Citrix XenServer vs Nutanix AHV Virtualization comparison

Citrix and Nutanix are both solutions in the Server Virtualization Software category. Citrix is ranked #11 with an average rating of 8.0, while Nutanix is ranked #5 with an average rating of 8.8. Citrix holds a 5.3% mindshare in SVS, compared to Nutanix’s 8.9% mindshare. Additionally, 81% of Citrix users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 95% of Nutanix users who would recommend it.

Citrix XenServer

Read 48 Citrix XenServer reviews

8,827 Views
6,211 Comparison Views

81% willing to recommend

Nutanix AHV Virtualization

Read 54 Nutanix AHV Virtualization reviews

14,105 Views
9,376 Comparison Views

95% willing to recommend

Citrix XenServer

Nutanix AHV Virtualization

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 6, 2024

Citrix XenServer and Nutanix AHV compete in the virtualization category, with each product offering distinct advantages. Citrix XenServer seems to hold an edge with its comprehensive free edition and broad Windows support, while Nutanix AHV excels in storage integration and cost efficiency.

Features: Citrix XenServer offers a full-featured free edition, real-time performance monitoring, and strong support for Windows management via XenCenter. It also provides advanced capabilities like hot-swappable components and compatibility with various clouds. Nutanix AHV is known for its integration of storage and compute services, user-centric design, and automation features. It provides a simplified management experience through the Prism console and does not require licensing costs.

Room for Improvement: Citrix XenServer needs enhanced high-availability and clustering options, a more flexible update process, and expanded support for Linux guests. There is also room for better integration with third-party backup solutions and a more detailed self-service user portal. Nutanix AHV could improve in orchestration, automation, and response times for technical support. Enhanced integration with legacy systems and third-party software, alongside management console enhancements, are desired.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Citrix XenServer offers ease of deployment and community-driven support with optional paid assistance. However, users sometimes find it difficult to obtain help due to a limited number of Citrix partners. Nutanix AHV, being open-source, avoids licensing issues, with users praising quick support resolution capabilities, although improvements in accessibility and support efficiency are needed.

Pricing and ROI: Citrix XenServer's advantage is its free version, suitable for small-scale use, though transitioning to paid versions can be costly. The benefits of virtualization are valued despite high licensing costs for advanced features. Nutanix AHV offers a free hypervisor bundled with Nutanix's platform, leading to cost savings through integrated features like de-duplication without added licensing fees. Although it has higher initial costs, its ROI potential makes it competitive for businesses seeking comprehensive solutions.

To learn more, read our detailed Citrix XenServer vs. Nutanix AHV Virtualization Report (Updated: January 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Citrix XenServer vs. Nutanix AHV Virtualization

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:

ROI

Sentiment score

7.9

Citrix XenServer offered significant ROI with user satisfaction, virtualization benefits, and cost savings despite significant initial expenses.

Sentiment score

6.3

Nutanix AHV Virtualization reduces costs by 45%, enhances performance, and improves agility with 30% less downtime in three years.

No quotes available

For more quotes and insights, download the Citrix XenServer report

No quotes available

For more quotes and insights, download the Nutanix AHV Virtualization report

Customer Service

Sentiment score

5.5

Citrix XenServer's support is inconsistent, with mixed reviews on response times and effectiveness, benefiting from paid options.

Sentiment score

8.7

Nutanix AHV Virtualization is acclaimed for its responsive, knowledgeable 24/7 support, with generally positive feedback despite occasional response delays.

They do not provide adequate support for midsize businesses.

Filip Fronczak

Virtualization Architect & Managing Owner at AnyThin', Jerzy Fronczak

For more quotes and insights, download the Citrix XenServer report

They provide prompt and quality responses.

James Vailloo

Network & Server Administrator at TTSE

For more quotes and insights, download the Nutanix AHV Virtualization report

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score

8.0

Citrix XenServer excels in scalable deployments, effective for varying business sizes, but needs more features, especially in storage.

Sentiment score

8.4

Nutanix AHV Virtualization offers efficient scalability, easily expanding resources for diverse environments, making it ideal for growing businesses.

No quotes available

For more quotes and insights, download the Citrix XenServer report

We can scale our systems easily without any downtime, making it a highly effective solution for dynamic environments.

Mithun Nidiyenga

Senior System Engineer at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Nutanix AHV Virtualization report

Stability Issues

Sentiment score

7.6

Citrix XenServer is a reliable, stable system with minimal issues, appreciated for uptime and dependability despite minor glitches.

Sentiment score

8.6

Nutanix AHV is praised for stability, reliability, seamless virtual management, proactive support, and integration with Nutanix infrastructure.

