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VMware vCenter Reviews

Vendor: VMware
4.3 out of 5
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What is VMware vCenter?

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Buyer's Guide
VMware vCenter
October 2024
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Helped 816,406 peers since 2012

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Key learnings from peers

Valuable Features

VMware vCenter offers centralized management, high availability, and scalability. It excels in managing virtual machines across multiple hosts, provides features like DRS, cloning, snapshots, and easy migration. It enhances operational efficiency through automation and resource management. Users appreciate its user-friendly interface for monitoring, virtualization, and resource adjustment. High availability, lifecycle management, and integration with technologies like NSX T and vSAN are essential. Its role-based access integrates with Active Directory, offering fine-grained control.
  • "The most valuable feature is the ease of migrating services from one host to another during maintenance."
  • "The most valuable features are DRS, cluster management, vCenter management, and logs management."
  • "We must create a VIN on each node. You want to make the VIN ten times if you have a thin host. We mostly create VMs, and the vCenter publishes the template on all hosts."

Room for Improvement

VMware vCenter needs enhancements in licensing and pricing models, especially with Broadcom's acquisition causing uncertainty. Users report that the interface is challenging and technical support needs improvement. Cost-effectiveness is a concern, with additional licenses required for various functionalities. Improvements in storage management, scalability, and automation are necessary. Password recovery, management, and multi-location support need attention. Consolidation of plugins, better fault tolerance, and enhanced dashboard features are also suggested for a streamlined experience.
  • "There needs to be improvement in the pricing model, as the host license is already very high, and customers should have more open options for creating automation scenarios out of the box."
  • "The licensing model needs improvement, especially with the transition to Broadcom."
  • "The process of creating VLANs or any similar tasks requires following a specific procedure, which must be executed accurately to ensure successful deployment. That's the main concern."

ROI

VMware vCenter delivers significant cost savings and efficiency, offering good ROI. It reduces the need for multiple nodes, lowers administrative and energy expenses, and minimizes the need for extensive training. Transitioning to VMware vCenter allows operations to streamline, fostering scalability and flexibility. Central management enhances data recovery, increases security features, and supports a mobile workforce. Deployments, particularly larger ones, benefit from cost savings. Users consistently experience beneficial returns over extended periods.

Pricing

VMware vCenter pricing is perceived as high, with complex licensing models that have transitioned from perpetual to subscription-based, impacting affordability. Users highlight costs associated with monthly and annual licenses and potential hidden expenses due to feature usage. Some find it suitable for medium to large enterprises, while small businesses struggle. Prices vary across industries, with concerns over potential increases following the Broadcom acquisition. Cost-effectiveness rates vary, reflecting diverse user experiences and industry-specific budget considerations.
  • "VMware vCenter is not expensive."
  • "We have purchased monthly licenses for the platform. There are additional costs involved."
  • "On a scale from one to ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive, I rate the solution's pricing a seven out of ten."

Popular Use Cases

VMware vCenter's primary use cases include managing virtual machines, administering ESXi hosts, and centralizing control of hypervisor environments. Organizations utilize it for virtual machine deployment and resource allocation, offering high availability, DRS, and vMotion features. vCenter supports data center operations, infrastructure services like SFTP, and integrates with tools such as vRealize Automation for self-service portals and automation. It assists in performance monitoring, backup, security, and handling multiple clusters and configurations.

Service and Support

Customer support for VMware vCenter has received mixed feedback. Some users report deteriorating support quality over the past few years, experiencing delays and ineffective troubleshooting. Others find the service efficient and responsive within hours. Issues with support being primarily command-line based are noted, while GUI support is praised. Faster response and clarity in communication are desired. Overall, experiences vary greatly, though advanced support often requires premium licensing and substantial costs.

Deployment

VMware vCenter's initial setup is mostly straightforward and manageable within a short period, often taking less than a day. It simplifies processes through virtual appliance use and built-in databases. Adequate expertise is crucial to navigate advanced configurations or complex infrastructures. Some experienced longer implementation times due to intricate requirements or unfamiliar components, highlighting the importance of skill and planning in optimizing the deployment. The ease of setup receives favorable ratings despite occasional challenges.

Scalability

VMware vCenter is scalable and suitable for small to large enterprises. It supports deployments with multiple hosts and clusters. Users find its scaling capabilities impressive, handling numerous servers efficiently. Although some prefer Nutanix for more extensive scalability, vCenter supports thousands of users with its robust features. Automation can enhance its scaling abilities further. Its distributed architecture and provisioning features assist in seamless resource management, and its mature nature ensures no significant scalability issues are faced.

Stability

Users describe VMware vCenter as highly stable, rating it between seven and ten out of ten. It operates reliably in complex environments like banks and offers high availability options. While mostly stable, some users experience minor issues such as log file generation and patch complications with vendors like HP and Dell. Despite occasional downtimes, the platform supports continuous VM operations during host failures, meeting customer requirements effectively. Large user and expert communities contribute positively to its ecosystem.
These insights are based on the in-depth reviews provided by peers to help you make a better buying decision.
Download our VMware vCenter Buyer's Guide for additional reliable information.

Learn more about VMware vCenter

VMware vCenter is essential for managing virtual machines, deploying systems for customers, and centralizing ESXi servers' management. It aids in monitoring hosts, handling backups, recovering data, and virtualizing compute resources.

Organizations leverage VMware vCenter to oversee virtual infrastructure, automate administrative tasks, and provide self-service portals. It simplifies the management of IT environments by offering features like host profiles, high availability, and cluster configuration. Other notable features include scalability, resource management, performance monitoring, cloning, snapshots, DRS, LACP, and lifecycle management. VMware vCenter ensures continuous system availability, benefiting sectors like healthcare through efficient server management and process automation. The platform's alerting mechanisms, backup and restore functionalities, and elastic resource allocation enhance operational efficiency.

What are the key features of VMware vCenter?
  • Host Profiles: Simplifies and standardizes host configurations.
  • High Availability: Ensures system uptime and reliability.
  • Centralized Management: Allows comprehensive control over multiple ESXi servers.
  • Scalability: Adapts to growing infrastructure needs.
  • Performance Monitoring: Assesses and optimizes virtual machine performance.
  • Cloning & Snapshots: Facilitates quick deployment and recovery.
  • DRS: Distributes resources efficiently across the cluster.
  • LACP: Enhances network performance and reliability.
  • Lifecycle Management: Manages software updates and hardware lifecycles effectively.
What benefits and ROI can users expect?
  • Operational Efficiency: Automates routine tasks and improves resource management.
  • System Availability: Minimizes downtime and ensures continuous operations.
  • Cost Management: Optimizes resource usage and reduces operational costs.
  • Scalability: Grows with the company's infrastructure needs.
  • Enhanced Performance: Monitors and optimizes virtual machine performance.

Healthcare organizations use VMware vCenter to ensure uninterrupted access to critical applications and patient data. It helps manage large volumes of virtual servers, providing necessary performance and reliability. This platform's automation and monitoring capabilities are crucial for maintaining efficient IT operations and supporting healthcare needs.

VMware vCenter customers

1. Amazon 2. Apple 3. ATT 4. Bank of America 5. Cisco Systems 6. CocaCola 7. Dell 8. ebay 9. Facebook 10. Google 11. HP 12. IBM 13. Intel 14. JPMorgan Chase 15. LinkedIn 16. Microsoft 17. Netflix 18. Oracle 19. PayPal 20. SAP 21. Siemens 22. Tesla 23. Toyota 24. Twitter 25. Visa 26. Walmart 27. WeWork 28. World Bank

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