Writable App Volumes Test

With Writable Volumes, you can configure per-user volumes where users can install and configure their own applications and keep data that is specific to their profile. A Writable Volume is assigned to a specific user and becomes available to the user from any machine. A Writable Volume is an empty VMDK or VHD file that you assign to a specific user. It mounts to the VM when the user authenticates to the desktop. You can attach only one Writable Volume at a time per-user per OS. Any settings that the user applies to an application are stored in the writable volume

A writable volume can contain the following data:

  • Application settings
  • Licensing information
  • Configuration files
  • User-installed apps

Using VMware App Volumes Manager, you can create, import, edit, expand, and disable Writable Volumes.

The writable volumes feature does not provide a user environment management (UEM) solution. Writable volumes complement UEM solutions, which can manage data within writable volumes at a more granular level and provide contextual rules to enforce policy based on different conditions or events.

You can assign Writable Volumes to a user, group, computer, or organizational unit (OU). When a Writable Volume is created for a user, it is assigned to the user immediately. When the volume is assigned to a group, it is created when a user belonging to the assigned group logs in to the machine. A user can have more than one Writable Volume attached at the same time if the volume is OS-specific, or created for a computer with a specific prefix.

If a Writable Volume assigned to a user or a computer does not attach properly or if an assigned volume is running out of space, users may experience errors and hence, they may have to restart their sessions. If such errors are noticed frequently by the users, then the user experience may suffer and may leave the users frustrated. Therefore, it is important to monitor the state of writable volumes at all times. This can be achieved by the Writable App Volumes test!

This test auto-discovers the writable volumes created on the target VMware App Volumes Manager and for each writable volume, reports if the writable volume is attached to the user or disabled. Besides, this test also reports the space utilization of each writable volume. Using this test, administrators can figure out the writable volumes that are not attached to the user and also isolate the writable volumes that are experiencing space crunch. By analyzing the measures reported by this test carefully, administrators can investigate the reason behind the non-attachment of the writable volumes and initiate remedial measures before users start complaining.

Target of the test : A VMware App Volumes Server

gent deploying the test : An internal/remote agent

Outputs of the test : One set of results for each writable volume created on the target VMware App Volumes Manager being monitored

Configurable parameters for the test
Parameter Description

Test Period

How often should the test be executed.

Host

The host for which the test is to be configured.

Port

The port at which the specified Host listens to. By default, this is set to 3443.

AppVol User

By default, the eG agent uses the RESTful APIs to collect the metrics from the target VMware App Volumes Manager. To be able to connect to the RESTful API, the eG agent should be configured with the credentials of a user belonging to an active directory group that is vested with the Administrators (Read only) rights. Specify the credentials of such a user in this text box. To know how to assign the Administrators (Read only) role to an active directory group, refer to Enabling the Administrators (Read only) role.

AppVol Password

Specify the password that corresponds to the AppVol User.

Confirm Password

Confirm the password by retyping it here.

WebPort

By default, in most virtualized environments, the VMware App Volumes Manager listens on port 80 (if not SSL-enabled) or on port 3443 (if SSL-enabled). This implies that while monitoring an SSL-enabled VMware App Volumes Manager directly, the eG agent, by default, connects to port 3443 of the VMware App Volumes Manager to pull out metrics, and while monitoring a non-SSL-enabled server, the eG agent connects to port 80. Accordingly, the WebPort parameter is set to 80 or 3443 depending upon the status of the SSL flag. In some environments however, the default ports 80 or 3443 might not apply. In such a case, against the WebPort parameter, you can specify the exact port at which the VMware App Volumes Manager in your environment listens so that the eG agent communicates with that port.

SSL

Set the SSL flag to Yes, if SSL (Secured Socket Layer) is to be used to connect to the target VMware App Volumes Manager, and No if it is not.

Report Detached Users

By default, this flag is set to No indicating that the test will not report metrics for the writable volumes that are detached from the users . However, if you wish this test to report metrics for the writable volumes that are detached from the users, then set this flag to Yes.

Detailed Diagnosis

To make diagnosis more efficient and accurate, the eG Enterprise embeds an optional detailed diagnostic capability. With this capability, the eG agents can be configured to run detailed, more elaborate tests as and when specific problems are detected. To enable the detailed diagnosis capability of this test for a particular server, choose the On option. To disable the capability, click on the Off option.

The option to selectively enable/disable the detailed diagnosis capability will be available only if the following conditions are fulfilled:

  • The eG manager license should allow the detailed diagnosis capability
  • Both the normal and abnormal frequencies configured for the detailed diagnosis measures should not be 0.
Measurements made by the test
Measurement Description Measurement Unit Interpretation

State

Indicates whether this writable volume is attached to the user.

 

The values reported by this measure and its numeric equivalents are mentioned in the table below:

Measure value Numeric Value
Detached 0
Attached 1

Note:

By default, this measure reports the Measure Values listed in the table above to indicate whether the writable volume is attached to the user. The graph of this measure however, is represented using the numeric equivalents only i.e., 0 or 1.

Total storage space

Indicates the total amount of storage space allocated to this writable volume.

MB

 

Used space

Indicates the amount of storage space already utilized by this writable volume.

MB

If the value of this measure is close to that of the Total storage space measure, it indicates potential space crunch in the writable volume. Administrators may increase the size of the writable volume so that the space utilization of the writable volume is optimal.

Free space

Indicates the amount of space that is available for use in this writable volume.

MB

If the value of this measure is alarmingly decreasing, then it indicates that the writable volume is currently running out of space.

Percent free space

Indicates the percentage of space that is available for use in this writable volume.

Percent

A low value is desired for this measure.  

A high value for this measure indicates that the volume is running out of space.

Mounted

Indicates the number of times a user logged into this writable volume.

Number

 

Status

Indicates the current status of this writable volume.

 

The values reported by this measure and its numeric equivalents are mentioned in the table below:

Measure value Numeric Value
Disabled 0
Enabled 1

Note:

By default, this measure reports the Measure Values listed in the table above to indicate the current status of this writable volume. The graph of this measure however, is represented using the numeric equivalents only i.e., 0 or 1.