Monitoring and Analyzing Horizon 8 Events: A Comprehensive Guide

[Ramesh V]

In the dynamic landscape of virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI), the ability to monitor and analyse events is crucial for maintaining the performance, security, and efficiency of your VMware Horizon environment. This blog post will delve into the intricacies of monitoring and analysing Horizon events, providing you with the knowledge to effectively manage your Horizon 8 VDI deployment.

Understanding Horizon Events

Horizon events encompass a wide range of activities within your VDI environment, including end-user actions, administrator tasks, system failures, errors, and statistical data. These events are recorded in a dedicated event database, which can be hosted on Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle, or PostgreSQL.

Configuring the Event Database

Before you can start monitoring and analysing events, you must configure the event database. This involves setting up the database according to the specifications outlined in the Horizon 8 Installation and Upgrade document. It's important to note that while VMware Horizon manages the growth of the event and event_data tables, you are responsible for implementing a space management policy for the event_historical and event_data_historical tables.

Monitoring Events in Horizon Console

The Horizon Console is your central hub for monitoring events. By navigating to Monitor > Events, you can view a list of events, set options, filter events, and sort them by various criteria. The console allows you to select the maximum number of events to retrieve and choose whether to display time in UTC.

Event Types and Severities

Horizon events are categorised into different types and severities. The types include Audit Success, Audit Failure, Error, Information, and Warning. Each event is accompanied by a severity level that indicates the impact or importance of the event.

Analysing Events with Reporting Tools

For in-depth analysis, you can use business intelligence reporting engines or database reporting tools to examine events in the database tables. These tools allow you to access and analyse event data, providing insights into the operations and health of your Horizon environment.

Generating Event Log Messages in Syslog Format

For integration with third-party analytics software, you can configure Horizon to generate event log messages in Syslog format. This is achieved using the vdmadmin command with the -I option, which records event messages in event log files that can be used as input for analytics operations.

Monitoring Components and Troubleshooting

The Horizon Console dashboard provides a quick overview of the status of various components in your deployment. Additionally, the VMware Logon Monitor can be used to monitor Windows user logons and report performance metrics, aiding in troubleshooting slow logon performance.

Best Practices for Event Management

• Regularly review events to identify patterns or anomalies that may indicate underlying issues.

• Use filters effectively to focus on specific types of events or time frames.

• Implement a robust backup and retention policy for event data to ensure compliance and facilitate historical analysis.

• Leverage the Horizon Help Desk Tool and VMware Logon Monitor for real-time monitoring and troubleshooting.

Conclusion

Monitoring and analysing Horizon events is an essential aspect of managing a VDI environment. By following the guidelines outlined in this blog post, you can ensure that your Horizon deployment operates smoothly, providing users with a seamless experience while maintaining the highest levels of security and performance. Remember, the key to successful event management lies in proactive monitoring, thorough analysis, and timely intervention.