RHEV vs VMware vSphere comparison

Red Hat and VMware are both solutions in the Server Virtualization Software category. Red Hat is ranked #12 with an average rating of 7.6, while VMware is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.4. Red Hat holds a 3.7% mindshare in SVS, compared to VMware’s 18.1% mindshare. Additionally, 78% of Red Hat users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 94% of VMware users who would recommend it.

RHEV

Read 35 RHEV reviews

5,605 Views
4,074 Comparison Views

78% willing to recommend

VMware vSphere

Read 452 VMware vSphere reviews

32,091 Views
26,273 Comparison Views

94% willing to recommend

RHEV

VMware vSphere

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 12, 2025

RHEV and VMware vSphere are competing virtualization platforms in the enterprise market. Data indicates VMware vSphere tends to have the upper hand with advanced features and performance that robust enterprises prioritize over cost.

Features: RHEV is appreciated for its open-source infrastructure, effective Linux integration, and cost-saving approach. VMware vSphere boasts features such as advanced resource management, high availability with seamless failover, and comprehensive automation tools that position it as a leader in virtualization capabilities.

Room for Improvement: RHEV could benefit from simplifying its setup process and expanding support services to reduce dependency on specialized expertise. Enhancements in automation and management features would also fortify its offering. For VMware vSphere, addressing its high initial costs by introducing more flexible pricing models, optimizing functionalities for smaller environments, and reducing the complexity of license structures could enhance accessibility and appeal to a broader market.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: VMware vSphere is noted for its streamlined deployment process, extensive documentation, and broad enterprise compatibility. It offers comprehensive support and training resources. RHEV, while known for its flexibility, can be more challenging to deploy and might require deeper expertise, which could lead to increased setup time compared to VMware vSphere.

Pricing and ROI: RHEV is favored for low-cost entry, making it attractive for budget-conscious enterprises looking for open-source solutions. It offers strong initial ROI. VMware vSphere, despite higher costs, is justified by its long-term benefits and comprehensive features that support scalability, which can lead to significant long-term ROI for enterprises needing extensive virtualization capabilities and expect robust, scalable solutions.

To learn more, read our detailed RHEV vs. VMware vSphere Report (Updated: January 2025).

Buyer's Guide

RHEV vs. VMware vSphere

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

RHEV

Ranking in Server Virtualization Software

12th

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

VMware vSphere

Ranking in Server Virtualization Software

2nd

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

452

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2025, in the Server Virtualization Software category, the mindshare of RHEV is 3.7%, up from 2.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VMware vSphere is 18.1%, down from 19.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Server Virtualization Software

Featured Reviews

Sujeet-Kumar

Project Manager Cloud Infrastructure at Path Infotech ltd

The solution is scalable and affordable, but it lacks features, and it is not easy to manage

Management of RHEV is not as easy as VMware. Some features do not work. The product does not provide features similar to VMware’s VMotion. After creating the cluster, the VM is moved to another node if we move down. However, the VM does not move the parent node automatically. It has to be moved manually. VMware moves it automatically. RHEV moves it to the parent node only if we restart. Everything can be handled in VMware through the GUI. However, in RHEV, some things can be managed through UI, and others cannot. We have to troubleshoot and use CLI. A few features of the product do not work as well as those in VMware.

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Neeraj Mehra

Manager of Solutions and Support at Esconet Technologies Pvt. Ltd.

Streamlines virtualization and has features like high availability and vMotion

The primary use case is for virtualization, including the implementation of vSphere, vCloud Foundation, vCloud Director, and cloud automation with vSphere My customers, particularly SMBs, mainly utilize High Availability (HA), DRS, and vMotion features. The vMotion feature is beneficial for…

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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

"I advise keeping an open mind. It's an excellent solution."

"Stability and speed are the most valuable aspects."

"When you purchase RHEV, you are essentially buying a subscription license. This license can be integrated with various client types, including these integrations with the subscription."

"It is a stable solution...It is a scalable solution."

"It is very stable."

"Technically, the main reason why I'm using Red Hat is because of its stability."

"It's a scalable solution."

"The most valuable feature of this solution is the support portal."

More RHEV pros

"The most valuable features are the seamless HA with vMotion and being able to run vCenters in HA mode."

"The free ESXi hypervisor was a great way to get started, as it allowed us to introduce virtual machines so that users could start to experience the advantages."

"The most valuable feature of vSphere is its modularity. I also like the maturity updates. It's available everywhere and almost all the data centers are using it."

"The features that I have found most valuable are the overall good ease of use and the good interface which makes it very easy to migrate from one bare metal to another. These are the two things which I like about it."

"I find that the Virtual Center Management, iSCSI support, and VMotion hot migration are very beneficial."

"The solution saves cost."

"The solution is also very simple and efficient to manage. Features that have made it simple and easy to manage include the newer VAMI for the V-center appliance, it's very easy to see what version we are at, and very easy to upgrade to the next version. The fact that we can now use VCHA at the appliance level just decreases our chance of having an outage because so many of our customers rely on the API interface for V-center."

"Vmware vSphere is the benchmark of the visualization market."

More VMware vSphere pros

Cons

"We'd like it if it would be possible on Red Hat Virtualization to possibly connect two or three VMs to the same disk."

