EUC Score Test Results

Single View - HDX Under Extreme Network Conditions

Test Goal

Show the effects of extreme network conditions when a Citrix HDX session is connected to an Azure VM with 8 vCPUs.

 

Selected Sync Player Clips

Simload Thumbnails | Links	Network | Links [Charts] | Views	Observations
	Bandwidth: 2mbps SL1-MSEdgePhotoGalleryJS [STD12] SL1-MSEdgePhotoGalleryJS [HDX12] Single View	Very low bandwidth: Compression artifacts appear during photo transitions while the high frame rate is maintained.
	Bandwidth: 2mbps SL1-RollercoasterDX9 [STD12] SL1-RollercoasterDX9 [HDX12] Single View	Very low bandwidth: The animation shows noticeable compression artifacts, while the frame rate remains consistently high.
	Latency (RTT): 310ms SL1-MSEdgeVideoConf6 [STD12] SL1-MSEdgeVideoConf6 [HDX12] Single View	The very high latency leads to significant stuttering and freeze frame effects in the six videos.
	Packet Loss: 5% SL1-NotepadMove [STD12] SL1-NotepadMove [HDX12] Single View	Despite the very high packet loss rate, the application window moves smoothly across the screen.
	Packet Loss: 5% SL1-MSEdgeVideoGrid9 [STD12] SL1-MSEdgeVideoGrid9 [HDX12] Single View	With a very high packet loss rate, the nine videos show noticeable compression artifacts, while the frame rate remains consistently high.

 

Summary of Test Observations

In general, the HDX protocol delivers very good performance even under extreme network conditions. However, the test runs shown here represent instances where network conditions have visible effects.

 

Test Setup Details

 

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Side-by-Side View - HDX vs SxS RDP

Test Goal

Show the difference between Citrix HDX and Microsoft SxS RDP sessions connected to Azure VMs with 8 vCPUs.

 

Selected Sync Player Clips

Simload Thumbnails | Links	Network | Links [Charts] | Views	Observations
	8mbps Bandwidth: HDX vs SxS RDP SL1-MSEdgePhotoGalleryJS [STD12] Side-by-Side View	Low bandwidth: In the HDX session (yellow), compression artifacts appear during photo transitions while the high frame rate is maintained. The RDP session (red) shows a lower frame rate and stuttering.
	8mbps Bandwidth: HDX vs SxS RDP SL1-RollercoasterDX9 [STD12] Side-by-Side View	Low bandwidth: Block artifacts are visible in the HDX session on the left (yellow). The RDP session on the right (red), on the other hand, shows a lower frame rate.
	110ms Latency (RTT): HDX vs SxS RDP SL1-MSEdgeFishbowlHTML5 [STD12] Side-by-Side View	High latency: The fish move more slowly and with a slightly lower refresh rate in the HDX session on the left (yellow). Somewhat livelier animation in the RDP session on the right (red), but also significantly higher outbound network bandwidth requirements.
	2% Packet Loss: HDX vs SxS RDP SL1-NotepadMove [STD12] Side-by-Side View	High packet loss rate: In the HDX session on the left (yellow), the application window moves smoothly across the screen despite the 2% paket loss rate. The perceived user experience is very different in the RDP session on the right (red) with significant stuttering and freeze frames.
	2% Packet Loss: HDX vs SxS RDP SL1-MSEdgeVideoGrid9 [STD12] Side-by-Side View	High packet loss rate: In the HDX session on the left (yellow), the nine videos show some compression artifacts, while the frame rate remains consistently high. The RDP session on the right (red) shows some stuttering and significantly higher values for CPU queue length, context switches/sec, disk writes, and outbound network bandwidth. CPU load is slightly lower, though.

 

Summary of Test Observations

Without network constraints, most workloads don't show a visual difference between RDP and HDX. There are a number of workloads where the total network consumption of RDP is higher under unconstrained conditions. Under low bandwidth and high latency network conditions and depending on the workload, stuttering and freeze frame effects are more likely in the RDP session than in the HDX session.

Adding packet loss not only makes it harder to interact with graphics objects in the remote session. It also results in more stuttering in animations and videos, in particular in the RDP session. Sometime the HDX codec acts so aggressivly that the animation or video quality is degraded while a relatively high frame rate is maintained. This means that the HDX protocol version tested here is not optimized for graphics quality but rather for frame refresh rates under challenging network conditions. But this may change in the future...

 

Test Setup Details

 

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