about the compatibility of VMware Horizon with the latest versions of VMware Unified Access Gateway (supported versions 3.10, 3.9), VMware Identity Manager (vIDM hosted: vIDM staging tenant; vIDM on-prem: supported version 19.03), VMware App Volumes (supported versions 4.1, 4.0.1, 2.18.1), VMware Dynamic Environment Manager (supported versions 10.0, 9.11), and VMware Tools (versions 11.1.0, 11.0.6, 10.3.22, 10.3.21).
  • PCoIP is not supported with RDSH instant clone pools in an IPv6 environment. PCoIP is supported with remote desktops in an IPv6 environment.
  • Starting with version 18.2.7, Avi Networks (VMware NSX Advanced Load Balancer) supports load balancing for Connection Server, Unified Access Gateway appliances, and App Volumes Manager.
  • True SSO and Smart Card based SSO/Logon are not supported with Horizon on Windows 10 2004 as remote desktop. 
  • For an updated list of supported Windows 10 operating systems, see VMware Knowledge Base (KB) article 78714.
    For more information on upgrade requirements for Windows 10 operating systems, see VMware Knowledge Base (KB) article 2148176, Upgrade Requirements for Windows 10 Operating Systems here.
  • vSAN is supported in an IPv6 environment.
  • Opus audio codec is supported on Windows and Linux clients.
  • VMware Horizon uses m86 version of Microsoft WebRTC source code.

Supported Windows 10 Operating Systems