The USB redirection feature enables users to access USB devices connected to a Sun Ray Client from their Windows sessions, provided that the appropriate device drivers are installed on the Windows server.
Once you install the USB redirection component and add USB Drivers to the Virtual Machines, users can simply plug in and access the USB devices from their Sun Ray Client.
Human Interface Devices (HID) such as keyboards and mice do not use the USB redirection component.
The accessibility of USB devices through USB redirection is determined by what Windows OS you are using for the remote desktop connection.
When using the single-user Windows XP or Windows 7 platforms, the USB devices connected to a client are accessible only to the user logged into the client's Windows session.
When using the Windows Server 2003 R2 or Windows Server 2008 R2 platforms, the USB devices connected to a client are accessible and visible to all desktops running on the Windows server. Sharing USB devices between multiple clients does not require any additional setup. Users are always prompted to verify if it is acceptable to share their USB device with others.
For the list of supported Windows operating systems, see the Release Notes.
USB redirection is available through the following configurations:
SRS 5.2 and Sun Ray Connector Kiosk Session - Supports connection to Windows desktop using the Kiosk session.
SRS 5.2 and VMware View - In this configuration, the kiosk mode should be configured with the session type as "VMware View Manager session."
For the list of USB devices tested to work with the USB redirection feature, see Sun Ray Peripherals List.
USB headsets do not require or use USB redirection. See Chapter 12, Sun Ray Client Peripherals for details.
Devices should be connected to a user's session only after a Windows session is established. When users exit their session, the device should be disconnected.
If a device is connected before a Windows session is established and the device is not available in the Windows session, hotplugging the device will make it available to the Windows session.
Before disconnecting a USB device being used through USB-R during a live Windows session, users must follow the same steps to safely remove the USB device as if the device were directly connected to Windows.
There is no limit to the number of USB devices that USB redirection can support on a client. A USB hub can be used to expand the number of physical USB ports if needed.
USB external smart card readers cannot be used for session authentication with USB redirection.
The following scenarios might lead to data corruption on the device:
Hotplugging a device during data transfer
Hotdesking during data transfer
If the session is disconnected for any reason
Some unpowered USB devices may draw more current than what is supported by the Sun Ray Client. If you see the icon shown in Figure 15.6, “USB Redirection Overcurrent Icon”, then the device may not work properly.
Writing files to USB flash drives with Oracle Linux may take longer than expected. This reduced performance is because of the 1 Kbyte block size and the file synchronization mechanism of Oracle Linux.
Writing files to USB secure flash drives may require administrator permissions on the Windows system.
This procedure should be done before the USB redirection feature is installed. For details on installing the USB redirection feature, see How to Install the Windows Connector Components on a Windows System in the Installation and Configuration Guide.
If your Virtual Machine (VM) does not have the USB driver installed by default, you must install the driver for USB device redirection to work properly. Examples of VMs that require this step include VMWare ESX and Hyper-V Server.
Make sure the Windows system has access to the Windows XP ISO used to create the VM.
Copy the
usbd.sy_file from the Windows XP ISO to the VM.For 32-bit:
cp
ISO-image\i386\usbd.sy_ \windows\system32\driversFor 64-bit:
cp
ISO-image\amd64\usbd.sy_ \windows\system32\driversChange to the
driversdirectory.cd \windows\system32\drivers
Install the USB drivers.
expand usbd.sy_ usbd.sys
Reboot the VM.
When the USB redirection is active and running in a session, an icon should appear in the System Tray, indicating that the server is ready for USB devices, as shown in Figure 15.7, “Verifying USB Redirection is Active”.
When you see this icon, you can connect USB devices to the Sun Ray Client.
If you don't see this icon but you know the component is installed, run the following command on the Windows system to restart the USB redirection component:
C:\Program Files\Oracle\Sun Ray\utUsbRedirector\utUsbRedirector.exe