Patent Publication Number: US-11379252-B1

Title: System and method for providing layouts for a remote desktop session

Description:
FIELD OF TECHNOLOGY 
     The present disclosure relates generally to the field of remote desktop management, and more specifically, to systems and methods for providing layouts for remote desktop sessions. 
     BACKGROUND 
     In virtual desktop environments, users often login to a remote desktop session and then launch particular applications that the users may use throughout the day. Additionally some users may position the windows associated with these applications in particular areas of the screen or screens the users are currently using. 
     Once the user has completed work for the day, the user may close out all open applications and log out of the remote desktop session, or shutdown the remote desktop entirely in order to free up used resources in the virtual environment. After shutting down the remote desktop, or disconnecting the session, the user loses the configuration of the desktop thus requiring the user to relaunch and reposition each application window according to user preference again. Repeatedly arranging and modifying the windows for remote applications is time consuming and wastes resources of the virtual desktop environment provider. 
     Additionally, when users transition between client devices such as a tablet computing device, to a laptop and to a desktop with multiple monitors, the users previously configured application windows will not be effectively displayed and the user will have to reconfigure the layout of the remote session for each different client device the user may use. This wastes user time and eats up processor cycles at the virtual desktop provider. 
     Therefore, the inventors have described herein methods and systems for adaptive layouts in remote applications. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated into and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate one or more example aspects of the present disclosure and, together with the detailed description, serve to explain their principles and implementations. 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram illustrating a system for providing layouts for a remote desktop session according to an exemplary aspect. 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram illustrating the process of generated, transforming and providing layouts to client devices according to an exemplary aspect. 
         FIG. 3  is a block diagram illustrating example operations of creating and saving layouts through an administrative console according to an exemplary aspect. 
         FIG. 4  is a block diagram of a transformation module for adapting layouts and generating intelligent layouts for client devices according to an exemplary aspect. 
         FIG. 5  is an illustration of adapting layouts using the transformation module according to an exemplary aspect. 
         FIG. 6  shows a flowchart for a method for providing layouts for a remote desktop session according to an exemplary aspect. 
         FIG. 7  shows a flowchart for a method for adapting layouts for a remote desktop session according to an exemplary aspect. 
         FIGS. 8A-8B  show a flowchart for a method for suggesting new layouts for a remote desktop session according to an exemplary aspect. 
         FIG. 9  is a block diagram of a general-purpose computer system on which the disclosed system and method can be implemented according to an exemplary aspect. 
     
    
    
     SUMMARY 
     Aspects of the present disclosure relate to systems and methods for providing layouts for remote desktop sessions. Exemplary aspects of the present disclosure mitigate wasted server resources on user configurations upon initiation of each remote desktop session, or launching of each remote application. 
     According to one exemplary aspect, a method is provided for providing layouts for a remote desktop. The method comprises receiving, at a remote application server, a request from a client device to initiate a remote desktop session, extracting configuration information regarding the client device from the request, retrieving, from a database, a layout that defines one or more remote applications and configurations for the one or more remote applications executing on the remote desktop session, initiating the remote desktop session with the client device, launching the one or more remote applications defined in the layout and configuring the one or more remote applications according to the configurations. 
     According to another exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, a system is provided for providing layouts for a remote desktop session. The system comprises a client device comprising a first processor coupled to a first memory, the client device initiating a request to a remote application server to establish a remote desktop session and the remote application server that receives, at a remote application server, a request from a client device to initiate a remote desktop session, extracts configuration information regarding the client device from the request, retrieves, from a database, a layout that defines one or more remote applications and configurations for the one or more remote applications executing on the remote desktop session, initiates the remote desktop session with the client device launching the one or more remote applications defined in the layout and configuring the one or more remote applications according to the configurations. 
     According to another exemplary aspect, a computer-readable medium is provided comprising computer-executable instructions that when executed, perform any of the methods disclosed herein. 
