Using Citrix Software Anywhere in OS X to run MS programs?

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Level 1

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Using Citrix Software Anywhere in OS X to run MS programs?

I will be starting a grad program this Fall and need to purchase a new computer. A few of the programs I will be using are Windows-only programs like MS Access. I've been weighing the pros and cons of the various ways to run Windows on a Mac or just purchasing a Windows machine, but I just found out about a program offered by my grad school called Citrix Software Anywhere that allows you to run programs from the university server on your personal computer via the browser - including the full MS Office suite. My question is: will a program like Access run through the browser in OS X even though Access isn't supported in OS X? I know that the Citrix software is supported on a Mac, but for all programs? Thanks so much!

Posted on Jun 19, 2012 8:28 AM

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Answer 1

varjak paw

Level 10

182,662 points

Jun 19, 2012 8:33 AM in response to lexilita

Solutions such as Citrix basically allow you to take over a virtual "machine" on your university's server, a machine that is running Windows, so it doesn't matter what will and won't run on your Mac since you're not using your Mac to do anything other than view and control that Windows "system". As long as the software is installed on the server and made available to you, you should be able to run it.

Note that, of course, you won't have access to the software except when you can access that server. If you want the applications available to you at any time, whether or not you have a network connection, then you would need to run Windows on your Mac and load the software there.

Regards.

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Answer 2

Jun 19, 2012 8:37 AM in response to lexilita

We have Citrix Anywhere at the school here where I teach. Unfortunately, my experience running it on a MacBook Pro is erratic at best. Personally, I would not trust it on Macs. FWIW, Citrix runs fine on Windows machines.

Your best bet is to stick with a Windows machine or run virtualization on a Mac (e.g., Parallels, VMWare).

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