XenDesktop Director provides monitoring; however, it doesn't do everything, so it is best complemented by third-party tools that specialize in management and monitoring. There are several vendors who provide robust reporting and monitoring for XenDesktop. Be sure to check the Citrix Ready catalog (www.citrixready.com) for Citrix-validated solution vendors.

I will briefly mention some of the additional benefits of third-party solutions. After you have implemented XenDesktop, it will be critical to maintain a consistent high performance for desktops and applications. You will need a tool that characterizes the environment and usage patterns of users. With...