     The above simplified summary of example aspects serves to provide a basic understanding of the present disclosure. This summary is not an extensive overview of all contemplated aspects, and is intended to neither identify key or critical elements of all aspects nor delineate the scope of any or all aspects of the present disclosure. Its sole purpose is to present one or more aspects in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description of the disclosure that follows. To the accomplishment of the foregoing, the one or more aspects of the present disclosure include the features described and exemplarily pointed out in the claims 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Exemplary aspects are described herein in the context of a system, method and computer program product for automating formation and execution of a backup strategy using machine learning. Those of ordinary skill in the art will realize that the following description is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. Other aspects will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art having the benefit of this disclosure. Reference will now be made in detail to implementations of the example aspects as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The same reference indicators will be used to the extent possible throughout the drawings and the following description to refer to the same or like items. 
     Exemplary aspects of the present disclosure use deep learning algorithms to optimize and automate formation and execution of backup strategies for data endpoints. 
       FIG. 1  is a block diagram illustrating example operations of a system  100  according to an exemplary aspect. 
     The system  100  comprises a remote application server (or RAS)  102  coupled to a plurality of client devices  150 - 1 ,  150 - 2  and  150 - 3  (collectively, client devices  150 ) via a gateway  101 . The RAS  120  further comprises a controller (or, publishing agent)  104 , a TSAgent  106  a MemShell instance  108 , a PC Agent  110 , a VDI Agent  112 , a guest agent  114 , an administration console  120 , a PowerShell  122 , a redundancy module  124 , a notification service  126  and a transformation module  140 . In some aspects the RAS  102  also comprises database  130 , however the database  130  may be hosted remotely from the RAS  102  in other aspects. 
     The client devices  150  transmits a request  109  to the remote application server  102  via gateway  101  to initiate a remote desktop session served by the RAS  102 . The remote desktop session provides the ability for a user to use an operating system such as WINDOWS, OSX, or the like, as the user&#39;s desktop, or to use particular applications. In this manner, a user using an Apple® iPad®, a ChromeBook®, or the like, can access a Windows desktop or application, and a user using a ChromeBook® laptop can access a OSX® desktop, or the like. 
     The gateway  101  is, in some aspects, any gateway that provides access to a larger network such as the internet or a wide area network (WAN) such as an office intranet. The HTML Gateway  103  is also a client that can be used to launch applications in a web browser to connect to gateway  101 , or using an installed native client at the client devices  150  to connect to gateway  101 . The web gateway  105  is a portal which provides an application list that launches the native client at the client devices  150 . The request  109  is received, via the gateway  101 , at the RAS  102 , and specifically by the controller  104  of the RAS  102 . The controller  104  is a publishing agent which determines what applications are made available to clients  150  and who can use the applications. The terminal server agent (TS Agent)  106  provides virtual desktop resources which are consumed by the published applications. In some instances, the TS Agent  106  may be referred to as an remote desktop session host (RDSH). The PC agent  110  controls remote desktop connections from client devices  150 , while the VDI Agent  112  is used by VDI hosts, which are servers on which Hypervisor® is running one or more virtual machines (e.g., guest virtual machines or VMs). Each VM runs an operating system called the quest operating system (OS). Thus each agent acts similarly to the TS Agent  106  for different types of hosts. 
     In some aspects of the disclosure, the client devices  150  request particular applications be launched in the remote desktop session. In other aspects, a layout received from the controller  104  determines which applications are published and accessible by each of the client devices  150 . Each of the client devices  150  may be associated with a particular layout of the remote applications. Further, each of the client devices may contain a client layout component  160  which enables clients to request layout and remote application listings. In some aspects, the client layout component  160  can locally store layout information and details about remote desktop sessions (session detail objects) and request suggested layouts from the remote application server  102  based on application usage and application configuration information. In some aspects, the RAS  102  stores all of this information as well as suggestions for layouts and pushes the suggestions to the client devices  150 . 
