Parallels RAS 19 Administrator's Guide

Introduction
- Parallels RAS 19 release history
- About Parallels RAS
- About this guide
- What's new
- Terms and abbreviations used in this guide
Installing Parallels RAS
- System requirements
- Install Parallels RAS
- Log in and activate Parallels RAS
Getting Started with Parallels RAS
- The Parallels RAS Console
- Set up a basic Parallels RAS Farm
Farm and Sites
- Connecting to a Parallels RAS Farm
- About Sites
- Sites in the RAS Console
- Adding a Site to the Farm
- Replicating Site settings
- Managing Licensing Site
- Managing administrator accounts
RAS Connection Broker
- Configuring RAS Connection Brokers
- Secondary Connection Brokers
- Managing Secondary Connection Brokers
- Using computer management tools
RAS Secure Gateway
- Overview
- Adding a RAS Secure Gateway
- Manually adding a RAS Secure Gateway
- Checking the RAS Secure Gateway status
- Configuring a RAS Secure Gateway
- Secure Gateway tunneling policies
- Configure logging
- Viewing Secure Gateway summary and metrics
- Using computer management tools
RD Session Hosts
- RD Session Host types
- Add an RD Session Host
  - Installing the agent manually
- Add a template-based RD Session Host
- Manage RD Session Hosts
- Planning for high availability
- Managing logons
- Using computer management tools
- Publishing from an RD Session Host
- Viewing published resources
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
- Supported providers
- Add a provider
- Manage VDI
- Configure logging
- Enabling high availability for VDI
- Site defaults (VDI)
- Using computer management tools
- Viewing Provider summary
- Remote PC pools
Azure Virtual Desktop
- Introduction
- Prerequisites
- Deploy Azure Virtual Desktop
- Manage Azure Virtual Desktop
- Site defaults (Azure Virtual Desktop)
  - Site defaults for single-session hosts
  - Site defaults for multi-session hosts
- Using Parallels Client with Azure Virtual Desktop
- Verify the deployment
Remote PCs
- Overview
- Adding a Remote PC to a Farm
  - Admin-initiated Remote PC enrollment
  - Self-service Remote PC enrollment
- Configuring a Remote PC
- Viewing Remote PC summary
- Using computer management tools
Publishing
- Overview
- Publishing a desktop
- Publishing an application
- Publishing an application with MSIX app attach
- Publishing a web application
- Publishing a network folder
- Publishing a document
- General management tasks
- Manage published applications
- Manage published desktops
- Manage published documents
- Manage folders
- Site defaults (Publishing)
- Using filtering rules
- Configuring preferred routing
- Understanding session prelaunch
- Checking effective access
- Specifying client settings
- Quick keypad
Session Management
- Overview
- Session information
- Monitoring settings
- Managing sessions
- The Resources tab
SSL Certificate Management
- Generating a self-signed certificate
- Generating a certificate signing request (CSR)
- Let's Encrypt certificates
  - Requesting a Let's Encrypt Certificate
  - How Parallels RAS requests certificates from Let's Encrypt
- Importing a certificate
- Exporting a certificate
- Assigning a certificate to Secure Gateways and HALBs
- Auditing certificates
- Permissions to manage certificates
- Upgrading from an older RAS version
Connection and Authentication Settings
- RAS Connection Broker connection settings
- Remote session settings
- Logon hours settings
- Restricting access by Parallels Client type and build number
- Multi-factor authentication
- Allowing users to change domain password
- Allowing users to discover RAS connections via email address
Load Balancing and HALB
- Resource based & round robin load balancing
  - Configure CPU optimization
- High availability load balancing (HALB)
RAS Multi-Tenant Architecture
- Overview
- Architecture description
  - Implementation overview
  - User connection flow
- Deploying Tenant Broker and Tenants
- Managing Tenants
- Shared Gateways
- Third-party network load balancers
- Web Client and Themes
- Monitoring Tenants
- Tenant Broker compatibility and updates
- Upgrading from an older RAS version
- Configuring notifications
- Communication ports
SAML SSO Authentication
- Introduction
- System requirements
- SAML basics
- SAML configuration
- Parallels Client configuration
- Parallels client policy configuration
- Test the SAML SSO deployment
- Error messages
Parallels Web Client and User Portal
- Configure Web Client
- Configure Themes
- Open Parallels Web Client
- Main menu options
- Running remote applications and desktops
- Auto login
- Direct App access
- Using the toolbar
Universal Printing
- Managing Universal Printing settings
- Universal Printing drivers
- Font management
Universal Scanning
- Managing Universal Scanning
- Adding scanning applications
User Device Management and Client Policies
- Inviting users to connect to Parallels RAS
- Mass configuring user devices
- Enabling Help Desk support
- Monitoring devices
  - Getting additional device information
- Windows device groups
- Managing Windows devices
  - Windows desktop replacement
- Scheduling Windows devices & groups power cycles
- Client Policies
- Configuring remote file transfer
Reporting
- System requirements
- Install Microsoft SQL Server
  - Install Microsoft SQL Server 2016 or earlier
  - Install Microsoft SQL Server 2017 or 2019
- Install Parallels RAS Reporting
- Running Parallels RAS reports
- GDPR compliance
Performance Monitor
- Overview
- Install RAS Performance Monitor
- Using Parallels RAS Performance Monitor
- Configure RAS Performance Monitor Security
- Updating RAS Performance Monitor
Common Management Tasks
- Recovery - add a root administrator
- Host name resolution
- Computer management tools
- Site information
- Site settings
- Using MSIX application packages
- Using template versions
- Settings audit
- Upgrading RAS agents
- Licensing
- Configure HTTP proxy settings
- System event notifications
- RAS session variables
- Maintenance and backup
  - Exporting and importing Farm settings from the command line
- Problem reporting and troubleshooting
- Logging
- Suggest a feature
Parallels RAS Management Portal
- Overview
- Prerequisites
- Installation
- Log in to RAS Management Portal
- Configure RAS Web Administration Service
- RAS Management Portal user interface
Parallels RAS APIs
- RAS PowerShell API
- RAS REST API
- RAS Web Client API and Parallels Client URL scheme
Appendix
- Microsoft license requirements in Parallels RAS
- Port reference
- RAS performance counters

Connection

To configure connection properties, select the Connection node and then go through each child node configuring their respective properties.

