To connect to a remote desktop or published application, you must provide the name of a server and supply credentials for your user account. The connection procedure is slightly different for administrators and end users, so refer to the section that applies to your role.

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

Procedure for End Users

Before you begin, get the following information from your administrator:

  • Instructions about whether to turn on a VPN (virtual private network) connection.
  • Fully qualified domain name (FQDN) to use for connecting to the server.
  • If the port is not 443, the port number to use for connecting to the server.
  • Credentials to log in, such as an Active Directory user name and password, RSA SecurID user name and passcode, or RADIUS authentication credentials.
  • Domain name for logging in.
  1. If your organization requires a VPN connection, turn on the VPN.
  2. Open a browser and type the server name in the navigation bar, as instructed by a Horizon administrator.

    Type https and use the FQDN of the server or connection broker, for example, https://view.company.com.

    Horizon Connection Server connections always use TLS. The default port for TLS connections is 443. If the server is not configured to use the default port, use the format view.company.com:1443.

  3. When the VMware Horizon web portal page appears, select one of the following options.

    The following table lists all the possible options. The options that are available to you depend on the server that you connect to and how your environment is configured.

    Option Description
    Launch Native Client

    Starts Horizon Client.

    Note: This option is available only if a Horizon administrator has configured the system environment with Unified Access Gateway.
    Browser Access

    Starts HTML Access.

    Note: This option is available only if a Horizon administrator has configured the system environment with Unified Access Gateway.
    VMware Horizon HTML Access Starts HTML Access.
    Install VMware Horizon Client

    Opens the VMware Horizon Clients download page, where you can download the Horizon Client installer for your client system.

    Note: This option might appear as a link instead of an option.

    Optionally, you can select a check box to save your selection and skip the VMware Horizon web portal page the next time you enter the server name in the same browser type on the same client system. If you change your mind later, you can use the Restore default landing page setting on the HTML Access Settings page to display the VMware Horizon web portal page.

  4. If you are prompted for RSA SecurID credentials or RADIUS authentication credentials, enter the credentials and click Login.

    The passcode might include both a PIN and the generated number on the token.

  5. If you are prompted a second time for RSA SecurID credentials or RADIUS authentication credentials, enter the next generated number on the token.

    Do not enter your PIN, and do not enter the same generated number that you entered previously. If necessary, wait until a new number is generated. This step is required only when you mistype the first passcode or when configuration settings in the RSA server change.

  6. If you are prompted for a user name and password, supply your Active Directory credentials.
    1. Enter your user name and password as instructed by a Horizon administrator. You must be entitled by an administrator to use at least one desktop or application pool.
    2. (Optional) Select a domain as instructed by a Horizon administrator.

      If you cannot select a domain, you must enter the user name in the format domain\username or username@domain.

    3. Log in.
  7. To connect to a remote desktop or published application, do one of the following in the desktop and application selector window.
    Option Action
    Connect from the desktop/application icon Click the desktop or application icon.
    Connect from the desktop/application context menu Click the […] button next to the desktop or application icon, and select Connect.

    The remote desktop or published application opens in the browser window. To open the sidebar, click the tab on the left side of the browser window. From the sidebar, you can open other remote desktops or published applications, configure settings, copy and paste text, and perform other tasks.

  8. (Optional) To mark a remote desktop or published application as a favorite, in the desktop and application selector window, click the gray star inside the icon for the remote desktop or published application.

    The star icon turns from gray to yellow. The next time you log in, you can click the star icon in the upper-right part of the browser window to show only your favorite items.

Note: If you are disconnected after connecting to a remote desktop or published application, and a prompt appears asking you to click a link to accept the security certificate, select whether to trust the certificate. See Trust a Self-Signed Root Certificate.

If the time zone in the remote desktop or published application does not use the time zone set in the client device, you can set the time zone manually. See Setting the Time Zone.

Procedure for Administrators

Verify that you have completed the following tasks:

  • Gather login credentials, such as an Active Directory user name and password, RSA SecurID user name and passcode, or RADIUS authentication credentials.
  • Get the NETBIOS domain name for logging in. For example, you might use mycompany rather than mycompany.com.
  • 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.
  1. If your organization requires a VPN connection, turn on the VPN.
  2. Open a browser and type the server or connection broker name in the navigation bar.

    Type https and use the fully qualified domain name (FQDN) of the server, for example, https://view.company.com.

    Server connections always use TLS. The default port for TLS connections is 443. If the server is not configured to use the default port, use the format view.company.com:1443.

  3. When the VMware Horizon web portal page appears, select one of the following options.

    The following table lists all the possible options. The options that are available to you depend on the server that you connect to and your environment configuration.

    Option Description
    Launch Native Client

    Starts Horizon Client.

    Note: This option is available only if a Horizon administrator has configured the system environment with Unified Access Gateway.
    Browser Access

    Starts HTML Access.

    Note: This option is available only if a Horizon administrator has configured the system environment with Unified Access Gateway.
    VMware Horizon HTML Access Starts HTML Access.
    Install VMware Horizon Client

    Opens the VMware Horizon Clients download page, where you can download the Horizon Client installer for your client system.

    Note: This option might appear as a link instead of an option.

    Optionally, you can select a check box to save your selection and skip the VMware Horizon web portal page the next time you enter the server name in the same browser type on the same client system. If you change your mind later, you can use the Restore default landing page setting on the HTML Access Settings page to display the VMware Horizon web portal page.

  4. If you are prompted for RSA SecurID credentials or RADIUS authentication credentials, enter the credentials and click Login.

    The passcode might include both a PIN and the generated number on the token.

  5. If you are prompted a second time for RSA SecurID credentials or RADIUS authentication credentials, enter the next generated number on the token.

    Do not enter your PIN, and do not enter the same generated number that you entered previously. If necessary, wait until a new number is generated. This step is required only when you mistype the first passcode or when configuration settings in the RSA server change.

  6. If you are prompted for a user name and password, supply your Active Directory credentials.
    1. Enter the user name and password. The user must be entitled by an administrator to use at least one desktop or application pool.
    2. (Optional) Select a domain.

      If you cannot select a domain, you must enter the user name in the format domain\username or username@domain.

    3. Log in.
  7. To connect to a remote desktop or published application, do one of the following in the desktop and application selector window.
    Option Action
    Connect from the desktop/application icon Click the desktop or application icon.
    Connect from the desktop/application context menu Click the […] button next to the desktop or application icon, and select Connect.

    The remote desktop or published application opens in the browser window. To open the sidebar, click the tab on the left side of the browser window. From the sidebar, you can open other remote desktops or published applications, configure settings, copy and paste text, and perform other tasks.

  8. (Optional) To mark a remote desktop or published application as a favorite, in the desktop and application selector window, click the gray star inside the icon for the remote desktop or published application.

    The star icon turns from gray to yellow. The next time you log in, you can click the star icon in the upper-right part of the browser window to show only your favorite items.

Note: If you are disconnected after connecting to a remote desktop or published application, and a prompt appears asking you to click a link to accept the security certificate, select whether to trust the certificate. See Trust a Self-Signed Root Certificate.

If the time zone in the remote desktop or published application does not use the time zone set in the client device, you can set the time zone manually. See Setting the Time Zone.