     A layout is a data structure that defines a set of published applications which are applications to be launched on initiation of a remote session from a client device associated with the layout. The layout also includes configurations for each of the set of applications that are to be launched. Layouts are created via the RAS console  120  and stored in the database  130  via the redundancy module  124 . Once the client device selects a layout and initiates a remote desktop session, the session is populated with all of the remote applications associated with the layout. Each application in the session is also launched and configured as described in the layout so that the user experience is efficient and no processing cycles are wasted at the RAS  102  in handling constant modification of the remote application configurations to achieve a particular result. Instead, the particular configuration is recorded in a layout and instantly accessible by the user. 
     In one aspect of the disclosure, the configurations of the layout comprise the window position of each published application for a remote desktop session, the sizing of each window for each published application, spacing of each published application relative to other applications, whether the application is minimized, maximized, or visible at all upon initiation of the remote desktop session. Additionally the configurations may comprise affinity of each application to a particular display when the client device is coupled to multiple displays. In some aspects, the configurations may further comprise the ordering of the windows of each application, e.g., which application window appears on top of which other application window. 
     The configuration may further comprise, according to one aspect, instantiation data associated with the remote application. For example, the layout may configure MICROSOFT® WORD® to launch on initiation of the remote desktop session and create a new document with a particular template. Furthermore, the configuration of the layout can define whether the layout is locked or unlocked which determines whether a user using the layout can change the positioning of the remote application or resize the remote application, or locking may limit a user from launching other applications not part of the user&#39;s selected or permitted layout. The current disclosure does not limit the configurations to what is described herein and it is understood that any aspects of remote applications that are configurable in a local desktop environment can be defined in the configuration of the layout. 
     In one aspect of the disclosure, the RAS  102  pushes layouts stored in database  130 , based on client device attributes, to the client devices  150  along with the published application listings via the controller  104  so that users of client devices  150  are aware of the various layouts available to the users. In some instances, the layout comprises an internal list of published applications associated and launched with that layout, while in other instances users can select a layout, while also selecting particular applications to launch during the users&#39; remote desktop sessions. 
     The transformation module  140 , a part of the MemShell  108  adapts selected layouts according to configuration information regarding client devices  150  such as display size and other features. For example, client device  150 - 1  is a tablet and thus the graphical windows associated with the remote applications make use of less visual space. The client device  150 - 2  is a smart-phone and thus may even have less visual space to display all of the applications, or a native client on the mobile device may only be able to display one application at a time, limiting layouts available on those devices. Thus, the administrator of the RAS  102  can create layouts that are ideal for those computing environments and layouts that adapt to changing from client device  150 - 1  to  150 - 2 . In an example user flow, the user selects a particular layout at client  150 - 1  and then initiates a remote desktop session. Subsequently, the user wishes to use his or her smart phone  150 - 2  to access the remote desktop session, but with the same selected layout. The transformation module  140  modifies the layout by changing the configurations for each application based on new client device information such as resolution, screen size, pixel density and the like. The new layout is adapted accordingly, but to the user the adaptation appears to be a seamless operation where the user&#39;s applications are relatively all in the same location and sized properly according to the user&#39;s selected layout, yet all within a significantly smaller display footprint as compared to client  150 - 1 . 
     Additionally, the transformation module  140  monitors and stores the application usages of the user at client devices  150  and suggests layouts from the database  130  that corresponds to the stored information. For example, if the transformation module  140  observes that a user at client device has initiated ten remote desktop sessions and during nine of those sessions has positioned two Microsoft word documents side by side on one screen, and one email application maximized on another screen, the transformation module  140  compares this application usage information with layouts stored in the database  130 . If there are layouts with similar application configurations, then the transformation module  140  will add these layouts to a list of suggested layouts. The next time the user initiates a remote desktop session with RAS  102 , the RAS  102  will display the suggested layouts from the transformation module  140 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 2 , when the user chooses to launch a selected layout  202 , similar to launching an application, the client device (e.g., client  150 - 3 ) communicates the request  109  to the RAS  102  which internally routes the request  109  to an RDP server  200 . In some instances, the RDP server  200  is configured to accept remote desktop session requests such as request  109  via TCP or UDP at port  3389 , though other ports can be used. The request  109 , in some aspects of the disclosure, comprises information regarding the type of remote desktop session the user wishes to initiate along with client device information  204 . The client device information  204  may comprise resolution and size information regarding the display(s) associated with the client, processor speed, RAM, storage space, and any other special parameters or functionality available at the client. 