No quotes available

For more quotes and insights, download the Citrix XenServer report

The solution is very stable.

James Vailloo

Network & Server Administrator at TTSE

Issues such as patch delays and the OVF format challenge affect its stability rating.

Mithun Nidiyenga

Senior System Engineer at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees

For more quotes and insights, download the Nutanix AHV Virtualization report

Room For Improvement

Citrix XenServer needs improved backup, flexibility, and support, addressing concerns over cost, interface, Linux support, and community assistance.

Nutanix AHV requires improved integration, interface optimization, better documentation, disaster recovery, automation, Linux support, and competitive pricing.

Although the product is technically competitive, it is not widely known or used due to poor marketing.

Filip Fronczak

Virtualization Architect & Managing Owner at AnyThin', Jerzy Fronczak

For more quotes and insights, download the Citrix XenServer report

This delay in patching creates risk, especially for government projects that require timely updates.

Mithun Nidiyenga

Senior System Engineer at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees

These menus often show options like host, memory, and disk, however, they fail to provide insight into what's happening.

James Vailloo

Network & Server Administrator at TTSE

For more quotes and insights, download the Nutanix AHV Virtualization report

Setup Cost

Citrix XenServer offers free and paid versions; customers find it cost-effective but note licensing can be confusing.

Nutanix AHV provides cost-effective virtualization with no hypervisor fees, though additional licenses and high initial prices may apply.

The pricing and licensing policy of Citrix XenServer is not transparent and quite confusing.

Filip Fronczak

Virtualization Architect & Managing Owner at AnyThin', Jerzy Fronczak

For more quotes and insights, download the Citrix XenServer report

This has been advantageous as it does not require additional licensing costs for the hypervisor, contributing to overall cost savings.

Mithun Nidiyenga

Senior System Engineer at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees

The pricing was reasonable compared to other competitors, though the storage was expensive.

James Vailloo

Network & Server Administrator at TTSE

For more quotes and insights, download the Nutanix AHV Virtualization report

Valuable Features

Citrix XenServer provides cost-effective, high-performance virtualization with seamless integration, intuitive management, and robust features enhancing user satisfaction.

Nutanix AHV excels in user-friendliness, cost-efficiency, scalability, flexible management, and robust data protection, enhancing virtual environment operations.

It provides secure access to applications and resources, which is crucial for us and our clients.

Filip Fronczak

Virtualization Architect & Managing Owner at AnyThin', Jerzy Fronczak

For more quotes and insights, download the Citrix XenServer report

The technology behind the backups is very efficient, enabling a reliable virtual environment.

James Vailloo

Network & Server Administrator at TTSE

For more quotes and insights, download the Nutanix AHV Virtualization report

Categories and Ranking

Citrix XenServer

Ranking in Server Virtualization Software

11th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Nutanix AHV Virtualization

Ranking in Server Virtualization Software

5th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2025, in the Server Virtualization Software category, the mindshare of Citrix XenServer is 5.3%, up from 3.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Nutanix AHV Virtualization is 8.9%, up from 4.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Server Virtualization Software

Featured Reviews

Siva Kuppala

Enterprise Architect at Wipro Limited

Allows us to allocate CPU, memory, storage, and network resources across VMs and minimizes downtime in case of hardware failure or maintenance

It is a scalable product and provides great benefits for virtualization needs. However, there are a few considerations: * Cost: Citrix Hypervisor can be fairly expensive. * Complexity: There's a learning curve, especially for those coming from a Microsoft background. Setting it up and managing it can introduce some complexity. * Hardware Support: Not all major hardware vendors fully support Citrix Hypervisor. * Third-party Integration: Integrating Hypervisor with other technologies within a large ecosystem can sometimes be challenging. * Community Support: Compared to solutions like Microsoft Hyper-V, the community support for Citrix Hypervisor is somewhat less extensive. It is not vast. If there are any issues or errors, the community support is not that good. Those are definitely important disadvantages.

Read full review

Mithun Nidiyenga

Senior System Engineer at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees

Achieves seamless upgrades and cost efficiency while managing virtualization

One issue we encountered is with third-party vendors who provide customized images in OVF format, a VMware virtualization format. When we customize these images for Nutanix AHV, some vendors refuse to support them, stating they've been altered. Another area for improvement is in the patching process. Nutanix releases product patches every three months, while the underlying systems like the backend operating system receive weekly updates, causing a gap. This delay in patching creates risk, especially for government projects that require timely updates.

