{"id":66885,"date":"2025-08-14T09:00:37","date_gmt":"2025-08-14T07:00:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/?p=66885"},"modified":"2026-04-29T12:13:26","modified_gmt":"2026-04-29T10:13:26","slug":"optimizing-persistent-vdi-with-app-volumes-and-fslogix","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/en\/optimizing-persistent-vdi-with-app-volumes-and-fslogix\/","title":{"rendered":"Optimizing Persistent VDI with App Volumes and FSLogix"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-66895 size-full\" title=\"optimizing-persistent-vdi-with-app-volumes-and-fslogix-01\" src=\"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/optimizing-persistent-vdi-with-app-volumes-and-fslogix-01.jpg\" alt=\"optimizing-persistent-vdi-with-app-volumes-and-fslogix-01\" width=\"602\" height=\"202\" \/><\/p>\n<p>When using <a href=\"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/en\/vmware-horizon-7-instant-clone-setup\/\">Omnissa Horizon Instant Clones<\/a>, it's often necessary to have a persistent VDI to <strong>save user data and settings between sessions<\/strong>, as the clones are non-persistent by default.<\/p>\n<p>To create this persistent area, you can choose between two main solutions: <!--more--><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/en\/vmware-app-volumes-4-installation-pt-1\/\">Omnissa App Volumes<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/en\/fslogix-configuration-in-vmware-horizon\/\">FSLogix<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In a VDI environment, FSLogix is the better choice for user profiles, especially when <a href=\"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/en\/veeam-backup-for-microsoft-365-v8-installation-pt-1\/\">Microsoft 365<\/a> is the most used solution. Omnissa App Volumes, on the other hand, is also a great solution for application delivery.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Omnissa App Volumes<\/h2>\n<p>This solution provides two main features.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h4>Writable Volumes<\/h4>\n<p>Writable Volumes are the Omnissa solution to provide persistent VDI used to <strong>capture user-installed applications and user profile data<\/strong>. A Writable Volume consists in a virtual disk that is <strong>assigned to a specific user<\/strong> and attach to their virtual desktop when they log in.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-66897\" src=\"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/optimizing-persistent-vdi-with-app-volumes-and-fslogix-02-600x478.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"478\" title=\"\"><\/p>\n<p>Any changes made by the user, such as installing an application, modifying a registry setting, or saving data to specific locations, are <strong>written to their Writable Volume<\/strong>, not to the base VM image.<\/p>\n<p>When the user logs out, the VM is reset to its original state, but the Writable Volume is <strong>detached and saved<\/strong>. The next time the user logs in, the Writable Volume is reattached, and their changes and installed applications are available again.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>AppStacks<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>AppStack is an application delivery and lifecycle management solution that <strong>separates applications from the base OS<\/strong> and delivers them to a VM as virtual disks.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-66899\" src=\"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/optimizing-persistent-vdi-with-app-volumes-and-fslogix-03-600x525.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"525\" title=\"\"><\/p>\n<p>An AppStack is a <strong>read-only virtual disk<\/strong> that contains one or more applications that are never modified by the end-user. This ensures that the applications within the AppStack <strong>remain in a original state<\/strong> and this design is crucial for consistency and easy rollbacks.<\/p>\n<p>Any user-specific data or settings are <strong>managed separately<\/strong>, typically through a Writable Volume.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>FSLogix<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/learn.microsoft.com\/en-us\/fslogix\/overview-what-is-fslogix\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">FSLogix<\/a> is a Microsoft tool designed to <strong>manage user profiles<\/strong> in virtualized environments, thereby providing persistent VDI capability.<\/p>\n<p>FSLogix places the entire user profile in a <strong>VHDX file on a network share<\/strong>. When a user logs in, the VHDX is <strong>dynamically attached<\/strong> to the virtual machine, making the profile appear as if it were a local profile. This approach solves many of the problems associated with traditional roaming profiles, performance in prims since the profile is <strong>mounted almost instantly<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-66901\" src=\"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/optimizing-persistent-vdi-with-app-volumes-and-fslogix-04-600x233.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"233\" title=\"\"><\/p>\n<p>FSLogix captures the entire user profile, including registry settings, application data, and the crucial <strong>Office 365 cache data<\/strong> (Outlook OST e OneDrive cache). Entering the credentials at every VDI session is no longer required since they are stored within FSLogix.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Combining the two for a complete solution<\/h2>\n<p>Although not strictly required, for a <strong>robust and persistent VDI environment<\/strong>\u00a0you can use both FSLogix and <a href=\"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/en\/app-volumes-create-and-size-a-new-writable-template\/\">Omnissa App Volumes<\/a> together.