Step by Step Installation and Configuration of Omnissa Horizon 8 on Nutanix AHV – Part Four

by | Feb 27, 2026 | Omnissa | 0 comments

Share this post!

Step by Step Installation and Configuration of Omnissa Horizon 8 on Nutanix AHV – Part Four

Published February 2026 at blog.youngtech.com

Click Here to Download this Full Guide as a PDF

The final part of this Horizon on Nutanix series is now live and online!! Over the last several weeks I’ve shared the first three parts of this blog series! In previous blog posts, I shared sections from the 325+ Full Guide linked above. Previously posted, Part One can be found here, and Part Two of this series can be found here, and Part Three of this series can be found here.

This post is Part Four (of Four), all sections of which can be found in the Full Guide, linked above.

Resources

As a refresher, before we continue on the deployment, there are a number of useful resources that we’ll use as reference:

What This Guide Covers

Also as a refresher, this walkthrough is designed to help lay the foundation for a successful Proof of Concept (PoC) or initial deployment of Horizon 8 on AHV. In this Part Three of the series, I’ll be sharing Sections 5 and 6 from the full guide, as shown below:

To serve as a visual aide, below is a basic Horizon 8 Proof of Concept (POC) Topology Diagram we’ll review during this blog series and guide.

<< Click to view a larger / full size image of the Topology Diagram below >>

Topology diagram adapted from ‘Horizon 8 on Nutanix AHV Reference Architecture’ on Omnissa Tech Zone

Click Here to Download this Full Guide as a PDF

For this blog post (Part Four), let’s jump back in where we left off!

Section 7: Creating Additional Horizon Desktop Pools Using Optimized Windows 11 25H2

Having completed many of the setup steps recommended for a Proof of Concept deployment, we’re ready to finalize and validate the configurations. With the Optimized Master Image shutdown, we’re ready to create an additional Template for deployment. Navigate to the VM in Prism Central, click Create VM Template:


Just as completed before, provide a meaningful name and description to be used as a reference later. Click Next:


Click Save:


To compare the performance using Optimized vs. Not Optimized Windows 11 25H2 images, I typically like to create a new Horizon Desktop Pool and run comparisons. Navigate to the Horizon Administrative Console under Inventory \ Desktops. Click Add:


Leave Automated Desktop Pool selected and click Next:


Select the Prism Central Capacity Provider added previously. Click Next:


Enter a meaningful ID and Display Name as shown. Select Floating, and Non-persistent and click Next:


Enter the appropriate Provisioning settings, for example, Virtual Machine Naming: hrzw11-12{n:fixed=3}. I also prefer to build 2-3 initial VMs to validate the Provisioning Settings fully. For Management, I’m selecting ‘Always Powered On’, Logoff After Disconnect: Immediately, Refresh OS Disk After Logoff: Always. Once reviewed and configured, click Next as shown below:


Select the Template that was created in Prism Central, for example ‘hrzw11-1m 2025.12.24_AfterOptimization’ and click Next:


Select the appropriate Cluster and click Next:


Use ‘Select Existing’ for the VM Compute Profile, and click the profile and network settings as appropriate. When ready, click Next:


As a general rule I leave all defaults for the Advanced Settings unless a modification is required. Click Next:


On the Guest Customization screen, click Browse to navigate to the Organizational Unit that will be used to deploy the Computer objects.


Navigate to the appropriate Organizational Unit. Select it and click Submit:


I prefer to select Allow Reuse of Existing Computer Accounts, but this is dependent on permissions assigned to the AD Domain Service Account. Review and click Next:


Review the settings provided and scroll down:


Once scrolled to the bottom, if settings are fully reviewed, click Submit to start the provisioning process:


A green banner is displayed at the top (if settings were accepted), indicating that the second Windows 11 25H2 pool deployment is now starting.