Read full review

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Comparison Review

Thang Le Toan (Victory Lee)

CIO at Robusta Technology & Training

Jan 13, 2015

vSphere vs. RHEV vs. Hyper-V vs. XenServer

We have used the following functions: 1. Hypervisor: to ensure that the virtual server provide web and email services to the company, thus providing a stable operation a with single sign-on integration of an AD server and vCenter. 2. Network and Storage: centralized data server…

Read full review

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Educational Organization

54%

Computer Software Company

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Educational Organization

30%

Computer Software Company

13%

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Citrix Hypervisor?

The core function enables multiple virtual machines to run on a single physical server. This maximizes hardware utilization and efficiency.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Citrix Hypervisor?

The pricing and licensing policy of Citrix XenServer is not transparent and quite confusing. The sales channel has deteriorated over the years and sales margins have dropped significantly, making i...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Citrix Hypervisor?

The marketing of Citrix lacks effectiveness. Although the product is technically competitive, it is not widely known or used due to poor marketing. Additionally, the technical support for midsize b...

See all answers

How does Nutanix AHV compare with VMware vSphere?

To understand which is better - Nutanix AHV or VMware vSphere - you need to do a product comparison. Both products support hypervisors. However, Nutanix supports some of the most popular ones and m...

See all answers

What do you like most about Nutanix AHV Virtualization?

Integration is the most valuable feature of the product.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Nutanix AHV Virtualization?

The setup cost for four nodes was about $200,000 (in US currency). The pricing was reasonable compared to other competitors, though the storage was expensive.

See all answers

Comparisons

Proxmox VE vs Citrix XenServer

Compared 35% of the time

VMware vSphere vs Citrix XenServer

Compared 24% of the time

Hyper-V vs Citrix XenServer

Compared 20% of the time

KVM vs Citrix XenServer

Compared 7% of the time

Oracle VM VirtualBox vs Citrix XenServer

Compared 4% of the time

More Citrix XenServer Competitors

Hyper-V vs Nutanix AHV Virtualization

Compared 28% of the time

Proxmox VE vs Nutanix AHV Virtualization

Compared 28% of the time

KVM vs Nutanix AHV Virtualization

Compared 20% of the time

VMware vSphere vs Nutanix AHV Virtualization

Compared 10% of the time

XCP-ng virtualization platform vs Nutanix AHV Virtualization

Compared 3% of the time

More Nutanix AHV Virtualization Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Citrix XenServer

January 2025

Download Citrix XenServer product report

Buyer's Guide

Nutanix AHV Virtualization

December 2024

Download Nutanix AHV Virtualization product report

Also Known As

Hypervisor

No data available

Learn More

Citrix

Nutanix

Overview

Citrix XenServer is a virtualization platform used in industries such as banking, automotive, and data applications for cloud automation, server virtualization, and VDI scenarios. It supports infrastructure management, virtual machine hosting, and enterprise software deployment, reducing costs by migrating from other platforms.

As a virtualization tool, Citrix XenServer stands out for its ease of maintenance, support, scalability, and centralized management. Commonly deployed on-premises and in data centers, it provides real-time monitoring, live migration, and strong security features. With compatibility across many operating systems, users benefit from a Windows-based management interface that is easy to install and navigate. Integration capabilities with active directory, storage, and load balancing contribute to resource optimization and reliability.

What are the key features of Citrix XenServer?

Cost-effectiveness: Reduces operational expenses across IT environments.
High Performance: Real-time monitoring and live migration support high efficiency.
Security: Strong safeguards protect data and processes.
Management Interface: Windows-based, offering user-friendly controls.
OS Compatibility: Works with a range of operating systems for flexibility.
Advanced Integrations: Active directory, storage, and load balancing maximize resources.

What benefits should users consider in Citrix XenServer reviews?

Scalability: Easily adapts to growing demands.
Ease of Deployment: Streamlines the installation process for quick setup.
Comprehensive Virtualization: Offers extensive capabilities for seamless operations.
Centralized Management: Facilitates control through XenCenter.

Implementation in banking, automotive, and data applications leverages Citrix XenServer's strengths in cloud automation and virtualization. Organizations manage resources, deploy services, and ensure stable operations within their infrastructure. The platform is used both on-premises and in data centers, aiding in areas such as cost reduction and maintenance efficiency.

Nutanix AHV is a secure, enterprise-grade solution for intuitive virtualization and container management. It streamlines operations and simplifies management for all your workloads and environments.

Sample Customers

U.S. Army Shared Services Center, SoftLayer, Educational Services of America, Independent Bank, and SK Telecom.

JetBlue, International Speedway Corporation, SAIC Volkswagen

Buyer's Guide

Citrix XenServer vs. Nutanix AHV Virtualization

January 2025

Free Report: Citrix XenServer vs. Nutanix AHV Virtualization

Find out what your peers are saying about Citrix XenServer vs. Nutanix AHV Virtualization and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.

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