Free Citrix NetScaler HDX Proxy

AAt Synergy 2016, Citrix  Netscaler HDX Proxy It’s been announced, but what is it really? We all know how much customers love the extremely outdated but free Web Interface (WI) and Secure Gateway (SG) for HDX sessions (XenApp / XenDesktop). Web Interface has been replaced by StoreFront (SF), and as I wrote ( Read more about it ) was finally retired with version 3.5.

However, some customers still face an issue with StoreFront: Secure Gateway is not supported. StoreFront was designed to work with Netscaler ADC or Netscaler Gateway from the very beginning, but this comes at a cost—a Netscaler license is required! Citrix has reduced these costs with the Platform License, which essentially enables unlimited HDX sessions but WITHOUT SmartAccess features. SmartAccess features include VPN connections, EPAs, restrictions via AD groups, etc., but not many customers using WI+SG wanted to use them. Another reason was the significantly higher complexity of Netscaler compared to Secure Gateway, even though the wizards improved with each release.

In order to finally phase out Secure Gateway, Citrix had to release something that was secure, simple, and free:  Netscaler HDX Proxy! 

Netscaler HDX Proxy

• Citrix Windows Secure Gateway
• StrorFront + Netscaler Simplification
• An IP address for management and remote access
• Single-use appliance (VPX)
• Limited to 500 concurrent HDX sessions
• FREE to use; no active Advantage subscription required
• HDX ONLY (no SmartAccess features)

It seems like it would be easy to replace Secure Gateway, but if a hosting provider uses SG for multiple customers at the same time, it’s not that simple after all. In fact, I contacted Citrix about this, and it’s supposed to be resolved with the Netscaler HDX Proxy. It would also be interesting to see if SmartAccess features make their way to the HDX Proxy—specifically the restrictions via AD groups—but I don’t really think so.

What do you think of the Netscaler HDX Proxy? Please leave your comments below!