     Via a virtual channel, the RDP server  200  passes on the request  109  (which includes the selected layout  202  and the client device information  204 ) to the Memshell component (or simply Memshell)  108 . Memshell  108  performs the majority of processing and calculations in applying the configurations defined in the selected layout  202  to the published remote applications defined in the layout  202  based on the client device information  204 . The TS Agent  106  passes configuration settings to Memshell  108  through shared memory. The selected layout  202  is identified via an identifier (ID) which links to the layout&#39;s settings. The MemShell  108  requests the TS Agent  106  to retrieve the configuration settings of the selected layout  202  from the database  130  via the publishing agent  104 . The TS Agent  106  receives the configuration settings associated with selected layout  202  from the publishing agent  104  and forwards this information to the MemShell  108  The TS Agent  106  then launches all applications and positions the applications according to the configuration identified by the selected layout  202 . The desktop session is initiated with the client devices  150  via the RDP server  200 . 
     According to one aspect of the disclosure, an administrator of the RAS  102  may define a layout via a graphical user interface as shown in  FIG. 3  available via the RAS console  120 . In another aspect of the disclosure, the RAS  102  can predict and create new layouts based on attributes of the client devices  150  and user actions at the client devices  150  and automatically save these layouts in the database  130  via the redundancy module  124 . The redundancy module  124  provides a data layer to persist data to the database  130 . According to one aspect, the redundancy module  124  translates commands passed in by various components of system  100  to commands that can be executed at the database level (e.g., from XML to SQL, or the like). Additionally, the redundancy module  124  synchronizes settings information across the system  100 . 
     In  FIG. 3 , the administrator has positioned and sized Application  1  and Application  2  in the layout workspace  302 . In the published applications portions  304 , the administrator has defined Application  1  and Application  2  to be “Published” so that the applications will be launched when this particular layout is selected by a user. In another aspect, the user can select published applications from a list provided by the RAS  102  at a client device. 
     According to one aspect, the Published Applications portion  304  is a list of the available published applications which are published from RAS  102 . When a user activates a native client at one of the client devices  150 , the user is presented with an application list that is available to that particular user. Applications that are published from the RAS  102  are listed in the published applications portion  304 . Applications have multiple options and filtering, for instance certain applications may be hidden from certain groups, users, IP Addresses, Gateways or the like (though not limited thereto) via the application options portion  306 . In one aspect, another option for applications may be that the applications are only available in particular layouts. 
     The administrator can modify configurations of each application by selecting the application in the published applications portion  304 . After selection in portion  304 , the Application options portion  306  is populated with the configuration options available for each particular application. Shown in portion  306  are size configurations, fixed or modifiable flags, vertical and horizontal alignment of the application and top, bottom, left and right spacing between other applications. While other configuration options are not shown, some applications may have special options such as a particular templates to load after launching the application and other special parameters that may be set such as order of the application dictating which application appears above others when the application windows overlap. Further configuration options include, in some aspects, affinity of the application to a display of the client device, visibility of an application and command parameters passed to an application before launching. 
     Size configurations control the size of each application window and is configurable on a per-application basis. The alignment option allows an administrator to select where in a desktop window the application appears after launch. For example, Application  1  in  FIG. 3  is selected to appear at the top left of the screen. Alternatively, the alignment can be specified in pixel-perfect format relative to a given resolution  310 . In another aspect, the administrator can drag and move the position of the applications around the workspace  302  and the change is reflected in the application options portion  306 . If snap alignments such as “top/bottom/left/right” are selected, the windows snap to the given position as the layout editor repositions the application window. 
