Ericom Software, a provider of application access and virtualization solutions, announced it is offering a beta version of AccessNow for Citrix, now part of Ericom's HTML5 RDP client product family. The solution is intended to enable Citrix XenApp and XenDesktop to deliver Windows applications and desktops to any HTML5-compatible browser on any smartphone device, as well as Windows PCs, Linux, and Mac.
"This solution fills several gaps in the Citrix environment," Eran Heyman, CEO of Ericom, tells 5 Minute Briefing. "First and foremost, one gap is Citrix Receiver for HTML5 being able to provide access to Citrix XenApp and XenDesktop only from Chromebook and no other HTML5-enabled end-point device. Secondly, for the Citrix environment to support access through Citrix Receiver for HTML5, it should be version 6 and up."
Ericom AccessNow for Citrix is compatible with earlier versions of Citrix XenApp and XenDesktop as far back as XenApp 4.5 (Presentation Server). Ericom says AccessNow's main value proposition is that Citrix version 6 requires moving all the corporate 32-bit Windows applications, from Windows server 2003 and 2008 to Windows server 2008 R2 64-bit. This involves upgrading all Windows Servers to Windows 2008 R2. AccessNow for Citrix is designed to enable an incremental migration to newer Citrix servers and Windows server 2008 R2 as it supports Windows Server 2003, 2008 and 2008 R2.
AccessNow is configured both for back-end server access as well as Windows desktops, says Heyman. "AccessNow is configurable for every Windows operating system - regardless of whether it runs on a Windows desktop or a Windows server. It can access any machine/server that supports an RDP connections."
AccessNow for Citrix comes with Ericom SSL Secure Gateway, and works with existing SSL VPNs, and does not require installing an SSL VPN client which mandates admin rights on the user device.
The solution is targeted at end-users, Heyman says. "The main purpose and rationale behind Ericom AccessNow for Citrix is definitely enabling end-users and road warriors to access their Citrix-published applications and desktops - from anywhere, using any HTML5-enabled device, providing maximum connectivity, convenience, and productivity. With that in mind, the no-installation limitation and no infrastructure version restrictions characteristics of AccessNow for Citrix, make IT life much easier and no doubt lowers the help desk support workload."
For more information about Ericom AccessNow for Citrix, visit www.ericom.com/AccessNowForCitrix.