Primary connection

The primary connection always defaults to the primary RAS Secure Gateway, but you can modify the following connection properties:

Specify a friendly name for the connection.
Auto login: Enable or disable auto login in RAS User Portal. If the option is disabled, auto login will be disabled in User Portal and the user will not be able to change it. For more information, see Auto Login.
In the Authentication type drop-down list, select the desired method of authentication:
- Credentials. The user will have to enter credentials to log on.
- Single Sign-On. This option will be included in the list only if the Single Sign-On module is installed during Parallels Client installation. The credentials that the user used to log on will be used to connect to the remote server.
- Smart Card. Select this option to authenticate using a smart card. When connecting to the remote server, a user will need to insert a smart card into the card reader and then enter a PIN when prompted.
- Web. If selected, the SAML SSO authentication is allowed. For more info, see SAML SSO Authentication.
  
  Note: The allowed authentication type(s) must be specified in the RAS Console in Connection > Authentication.
Select or clear Save password as needed (if credentials are used for authentication). This means forcing a client to save the password for this connection.
Specify the domain name (if credentials are used for authentication).

Secondary Connection

If you have more than one RAS Secure Gateway, you can define a secondary connection, which will be used as a backup connection in case the primary gateway connection fails.

To add a secondary connection:

Select the Secondary connections item.
In the Secondary connections pane, click Tasks > Add and specify a server name or IP address.
Select the connection mode and modify the default port number if necessary.

If you have multiple secondary connections, you can move them up or down in the list. If the primary connection cannot be established, Parallels Client will use secondary connections in the order listed.

Reconnection

In this pane, specify what to do if the connection is dropped:

Reconnect if connection is dropped. if this option is selected, Parallels Client will try to reconnect if the connection is dropped. The Connection retries property specifies the number of retries.
Show connection banner if reconnection is not established within. Specifies the number of seconds after which the connection banner will be displayed in Parallels Client. This will inform the user that the connection was dropped and will allow them to take actions on their own.

Computer name

Specify the name that a computer will use during a remote desktop session. If set, this will override the default computer name. Any filtering set by the administrator on the server side will make use of the Override computer name setting.

Advanced settings

Connection timeout. The Parallels Client connection timeout value.
Show connection banner if connection is not established within. Specifies the number of seconds after which the connection banner will be displayed. This will inform the user that the connection cannot be established and will allow them to take actions on their own.
Show desktop if published application does not start within. If a published application is not launched within the time period specified in this field, the host server desktop will be shown instead. This is helpful if an error occurs on the server side while launching an application. By showing the server desktop, the user can see the error message.

Web authentication

Select or clear the Use default OS browser option. If the option is selected, the SAML SSO login dialog on the client side will open in the default browser. If the option is cleared, the browser built into the Parallels Client will be used.

Note: To launch SAML SSO login dialog with built-in browser while using Parallels RAS Console 19.3 or later, use Parallels RAS Client for Windows 19.3 or later.
The Open browser window to complete log out option is used when the built-in browser is used. In this case, there's no control over the SAML log out, so when this option is selected, a URL will open to perform the logout from SAML. By default, this web page will not be displayed, but if you need to interact with the browser, you can enable this option.

For more info, see SAML SSO Authentication.

Session Prelaunch

When a user opens a remote application, a session must first be launched. Launching a session can take time, which will result in the user waiting for the application to start. To improve user experience, a session can be launched ahead of time, before the user actually opens an application.

To enable (or disable) session prelaunch, choose one of the following in the Mode drop-down list:

Off. No session prelaunch is used.
Basic. A session is prelaunched as soon as the user gets the application listing. The assumption is, the user will open an application within the next few minutes. The session will stay active for 10 minutes. If the user doesn't open an application during that time, the client will disconnect from the session.
Machine Learning. When the application listing is acquired, a session is prelaunched based on user habits. With this option enabled, Parallels Client will record and analyze the user habits of launching applications on a given day of the week. A session is started a few minutes before the user usually opens an application.

When a session is prelaunched, it will all happen in the background, so the user will not see any windows or message boxes on the screen. When the user starts an application, it will open using the prelaunched session, so it will start very quickly.

You can configure rules when session prelaunch must not be used. The following options are available:

Use the Exclude sessions prelaunch list to specify dates on which the prelaunch must not be used. Click on the plus-sign icon and select a date. The list can contain multiple entries.
You can also exclude a published resource from the session prelaunching scheme altogether. This way, the resource is excluded from the analysis and is never considered by Parallels Client when making a decision whether to prelaunch a session. For example, when you have a server on which you never want to prelaunch sessions, you can flag all published resources hosted by that server as to be excluded from session prelaunch. To exclude a published resource from session prelaunch, in the RAS Console, navigate to Published Resources, select a resource and then select the Exclude from session prelaunch option.

Local proxy address

The setting in this section specifies on which IP address to bind the local RDP proxy. Select the Use 127.0.01 IP address when using Gateway mode in VPN scenarios option. You should have this setting enabled. Disabling it may lead to users not being able to open applications or desktops when using a VPN. This setting applies to Parallels Client for Windows only.

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