     The spacing is, in some aspects, specified using pixel measurements or percentages relative to the selected resolution  310 . In  FIG. 3 , Application  1  has a top spacing of “80 px” and a bottom spacing “0 px”. Accordingly, the window for Application  1  appears with 80 pixels of extra spacing above and has no extra spacing below the window, given the remote desktop session automatically configures some default spacing in some aspects of the disclosure. According to other aspects of the disclosure, Application  2  may be configured with spacing of its own affecting the view of the entire layout. 
     Once the administrator has completed editing or creating the layout through the RAS console  120 , the layout is saved to the layouts database  130  as a record containing all of the configuration details. In some instances, the layout is stored as a binary object for easy retrieval from the database while in other aspects, the layout is stored as textual configuration data. In yet other aspects, the layout is stored as a combination of binary and textual data in the layouts database  130 . 
       FIG. 4  is an illustration of the transformation module  140  according to one aspect of the disclosure. The transformation module  140  comprises an adaptive module  400  and an intelligence module  402 . 
     According to one aspect of the disclosure, the transformation module  140  received a selected layout  202  and a request  109  containing client device information  204 . The adaptive module  400  determines whether the client device information  204  has changed from client device information initiated by the same user in previous remote desktop sessions at RAS  102 . If the client device information has changed, the difference is calculated by the adaptive module  400  and the changes are applied to the selected layout  202  to generate an adapted layout  404 . The adapted layout  404  is then applied to the remote desktop session in a similar fashion as described with respect to  FIG. 2 . In another aspect, the adaptive module  400  retrieves the selected layout  202  configuration settings from the database  130  through the redundancy module  124 , as described above. The adaptive module  400  then determines whether the client device information  204  has changed or whether layout settings were updated as well and then adapt accordingly. 
     An example of such an adaptive layout is shown in  FIG. 5 . The selected layout by a user of client device  500  is initially composed by MemShell  108 . The client device is coupled to a single display  502  with application window  504 ,  506 ,  508  and  510  all visible in a single display. At a future point in time, the user moves to a different location and begins using a new client device  520 . The new client device  520  is coupled to two displays, display  522  and display  524 . The adaptive module  400  determines this hardware change between the client device  500  and client device  520  and adapts the selected layout accordingly. The layout can be configured with rules on how to adapt the layout. These rules comprise, in one aspect: allowing or disallowing multiple monitors (e.g., even if an extra monitor is detected, the layout is not modified and only shown on one monitor), restricting applications to particular monitors, locking window size of an application after launch, or disallowing changing the position of one application in a layout during adaptation, but allowing changing the position of another application, in addition to any initial rules described in the layout (e.g., how the initial layout is configured). Other rules may include launching applications with a particular templates. 
     In this aspect shown in  FIG. 5 , the selected layout is configured by the administrator to split the layout in half. In other configurations, the layout can take into account the relative sizes of the displays and distribute the application windows accordingly, resize or reposition the application windows accordingly. The adaptive module  400  repositions application windows  504  and  506  into the first display  522 . The adaptive module  400  further resizes the application windows to occupy a percentage of the screen—such actions can be configured in the layout definition. The adaptive module  400  repositions application windows  508  and  510  to the second display  524  and also resizes the application windows. 
     The transformation module  140  of  FIG. 4  also comprises an intelligence module  402  which monitors various remote desktop sessions initiated by a user over a period of time, for example, session  420 , session  430  and session  440  comprising application usage information, respectively  421 ,  431  and  441 . Each of the sessions also comprise, respectively, client device information  422 ,  432  and  442 . The application usage information ( 421 ,  431 ,  441 ) each contain data indicating which applications were used during the session, the number of times the applications were launched, the application&#39;s positioning and size and other configuration information regarding the session and application. The intelligence module  402  determines whether there is a pattern of usage over a period of time, the time being configurable by an administrator of the RAS  102  via RAS console  120 . The pattern is then queried against layouts in the database  130  by the intelligence module  402  in order to build a list of suggested layouts  406 . The suggested layouts  406  comprise layouts whose pattern matches the usage patterns of the user as defined in the application usage information  421 ,  431  and  441 . Similarly, an administrator can define the period of time, or the number of sessions upon which to invoke the generation of the suggested layouts  406  by the intelligence module  402 . 
