VDI deployment

For administrators who manage the deployment of OpenFin applications.

As an administrator of Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) such as Citrix, you can deploy your business’s (and 3rd party) OpenFin applications to your end-users. However, VDI administrators may require a few configurations within their VDI environment for optimal performance and usability of their OpenFin applications (similar to Chrome).

OpenFin works closely with customers to ensure their environments are properly configured to meet their needs. Through our involvement of large scale VDI distributions, we have built up an extensive knowledge base on what firms require for their VDI environments. If you require VDI assistance and do not find what you are looking for, please reach out to our Deployment specialists at [email protected].

Configure your VDI environment

As a VDI administrator, you can deploy your OpenFin applications with the following configurations applied to your VDI environments:

Roaming profile setup

OpenFin recommends leveraging the roaming user profile option. Administrators can deploy OpenFin applications to the user's local roaming profile by adding a string key value named rvmInstallDirectory with the value %appdata% in:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\OpenFin\RVM\Settings\Deployment
more info

Using a roaming profile ensures an end-user has a consistent experience when switching between multiple virtual desktops.

Install location

If the virtual desktops are multi-tenant (i.e. more than one user is connected to the same session), an administrator must add a string key value named rvmInstallDirectory with the value of:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\OpenFin\RVM\Settings\Deployment

If a roaming profile is not enabled an administrator must set this value to: C:\Users\%username%\AppData\Local\OpenFin

If the virtual desktop is individually assigned to a user then the above rvmInstallDirectory is not necessary.
more info

Hardware acceleration

Many VDI platforms support Graphics Processing Units (GPUs), but it is rare we see them in use. If you have not enabled GPUs or have the necessary hardware, administrators without the GPU enabled need to disable the GPU based hardware acceleration by creating a string value named runtimeArgs with a value of --disable-gpu in:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/OpenFin/RVM
more info

Override cache directory to a network share

If you require your Runtime cache location to be on a network share, you need to add a string value named runtimeCache with a value pointing to your network share in:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\OpenFin\RVM\Settings\Deployment
more info

If the runtimeCache is located on a network drive, then the Chromium security sandbox for the renderer process needs to be disabled.

To disable the renderer process create a string value named runtimeArgs with value as --no-sandbox in:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/OpenFin/RVM
more info

By choosing to override the cache directory, you are assuming the risks of disabling the Chromium security sandbox in favor of moving the default location of the cache folder.
more info

Install an application

Once your VDI is configured for your OpenFin application experience, administrators can deploy OpenFin applications in the same available methods as a physical desktop.
See Deploying Applications section for more information

System Requirements

Minimum requirements

• Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, or Windows 10 (recommended)
• An Intel Pentium 4 processor or later that's SSE3 capable
• Internet connection or private line required
• Ports 80 and 443 open to non-browser applications
• User account has write access to %localappdata% folder

Recommended settings

OpenFin can run on as little as 1GB RAM and 2 vCPUs per user (the same as Chrome), but most customers run much more complex applications than a typical marketing website. OpenFin therefore recommends much more vCPU and RAM per user.

Virtual desktop memory
At least 16GB RAM. Customers who run other CPU or memory intensive applications on the same workstation should avoid the minimum specifications and refer to this recommended specification.