Dell ThinOS 2402 Administrator’s Guide

Keyboard layout synchronization in VDA

In Citrix Workspace app, the Keyboard Dynamic synchronization mode functions differently on a Linux client from a Windows client. In general, on a Linux client, the keyboard output follows the client keyboard layout, which is different from the Windows VDA layout. If a Linux client keyboard is synchronized to a Windows VDA, users may observe unpredictable keyboard output. Also, in dynamic synchronization mode, Citrix Workspace app for Linux does not support VDA users to switch the keyboard layout inside a VDA session.

In the server default mode, both Linux and Windows use the session (VDA) side keyboard layout with predictable output. You can configure the keyboard layout mode using either Wyse Management Suite or Admin Policy Tool. The keyboard layout that you select on the thin client is not automatically synchronized in the VDA session. ThinOS supports the server default mode that enables VDA users to select or switch the keyboard layout inside the VDA session using the Windows Input Method Editor (IME) language bar. For other modes such as Specific keyboard, Client Setting, or Dynamic Sync, there can be unpredictable mismatch in the keyboard output if you switch the keyboard layout in VDA. This is because the Citrix Workspace app Linux keyboard sync mode does not support switching the layout in VDA.

As a VDA administrator, you must configure the VDA desktop with the required keyboard language layout options. The IME language bar must be enabled on the Windows lock screen. The VDA user can select the appropriate keyboard language layout on the Windows lock screen.

In scenarios such as opening a new application in a VDA session, locking, or unlocking the VDA session, the keyboard layout falls back to the VDA default layout. For example, EN_US. This is a known issue for a Linux client in the server default mode.

You can customize VDA registry settings for a consistent keyboard layout in the VDA session.

• For a desktop operating system VDA, the feature is enabled by default.
• For a server operating system VDA, you can enable the feature using the system registry.
  1. In the system registry of VDA, go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Keyboard Layout.
  2. Create a DWORD entry IgnoreRemoteKeyboardLayout=1.

     By default, the IgnoreRemoteKeyboardLayout entry is unavailable. The default keyboard is set to ENG, irrespective of the Control Panel setting.

     For example, open an application, lock, or unlock the session, the keyboard is set to ENG. To resolve this issue, ensure that you set IgnoreRemoteKeyboardLayout=1.

For information about the Keyboard Layout Modes and Keyboard Layout rules in Citrix Workspace app, see the Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops keyboard and IME configurations article at www.citrix.com/blogs.

VDA settings for Server Default mode

When set to server default mode, the keyboard layout falls back to the VDA default layout. For example, EN_US. This issue can be related to Citrix Workspace app or Windows server operating system 2016 and 2019. All workarounds may require you to modify registry keys on the server side. For more information about workarounds, see the Citrix articles CTX269153 and CTX223316 at support.citrix.com. If you do not want to modify registry keys, contact the Citrix support team or the Microsoft support team.