ThinLinc 4.5.0 Release Notes

Introduction

A new ThinLinc release is finally here, version 4.5.0. It includes more than 50 enhancements. The most prominent features are:

  • Better audio handling for disconnect clients, or clients without audio support.
  • Forced re-authentication for browsers that "restore" closed pages.
  • Solaris is no longer a supported client or server platform.
  • Tools for integrating Linux with Novell servers are no longer included.

Changes in This Release

In the list below, the bug number is given in parentheses. For more information, visit https://www.cendio.com/bugzilla/.

Server

  • ThinLinc works on most modern Linux distributions. We recommend that you deploy ThinLinc on one of these tested platforms:

    • Red Hat (R) Enterprise Linux Server 7
    • SUSE (R) Linux Enterprise Server 12
    • Ubuntu Desktop (R) 14.04 (64-bit)

    Please note that ThinLinc is supported on any platform that fulfills our documented requirements. This includes Oracle (R) Linux 7, Linux Mint (R) 17, and Debian (R) 7.0.

  • Automatic installation of dependencies is now working again on Red Hat (R) Enterprise Linux Server 6. (5514)

  • Multiple problems have been fixed that could cause the session to terminate unexpectedly. (5492, 5571)

  • The session will now longer be resized to 1920x1200 on login with modern desktop environments such as Gnome or KDE. (5600)

  • Several security issues have been fixed in the X server's font parser. An attack requires authenticated access to the X server so the security implications are in most cases mild to non-existent. Users are still encouraged to upgrade to the latest version of ThinLinc. (5602)

  • Removal of old session directories is now handled slightly different in order to avoid certain problems. Directories belonging to terminated sessions will have a longer name as a result of this change. (4699)

  • The session database is now written to disk in a more efficient manner in order to avoid overloading vsmserver when many sessions terminate at the same time. (5451)

General

  • Oracle Solaris (R) is no longer a supported platform for neither the server nor the client. Previous versions of ThinLinc will continue to be supported on this platform up until three years after their release. Users are however encouraged to migrate to Linux and current versions of ThinLinc as soon as possible. (3614)

Native Client

  • It is now possible to minimize the native client directly from the context menu. (3955)
  • A recent update to OS X' Gatekeeper caused it to fail to verify the ThinLinc client's signature. The client has now been adjusted to be compatible with these new requirements. (5625)
  • Gatekeeper in OS X 10.11 will now only ask once to trust the ThinLinc client after downloading it instead of every time it is opened. Older versions of OS X already behaved the correct way. (5690)
  • The native client now uses less CPU on OS X, giving some improvement to performance when CPU power has been the limiting factor. (5570)
  • Global configuration is now supported on OS X, allowing system wide settings to be deployed for the client. (5659)

HTML5 Client

  • The HTML5 client now has basic support for multiple sessions. (5455)
  • Many browsers retain complete information about a page even after the tab or the entire browser has closed. This can allow a ThinLinc session to be resumed without the user logging in again. The HTML5 client has now been changed to force users to log in again under these circumstances. (5607)
  • Passwords of certain lengths caused authentication to stall and eventually fail. This issue has now been fixed and all passwords should be accepted. (5654)
  • Panning the screen no longer causes the screen contents to become blurry and unclear. (5515)

Audio Redirection

  • Parts of the audio redirection are now handled server side, in each session. This avoids problems with programs such as Metacity that misbehave when no client is connected, or when audio redirection is disabled in the client. (4194)

Novell Integration

  • ThinLinc no longer includes tools for integrating with a Novell infrastructure. Users should rely on the tools provided by their Linux distribution, or on tools provided by Novell. (4627)

Corrected Issues

ThinLinc has also been enhanced in many other ways. The complete list of corrected issues is:

3614, 3955, 4194, 4339, 4410, 4413, 4414, 4627, 4699, 4793, 4960,
5110, 5235, 5420, 5430, 5451, 5455, 5456, 5468, 5470, 5492, 5502,
5507, 5514, 5515, 5530, 5531, 5539, 5545, 5559, 5563, 5569, 5570,
5571, 5578, 5582, 5583, 5589, 5600, 5602, 5603, 5607, 5608, 5612,
5620, 5625, 5626, 5627, 5632, 5654, 5655, 5656, 5659, 5690
Debian (R) is a registered trademark of Software in the Public Interest, Inc.
Linux (R) is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds.
Linux Mint (R) is a trademark of Linux Mark Institute.
NetWare (R) and Novell (R) are registered trademarks of Novell, Inc.
Oracle (R) is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation.
OS X (R) is a registered trademark of Apple Computer, Inc.
Red Hat (R) is a registered trademark of Red Hat, Inc.
SUSE (R) is a registered trademark of SUSE LLC.
ThinLinc (R) is a registered trademark of Cendio AB.
Ubuntu (R) is a registered trademark of Canonical Ltd.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • ThinLinc is packaged in subscriptions with a tiered pricing system. A higher number of subscriptions will give a lower price. The subscriptions can be purchased for different periods, 12, 36 and 60 month. A longer duration will give a greater price. The payment of the subscriptions is done in advance.

    The default rule is that the prices are set in accordance with the number of subscriptions that are purchased at the actual call off. Deviation from this can be eventually agreed if a roll-out plan can be committed in advance.

