I have a good understanding of the major differences of these two branches from a Microsoft viewpoint, but I would welcome feedback, or even a pointer to any official VMWare KB/documentation, as to the recomendation for which of these to use as the VDI Gold build.
Thank you
Phil
I've been trying to get a good build of 2019 LTSC working. In my environment I have Horizon view 7.5.1 and I run full desktop, dedicated pools or full desktop, floating pools. No composer.
I've been running into issues where I've had to apply this so that i don't get "agent unreachable" issues. VMware Knowledge Base
Then after resolving that, i'm having problems now where if I use the windows optimization fling with the defaults "Windows 10" optimizations and this script to finalize the image, http://ituda.com/vmware-horizon-view-recomposing-dont-forget-to-cleanup-after-you-finished/
http://ituda.com/vmware-horizon-view-recomposing-dont-forget-to-cleanup-after-you-finished/
The image never boots up, stays hung on the start with the windows blue logon.
I'm about to give up on 2019 LTSC (basically 1809). With win1709 and 1803 i have had no problems with creating an image and getting to work using the optimizations and adding software.
Take a look at
Creating an Optimized Windows Image for a VMware Horizon Virtual Desktop | VMware
its vmware's recommentations and they say
* LTSB means long-term servicing branch. This edition receives only security updates but no feature updates. OS upgrades are released only once every three years or so. This edition does not include Edge or any Microsoft Store (Universal Windows Platform, or UWP) apps, or Cortana, the voice-activated digital assistant. This edition is meant for specialized systems that perform a single important task—such as PCs that control medical equipment, point-of-sale systems, and ATMs.
I currently follow this guide for our images, but modified the steps to fit our needs since the optimization fling it mentions and tweaks can cause issues in some cases.
Thank you. To be fair, the LTSC Branch does still really fit our needs though, in that we want the basic OS, which is functional and responsive, to allow Office Applications to run up, and to work in a roaming profile manner. This is why Ive come to the forum, to try and find a good/better/best approach to this. There is a big benefit in not having to revisit the gold image every six months, and all the associated GPO/optimisation which would be necessary at each stage, and just do the necessary security patching, and to have the support for this to run past the 12-18 months per build (as per SAC). Time is always a premium, and if there is any way to minimise the admin effort every six months that would be good. The SAC branch would be optimized right down, with UWP apps removed, and Cortana etc, and Edge, etc..... So you kind of end up with a LTSC build, but with the additional overhead every six months... Both LTSC and SAC are supported as deployed VDI (given the support matrix of what is/isnt by build), so it is really difficult to provide a true/definitive answer to just what is the recommended path. I personally think the MS stance of what LTSC is used for is wrong, it should include devices that are not bleeding edge for feature releases, and require to be a simple/stable platform allowing security patching... but thats just my view on it...
Thank you for you input and the link.
Phil
Just be aware of what versions of office works with what long term build, Microsoft wants to push for regular updates
Microsoft relents on Office support cutoff dates | ZDNet
and they don't like the long term branches to be used for general use
Microsoft Outlines Windows 10 LTSC Shortcomings for Organizations -- Redmondmag.com
The faster upgrade path and more work to optimize the image is annoying, but I'd rather not run into comparability problems in the future.
I've been trying to get a good build of 2019 LTSC working. In my environment I have Horizon view 7.5.1 and I run full desktop, dedicated pools or full desktop, floating pools. No composer.
I've been running into issues where I've had to apply this so that i don't get "agent unreachable" issues. VMware Knowledge Base
Then after resolving that, i'm having problems now where if I use the windows optimization fling with the defaults "Windows 10" optimizations and this script to finalize the image, http://ituda.com/vmware-horizon-view-recomposing-dont-forget-to-cleanup-after-you-finished/
http://ituda.com/vmware-horizon-view-recomposing-dont-forget-to-cleanup-after-you-finished/
The image never boots up, stays hung on the start with the windows blue logon.
I'm about to give up on 2019 LTSC (basically 1809). With win1709 and 1803 i have had no problems with creating an image and getting to work using the optimizations and adding software.
Thank you HPU-ADM for this insight.