The procedure for connecting to a remote desktop or published application is slightly different for administrators and end users, so refer to the section that applies to you. See

Note: Use the following procedures to connect to a Horizon Connection Server. To connect to the VMware Horizon Cloud Service - next-gen portal, refer instead to Launch a Desktop with VMware Horizon Client and Launch an Application with VMware Horizon Client in the VMware Horizon Cloud Service - next-gen documentation.

Procedure for Administrators

Verify that you have completed the following tasks:
  • Obtain login credentials, such as a user name and password, RSA SecurID user name and passcode, RADIUS authentication credentials, or smart card personal identification number (PIN).
  • Obtain the NETBIOS domain name for logging in. For example, you might use mycompany rather than mycompany.com.
  • Perform the administrative tasks described in Preparing Connection Server for Horizon Client.
  • If you are outside the corporate network and require a VPN connection to access remote desktops and published applications, verify that the client device is set up to use a VPN connection and turn on that connection.
  • Verify that you have the fully qualified domain name (FQDN) of the server that provides access to the remote desktop or published application. Underscores (_) are not supported in server names. If the port is not 443, you also need the port number.
  • Configure the certificate checking mode for the certificate that the server presents. See Setting the Certificate Checking Mode in Horizon Client.
  • If you are using smart card authentication, configure Horizon Client to use a local certificate or the certificate on your smart card automatically. See Configure Horizon Client to Select a Smart Card Certificate.
  • If you plan to use Touch ID to authenticate, add at least one fingerprint in the Touch setting on your Mac. Touch ID authentication is available only if biometric authentication is enabled on the server. For complete Touch ID authentication requirements, see Touch ID Authentication Requirements.

Before you have end users access remote desktops and published applications, test that you can connect to a remote desktop or published application from the client system.

  1. If a VPN connection is required, turn on the VPN.
  2. In the Applications folder, double-click VMware Horizon Client.
  3. Option Description
    Connect to a new server Click the New Server icon on the Horizon Client Home window, enter the server name and port number (if necessary), and click Connect. An example of using a non-default port is view.company.com:1443.
    Connect to an existing server Double-click the server shortcut on the Horizon Client Home window.
  4. If you are prompted for RSA SecurID credentials or RADIUS authentication credentials, enter the credentials and click Login.
  5. If you are prompted for a user name and password, supply Active Directory credentials.
    1. Type the user name and password of a user who is entitled to use at least one desktop or application pool.
    2. Select a domain.

      If the Domain drop-down menu is hidden, you must type the user name as username@domain or domain\username.

    3. (Optional) Select the Remember this password check box if this feature is enabled and if the server certificate can be fully verified.
    4. (Optional) Select the Enable Touch ID check box to enable Touch ID authentication.

      If Touch ID is enabled and you are logging in for the first time, your Active Directory credentials are stored securely on your Mac for future use.

    5. Click Login.

      You might see a message that you must confirm before the login dialog box appears.

  6. If you are prompted for Touch ID authentication, place your finger on the Touch ID sensor.
  7. If multiple display protocols are configured for a remote desktop, select the protocol to use.

    VMware Blast provides better battery life and is the best protocol for high-end 3D and mobile device users.

    Option Description
    Select a display protocol for a remote desktop Select the remote desktop name, press Control-click, and select the display protocol from the context menu.

    Alternatively, you can select Settings from the context menu and select the display protocol from the Connect Via drop-down menu in the Settings dialog box.
    Select a display protocol for a published application Select the published application name, press Control-click, select Settings from the context menu, and select the display protocol from the Preferred protocol drop-down menu in the Settings dialog box.
  8. Double-click a remote desktop or published application to connect to it.

    If you are connecting to a published desktop, and if the published desktop is already set to use a different display protocol, you are prompted to either use the protocol that is set or have the system log you off the remote operating system so that a connection can be made with the protocol that you selected.

    If the Horizon Client for Mac is unable to connect to the remote desktop or published application via the Blast Protocol, a detailed error message is displayed on the user interface. The client log files contain a tag called Blast_Connect_Failure_Alert on lines that contain specific error information about Blast connection failures.

    Note: If you are entitled to only one remote desktop on the server, Horizon Client connects to that remote desktop automatically.

An alert is displayed if the remote desktop or published application includes a plugin that is not in ARM native format. You can either update the plugin file to continue or run the Horizon Client in Rosetta mode.

After you connect to a server for the first time, Horizon Client connects to that server automatically the next time you start Horizon Client. To disable this feature, see Connecting to a Server When Horizon Client Starts.