While waiting for the second Horizon Desktop Pool to deploy, let’s add some entitlements. Check the box for the first pool and click Entitlements \ Add Entitlements as shown:


Complete the wizard to add a meaningful group that will be used for initial testing. In this example I’ve simply selected Domain Users, but you can use any Active Directory Security Group that makes the most sense (or create a new group specifically for each Desktop Pool). Click OK:



Complete the same Entitlements \ Add Entitlements process for the second Horizon Desktop Pool as shown:


Select an appropriate group and click OK as shown:


Inspecting the second Pool indicates the Image Publishing is still in process as shown below:


While waiting for the second pool to be created, we can update any Horizon Clients that are out of date, to be used for testing. Download the latest Horizon Client for Windows from the following link: https://customerconnect.omnissa.com/downloads/info/slug/virtual_desktop_and_apps/omnissa_horizon_clients/8. Once downloaded, perform the installation using Right Click \ Run as Administrator, and accept all defaults during the installation:


Flipping back to the Horizon Administrative Console some time later we can see the Machines have been created using the latest VM Template ‘After Optimization’ as shown. At this point we’re ready to proceed, login and do some testing against both Windows 11 Horizon Desktop Pools!


Open the Horizon Client and click Add Server:


Specify the Fully Qualified DNS Name (FQDN) of the Horizon Connection Server, starting with https:// as shown below:


Authenticate against the Horizon Connection Server to get a list of available Horizon Desktop resources, as shown:


A list of available Horizon Desktops should be shown, for example the two we created ‘BeforeOptimization’ and ‘AfterOptimization’ as shown. Click on the Desktop Icon AfterOptimization to launch:


Horizon should grab a random desktop from the Pool and start the connection as shown:


If prompted click Allow to permit access to the local drive:


Inspecting the Start Menu shows a Windows 11 25H2 image that has been Optimized using OSOT, removing many of the default applications from the list. At this point we can perform any performance tests or comparisons we’d like between ‘BeforeOptimization’ and ‘AfterOptimization’ pools. Given all steps already performed, it’s safe to conclude Horizon 8 2512 ClonePrep on AHV 10.3 is working as expected! Finally, we’ll upgrade to AHV 11.x and perform further validation.

Section 8: Upgrading Nutanix AHV to 11.0 and Performing Final Validation Steps

As mentioned in the first section ‘Initial Review of Horizon Infrastructure’ at the time of writing, AHV 11.x is still an ‘initial release’ (11.0), hence the conservative approach for validation. Now that we’ve confirmed everything is working, we’ll show the process to update to AHV 11.0. Login to Prism Central to get started.


Navigating to Compute \ VMs, we can see there are a number of virtual machines still powered on, which need to be shutdown while performing the upgrade from AHV 10.3 to 11.0. We’ll need to login to the Horizon Administration Console to put the Horizon VMs in maintenance mode, so they remain shutdown.


To see all virtual machines across each Horizon Desktop Pool, we can navigate to Inventory \ Machines and see the six total VMs, all of which show Status: Available as shown:

Click the Select All checkbox at the top, then More Commands \ Enter Maintenance Mode as shown:

Click OK to confirm:

Flip back to the VMs view in Prism Central, and select all virtual machines that are powered on. In the environment shown below we can also see the Prism Central virtual machine at the bottom of the list, which is running on the same host as the Horizon Virtual Desktops. We will shutdown all seven virtual machines and complete the LCM upgrade through Prism Element. For a graceful shutdown, with all VMs selected, click the three dots, Power Operations \ Guest Shutdown:

Click OK to confirm shutdown. At this point the connection to Prism Central will be lost, so we’ll flip over to the Prism Element URL and login for the next steps.

Perform the Login to Prism Element. In my environment this is the FQDN of the Cluster, https://z8ahv01.youngtechx.com:9440 for example:

In Prism Element, click the menu at the top and click VM:

On the Table view, ensure all Virtual Machines are shutdown, including the Prism Central VM as shown:

Click the Menu and go to LCM:

If appropriate, review the Best Practices page:

Click Inventory at the top and then Perform Inventory:

The inventory process can take several minutes to complete. Be patient.

Once completed, click Return to Inventory:

In the menu click Updates \ Software as shown:

Select the AHV hypervisor option from the list and click View Upgrade Plan:

An Upgrade Plan will be generated automatically:

Once ready, click Apply 1 Update to start the process of updating from AHV 10.3.1.2 to AHV 11.0 as shown:

The upgrade process will start Applying Updates as shown.

