USB Redirection Limitations

The USB redirection feature has certain limitations.

• When you access a USB device from a menu in Horizon Client and use the device in a remote desktop or published application, you cannot access the USB device on the local device.
• USB devices that do not appear in the menu, but are available in a remote desktop or published application, include human interface devices such as keyboards and pointing devices. The remote desktop or published application, and the local device, use these devices at the same time. Interaction with these USB devices can sometimes be slow because of network latency.
• Large USB disk drives can take several minutes to appear in the remote desktop or published application.
• Some USB devices require specific drivers. If a required driver is not already installed, you might be prompted to install it when you connect the USB device to the remote desktop or published application.
• If you plan to attach USB devices that use MTP drivers, such as Android-based Samsung smart phones and tablets, configure Horizon Client so that it connects USB devices to the remote desktop or published application automatically. Otherwise, if you try to manually redirect the USB device by using a menu item, the device is not redirected unless you unplug the device and then plug it in again.
• Do not connect to scanners by using the Connect USB Device menu. To use a scanner device, use the scanner redirection feature. This feature is available for Horizon Client when used with Horizon Agent 7.8 or later. See Using Scanners.
• The redirection of USB audio devices depends on the state of the network and is not reliable. Some devices require a high data throughput even when they are idle. Audio input and output devices work well with the Real-Time Audio-Video feature. You do not need to use USB redirection for those devices.
• You cannot format a redirected USB drive in a published desktop unless you connect as an administrator user.

Note: Do not redirect USB devices such as USB Ethernet devices and touch screen devices to a remote desktop or published application. If you redirect a USB Ethernet device, your client system loses network connectivity. If you redirect a touch screen device, the remote desktop or published application receives touch input but not keyboard input. If you have set the remote desktop or published application to autoconnect USB devices, you can configure a policy to exclude specific devices. See "Configuring Filter Policy Settings for USB Devices" in the Configuring Remote Desktop Features in Horizon 7 document.