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Introduction to XenMobile™ Solution

The XenMobile Solution allows to manage mobile devices, the applications inside these devices, and the data in these applications. This enables users to access their apps, which may be mobile-, SaaS-, web-, or Windows-based from a universal app store. It provides administrators with a granular level control over the devices and manages them accordingly by implementing multiple security policies. It provides admins with the options to securely deliver productivity apps such as e-mails or intranet websites to end users. Also, it permits options to securely wrap applications before deployment without compromising application security and productivity.

With more and more enterprises welcoming the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) concept, a scenario where the employees are allowed to bring their own devices at work, XenMobile components allow admins to securely manage these devices without hampering the end-user device experience.

In this section, we will introduce our readers to the following XenMobile Solution components and their role in the XenMobile Solution:

  • NetScaler Gateway: This is a secure, access-control management solution allowing users to securely access internal resources. It also provides administrators with granular control policies to manage how devices will function once they are connected to internal resources. These internal resources can be an intranet portal, corporate e-mails, or in-house apps.
  • XenMobile Device Manager: The XenMobile Device Manager allows administrators to manage devices, users, enroll devices, deploy applications and files, and set policies. XenMobile Device Manager also has the option to integrate Active Directory and detailed reporting features.
  • App Controller: App Controller allows users to access the Web, SaaS-based applications, iOS and Android apps, and integrate ShareFile apps on their device from anywhere on an internal network. When integrated with NetScaler Gateway, the XenMobile Solution provides the users with access to these resources from an external network. Administrators have granular security policies to implement on devices connecting either from an internal or external network.
  • MDX Toolkit: The MDX toolkit is a software that must be installed on Mac OS to wrap iOS or Android-based apps and ensures the apps are secure and compliant when installed on end-user devices. Administrators can also define a set of default policies while wrapping the app to limit how it works.
  • Worx Apps: These are client-based apps that communicate with App Controller and allow users to access internal resources anywhere. They contain Worx Home for user enrollment, Worx Web to access web-based resources, and WorxMail for accessing corporate e-mails.
  • ShareFile: This is a cloud-based, file-sharing service that enables users to securely share documents from different apps or access shared resources on a desktop from mobile devices. ShareFile data can be accessed as an app, web resource, or through integration with Outlook as an add-in.

    The XenMobile Solution with its components creates a highly secure and enterprise-compliant solution. The following diagram is a detailed network diagram for the XenMobile Solution provided by Citrix:

    © Citrix Systems, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

XenMobile™ Solution features

XenMobile contains some of the most sought-after features when compared to its competitors. In this section, we will list some of the features available in XenMobile, as follows:

  • Configuring, provisioning, and managing mobile devices on Windows Mobile, Symbian, iOS, and Android platforms
  • Mobile Content Management using SharePoint and network-driven integration
  • Secure mobile web browser
  • App-specific micro VPN
  • Integrating Windows apps
  • Unified app store
  • Secure document sharing, syncing, and editing

The deployment flowchart

While implementing a Mobile Device Management (MDM) solution, it’s very important to have a deployment pattern. This helps in understanding which components are required or are not suitable as per the environment needs. This brings in the requirement to have a detailed flowchart of the Solution deployment. The following diagram shows the Citrix-recommended best practice’s deployment flowchart for the XenMobile Solution:

© Citrix Systems, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Explanation

In this section, we will break down the deployment flowchart to understand the component selection phase. The flowchart is based upon our requirements and will vary from one scenario to other.

Phase 1

The essentials for phase 1 are as follows:

  • Requirement: Do we want an MDM solution to manage the enrolled devices?
  • Decision: If an MDM solution is required, then we proceed with the XenMobile Device Manager installation; alternatively, we can move to the next requirement

Phase 2

The essentials for phase 2 are as follows:

  • Requirement: Is application and content management required?
  • Decision: If application and content integration is required then we can deploy the XenMobile Solutions Bundle; alternatively, move to the next requirement

Phase 3

The essentials for phase 3 are as follows:

  • Requirement: Will there be users accessing the integrated applications and data from the public Internet?
  • Decision: If Yes, then move ahead with the NetScaler Gateway deployment; alternatively, move to the next requirement

Phase 4

The essentials for phase 4 are as follows:

  • Requirement: Is access to XenApp or XenDesktop required?
  • Decision: If Yes, then connect using StoreFront

Summary

This article provided a brief overview of XenMobile Solution and each of its components. We also covered many of its features that make it unique and the Network architecture of the solution. Additionally, we have addressed the best practice deployment flowchart of the XenMobile Solution as recommended by Citrix.

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