Monitoring the hypervisor host Console during upgrades:

While the AHV host update is being performed:


After the AHV host has rebooted and the CVM comes back online:


Validate the host and cluster come back online and in a Healthy state, resolving any events or issues found during the AHV 11.0 upgrade process.


Navigate to the Main Menu \ LCM:


Review the Inventory and you should see the host was successfully updated to AHV hypervisor 11.0 as shown. Click Perform Inventory:


Inventory takes a couple minutes to complete. Be patient.


Once complete, navigating to Updates \ Software shows ‘There are no upgrades available on this cluster’ as shown:


At this stage of post-upgrade we should power back on Prism Central and take the Horizon Virtual Desktops out of maintenance, so they can power back on as well. Navigate to Main Menu \ VMs \ Table view. Find the Prism Central VM and click Power on:


On the Horizon Administration Console, navigate back to Inventory \ Machines, select all and go to More Commands \ Exit Maintenance Mode:


Click OK:


After a brief moment, all six Horizon Virtual Machines should power on and become Available as shown:


The next and final step post-upgrade to AHV 11.0 is to ensure that the Horizon Pool Creation process continues to function as expected. Navigate to Inventory \ Desktops, and click Add:


Leave Automated Desktop Pool selected and click Next:


Select the Prism Central Capacity Provider added previously. Click Next:


Enter a meaningful ID and Display Name as shown. Select Floating, and Non-persistent and click Next:


Enter the appropriate Provisioning settings… click Next as shown below:


Select the Template … and click Next:


Select the appropriate Cluster and click Next:


Use ‘Select Existing’ for the VM Compute Profile… click Next:


As a general rule… click Next:


On the Guest Customization screen… click Browse:


Navigate to the appropriate Organizational Unit… click Submit:


Review and click Next:


Review the settings provided and scroll down:


Click Submit to start provisioning:


A green banner is displayed…:


Add entitlement to the third pool:


Click OK:


Inspecting the third Pool…:


Machines are now Available:



Section 9: Conclusion and Next Steps

Having followed the steps outlined in this blog series and guide, new Horizon on Nutanix AHV Proof of Concept (PoC) deployments will have a solid foundation for testing, validation and deploying additional configurations.

My goal in writing this blog series and guide was to provide the first detailed Installation and Configuration walk-through for deployment of Horizon 8 on Nutanix AHV. In doing so, I demonstrated that anyone with current access to Horizon 8 licenses (or through an evaluation) can fully test and validate this integration functionality on their own. As a recap, the following has been completed:

The Topology Diagram shows the environment we built during this blog series and guide:

<< Click to view a larger / full size image of the Topology Diagram below >>

Topology diagram adapted from ‘Horizon 8 on Nutanix AHV Reference Architecture’ on Omnissa Tech Zone

Final Review of Prerequisites for Smooth Deployments

As stated previously, to ensure a time-efficient Proof of Concept and smooth deployment, we’ll want to ensure the following basics are in place before starting:
– Access to download Horizon 8 Binaries and License
– Access to Nutanix Production Hardware or download for Community Edition on a compatible system
– Dedicated host or Cluster with ‘sufficient’ CPU, Memory and Storage resources to support a basic POC. (Note: for this guide, I recommend a minimum of 24 physical CPU cores, 192GB RAM, and 1TB usable capacity)
– A healthy and functional Nutanix AHV Cluster with Prism Element available with Administrative credentials
– A healthy and functional Prism Central instance, available with Administrative credentials
– A healthy and functional Active Directory domain, available with Administrative credentials
– Windows Server template to be used to clone and create Horizon Connection Server. (Note: for this guide, I recommend running infrastructure and management components outside of the Nutanix AHV node/cluster to allow for the full hardware to be used for Windows 11 Virtual Desktops)

Additional Resources

As mentioned in the introduction, below are several additional resources to be used as references:

Thanks for Reading

I trust this will be a useful resource to you and that you’ve enjoyed this Step by Step Installation and Configuration of Omnissa Horizon 8 on Nutanix AHV guide. Best of luck in your Horizon on AHV deployments! If you need any help along the way, don’t hesitate to reach out.

