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Profile Management
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Stream user profiles

February 6, 2024
Contributed by: 
C L

By default, Citrix Profile Management fetches the entire user profile from the user store to the local computer when a user logs on. Large files in the user profile can cause a slow logon. To improve the user logon experience, you can enable the profile streaming feature.

With this feature enabled, Profile Management fetches profile files and folders only when they are accessed after logon.

Note:

The user profile includes files, folders, and registry entries. This feature applies to files and folders but not to registry entries. Registry entries are always fetched on user logon.

Enable the profile streaming feature

Enable the profile streaming feature by using the following policies:

  • Profile streaming. With this policy enabled, profile files are fetched to the local computer when the user accesses them.
  • Enable profile streaming for folders. With this policy enabled, profile folders are fetched to the local computer when the user accesses them.

Follow these steps to enable the policies:

  1. Open the Group Policy Management Editor.
  2. Access Policies > Administrative Templates: Policy definitions (ADMX files) > Citrix Components > Profile Management > Streamed user profiles.
  3. Double-click Profile streaming. Select Enabled, and then click OK.
  4. Double-click Enable profile streaming for folders. Select Enabled, and then click OK.

Enable enhancements for profile streaming

After you enable the profile streaming feature, you can apply a range of enhancements based on your needs.

Example 1: Users reported slow loading of large profile files. In this case, enable the Always cache policy and specify a minimum size for large files. Profile Management caches files larger than that size to the local profile during user logons.

Example 2: In your organization, users access certain profile folders frequently. Therefore, you want to fetch those folders to the local profile on user logon even if the profile streaming is enabled. To achieve this goal, enable the Profile Streaming Exclusion list - directories policy and exclude the folders from profile streaming.

Enable the enhancements as needed. Detailed steps are as follows:

  1. Access Policies > Administrative Templates: Policy definitions (ADMX files) > Citrix Components > Profile Management > Streamed user profiles.
  2. To reduce load times for large files, enable Profile Management to cache large files to the local profile during logon. Detailed steps are as follows:
    1. Double-click Always cache.
    2. Select Enabled.

    3. Set a lower limit (MB) on the size of profile files to cache. To cache the entire profile, set the limit to zero.

      Notes:

      • Any files that exceed the limit are cached to the local profile as soon as Profile Management starts the back-end processing thread during user logons.
      • Any files that are below the limit are still fetched to the local profile when users access them.
    4. Click OK.
  3. To apply profile streaming only to certain user groups in your domain, follow these steps:
    1. Double-click Streamed user profile groups.
    2. Select Enabled.
    3. Enter a list of user groups. Press Enter to separate entries.
    4. Click OK.

    Note: By default, the policy is disabled and profile streaming applies to all user groups in your domain.

  4. To exclude certain profile folders and files from profile streaming, follow these steps:
    1. Double-click the Profile Streaming Exclusion list - directories policy.
    2. Select Enabled.
    3. Click Show.
    4. Add folders that you do not want Profile Management to stream. For more information, see enable profile streaming exclusion, later in this article.
  5. To ensure an optimal logon experience in concurrent sessions of the same user, follow these steps:
    1. Double-click Enable profile streaming for pending area.
    2. Select Enabled.
    3. Click OK. For more information, see profile streaming for the pending area, later in this article.

For your changes to take effect, run the gpupdate /force command from the command prompt. For more information, see https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb490983.aspx.

Configuration precedence

Configuration precedence for each policy in Streamed user profiles is as follows:

  • If Profile streaming isn’t configured in the GPO or in the .ini file, Profile streaming is disabled.

  • If Always cache isn’t configured in the GPO, the value from the .ini file is used. If this setting isn’t configured here or in the .ini file, it is disabled.

  • If Streamed user profile groups is disabled, all user groups are processed. If this setting isn’t configured in the GPO, the value from the .ini file is used. If this setting isn’t configured in the GPO or in the .ini file, all users are processed.

  • If Enable profile streaming for folders isn’t configured in the GPO or in the .ini file, profile streaming for folders is disabled.

  • If Enable profile streaming exclusion isn’t configured in the GPO or in the .ini file, all folders are streamed.

  • If Enable profile streaming for pending area isn’t configured in the GPO or in the .ini file, profile streaming for the pending area is disabled.

Enable profile streaming exclusion

When profile streaming exclusion is enabled, Profile Management does not stream folders in the exclusion list. All folders and files in the exclusion list are fetched immediately from the user store to the local computer when a user logs on.

To enable profile streaming exclusion, follow these steps:

  1. Under Profile Management, double-click Streamed user profiles.
  2. Double-click the Profile Streaming Exclusion list - directories policy.
  3. Select Enabled.
  4. Click Show.
  5. Add folders that you do not want Profile Management to stream. The folder names can be specified as absolute paths or as paths relative to the user profile (%USERPROFILE%). Use that variable to locate the profile but do not enter the variable itself in this policy. Omit initial backslashes from paths.

For example:

  • Desktop. The Desktop folder is fetched on user logons.
  • MyApp\tmp. The %USERPROFILE%\MyApp\tmp folder is fetched on user logons.

If this setting isn’t configured here, the following folders in the .ini file are excluded by default:

  • AppData\Local\Microsoft\Credentials
  • Appdata\Roaming\Microsoft\Credentials
  • Appdata\Roaming\Microsoft\Crypto
  • Appdata\Roaming\Microsoft\Protect
  • Appdata\Roaming\Microsoft\SystemCertificates

Note:

  • This policy only takes effect when Profile Streaming is enabled.
  • This policy does not support wildcards * and ?.
  • Type Enter to separate entries.
  • When manually editing the profile streaming exclusion list, you must add the preceding default excluded folders to avoid logons hanging.

Profile streaming for the pending area

Profile Management uses the pending area to temporarily store profile files and folders changed in concurrent sessions of the same user. By default, that area is an exception to the profile streaming feature. Even with the feature enabled, files and folders in that area are still fetched to the local profile when users log on.

To ensure an optimal logon experience in concurrent sessions of the same user, enable the Enable profile streaming for pending area feature as an enhancement to the profile streaming feature. With this policy enabled, Profile Management fetches files and folders in the pending area to the local profile when users access them instead of when they log on. If there are large files in that area, user logon time reduces significantly.

Stream user profiles
February 6, 2024
Contributed by: 
C L
February 6, 2024
Contributed by: 
C L

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