  • Every valid ThinLinc Subscription Agreement has a specific ID. Contact Cendio at support@cendio.com and refer to your ID, and we will issue new user licenses for you.

  • Contact Cendio support team at support@cendio.com. And refer to your ThinLinc Subscription ID in your support request.

  • We will set up an evaluation account that gives the permission to receive support directly from our technical team. Cendio can also provide trial licenses for more than 10 users. Please contact sales@cendio.com directly.

  • Cendio wants to sponsor organizations where the business aims to make the world better. This means to help people, regions etc. that really need help. Please contact us a sales@cendio.com.

  • Cendio offers a non-profit discount for organizations that fall under the definitions that can be found at the https://www.cendio.com/thinlinc/shop/non-profit-organization/. Please contact us at sales@cendio.com for pricing. 

  • Cendio will, in good time before expiration of the ThinLinc Subscriptions Agreement, send a reminder by email. The renewal process will follow the same routines that are used in a new or additional purchase.

  • Other set-ups are possible for bigger deals. Contact sales@cendio.com.

  • Purchases can be done directly via invoice, web shop or by a reseller. Cendio is a Swedish and EU company with long experience from doing business with foreign organizations. If you have any questions or need support, please contact us at sales@cendio.com

     

  • Best functionality and performance will always be achieved by upgrading to the latest version, both on the server and client-side. A newer version on the client-side will always give a better user experience than a former version. Cendio’s ambition is to keep good compatibility and functionality between the different versions. Historically, good compatibility between versions has been 3-5 years.

  • A ThinLinc set-up consists of a server software, client software and user licenses.

    Server software

    The server software is the heart of ThinLinc installation and handles all sessions, desktop environments and generates the virtual desktop, workspace etc.

    User licenses

    To allow more than 10 sessions to connect access to the server software, user licenses need to be added into the server software. User licenses are bought from Cendio. Please note, when placing user licenses into the ThinLinc server, the counting starts from 0, not 10. In concrete, this means that you need to buy and install the number of user licenses that you need.

    Client software

    The client software is installed on the device that is used to connect to the server and provision the virtual desktop / workspace. If using the web access client, no local installation of client software is needed, the provisioning is generated via the web browser that is installed at the server.

  • It’s up to the licensee to decide who can connect into the server installation. The ThinLinc client software is free of charge and can be downloaded by everyone.

  • The licensing is per organization. There is no limitation on how the ThinLinc user licenses are distributed in the legal organization, as long as the number of consumed licenses don’t exceed the number of paid licenses. It’s allowed to move the user licenses, but not copy.

  • The license use can be seen in the status module, how to manage can be found at https://www.cendio.com/resources/docs/tag/tlwebadm_status.html#tlwebadm-status . ThinLinc will notify you when the limit of licenses has been reached, for detailed information see, https://www.cendio.com/resources/docs/tag/licensehandling.html?highlight=soft

  • Both the ThinLinc server and client software are free to distribute. The user licenses are connected to a purchase and are not allowed to distribute. For more detailed information, see https://www.cendio.com/thinlinc/docs/legal/eula

  • A specific version of ThinLinc is supported 3 years from release date. After 3 years, Cendio can’t guarantee support.

  • The number of user licenses that will be delivered will be in accordance with the number of subscriptions that have been acquired by the customer. The user licenses are perpetual.

  • When adding user licenses into the ThinLinc server, the counting will start from zero. So if you require 200 users, you need to have 200 user licenses

  • You need to buy user licenses and install them in the ThinLinc server. The user licenses are received through buying ThinLinc subscriptions.

  • It’s easy to add new users into a current ThinLinc set-up. By purchasing additional subscriptions into your agreement, so will we issue additional user licenses.

  • Cendio will, after receiving a valid order, distribute user licenses via email for the latest version after a purchase. If the purchase is a renewal and the customers have already received the latest version, no user licenses will be delivered by default, updated licenses will be delivered on request in this case.

  • It’s possible to merge existing agreements. When doing a merge, the period shall be at least 12 months.

  • The default rule is that the prices are set in accordance with the number of subscriptions that are purchased at the actual call off. Deviation from this can be eventually agreed if a roll-out plan can be committed in advance.

  • The client software packages are free of charge.

  • The ThinLinc license is perpetual and will still work after the expiry date of the ThinLinc subscriptions.

     

  • Both as an individual and as an organization, it is not allowed to use the free version of ThinLinc if you have valid user licenses.

  • ThinLinc is free to use for up to 10 concurrent users for both individuals and organizations (on a group basis).

  • ThinLinc Subscriptions give the possibility to run more than 10 concurrent users per ThinLinc installation. It also gives technical support directly from Cendio and the right to get upgrades (new versions) for ThinLinc.

  • ThinLinc Premium Subscription gives prioritized answers, faster response time, and direct access to our qualified technical support via telephone service.

  • The free version of ThinLinc is limited to 10 concurrent users and is supported via the ThinLinc Community. The commercial version of ThinLinc is packaged in a so-called subscription and can be scaled for more than 10 users. The subscriptions also give the right to get professional support in ThinLinc directly from the Cendio technical team.

  • ThinLinc is free to use up to 10 users at the same time per individual or organization worldwide, without any obligations. The usage can be 10 installations with one user per each or one installation with 10 users. What matters is that the 10 users aren’t exceeded.

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