       FIG. 6  is a flow diagram of a method  600  for providing layouts for a remote desktop session in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The RAS  102  is an exemplary implementation of the method  600 , as executed by a computer system such as described in  FIG. 9 . 
     The method  600  begins at step  602  and proceeds to step  604 . At step  604 , the RAS  102  receives a request to initiate a remote desktop session from a client device. The request includes a selected layout along with configuration information regarding the client device. 
     At step  606 , the RAS  102  extracts the configuration information from the request to identify the client device properties such as those described with respect to  FIGS. 1-4 . The configuration information may further comprise, according to one aspect, number of monitors, available resolutions of the monitor, current resolution at the client device and any relevant hardware and software configuration information that can be taken into account when suggesting or adapting layouts. 
     The method  600  then proceeds to step  608 , where the MemShell  108  applies the selected layout to a plurality of published applications described in the selected layout, according to the configuration information provided by TS Agent  106 . At step  610 , the RAS  102  initiates the remote desktop session with the client device. The method terminates at step  620 . 
       FIG. 7  is a flow diagram of a method  700  for adapting layouts for a remote desktop session in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The RAS  102  and the transformation module  140  are exemplary implementations of the method  700 , as executed by a computer system such as described in  FIG. 9 . 
     The method  700  begins at step  702  and proceeds to step  704 . At step  704 , the RAS  102  received a request to initiate a remote desktop session from a client device such as one of the client devices  150 . 
     At step  706 , the transformation module  140  invokes the adaptive module  400  of  FIG. 4  to determine whether configuration information of a client device has changed from previous sessions. In some instances the client device may not have changed, but the configuration of the client device has changed. In other instances, the same user is using a new client device, selecting the same layout the user previously chose, and initiating a remote desktop session via the new client device. When the adaptive module determines that there is no change in configuration or client device, the method terminates at step  720 . 
     Alternatively, if the adaptive module  400  detects a configuration change by comparing the previous client configuration information with current client configuration information, the method  700  proceeds to step  708 . At step  708 , the adaptive module  400  adapts the layout that the user selected according to the changed configuration information as described with respect to  FIGS. 1 and 4 . For example, the display affinities of remote applications are adapted, sizes and positions of application windows are adapted according to resolution, and order of windows is adapted. In other instances, depending on the change in configuration information, some applications may be visible while others are set to non-visible on initiation of the remote desktop session. At step  710 , the remote applications are distributed on a virtual desktop of the remote desktop session according to the adapted layout. The method terminates at step  720 . 
       FIGS. 8A-8B  show a flow diagram for a method  800  for providing intelligent layouts for a remote desktop session in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The transformation module  140  are exemplary implementations of the method  800 , as executed by a computer system such as described in  FIG. 9 . 
     The method  800  begins at step  802  in  FIG. 8A  and proceeds to step  804 . At step  804 , the RAS  102  received a user-logon request (i.e., a request to initiate a remote desktop session) from a client device such as one of the client devices  150 . 
     At step  806 , the transformation module  140  invokes the intelligence module  402  to determine if there are enough session details to predict or suggest a layout. If there are not enough details then the method proceeds to step  820 . If there are enough details, the method proceeds to step  810 . In one aspect, relevant details include application usage, size and position and number of sessions. For example, one or two sessions are not enough to predicate a pattern that can be used to suggest layout. On other hand, more than 5 sessions may be enough to predict a pattern and suggest a layout. The administrator of the RAS  102  can manually set the number of sessions and other values that are needed to suggest layouts. At step  810 , the intelligence module  402  determines where there are applications repeated in all or most of the session details of previously monitored and stored sessions such as sessions  420 ,  430  and  440  shown in  FIG. 4 . If there are not enough details, the method moves to step  820 . If there are enough details the method moves to step  812 , where the intelligence module  402  adds the repeated applications to a new layout as published applications. 
