AVD Host Pool Sessions - Sessions by Users Report

The key challenge in monitoring Azure Virtual Desktops in host pool environments is to keep track of the user activity on those virtual desktops in the host pools. Using the Sessions by Users report provided by eG Enterprise, administrators can figure out at what times the specified user logged in, which host pool the user accessed, how much CPU/memory was utilized by the user, and the application/VMs used by the user. The Sessions by Users report too permits administrators to customize the view by specifying the measures to be displayed in the report and computations to be performed on the measures (such as Avg, Max, Min etc.).

To generate this report, do the following:

From the eG Reporter interface, select the Sessions by Users option from the Sessions sub node by following the menu sequence: REPORTS BY FUNCTION -> Domain-specific Reports -> Azure Virtual Desktop -> By Host Pool -> Sessions.

Figure 1 : Generating Sessions by Users report for AVD Host Pool
When Figure 1 appears, select a criterion for analysis from the Analyze By list box. Using this report, you can analyze the user session details of the host pools that are included in a zone. This way, you can assess the impact of the user sessions on the host pools of a particular service/segment/zone, and accordingly take decisions. The options provided by the Analyze By list box are discussed hereunder:
- Component:Select this option to choose the component(s) from across all the managed Host pools in the environment. For instance, for a report on the user session details of all the managed Host pools in the environment, select Microsoft AVD Host Pool from the Component Type list. By default, All Host Pools option is chosen from the Host Pool list. If the Host Pool list consists of too many Microsoft AVD Host Pools, then viewing all the Microsoft AVD Host Pools and selecting the ones that you need for report generation could require endless scrolling. To avoid this, you can click the button next to the Host Pool list. The HOST POOL pop up window will then appear using which you can view almost all the AVD host pools in a single interface and Select the ones for which the report is to be generated. You can narrow your search further by using the Search text box. Specify the whole/part of the AVD host pool name to search for in this text box, and click the icon next to it.
- Service: Select this option if the components for which a report is to be generated are involved in the delivery of a business service. Then, select a Service.
- Segment: Choose this option if the AVD host pools to be evaluated are part of a segment. Then, pick a Segment for analysis.
- Zone: Pick this option for a report on the performance of AVD host pools that are included in a zone. Then, choose a Zone.
Next, choose the User whose usage needs to be tracked. For a report on all users to the chosen Zone, select All from User.

Note:

If the number of users to the zone exceeds the value configured for the MoreUsers parameter of the [CITRIX_USER_REPORT] section (in the {EG_INSTALL_DIR}\manager\config\eg_report.ini file), then a text box will be displayed instead of the list box for the User field. In the case of the text box, you will have to specify (and not choose) the name of the user for whom the report is to be generated. To generate a report for all available users, specify '*'.
By default, the Show Details flag is set to Yes indicating that the report will be generated for each user session initiated on the target host pool. If this flag is set to No, then the sessions initiated by each user will be consolidated while the generating the report.
Then, specify the Timeline for the graph. You can either provide a fixed time line such as 1 hour, 2 days, etc., or select the Any option from the list to provide a From and To date/time for report generation.