<\/p>\n<p>This combination <strong>provides a powerful benefit<\/strong> to your VDI environment:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>FSLogix <strong>handles the user profile<\/strong>, ensuring a consistent and high-performance user experience.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/omnissa-horizon-2503-guida-upgrade-app-volumes-manager-pt-1\/\">App Volumes<\/a> <strong>delivers applications<\/strong> on-demand, reducing image sprawl and simplifying application management.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Even if Omnissa App Volumes is a powerful tool that can be <strong>used on its own<\/strong>, the hybrid approach allows you to leverage the <strong>strengths of each product<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Which solution should we deploy?<\/h2>\n<p>Before deploying these solutions to enable persistent VDI, you should <strong>consider some key factors<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-66903\" src=\"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/optimizing-persistent-vdi-with-app-volumes-and-fslogix-05.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"509\" height=\"259\" title=\"\"><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h4>Business requirements<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>If your infrastructure uses <a href=\"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/en\/configure-postgresql-database-for-horizon-8-events\/\">Omnissa Horizon<\/a>, App Volumes is often the natural choice for providing persistent VDI. It provides an <strong>integrated platform<\/strong> for managing applications and user-specific data (Writable Volumes) within the Horizon environment.<\/li>\n<li>If your virtual desktops are used primarily for <strong>Microsoft 365 products<\/strong> (e.g., Outlook, Teams, OneDrive), FSLogix is the solution to consider. It is specifically optimized for <strong>handling the large profile data<\/strong> generated by these applications.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h4>Licensing<\/h4>\n<p>Neither solution is free and both solutions require a license.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Omnissa App Volumes<\/strong> is licensed on a per-user or per-concurrent connection basis and is included with the <strong>Horizon Enterprise Edition<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>FSLogix<\/strong> is included with a variety of Microsoft licenses, such as Microsoft 365 E3\/E5, Business, F1\/F3, and others. It's crucial to verify your <a href=\"https:\/\/learn.microsoft.com\/en-us\/fslogix\/overview-prerequisites\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">specific licensing<\/a> to ensure compliance.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h4>VDI environment<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>If your infrastructure uses full clones, a persistent VDI solution <strong>may not be necessary<\/strong>, as the user's changes are already saved on the dedicated, persistent VM. Solutions like App Volumes and FSLogix are typically most impactful in non-persistent VDI environments.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Every project requires <strong>careful analysis and consideration<\/strong>. There is no single best solution, it is the one that <strong>best aligns<\/strong> with your specific business and technical requirements.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" title=\"signature\" src=\"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/images\/firma.jpg\" alt=\"signature\" \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When using Omnissa Horizon Instant Clones, it's often necessary to have a persistent VDI to save user data and settings between sessions, as the clones are non-persistent by default. To create this persistent area, you can choose between two main solutions:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":66895,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"no","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"linkedin_93tdZWzMZc_93tdZWzMZc":"","facebook_2879994398731222_17841400390232720":"","twitter_113568041_113568041":"","mastodon_115463926174894442_115463926174894442":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[{"account":"facebook_2879994398731222_234218296615646","service":"facebook","timestamp":1756882923,"status":"success"},{"account":"twitter_113568041_113568041","service":"twitter","timestamp":1756882956,"status":"success"},{"account":"linkedin_93tdZWzMZc_93tdZWzMZc","service":"linkedin","timestamp":1756883011,"status":"success"}],"rop_publish_now_status":"done","footnotes":""},"categories":[3101,2905],"tags":[2316,2759,2895,3002,2239],"class_list":["post-66885","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-app-volumes-en","category-omnissa-en","tag-app-volumes","tag-fslogix","tag-omnissa","tag-persistent","tag-vdi-en","has_thumb"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66885","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=66885"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66885\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/66895"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=66885"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=66885"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nolabnoparty.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=66885"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}