How to use Bloomberg Keyboard via PCoIP Audio with Horizon View

How to use Bloomberg Keyboard via PCoIP Audio with Horizon View

How to use the Bloomberg Keyboard via PCoIP Audio with Horizon View

Benefits over USB Redirection

Redirecting the Bloomberg Keyboard in View 4.6 to 5.0 had limitations and drawbacks.  USB Redirection was the only option available and the audio was very bandwidth inefficient.  Unfortunately it was required in order for the Message Key to function.  The keyboard also had a maximum latency of 25ms between Client and VM, at which point the audio would start stuttering.

This configuration splits the Bloomberg Keyboard Audio device so that the audio is handled via PCoIP Audio Redirection while the Message Key functions via USB Redirection. This drastically reduces network bandwidth usage while audio is played.  It also allows the keyboard to be fully functional up to 75ms latency between Client and VM, at which point the fingerprint reader becomes slow enough that it is difficult to get a fingerprint read before the Bloomberg App times out waiting for it.

Tested Configuration

This configuration should work with Bloomberg Keyboards and Horizon View 5.1 or higher, however I only tested this on the following:

  • Horizon View Connection Manager 5.2
  • Horizon View Client 5.3
  • Horizon View Agent 5.2.1
  • Bloomberg Keyboard FRE100
  • Windows 7 SP1 VM
  • Windows Embedded Standard Client
  • Windows Embedded Standard 7 Client

How to Configure

  1. Install the Bloomberg Keyboard Driver on the client and confirm the keyboard is functional from the client side.
  2. Add the VMware View Client Configuration ADM Template to the client.
  3. In Administrative Templates for VMware View Client Configuration\View USB Configuration:
    1. Split Vid/Pid Device = Enabled
      Add vid-1188_pid-03ef(exintf:00;exintf:01;exintf:02)
      This splits the Bloomberg Keyboard Audio device.  This composite device has 4 interfaces. 00=Audio, 01=Audio Out, 02 = Audio In, 03=HID Device (Message Key).  We want to exclude all three audio interfaces so they are handled by PCoIP and redirect only interface 03 (the Message Key) via USB Redirection.
    2. Include Vid/Pid Device = Enabled
      Add vid-1188_pid-03e9;vid-1188_pid-03ef
      Both of these Vid/Pid devices (Biometric Fingerprint Reader and Bloomberg Keyboard Audio) contain HID devices which are excluded from redirection by default.  We must specifically include them for redirection.
  4. Add Registry Key to Client:
    HKLM\Software\Policies\VMware, Inc.\VMware VDM\Client\USB
    AllowDevDescFailsafe [REG_SZ] = True
    This allows devices to be redirected even if the View client fails to get the config/device descriptors.  This happens with the Bloomberg Keyboard and this key must be set for it to be redirected.
  5. Insure that "Bloomberg Keyboard Audio" is the default audio device on the client.


Temporary workaround for VMware & Bloomberg bugs that causes the Message Key to be unresponsive

At the time of this writing this configuration is impacted by VMware & Bloomberg bugs which can cause the Message Key to fail.  When the Bloomberg Keyboard Audio device is split and excluded from redirection, the excluded audio interfaces still appear in the VM’s Device Manager and they appear as HID devices instead of Audio Devices.  This confuses the Bloomberg App and the Bloomberg App listens to the wrong HID interface for the Message Key causing the key to be unresponsive.


Bloomberg has a fix for this issue which they will incorporate into their monthly software update either in June or July 2013.  Until then, applying the following GPO to the VM will block the keyboard’s audio interfaces from loading if they present themselves as HID devices when the device is split.  This will cause the Bloomberg App to link to the correct interface the next time it is launched.  This policy does not impede the Bloomberg Keyboard when it is locally connected or if it is redirected entirely via USB Redirection since the audio interfaces correctly present themselves as an Audio Device in these cases.  I applied this policy to our entire enterprise.


Apply to the agent side (VM) via GPO or Local Policy:


In Computer Configuration\Administrative Templates\System\Device Installation\Device Installation Restrictions, find the following policy and add the Device IDs below.
“Prevent installation of devices that match any of these Device IDs” = Enabled
HID\VID_1188&PID_03EF&MI_00
HID\VID_1188&PID_03EF&MI_01
HID\VID_1188&PID_03EF&MI_02

Comments

Have you had success with View 6 and Bloomberg Keyboard 4  (STB100, black)

@serged.... I just ran into this. We're on View 5.3 (soon to be View 6 in a few days) and I just setup a user for the first time using those new black keyboards. It works, except for the biometric. What types of issues are you seeing?

Hi fina27. Did you manage to get the biometric working with View 6 and the STB100 keyboard? If so could I ask how. Thanks

I haven't got it working. For now we got bloomberg's USB fingerprint readers and we use those if the user has the newer bloomberg keyboards with View.

IGParker and fina27,

I was able to get the newer Bloomberg keyboard biometric reader recognized on View 6 VM's but only when connected from a Wyse P45 zero client.  Are you trying to connect from a Windows 7 physical workstation?

ShDog yes I am trying to connect from a Windows 7 physical machine. Thanks

I haven't tried with Win7, only Win8.1. Have you tried with a P25?

No not tried with a P25. All running off of physical workstations.

We got the black bloomberg keyboards to work,including the fingerprint reader, on P25's. We set it up as a passthrough or "usb bridged" device within the P25. The vendor ID is 1188 and product ID is 9545, which you have to set in the P25 USB bridged settings. It passes through directly to the VM. It has to be done through the web client of the p25 directly or passed down from the master profile if done through the teradici's Pcoip management console.

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‎05-29-2013 01:00 PM
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