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Azure Stack vs VMware Software Defined Data Center comparison

Microsoft and VMware are both solutions in the Software Defined Data Center (SDDC) category. Microsoft is ranked #2 with an average rating of 7.8, while VMware is ranked #3 with an average rating of 8.5. Microsoft holds a 45.0% mindshare in SDDC, compared to VMware’s 17.3% mindshare. Additionally, 92% of Microsoft users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 93% of VMware users who would recommend it.
Azure Stack
Read 66 Azure Stack reviews
  • 206 Views
  • 147 Comparison Views
92% willing to recommend
VMware Software Defined Dat...
Read 29 VMware Software Defined Data Center reviews
  • 235 Views
  • 84 Comparison Views
93% willing to recommend
 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary
We performed a comparison between Azure Stack and VMware Software Defined Data Center based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Software Defined Data Center (SDDC) solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

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To learn more, read our detailed Azure Stack vs. VMware Software Defined Data Center Report (Updated: January 2025).
Buyer's Guide
Azure Stack vs. VMware Software Defined Data Center
January 2025
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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Azure Stack
Ranking in Software Defined Data Center (SDDC)
2nd
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
66
Ranking in other categories
Hybrid Cloud Computing Platforms (1st)
VMware Software Defined Dat...
Ranking in Software Defined Data Center (SDDC)
3rd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.9
Number of Reviews
29
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2025, in the Software Defined Data Center (SDDC) category, the mindshare of Azure Stack is 45.0%, up from 39.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VMware Software Defined Data Center is 17.3%, down from 34.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Software Defined Data Center (SDDC)
 

Featured Reviews

Sarath-Boppudi - PeerSpot reviewer
Seamless integration and impressive scaling capabilities for efficient architectural solutions
The scalability of Azure Stack is commendable. It can scale up within two to three minutes upon request. SQL Server is a good use case for data warehouses. It is scalable and can be set to serverless to reduce costs when not in use. Power BI Fabric offers a useful way to stack data in data warehousing solutions. Azure Stack provides federated authentication which is seamless with on-premise infrastructure, offering good performance and throughput. The integration with Microsoft's environment is also efficient.
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Shahab Al Yamin Chawdhury - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides robust network flexibility but is exceptionally costly
We contact technical support whenever we have an issue. They are helpful, but it is a bit of a process. First, you explain the problem to a level one engineer, and if is complex, they might need to pass it up the chain. This can take a few days, which can be a bit slow in urgent situations. I would rate their support as a seven out of ten. It is good but could be faster.
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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"It's a good and cost effective solution for any organization. We can deploy the tech solution on premises and also in the cloud."
"It's not as complex compared to Amazon or AWS products. Azure Stack is easier to use within the cloud."
"The solution is certainly stable."
"Azure Stack is a good product because it's flexible and easy to work with."
"Microsoft support is fast."
"Azure Stack is stable."
"Azure Active Directory is the most valuable feature."
"It has every feature that we need and overall, it's pretty good."
More Azure Stack pros
"The solution does not occupy much space."
"The most valuable feature is its central management system."
"The higher availability, the DRS, and its connection with NetApp are the most valuable features."
"he ease of deploying virtual machines is the solution's most valuable feature. Moving virtual machines from one post to another is easy. Within minutes you can easily deploy your virtual machines and deploy your applications as well."
"The VMware Software Defined Data Center Manager can be used to manage VMs across multiple platforms."
"The most valuable features are server virtualization and network virtualization."
"The stability of this solution is great."
"Bare Metal Ethernet SAN "dramatically improved" performance, stability, and reliability of the VMware Healthcare Solution Architecture."
More VMware Software Defined Data Center pros
 