Note:
- The default Timeline can be set using the consolidated reports page in the eG administrative interface; to access this page, follow the menu sequence: Configure -> Reports -> Consolidated. For more details regarding this page, refer to Consolidated Reports.
- Shorter the Timeline for a report, lighter would be the query that is executed on the database, and faster the report generation. Report Timelines that run across many weeks therefore, cause excessive strain on the database, thus slowing-down report generation. To save the eG backend from injury, eG Enterprise automatically restricts the maximum Timeline for which a thin client report can be generated to the lower of the following values:
  - the value of the WVDLoginTestparameter in the [DDD_CLEANUP] section of the eg_format.ini file (in the <EG_INSTALL_DIR>\manager\config directory)
  - the value of the MaxTimeline parameter in the [MISC] section of the eg_report.ini file (in the <EG_INSTALL_DIR>\manager\config directory).
  - The maximum timeline for which the current user to eG Reporter is permitted to generate reports;
- The [DDD_CLEANUP] section is where you define the interval (in days) at which the detailed diagnosis of specific tests is to be purged from the database. For the WVDLoginTest, the default interval is set to 32 days (i.e., just over a month), indicating that, by default, the detailed diagnosis of the WVDLoginTest is cleared from the database at the end of every month. Since critical thin client reports are generated based on the detailed diagnosis information, a Timeline that exceeds the duration set against WVDLoginTest would result in a report that displays invalid/no data. This duration however, is configurable. Similarly, you can also configure a MaxTimeline in the [misc] section of the eg_report.ini file. By default, this parameter is set to 168 (hours), indicating that the maximum Timeline for a thin client report is 1 week (i.e., 24 * 7 = 168 hours). Also, while creating user profiles using the eG administrative interface, an administrator can indicate the maximum timeline for which that user can generate reports, so as to avoid long running reports.
- Now, assume that you have set the WVDLoginTest parameter to 21 days (i.e., 3 weeks) and the MaxTimeline parameter to 336 hours (i.e., 2 weeks). Also, say that user john with access rights to eG Reporter has been configured to generate reports for a maximum timeline of 1 week. Therefore, whenever user john logs into eG Reporter and attempts to generate a thin client report, eG Enterprise compares the three values, picks the lowest of the three, and sets that value as the maximum Timeline for thin client reports. In our example, the maximum timeline settings of user john (i.e., 1 week) is the lowest Therefore, the maximum value that will be available for selection from the Fixed Timeline list box in the thin client report page will be 1 week.
- Note that this timeline restriction does not apply to fixed timeline settings alone. If a user chooses the Any option from the Timeline list and proceeds to provide a start date and end date for report generation using the From and To specifications, eG Enterprise will first check if the user's Timeline specification is equal to or below the lowest of the three values discussed above. If not, report generation will fail. For instance, for a user who is allowed to generate reports spanning over a maximum period of 3 days only, the difference between the From and To dates should never be over 3 days. If it is, then, upon clicking the Run Report button a message box will appear, prompting the user to change the From and To specification.
In addition to the settings discussed above, this report comes with a set of default specifications. These settings are hidden by default. If you do not want to disturb these default settings, then you can proceed to generate the report by clicking the Run Report button soon after you pick a User. However, if you want to view and then alter these settings (if required), click on the icon. The default settings will then appear in the MORE OPTIONS drop down window (see Figure 2). The steps below discuss each of these settings and how they can be customized.

Figure 2 : The default settings for generating the Sessions by Users report for AVD Host Pool
Specify the start time and end time for report generation against the Time period field (see Figure 2).

Note:

The default Time period to be displayed here can be configured using the consolidated reports page in the eG administrative interface; to access this page, follow the menu sequence: Settings -> Reporter -> Consolidated Reports. For more details regarding this page, refer to Consolidated Reports.
If the timeline specified for the report needs to exclude the data collected during the Weekends, then set Exclude weekends to Yes. If not, select No.

Note:

You can configure the days of the week that need to be considered as a ‘weekend’ using the consolidated reports page in the eG administrative interface; to access this page, follow the menu sequence: Settings -> Reporter -> Consolidated Reports. For more details regarding this page, refer to Consolidated Reports.
By default, the Show Resource Details flag is set to Yes indicating that the resource utilization of each user session will be reported by the generated report. If you do not wish to generate the resource utilization in this report, then set this flag to No.
In large environments, reports generated using months of data can take a long time to complete. Administrators now have the option of generating reports on-line or in the background. When a report is scheduled for background generation, administrators can proceed with their other monitoring, diagnosis, and reporting tasks, while the eG manager is processing the report. This saves the administrator valuable time. To schedule background processing of a report, you can either select the Background Save - PDF option or the Background Save - CSV option from the Report Generation list. In this case, a Report Name text box will appear, where you would have to provide the name with which the report is to be saved in the background. To process reports in the foreground, select the Foreground Generation - HTML option from this list.

