VMware takeover by Broadcom - what to do?

Alternatives and strategies for companies

Following the Acquisition of VMware by Broadcom and the change in licensing conditions that came into force on April 1, 2024, uncertainty prevails in many companies. It is now clear that the previous model of purchase licenses will be abolished and replaced by rental or cloud models. In addition, a minimum number of cores has been set. Some products that could previously be purchased individually have been integrated into license bundles, which means that companies now have to license products that they may not even need.
This is not only annoying, but in many cases even significantly more expensive for the companies than before. Once again, we see that a dominant manufacturer can change the rules of the game overnight and users have to grudgingly accept this fact. Do they really have to? What are the alternatives to VMware?

An immediate replacement of VMware is certainly not possible. Nevertheless, companies can now create short-term relief on the cost side and reduce dependency. Companies can replace VMware with other solutions by considering alternative virtualization platforms or cloud-based solutions.

The challenge with using alternative virtualization platforms, however, is that IT must now master and operate at least two platforms - which means more work.

Migrating certain servers to a hyperscaler, such as AWS or Microsoft Azure, is much easier. Servers can be migrated from one hyperscaler to another with very little effort, so the lock-in is not quite as pronounced.

Here are some of the most common alternatives and steps organizations can take to ease the transition from VMware to alternative platforms.

Alternatives to VMware

• Hyper-V: Microsoft’s Hyper-V is a widely used alternative to VMware. It offers similar functions and is integrated into Windows Server. Disadvantage: You are now dependent on Microsoft
• KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine): An open source solution that is supported by many Linux distributions. KVM is a robust and flexible option for companies that already use Linux.
• Proxmox VE: An open source virtualization platform that integrates KVM and container virtualization (LXC).
• Xen: Another open source virtualization platform that has been further developed by Citrix as XenServer.
• OpenStack: An open source cloud computing platform that offers extensive virtualization and orchestration functions.
• Hyperconverged Solutions: For example Nutanix. They sometimes come with their own virtualization layer that is specially designed for the solution. This is convenient and usually technically well solved - but brings new dependencies.
• Amazon Web Services (AWS): AWS offers a wide range of virtualization and cloud computing services that can be used as an alternative to local virtualization solutions.
• Microsoft Azure: Azure also offers comprehensive cloud services and virtualization options.

Migration from VMware servers to hyperscaler instances is well supported. Container solutions are also available natively as a service from the hyperscalers. An existing (and well-designed) cloud landing zone is required in each case. It is also important that the option of flexible service procurement is actively used. This reduces costs compared to VMware and removes dependency.

Advantages and disadvantages of the alternatives to VMware

• Hyper-V: Advantageous for organizations already using Microsoft infrastructure, but may be less flexible than some open source solutions.
• KVM: Very flexible and well integrated into Linux environments, but support and documentation may be a challenge for beginners.
• Proxmox VE: User-friendly and offers a variety of features, but may not be as widely used as other solutions.
• Xen: Powerful and stable, but the complexity can be a challenge for smaller companies.
• OpenStack: Very flexible and scalable, but complex to set up and manage.
• Hyperscalers: Offer a wide range of instance types that can be selected to meet the exact requirements of the applications, helping to reduce costs. In addition, the integration of cloud-native services offers a further opportunity to flexibly adapt performance to requirements. However, active management of cloud resources is necessary in order to actually take advantage of these benefits. This requires a rethink compared to purchased or rented VMware hosts.

Steps to implement the VMware alternatives

• Analyze needs: Analyze your company’s current and future virtualization and cloud computing requirements.
• Evaluate alternatives: Compare the features, costs, support options and integration capabilities of the alternatives.
• Build a test environment: Create a test environment to evaluate the selected alternative. This helps to verify compatibility with existing applications and the performance of the solution.
• Develop migration strategy: Plan the migration carefully. This includes identifying the workloads to be migrated and defining a migration schedule.
• Train and document: Train your IT staff to use the new solution and create comprehensive documentation.
• Set up a pilot phase: Start with a pilot phase to test the solution on a limited scale and identify any problems.
• Complete migration and optimization: Complete the migration and optimize the new environment for performance and efficiency.

Through careful planning and evaluation, organizations can successfully transition from VMware to an alternative solution that is better suited to their specific needs.

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