Thank you so much!

Dane Young, MBA
My X | My LinkedIn

Section 10: Addendum for Nutanix Guest Tools (NGT) Advisory Note

Important Note: After initially publishing this guide, I was contacted by one of my Nutanix colleagues who advised that Nutanix Guest Tools (NGT) is not needed nor recommended for Master Images that will be used for Horizon clones. This is due to a certificate that gets installed and tied to the Computer Name at the time of installation.

When machines are cloned with NGT installed, it breaks the communication between the NGT component inside the VM and the Prism, due to that certificate (a name mismatch).

If NGT functionality is important for a given virtual machine, it should be used strictly for Persistent Virtual Desktops and installed after the cloning process has been complete. For this reason I am moving this section to the end of the guide.

I’ve left the screenshots that were originally created showing the installation process against the Master Image (hrzw11-1m), but as stated, this process should be performed individually on each VM after cloning.

In the middle column of the VM at the bottom, you’ll find a link to ‘Set up Nutanix Guest Tools (NGT)’. Click the Hyperlink.

Leave ‘New NGT Installation’ selected and click Next:

For Horizon Windows 11 virtual machines, we don’t need either of these NGT Applications, so I recommend leaving Volume Shadow Copy Services (VSS) and Self Service Restore (SSR) unchecked. Click Next.

Select Mount Installer and click Complete Set Up:

Flip back to the VM Console window and open File Explorer to see the NUTANIX_TOOLS disk has been mounted. Double click it to launch:

Accept the license terms and click Install:

Click Yes on the UAC prompt:

The Nutanix Guest Tools (NGT) are now being installed.

After a couple minutes, the installation will complete. Click Close:

Flip back to the Prism VM view and validate the NGT Status shows ‘Up to date’. If the data has not refreshed yet, you can click one of the sections at the top to get the web user interface to refresh the latest information. Inspect to validate it shows NGT Version 4.5 (or later) with VirtIO Version 1.2.5.2 as demonstrated:

Click Here to Download this Full Guide as a PDF

To compliment this Blog Post, I have created a 325 page PDF with all steps in all sections covered in this series:

  • Initial Review of Nutanix Infrastructure
  • Windows 11 25H2 on AHV Master Image Creation
  • Nutanix AHV Drivers and Tools Installation on Windows 11
  • Horizon 8 2512 Connection Server Deployment
  • Horizon 8 2512 Agent Installation for Windows 11 25H2
  • Horizon OS Optimization Tool (OSOT) 2512 for Windows 11 25H2 on AHV
  • Creating Additional Horizon Pools Using Optimized Windows 11 25H2
  • Upgrading Nutanix AHV to 11.0 and Performing Final Validation Steps

This PDF guide is available free of charge to Subscribers of the YOUNGTECH BLOG. To continue reading, please request access to this free resource using the following link: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/sl/rfrHd0o/horizonahv

Click Here to Download this Full Guide as a PDF

By completing the form above, you will receive an e-mail to download a PDF of the full guide and continue reading from this section. Once you’ve received the link, you can unsubscribe from the blog at any time, but it’s our way of staying connected to our audience. Please advise if you have any challenges reaching the link provided in the e-mail.


Low-Cost Proof of Concept Engagements

Statement of Work
 For a limited time, our Professional Services and Consulting team will be offering $1 Statement of Work engagements for qualified customers, to help stand up Horizon on Nutanix AHV in a Proof of Concept capacity! If you’re a U.S. based customer, have already requested & downloaded this guide, and would like additional white glove remote assistance with your deployment, please use this link to make contact and schedule a no-cost discovery call: https://www.youngtech.com/connect/

Thanks for Reading

I trust this will be a useful resource to you and that you’ve enjoyed this Step by Step Installation and Configuration of Omnissa Horizon 8 on Nutanix AHV guide. Best of luck in your Horizon on AHV deployments! If you need any help along the way, don’t hesitate to reach out.

Thank you so much!

Dane Young, MBA
My X | My LinkedIn

Share this post!

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *