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April 14, 2026

Example Blast Settings for Linux Desktops

You can adjust the image quality of your remote desktop display to improve the user experience. Improving image quality is helpful in maintaining a consistent user experience when network connection is less than optimal.

Video Encoders Used for Desktop Sessions

The video encoder used for a desktop session depends on the capabilities of both the desktop and client systems. When a user opens a session, Horizon 8 evaluates the hardware and software capabilities of the desktop and client and selects the highest-priority encoder that is supported by both.

For example, Horizon 8 uses HEVC if all the following components are configured to support or allow HEVC:

  • The Linux desktop system
  • Horizon Agent on the Linux desktop
  • The client system
  • Horizon Client on the client system

If any one of the components does not support HEVC, Horizon 8 selects the next encoder on the priority list that is supported by all the components.

For a session that uses vGPU technology, Horizon 8 selects from the following encoders listed in order of priority:

  1. HEVC YUV 4:4:4
  2. H.264 YUV 4:4:4
  3. HEVC
  4. H.264
  5. Switch Encoder
  6. BlastCodec

For a non-vGPU session, Horizon 8 selects from the following priority list of encoders:

  1. Switch Encoder
  2. H.264
  3. BlastCodec

Example Horizon Blast Extreme Protocol Settings

BlastServer and its related plug-ins use the configuration file /etc/omnissa/config.

Example Blast Configuration Options in that config file

Option nameParameterHigh-speed LANLANDedicated WANBroadband WANLow-speed WANExtremely Low speed
Bandwidth settingsRemoteDisplay.maxBandwidthKbps1000000 (1 Gbps)1000000 (1 Gbps)1000000 (1 Gbps)5000 (5 Mbps)2000 (2 Mbps)1000 (1 Mbps)
Max FPSRemoteDisplay.maxFPS60303020155
Audio PlaybackRemoteDisplay.allowAudioTRUETRUETRUETRUETRUEFALSE
Display Quality (JPEG/PNG)RemoteDisplay.maxQualityJPEG909090706050
Display Quality (JPEG/PNG)RemoteDisplay.midQualityJPEG353535353535
Display Quality (JPEG/PNG)RemoteDisplay.minQualityJPEG252525202020
Display Quality (H.264 or HEVC)RemoteDisplay.qpmaxH264283636363642
Display Quality (H.264 or HEVC)RemoteDisplay.qpminH264101010101010

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