Note:
- The Report Generation list will appear only if the EnableBackgroundReport flag in the [BACKGROUND_PROCESS] section of the eg_report.ini file (in the {EG_INSTALL_DIR}\manager\config directory) is set to Yes.
- The default selection in the Report Generation list will change according to the Timeline specified for the report. If the Timeline set is greater than or equal to the number of days specified against the MinDurationForReport parameter in the [BACKGROUND_PROCESS] section of the eg_report.ini file, then the default selection in the Report Generation list will be Background Save - PDF. On the other hand, if the Timeline set for the report is lesser than the value of the MinDurationForReport parameter, then the default selection in the Report Generation list will be Foreground. This is because, the MinDurationForReport setting governs when reports are to be processed in the background. By default, this parameter is set to 2 weeks - this indicates that by default, reports with a timeline of 2 weeks and above will be processed in the background.
Finally, click the Run Report button to generate the report.
If a specific user is chosen from the User list and the option chosen from the Report Generation list is Foreground Generation - HTML, then, a report depicted by Figure 3 will appear upon clicking the Run Report button.

Figure 3 : The User Session Details report
The report consists of a Summary section that displays the average and maximum duration for which the specified user accessed the host pools, and the values of the user-configured measures aggregated at the host pool-level. The session details section of the report displays the user-configured measures along with when and to which Microsoft AVD host pool the chosen user logged in and the duration of every access. Besides, this report displays the idle time for each user. Users who are not effectively using the AVD host pool resources made available to them can be identified in the process.
The Session Details section of the User Report will include a icon corresponding to each Host pool in the Session Details section. Click on the icon to view the detailed diagnosis of the resource (CPU and memory) utilization of the individual applications (see Figure 4) on the host pool.

Figure 4 : Detailed diagnosis of the resource utilization of applications
In addition to the above, this report also enables you to figure out how the user-configured measures displayed in the session details section performed during the period for which the user was accessing the host pool. To achieve this, just click on the value of the measure against CPU UTIL column in the session details section. A graph depicted by Figure 5 will then appear.

Figure 5 : The graph of a user-configured measure
Using the graph of Figure 5, administrators can determine whether the host pool has experienced any spikes in resource usage during the user access. If so, then, this could indicate that the user was performing resource-intensive activities on the Host pool, and could warrant a thorough investigation.
To view a graphical representation of the performance of certain key session related metrics such as login time, applications accessed, active/idle time, session start-up details, resource usage during the session, etc., you can click on the icon. Figure 6 then appears.

Figure 6 : The graphical representation of key metrics

Besides being visually appealing, the graphics also help rapidly detect problem areas.
On the other hand, if the Background Save - PDF option is chosen from the Report Generation list, then clicking on the Run Report button will not generate the report and display it in this page for your benefit. Instead, a message indicating that the report is being processed in the background will appear. This will be accompanied by a link that will lead you to the page that lists all the reports that are being processed in the background, and their current status. If background report generation fails for a report, you can regenerate that report using this page, or can even delete that report if need be. On the other hand, if background processing successfully completes for your report, then, you can view a PDF of the report by clicking on the icon in that page.

Note:

To configure the details that need to appear in the Summary and Session details section of the report, edit the [CITRIX_user_report] section of the eg_report.ini file in the <eG_Install_Dir>\manager\config directory. For example, you can specify the following in the above-mentioned section:

[CITRIX_USER_ACTIVITY_REPORT]
WVD_RDS_server:WVDUserTest:Cpu_util#Cpu util=Avg
WVD_RDS_server:WVDUserTest:Mem_util#Memory util=Avg
WVD_RDS_server:WVDUserTest:IO_reads#IO Reads=Avg
WVD_RDS_server:WVDUserTest:IO_writes#IO Writes=Avg

From the above example, the following format can be inferred for the measure specification.

Before proceeding with the configuration, determine the internal component-type, test, and measure names that you intend using in your measure specification, using the procedure discussed in Top - N Analysis Report .

Accordingly, in the first line of the example above:

WVD_RDS_server is the <InternalComponentType>
WVDUserTest is the <InternalTest>
Cpu_util is the <InternalMeasure>
CPU usage of user processes is the <Display name of Cpu_util>

Note:

If a display name is not provided for a measure, then the actual measure name will automatically become the display name.
Avg and Max are the functions that will be executed on the value of the Cpu_util measure.

Note:

By default, the Summary section will display only the average (Avg) values of the configured measures. However, if specific function names are provided in the [citrix USER_REPORT] section in the format discussed above, then such a specification will override the default setting.