     The method proceeds to determine, at step  814 , whether there are similar positions and sizes in the applications that the user uses across the sessions, e.g., sessions  420 ,  430  and  440 . If there are similarities, then the method proceeds to step  816  where the details (or configuration information) is added to the new layout. The method then proceeds to step  818  where the new layout is suggested to the user. At step  814  if no similarities in application configuration information is detected by the intelligence module  402 , the method skips step  816  and proceeds to step  818  to suggesting the new layout. 
     The method subsequently moves to step  820  in  FIG. 8B and 822  where a user launches an application in the remote desktop session via input information received at the RAS  102  from the client device. 
     At step  824 , if the intelligence module  402  determines that this is the first application launched during this session, the method creates a new session details object and saves the session details object to the RAS  102 , though in some aspects the session detail object is saved in the client&#39;s local storage, or in both the RAS  102  and the client&#39;s local storage. In one aspect, the session details object is saved in a Browser&#39;s local storage via the client layout component  160 , wherein the Browser is the browser that the user has used to logon to the desktop session. If the intelligence module  402  determines that this is not the first application launched, the method skips step  826  and proceeds to step  828  where a new application object is added in the session details (e.g., a new object in session  420 ,  430  and  440 ) that defines application configuration information such as the application identifier, window position of the application and window size. 
     At steps  830 , the RAS  102  detects that the user has repositioned or dragged the application window via input from the client device and then updates the positioning in the session details object at step  834 . At steps  834 , the RAS  102  detects that the user has resized the application window via input from the client device and then updates the size of the window in the session details object at step  836 . According to one aspect, the session detail object is updated with the latest user preferences so at next launch, applications information such as size, position and the like can be reconfigured based on what is stored in the user preferences. The method terminates at step  840 . 
       FIG. 9  is a block diagram illustrating a general-purpose computer system  20  on which aspects of systems and methods for providing layouts for remote desktop sessions may be implemented in accordance with an exemplary aspect. It should be noted that the computer system  20  can correspond to the system  100 , each of the client devices  150 , the RAS  102 , and/or individual components of the RAS  102 , for example, described earlier. 
     As shown, the computer system  20  (which may be a personal computer or a server) includes a central processing unit  21 , a system memory  22 , and a system bus  23  connecting the various system components, including the memory associated with the central processing unit  21 . As will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, the system bus  23  may comprise a bus memory or bus memory controller, a peripheral bus, and a local bus that is able to interact with any other bus architecture. The system memory may include permanent memory (ROM)  24  and random-access memory (RAM)  25 . The basic input/output system (BIOS)  26  may store the basic procedures for transfer of information between elements of the computer system  20 , such as those at the time of loading the operating system with the use of the ROM  24 . 
     The computer system  20 , may also comprise a hard disk  27  for reading and writing data, a magnetic disk drive  28  for reading and writing on removable magnetic disks  29 , and an optical drive  30  for reading and writing removable optical disks  31 , such as CD-ROM, DVD-ROM and other optical media. The hard disk  27 , the magnetic disk drive  28 , and the optical drive  30  are connected to the system bus  23  across the hard disk interface  32 , the magnetic disk interface  33  and the optical drive interface  34 , respectively. The drives and the corresponding computer information media are power-independent modules for storage of computer instructions, data structures, program modules and other data of the computer system  20 . 
     An exemplary aspect comprises a system that uses a hard disk  27 , a removable magnetic disk  29  and a removable optical disk  31  connected to the system bus  23  via the controller  55 . It will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that any type of media  56  that is able to store data in a form readable by a computer (solid state drives, flash memory cards, digital disks, random-access memory (RAM) and so on) may also be utilized. 
