Troubleshooting virtualized application could be a nightmarish experience if we don’t understand the usage of sfttray.exe
sfttray.exe comes in very handy to access the access the asset directory (Q Drive) in fact, that is the only way to get access into Q:
The below command is the way we do it
Sfttray /exe cmd “OSD"
Upon executing the above command, a new command (cmd) window opens which has access to the bubble (asset directory)
In the new command window, type
Explorer Q:
You will see a folder with a lock symbol on it meaning you can open it for troubleshooting purpose.
In the new command window, type
taskmgr
to see any services your application has. Needless to say you will have to move to the "services" tab
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There are two ways you can sequence an application. They are Mount point installation and VFS Installation. As a sequence engineer it is essential to be aware of the differences between the two types of install.
Mount Point Installation
Installing an application to a folder in Mount point is considered to be an efficient way of sequencing application. A deeper look at the scanning operation performed during the sequencing operation would help us better comprehend the advantages of mount point installation.
· More Efficient
As the application is installed to a mount point (Q:\), only required files are monitored by the sequencer. The tax on the sequencer to scan the entire C:\ is hugely removed in this case there by making it easily the efficient way to sequence an application.
VFS Installation
Nonetheless, there are applications which refuse to install to a location other than C:\ (Virtual File System). Under these circumstances, the entire hard disk is scanned for system changes, making it much slower than mount point installation. Also, scanning the entire hard disk for changes would result in capturing files that are not actually used by the application.
From the above points, it is evidently visible that Mount point installation is the preferred method to sequence an application compared to VFS installation
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Issue
Upon sequencing “Avaya Visibility Suite Management”, though the OSD would have a definition for the environment variables, the virtualized app fails with a message saying “Unable to find J2RE_BIN”.
Solution
To overcome this error, define the environment variables through the registry tab in HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Environment
Visually, this is how we do it
Reason for the failure
The specific reason why this application fails narrows down to badly written code which forces the application to look for the environment variables at system level.
The same issue is seen "Avaya Site Administrator 4.0" and can be fixed using the mechanism described above
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SequenThere is a stark difference between String and Multi string values in the registry table. Beyond a shadow of doubt it is comprehendible that they cannot be interchanged. To identify the multi string values in registry look out for [~] values. These values cannot be changed under any circumstances as doing so would result in a launch failure or break the functionality of the application.
Lets take a deeper look into this with an example of Business Objects
Business Objects
While sequencing Business Objects applications, it is absolutely essential to retain the registry data as it is for the reason that the application has lots multi string values and the functionality is dependent on these values.
While installing the application to a mount point (Q:) registry references should be updated accordingly. Business Objects, in this case, has registry data reading as “[ProgramFilesFolder]Business Objects[~]Data” so on and so forth. To get your virtual app working find and replace the above value with [INSTALLDIR][~]Data. Failing to do so would result in an incomprehensible error message
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Before sequencing any application, it is a very good practice to explore the source (most probably msi) to better comprehend the structure of installation of the files and registries and INI files as well.
For Instance, by default, “CSIDL_PERSONAL” is excluded during the sequencing phase, meaning files installed to this location are never monitored.
Consider the below scenario, you try to sequence an application and deploy the same to App-V client enabled PC. You realize that shortcut doesn’t launch as it is supposed to (Worst case, you see an App-V related error i.e “Path not Found” etc)
Best Place to start investigating the issue would be
1. Check the Location of the executable and make sure that it’s not listed in “Exclusion List”. To view the default exclusion list, Goto Tools -> Options -> Exclusion List.
2. Check if the directory containing the executable is not listed in the exclusion list. If yes, you will have to re-sequence the application after removing the entry from the exclusion list.
Best Practice
Goto Tools -> Options -> Exclusion List,
Remove entries like “CSIDL_PERSONAL”, “CSIDL_LOCAL_APPDATA” and other pertinent entries and save it as default. Click “Apply” and close the sequencer and Open it again for sequencing. This setting will ensure that files installed to those respective locations would be captured during the sequencing process
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