System requirements

Linux distributions

Note:

System requirements for components not covered here (such as Citrix Workspace app) are described in their respective documentation sets.

Before installing the Linux VDA, install .NET Runtime 6.0 according to the instructions at https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/core/install/linux-package-managers.

The Linux VDA does not support SecureICA for encryption. Enabling SecureICA on the Linux VDA causes session launch failure.

For more information about using this Current Release (CR) in a Long Term Service (LTSR) environment and other FAQs, see Knowledge Center article.

The Linux VDA supports the following Linux distributions:

Important:

When the support from your OS vendor expires, Citrix might be limited in its ability to remediate problems.
For deprecated or removed platforms, see Deprecation.

• Amazon Linux
  • Amazon Linux 2
• CentOS Linux
  • CentOS 7.9
  • CentOS 7.8
• Debian Linux
  • Debian 10.9
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux
  • Workstation 8.4
  • Workstation 8.3
  • Workstation 8.2
  • Workstation 8.1
  • Workstation 7.9
  • Workstation 7.8
  • Server 8.4
  • Server 8.3
  • Server 8.2
  • Server 8.1
  • Server 7.9
  • Server 7.8
• SUSE Linux Enterprise:
  • Server 15 Service Pack 3
  • Server 15 Service Pack 2
  • Server 12 Service Pack 5 + SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 12 SP5
  • Server 12 Service Pack 5
• Ubuntu Linux
  • Ubuntu Desktop 20.04
  • Ubuntu Server 20.04
  • Ubuntu Desktop 18.04
  • Ubuntu Server 18.04
  • Ubuntu Live Server 18.04
  • Ubuntu Desktop 16.04
  • Ubuntu Server 16.04

Note:

• CentOS project shifts focus to CentOS Stream. CentOS Linux 8, as a rebuild of RHEL 8, ends at the end of 2021. CentOS Stream continues after that date, serving as the upstream (development) branch of Red Hat Enterprise Linux. For more information, see https://www.redhat.com/en/blog/centos-stream-building-innovative-future-enterprise-linux.

• When you use Citrix Provisioning to stream Linux target devices, create a separate boot partition on the single shared-disk image so that the provisioned devices can boot as expected.

• Avoid formatting any partition with btrfs. GRUB2 has an intrinsic problem finding btrfs partitions. GRUB stands for GRand Unified Bootloader.

For a matrix of the Linux distributions and the Xorg versions that this version of the Linux VDA supports, see the following table. For more information, see XorgModuleABIVersions.

Do not use HWE kernel or HWE Xorg on Ubuntu.

Use PulseAudio 13.99 on RHEL 8.x.

Use PulseAudio 14.2 on SUSE 15.3 and PulseAudio 13.0 on SUSE 15.2.

In all cases, the supported processor architecture is x86-64.

Note:

GNOME and KDE desktops are supported on CentOS 7, RHEL 7, RHEL 8, and SUSE 12. Unity desktop is supported on Ubuntu 16.04. GNOME desktop is supported on Amazon Linux 2, Debian 10.9, SUSE 15, Ubuntu 20.04, and Ubuntu 18.04. MATE desktop is supported on all Linux distributions that the Linux VDA supports, except SUSE 12.5. At least one desktop must be installed.

Citrix Virtual Desktops

The Linux VDA is compatible with all currently supported versions of Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops. For information about the Citrix product lifecycle, and to find out when Citrix stops supporting specific versions of products, see the Citrix Product Lifecycle Matrix.

The configuration process for Linux VDAs differs slightly from Windows VDAs. However, any Delivery Controller farm is able to broker both Windows and Linux desktops.

Supported host platforms and virtualization environments

• Bare metal servers
• Citrix Hypervisor
• VMware vSphere Hypervisor
• Microsoft Hyper-V
• Nutanix AHV
• Microsoft Azure
• Amazon Web Services (AWS)
• Google Cloud Platform (GCP)

Tip:

See the vendor’s documentation for the list of supported platforms.

Note:

Azure, AWS, and GCP are compatible only with the Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service. Bare metal servers are not supported when MCS is used to create virtual machines.

Active Directory integration packages

The Linux VDA supports the following Active Directory integration packages or products:

• Samba Winbind
• Quest Authentication Services v4.1 or later
• Centrify DirectControl
• SSSD
• PBIS (compatible with RHEL 7, Ubuntu, and Debian)

HDX 3D Pro

The HDX 3D Pro capabilities of Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops let you deliver desktops and applications that perform best using a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) for hardware acceleration.

Hypervisors

For the Linux VDA, HDX 3D Pro is compatible with the following hypervisors:

• Citrix Hypervisor
• VMware vSphere Hypervisor
• Nutanix AHV
• Microsoft Azure
• Amazon Web Services (AWS)
• Google Cloud Platform (GCP)

Note:

The hypervisors are compatible with certain Linux distributions.

GPUs

To learn which NVIDIA GPU cards your Linux distribution supports, go to the NVIDIA product support matrix and check the Hypervisor or Bare-Metal OS, Software Product Deployment, Hardware Supported, and Guest OS Support columns.

Ensure that you install the latest vGPU driver for your GPU card. Currently, the Linux VDA supports up to vGPU 13. For more information, see NVIDIA Virtual GPU Software Supported GPUs.