     The computer system  20  has a file system  36 , in which the operating system  35 , may be stored, as well as additional program applications  37 , other program modules  38 , and program data  39 . A user of the computer system  20  may enter commands and information using keyboard  40 , mouse  42 , or any other input device known to those of ordinary skill in the art, such as, but not limited to, a microphone, joystick, game controller, scanner, etc. . . . . Such input devices typically plug into the computer system  20  through a serial port  46 , which in turn is connected to the system bus, but those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that input devices may be also be connected in other ways, such as, without limitation, via a parallel port, a game port, or a universal serial bus (USB). A monitor  47  or other type of display device may also be connected to the system bus  23  across an interface, such as a video adapter  48 . In addition to the monitor  47 , the personal computer may be equipped with other peripheral output devices (not shown), such as loudspeakers, a printer, etc. 
     Computer system  20  may operate in a network environment, using a network connection to one or more remote computers  49 . The remote computer (or computers)  49  may be local computer workstations or servers comprising most or all of the aforementioned elements in describing the nature of a computer system  20 . Other devices may also be present in the computer network, such as, but not limited to, routers, network stations, peer devices or other network nodes. 
     Network connections can form a local-area computer network (LAN)  50  and a wide-area computer network (WAN). Such networks are used in corporate computer networks and internal company networks, and the networks generally have access to the Internet. In LAN or WAN networks, the personal computer  20  is connected to the local-area network  50  across a network adapter or network interface  51 . When networks are used, the computer system  20  may employ a modem  54  or other modules well known to those of ordinary skill in the art that enable communications with a wide-area computer network such as the Internet. The modem  54 , which may be an internal or external device, may be connected to the system bus  23  by a serial port  46 . It will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that said network connections are non-limiting examples of numerous well-understood ways of establishing a connection by one computer to another using communication modules. 
     In various aspects, the systems and methods described herein may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the methods may be stored as one or more instructions or code on a non-transitory computer-readable medium. Computer-readable medium includes data storage. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readable medium can comprise RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM, Flash memory or other types of electric, magnetic, or optical storage medium, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a processor of a general purpose computer. 
     In various aspects, the systems and methods described in the present disclosure can be addressed in terms of modules. The term “module” as used herein refers to a real-world device, component, or arrangement of components implemented using hardware, such as by an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or field-programmable gate array (FPGA), for example, or as a combination of hardware and software, such as by a microprocessor system and a set of instructions to implement the module&#39;s functionality, which (while being executed) transform the microprocessor system into a special-purpose device. A module may also be implemented as a combination of the two, with certain functions facilitated by hardware alone, and other functions facilitated by a combination of hardware and software. In certain implementations, at least a portion, and in some cases, all, of a module may be executed on the processor of a general purpose computer (such as the one described in greater detail in  FIG. 4 , above). Accordingly, each module may be realized in a variety of suitable configurations, and should not be limited to any particular implementation exemplified herein. 
     In the interest of clarity, not all of the routine features of the aspects are disclosed herein. It would be appreciated that in the development of any actual implementation of the present disclosure, numerous implementation-specific decisions must be made in order to achieve the developer&#39;s specific goals, and these specific goals will vary for different implementations and different developers. It is understood that such a development effort might be complex and time-consuming, but would nevertheless be a routine undertaking of engineering for those of ordinary skill in the art, having the benefit of this disclosure. 
     Furthermore, it is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and not of restriction, such that the terminology or phraseology of the present specification is to be interpreted by the skilled in the art in light of the teachings and guidance presented herein, in combination with the knowledge of the skilled in the relevant art(s). Moreover, it is not intended for any term in the specification or claims to be ascribed an uncommon or special meaning unless explicitly set forth as such. 
     The various aspects disclosed herein encompass present and future known equivalents to the known modules referred to herein by way of illustration. Moreover, while aspects and applications have been shown and described, it would be apparent to those skilled in the art having the benefit of this disclosure that many more modifications than mentioned above are possible without departing from the inventive concepts disclosed herein.