Cons

"I believe the only room for improvement is that I am based in Nairobi, if it has even a local node for Azure, I believe most customers will prefer that to reduce latencies and everything else when using the Azure Stack."
"From a security perspective, there are certain things which could be improved."
"Certain elements are difficult to deploy."
"Customers need to consider the Disaster Recovery. Microsoft tech is only providing support to Azure."
"There are some minor issues or bugs with it that I know are there."
"I would only recommend this solution to smaller organizations like ours because I cannot really speculate what big issues that the bigger organizations will face."
"There should be more focus on the user interface, specifically for the management console."
"For some years, Azure has been working on Synapse. It's their big footprint on the analytics stack. It's a little bit heavy right now in the sense that there are too many components and it's too complex."
More Azure Stack cons
"The interface should be improved because when there are many alarms, it is difficult to figure out what the error is."
"Its pricing could be better, and there could be more integration."
"There's quite a lot of uncertainty at the moment regarding the solution following the Broadcom acquisition of VMware."
"It would be great to have compatibility with vendors like UCS."
"They are using vRealize Log Insight as the virtualized log platform, but this solution is not well developed and not yet ready to use for advanced optimization and troubleshooting."
"The solution must provide more features."
"One area where it could improve is in the user interface."
"The automation of the solution needs improvement. We should be able to automate some processes."
More VMware Software Defined Data Center cons
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Azure Stack is a very expensive solution."
"Pricing is always a hot topic, so the pricing can always improve."
"Azure is reasonably priced compared to Google Cloud, AWS, or some other cloud giants."
"In terms of pricing, my customers believe AWS is slightly more reasonably priced than Azure."
"I would rate the pricing a seven out of ten, with ten being expensive."
"The cost of Azure Stack is much cheaper than VCE."
"Subscription model customers need not make large expenditures on upfront purchasing."
"The licensing costs are expensive."
More Azure Stack pricing and cost advice
"VMware Software Defined Data Center is expensive."
"The normal license is not very cheap."
"VMware Software Defined Data Center is a very expensive solution."
"Its pricing could be better."
"All of the customers can go to VMware Hands-on Labs online and test this solution before buying it."
"There are extra costs involved for the product for storage and expansion."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Educational Organization
7%
Computer Software Company
15%
Government
15%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Real Estate/Law Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Azure Stack?
For hybrid cloud operations, the seamless transition it enables is key. Most enterprises have a lot of workloads on-premises, and they want a smooth way to move into the cloud. Some things are on...
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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Stack?
Azure Stack is a very expensive solution. The costs are very opaque and coming out of control quite quickly.
See all answers
What needs improvement with Azure Stack?
The solution's transparency over cost management could be much easier because it's very difficult to manage costs.
See all answers
What do you like most about VMware Software Defined Data Center?
The VMware Software Defined Data Center Manager can be used to manage VMs across multiple platforms.
See all answers
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for VMware Software Defined Data Center?
VMware Software Defined Data Center is a very expensive solution.
See all answers
What needs improvement with VMware Software Defined Data Center?
There's quite a lot of uncertainty at the moment regarding the solution following the Broadcom acquisition of VMware. After the Broadcom acquisition, they changed the licensing model, reduced their...
See all answers
 

Comparisons

VMware Cloud Foundation vs Azure Stack Logo
VMware Cloud Foundation vs Azure Stack
Compared 48% of the time
AWS Outposts vs Azure Stack Logo
AWS Outposts vs Azure Stack
Compared 30% of the time
Nutanix Cloud Clusters (NC2) vs Azure Stack Logo
Nutanix Cloud Clusters (NC2) vs Azure Stack
Compared 14% of the time
Nutanix Cloud Infrastructure (NCI) vs Azure Stack Logo
Nutanix Cloud Infrastructure (NCI) vs Azure Stack
Compared 4% of the time
More Azure Stack Competitors
No data available
 

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide
Azure Stack
February 2025
Azure Stack reportDownload Azure Stack product report
Buyer's Guide
VMware Software Defined Data Center
January 2025
VMware Software Defined Data Center reportDownload VMware Software Defined Data Center product report
 

Also Known As

No data available
VMware SDDC
 

Overview

Information not available
Microsoft

The VMware approach to the SDDC delivers a unified platform that supports any application and provides flexible control. The VMware architecture for the SDDC empowers companies to run hybrid clouds and to leverage unique capabilities to deliver key outcomes that enable efficiency, agility, and security. Enterprises using VMware technology have three ways to establish an SDDC and transition at their own pace: build their own using reference architectures; use a converged infrastructure; or use a hyper-converged infrastructure for which the full SDDC is delivered already implemented on the customer's hardware of choice.

VMware
 

Sample Customers

Weblink, Fathym, Sage, CFD Support Ltd, The UberCloud Inc.
ACI, Western Carolina University
Buyer's Guide
Azure Stack vs. VMware Software Defined Data Center
January 2025
Free Report: Azure Stack vs. VMware Software Defined Data Center
Find out what your peers are saying about Azure Stack vs. VMware Software Defined Data Center and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
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