If Horizon Client cannot connect to the remote desktop or published application, perform the following tasks:
  • Verify that the certificate for the server is working properly. If it is not, in Horizon Console, you might also see that Horizon Agent on remote desktops is unreachable.
  • Verify that the tags set on the Connection Server instance allow connections from this user. See the Horizon 8 Administration document.
  • Verify that the user is entitled to access the remote desktop or published application. For information about entitling users, see the Desktops and Applications in Horizon 8 document.

By default, Horizon Client monitors the network quality during remote sessions and displays a notification message if it detects network instability due to high latency. You can turn off the display of these notifications by configuring an option in the VMware Blast settings, as described in Detect Unstable Network Connections.

Procedure for End Users

To connect to a remote desktop or published application, you must provide the name of a server and supply credentials for your user account.

Obtain the following information from your system administrator.
  • Instructions about whether to turn on a VPN (virtual private network) connection.
  • Server name to use for connecting to the server.
  • If the port is not 443, the port number to use for connecting to the server.
  • Credentials for logging in, such as an Active Directory user name and password, RSA SecurID user name and passcode, RADIUS authentication credentials, or smart card personal identification number (PIN).
  • Domain name for logging in.
  • Instructions about whether you can use Touch ID authentication.

If your administrator instructs you to configure the certificate checking mode, see Setting the Certificate Checking Mode in Horizon Client.

If you use smart card authentication, you can configure Horizon Client to use a local certificate automatically, or to use the certificate on your smart card. See Configure Horizon Client to Select a Smart Card Certificate.

  1. If a VPN connection is required, turn on the VPN.
  2. In the Applications folder, double-click VMware Horizon Client.
  3. Option Description
    Connect to a new server Click the New Server icon on the Horizon Client Home window, enter the server name and port number (if necessary), and click Connect. An example of using a non-default port is view.company.com:1443.
    Connect to an existing server Double-click the server shortcut on the Horizon Client Home window.
  4. If you are prompted for RSA SecurID credentials or RADIUS authentication credentials, enter the credentials and click Login.
  5. If you are prompted for a user name and password, supply Active Directory credentials.
    1. Type the user name and password of a user who is entitled to use at least one desktop or application pool.
    2. Select a domain.

      If the Domain drop-down menu is hidden, you must type the user name as username@domain or domain\username.

    3. (Optional) Select the Remember this password check box if this feature is enabled and if the server certificate can be fully verified.
    4. (Optional) Select the Enable Touch ID check box to enable Touch ID authentication.

      If Touch ID is enabled and you are logging in for the first time, your Active Directory credentials are stored securely on your Mac for future use.

    5. Click Login.

      You might see a message that you must confirm before the login dialog box appears.

  6. If you are prompted for Touch ID authentication, place your finger on the Touch ID sensor.
  7. (Optional) If multiple display protocols are configured for a remote desktop, select the protocol to use.

    VMware Blast provides better battery life and is the best protocol for high-end 3D and mobile device users.

    Option Description
    Select a display protocol for a remote desktop Select the remote desktop name, press Control-click, and select the display protocol from the context menu.

    Alternatively, you can select Settings from the context menu and select the display protocol from the Connect Via drop-down menu in the Settings dialog box.
    Select a display protocol for a published application Select the published application name, press Control-click, select Settings from the context menu, and select the display protocol from the Preferred protocol drop-down menu in the Settings dialog box.
  8. Double-click a remote desktop or published application to connect to it.

    If you are connecting to a published desktop, and if the published desktop is already set to use a different display protocol, you are prompted to either use the protocol that is set or have the system log you off the remote operating system so that a connection can be made with the protocol that you selected.

    Note: If you are entitled to only one remote desktop on the server, Horizon Client connects to that remote desktop automatically.

An alert is displayed if a third party dynamic library plugin loaded by Horizon Client does not have an ARM native format.

If a Horizon administrator has enabled the client drive redirection feature, the Sharing dialog box might appear. From the Sharing dialog box, you can allow or deny access to files on your local system. For more information, see Share Local Folders and Drives.

After you connect to a server for the first time, Horizon Client connects to that server automatically the next time you start Horizon Client. To disable this feature, see Connecting to a Server When Horizon Client Starts.

By default, Horizon Client monitors the network quality during remote sessions and displays a notification message if it detects network instability due to high latency. You can turn off the display of these notifications by configuring an option in the VMware Blast settings, as described in Detect Unstable Network Connections.

What to do next

To install the Zoom and Cisco plug-in, click Install in the Plugin Update window. Then start Horizon Client and verify that you can connect to a remote desktop or published application.