ICA Client (wfica): Citrix (Receiver) incomplete and not well integrated into Ubuntu Software Center

[TEN]

High expectations are raised by the press release at http://www.canonical.com/content/ubuntu-1204-lts-aims-conquer-enterprise-desktop "Ubuntu 12.04 LTS includes support for desktop virtualisation from Citrix and VMware, alongside Microsoft RDP 7.1. This means enterprise users now have a three-way choice for office productivity: remote delivery of desktop applications..."

However, there are no hits for Citrix or ICA in the Ubuntu Software Center (except advertisements to purchase magazine articles), and user experience is as follows:
"Installing Citrix in Linux is always a hazzle." in: Install Citrix Receiver on Ubuntu 12.04 http://zo0ok.com/techfindings/archives/760
Ubuntu 12.04 - Citrix Receiver Not Working http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1968781
Citrix ICA Client 12 on Ubuntu 12.04 64-bit https://help.ubuntu.com/community/CitrixICAClientHowTo#Citrix_ICA_Client_12_on_Ubuntu_12.04_64-bit

This is in part due to the unfortunate fact that broken packages to replace the "Receiver for Linux" 12.0 with 12.1 seem to have been available at first, coinciding with the Ubuntu 12.04 LTS launch.

However, as revealed at http://www.versitek.com/will-linux-desktop-adoption-grow-thanks-to-ubuntu-12-04/ "includes support" and "with 12.04, it will be embedded in the operating system" actually means "Microsoft RDP (Remote Desktop Protocol) support is directly integrated with Ubuntu. Citrix and VMware support is something that end users will have to take an extra step to acquire and download and install clients themselves."

It is thus left to each user to figure out that what they need is the "Receiver for Linux (12.1 Release Date: 4/23/2012) x86 client - requires OpenMotif v.2.3.1" (where the 64-bit version has the same small-print x86 designation) from http://www.citrix.com/English/ss/downloads/details.asp?downloadId=2323812&productId=1689163 (i.e. none of the system's preconfigured default sources), preferably in the .deb flavour.
What OpenMotif, Debian and the 32/64-bit architectures are is unlikely to be on the mind of average users trying to "just" make a freshly installed OS remotely access their corporate (virtual) machines.

A far cry from getting a meaningful entry on the Ubuntu Launcher (wfica with a question mark icon at best), the user having found the courage to install the above (for the right arch at that) ends up with a bunch of .DLL (!) files in /opt/Citrix/ICAClient and needs to know that e.g. Shift-Alt-CursorUp is required to switch back to a minimized session if it does not show a launcher icon of its own even at runtime.

In short, no package can be specified on the bug (a very valid one nonetheless) because there SHOULD BE one in Precise Pangolin, since "working closely with the Citrix and VMware guys to make that available" according to Steve George, VP of Communications and Products at Canonical, as quoted by Versitek above, ought to result in a simple way (through the standard interface) for users to retrieve and install these packages advertised as a particular highlight of Ubuntu 12.04 LTS.
In your own words at http://www.datamation.com/open-source/ubuntu-12.04-delivers-5-years-of-enterprise-linux-desktop-support.html: "corporate customers ... want to move across to a Linux desktop but ... have one or two legacy applications that hold them back. ... So making the process of connecting to and using those applications really seamless from a user perspective is an important step."

[Ubuntu Foundations Team Bug Bot (crichton)]

Thank you for taking the time to report this bug and helping to make Ubuntu better. It seems that your bug report is not filed about a specific source package though, rather it is just filed against Ubuntu in general. It is important that bug reports be filed about source packages so that people interested in the package can find the bugs about it. You can find some hints about determining what package your bug might be about at https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Bugs/FindRightPackage. You might also ask for help in the #ubuntu-bugs irc channel on Freenode.

To change the source package that this bug is filed about visit https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+bug/1001976/+editstatus and add the package name in the text box next to the word Package.

[This is an automated message. I apologize if it reached you inappropriately; please just reply to this message indicating so.]

