VMware ThinApp 4.7 Essentials

Table of Contents

• Preface

• Chapter 1: Application Virtualization
• Application virtualization
• ThinApp overview
• ThinApp architecture
• Common ThinApp vocabulary
• The capturing process
• The capture machine
• The project folder
• The package
• The data container
• The entry point
• Compiling or building your ThinApp package
• The build machine
• The ThinApp utilities folder
• The ThinApp runtime
• Read-Only data
• Read and write data
• Folder macros
• The sandbox
• Isolation modes
• Merged
• WriteCopy
• Full
• Example 1
• Example 2
• Example 3
• The virtual filesystem
• The virtual registry
• Application Linking (AppLink)
• AppLink conflict resolution for isolation modes
• Optional AppLink
• Required AppLink
• The ThinApp utilities folder and its content
• Summary

• Chapter 2: Application Packaging
• Packaging
• Running the Setup Capture wizard
• The capture and build environment
• Entry points and the data container
• The project folder
• The Package.ini file
• Isolation mode considerations
• Virtualizing Internet Explorer 6
• The recommended ThinApp capture process
• Some packaging tips
• 32-bit versus 64-bit
• Services
• Auto update
• Save your project folders
• Make sure you investigate the sandbox
• When capturing, make sure you are capturing!
• Make sure your application is 100 percent natively installed
• Never start with AppLink
• VB Scripting
• Packaging applications with dependencies
• Dependencies on runtimes
• Dependencies on locally installed applications
• Dependencies on another virtualized application
• Summary

• Chapter 3: Deployment of ThinApp Packages
• Different deployment scenarios
• Using streaming deployment
• Using MSI to distribute packages
• Using VMware Horizon Application Manager
• Using VMware View
• Using alternative media and methods
• Using thinreg.exe to register your applications
• Summary

• Chapter 4: Updating and Tweaking Your ThinApp Project
• Different categories of updates
• Recapturing an application
• Modifying the project folder
• Sandbox merge
• Updating the ThinApp runtime
• Sandbox considerations for updated packages
• Summary

• Chapter 5: How to Distribute Updates
• Different categories of updates
• Using MSI to distribute updates
• Using an in-place update method
• Application Sync (AppSync)
• Application Linking (AppLink)
• Deploying updated packages using VMware Horizon Application Manager
• Summary

• Chapter 6: Design and Implementation Considerations using ThinApp
• Protecting your packages
• Default isolation modes
• Sandbox considerations
• Implementing ThinDirect
• Designing for a physical client implementation
• Designing for a virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) implementation
• Designing for a terminal server/Citrix XenApp implementation
• Designing for a mixed environment
• Sizing of your streaming file share
• Summary

• Chapter 7: Troubleshooting
• The theory behind troubleshooting
• Effective test procedures
• The Dirty Test
• The Washed Test
• The Clean Test
• The Production Test
• Common troubleshooting tools
• Process Explorer
• Process Monitor
• Dependency Walker
• Microsoft Event Viewer
• Error messages
• ThinApp Log Monitor
• Troubleshooting tips and tricks
• Your everyday capturing process
• Summary

• Appendix: References
• Folder macros
• Package.ini parameters
• Environment variables and ThinApp runtime switches
• Changing the sandbox location
• ThinApp runtime switches
• Summary

• Index