Ever imagined how Citrix delivers the best possible performance in varying network conditions for different types of workloads? Yes, HDX is the answer to this. But do you know how HDX does all of this? The answer is Adaptive. HDX adapts to accommodate many moving components inside end-to-end connectivity to ensure that the best possible experience is delivered.
There are a few adaptive components that take part in this play. We will see briefly how these technology elements solve the complex requirement of elevating user experience in varying network conditions.
- Adaptive Display – Adapts the encoding mechanism for the data type in a page
- Adaptive Throughput – Adapts the network buffer based on network conditions
- Adaptive Transport – Adapts the transport protocol (TCP or EDT) based on network condition
1. Adaptive Display:
A typical web page is made up of multiple elements which require a different type of encoding or rendering. Some of the elements like text are easy to process whereas content like videos requires a thought-through rendering to ensure that the compute is highly optimized. Adaptive display works in identifying the right encoders for the right set of elements. In absence of technology like Adaptive Display, the entire webpage would have been considered as a single element and a single encoding would have been applied, resulting in poor experience or high computing requirements.
For example:
a) for Images/JPEGs – Thinwire works best for static images requiring low CPU
b) for Video/ 3D graphics – H.264 or H.265 provides the most efficiency however requires a higher CPU
c) for Text – Overlay lossless provides the most authentic experience for text to avoid blur.
2. Adaptive Throughput:
The network condition from the end user side always changes. Sometimes the network is less jittery, hence all the packets transmit without much friction, however, in some cases, the network is a little congested, where packets need a buffer before transmission takes place. If you put an inadequate amount of buffer in every case, the buffer will either be not utilized or will not make sufficient space for the temporary holding, hence right sizing of this buffer is important to avoid retransmission or underutilization. This also plays a key role in achieving faster file copy and transfers in VDI.
3. Adaptive Transport:
Traditional communication protocols like TCP are good for typical application traffic where data transmission and handshake are required frequently. However, for communications like VDI where a continuous stream of data takes place, TCP often comes as less optimized for the communication. On the other hand, protocols like UDP work better due to the broadcast nature of the communication. However, the problem with native UDP is that they are restricted to graphics and audio.
So, to mitigate this limitation and enhance the native UDP, Citrix started using EDT (Enlightened Data Transport). EDT is devised from UDT which works as a reliable protocol solution that unlocks the value of UPD for all HDX and serves as a solid foundation for further enhancements. EDT is optimized for speed for all types of traffic. However, even though EDT is more optimized, not all networks are open for EDT communications. Adaptive Transport takes care of this problem. Adaptive Transport uses intelligent EDT traffic but keeps an option to fall back to TCP if network communication is not possible. Not only this, even though it selects TCP as a fallback, it continuously checks for the possibility to leverage EDT in a few defined intervals of time. This gives the possibility to use the most optimized transport protocol where possible, further enhancing the user experience.
Conclusion
There are a few additional areas where Citrix provides optimization and HDX overall plays a key role there. However, with these Adaptive technologies, Citrix ensures that the user experience is not compromised even in those conditions where network conditions are not optimal. The best part is that the configuration of these settings is either by default or very simple from the Citrix Policy console. In a nutshell, what better it may be when the technology adapts to avoid complex configurations.