[TEN (launchpad-20-ten)]

Package is binary and NOT on Ubuntu's repository (yet, while it should be), though highlighted as part of Precise Pangolin.

[Michael Linke (1l)]

Same problem here please advise.

[TEN (launchpad-20-ten)]

Please click the line neat the top of this page stating that this bug affects you too then.

As explained in the message starting this thread, you will need (the courage;-)) to download and open one of the two .deb packages currently called "Receiver for Linux (12.1 Release Date: 4/23/2012) x86 client - requires OpenMotif v.2.3.1" from http://www.citrix.com/English/ss/downloads/details.asp?downloadId=2323812&productId=1689163 - there are entries for an x86 (32-bit, third from the top there at the time of writing), and a 64-bit version further down the page.

Though Canonical praised Ubuntu 12.04 LTS at such surprising length as a greatly enhanced virtualization client, the
installation procedure for the Citrix Receiver / ICAClient seems to offer no substantial difference from 10.04 LTS, let alone improvement over the former (on which it actually appears slightly more responsive on my small sample of machines available for testing), in either case coming from an external site to which not even a deeplink is offered from the default repositories, and which has to be let loose on the system as if presumably closed-source, binary-only third-party code was unfailing, while prompting to "agree" to an unreadable EULA.

[TEN (launchpad-20-ten)]

Confirmed at #3

[Michael Neuffer (neuffer)]

It should also be added the the AMD64 DEB Package is buggy and does not install.
The Postinstall script needs to be amended

--- icaclient.postinst~ 2012-04-13 16:57:31.000000000 +0200
+++ icaclient.postinst 2012-10-19 10:44:41.001099499 +0200
@@ -2645,7 +2645,7 @@
  NotIntel=0
  NotARM=0

- echo $Arch|grep "i[0-9]86" >/dev/null
+ echo $Arch|grep -E "i[0-9]86|x86_64" >/dev/null
  if [ $? -ne 0 ]; then
   NotIntel=1
  fi

[TEN (launchpad-20-ten)]

For Trusty Tahr, https://help.ubuntu.com/community/CitrixICAClientHowTo#Citrix_Receiver_12.1_on_Ubuntu_14.04_64-bit has some instructions on patches beyond the reach of average users, while the package STILL does not seem to be available from the default repositories.

Not sure how to report this as affecting the new LTS as well, please complete/elaborate.

[TEN (launchpad-20-ten)]

This is still not properly integrated into Ubuntu 14.04 LTS (especially noting how it has been advertised for years, see above):

The user has to find http://www.citrix.com/downloads/citrix-receiver/linux/receiver-for-linux-130.html and be knowledgeable about CPU architectures to navigate his or her way past the ARM opening by default to AMD64 (even on Intel) or x86, then know to look for a .deb archive (i.e. be acquainted with Ubuntu's upstream and the package management thereof) and get past the pop-up suggesting some "secure downloader" to manually retrieve the archive.

Then on icaclient_13.0.0.256735_amd64.deb Ubuntu Software Center will report the following anyway:
icaclient
Citrix Receiver for Linux
Dependency is not satisfiable: ia32-libs

(cf. http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2176616#post12798626 on this one: 'ia32-libs is past "being phased out", it's gone.')

Just in case anyone's wondering: Counterintuitively trying to use icaclient_13.0.0.256735_i386.deb on 64-bit will hit another block at the same point:
Cannot install 'libwebkitgtk-1.0-0:i386'

That's worlds away from what a user of remote managed desktops can be expected to figure out solutions for.

(And don't get me started on the EULA...)

[TEN (launchpad-20-ten)]

The procedure from https://help.ubuntu.com/community/CitrixICAClientHowTo works with icaclient_13.1.0.285639_amd64.deb but is not what end users could possibly put up with, especially in light of the above advertising for years.

[tlue (tlueber)]

even after having (hopefully) done all of this, seamless mode with a RemoteDesktop session is not working correctly with 14.04 (was fine in 12.04).
Now started using TeamViewer instead, but can't be the solution for most I guess.