"Specifically, enhancements in managing virtual machine migrations, cloning, and the creation of different VMs could further optimize its functionality."

"The documentation is not as good as it should be."

"While everything needs improvement in some way, I have no specifics."

"We should improve how we manage storage domains and make more comprehensive control available through the command line."

"The support is tricky in a few places. We're facing some challenges within Malaysia where we don't really have the system integrators available who can provide extended support. When we need personnel on-site, we can't get them."

"I heard that there are big differences between Red Hat eight and seven, but it's still quite difficult for me to judge it. I found it a bit more difficult to manage than version seven, which was much easier. In term of features, though, it is still not yet clear which is better. I have no clear idea of which features need to be changed at the moment."

"The availability of technical expertise with the solution may be limited in some areas."

More RHEV cons

"These days we have an environment where we are often using clouds as well. A solution that would be a little more cloud-aware would be really helpful. I know there is a product from VMware that is more specifically for the cloud, but it would be nice if VMware Cloud Manager would be cloud-aware. It would simplify certain processes."

"The vSphere Client always feels slow, and/or like it doesn't keep up with what I'm trying to do. So I usually use the thick client most of the time."

"The solution is slower than other tools."

"VMware vSphere needs to increase the datastore volume."

"I would like to see a more automated upgrade, where you take the other products into account, so you can upgrade the entire VMware stack from a single interface."

"Technical support is not that great. It is too slow."

"There was a time we lost the password for the ESXi and we had to do a hardware reset. At this point, we had to fill up the ESXi from the bottom up. I am not sure if there was another solution to this problem but it took a long time."

"The way that vSphere manages the alerts on the data machine is not easy to configure."

More VMware vSphere cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"This is an open-source solution."

"We have to pay extra for vulnerability and fault tolerance."

"Price-wise, RHEV is okay, in my opinion."

"The solution does not require licencing but a subscription is necessary, which is very affordable."

"Its price depends on the use cases."

"This product has a variety of licensing options available. However, the level of licensing, and therefore the cost of licensing, is dependent on the number of servers being utilized."

"We buy a license for commercial use, and we also use the free editions."

"I would say the price is acceptable."

More RHEV pricing and cost advice

"There are a lot of management and soft skills that we end up being able to save on. For example, my engineers in Canada could watch over systems in China, California, and Phoenix. Thus, it gives us the flexibility of administration."

"Pricing needs to be competitive since Microsoft Hyper-V has come a long way; they are both around the same price range."

"The pricing is more expensive than Microsoft."

"Once you pay for the standard license, that's it unless you want another feature to be activated. That's a different thing."

"I currently use the yearly licensing option, and I think that the pricing is fine for this solution."

"The licensing price is fair compared to other similar solutions."

"The solution comes with a yearly subscription license."

"Pricing is the one "ding" I have against it. Except for VMware vSphere Essentials, it would be pretty challenging for anything but a medium or large size company to use."

More VMware vSphere pricing and cost advice

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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…

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Answers from the Community

Sridhar Battarusetty

VP-Global Supply Chain Management at mobileum

Feb 7, 2024

What are the differences between RHEV and VMware vSphere?

See 2 answers

Anne Cubarrubia

Editor at PeerSpot

Aug 21, 2023

Here is a comparison of the two hypervisors, RHEV (Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization) and VMware vSphere: RHEV Pros: Open source Highly scalable Cost-effective Cons: Not as mature as VMware vSphere Not as widely supported as VMware vSphere VMware vSphere Pros: Mature and widely supported Wide range of features Easy to use and manage Cons: Not open source Can be expensive Some prefer RHEV because it is open-source and cost-effective. However, VMware vSphere may be the better option if you need a hypervisor with a wide range of features and support. As to which solution consumes fewer resources, RHEV is a lighter-weight hypervisor than VMware vSphere, so it consumes fewer resources. However, you must remember that each hypervisor's resource consumption depends on the configuration and workload.

Read full answer

Rajkumar Gera

Vice President, IT Infrastructure ( DC Operations ) at Vodafone Idea Ltd.

Feb 7, 2024

Hi Sridhar, This is Rajkumar Gera, VP IT in one of the Telecom. Below are some of the points, may help you: FEATURE RED HAT ENTERPRISE VIRTUALIZATION VMWARE VSPHERE Key differentiators Open source solution Proprietary solution Purchased via one subscription Multiple levels of functionality sold in editions with different price points Bare-metal performance for virtualized applications Application high availability (Enterprise Plus version only) Prioritized high availability so critical workloads are restarted first Desktop and server virtualization One infrastructure for managing desktops and servers Add-on products for desktop virtualization: VMware Player, VMware Horizon View, VMware Horizon DaaS, and VMware Horizon Mirage Remote access to virtual desktops through SPICE Full support for multimedia applications Management server Included in the Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization subscription Requires purchase and license of VMware vCenter and database support Virtual machine density 40 cores: 4,682@288 40 cores: 3,824@234 160 cores: 14,061@864 160 cores: result not available Self-service portal Allows users to provision and manage VMs and templates with a browser Requires the purchase of VMware vCloud Automation Center Integration with OpenStack technology Supports the open Neutron pluggable networking API Supports VMware’s NSX networking plug-in Supports the OpenStack image service for a unified image repository between virtual and cloud platforms Does not support the OpenStack image service

Read full answer

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Educational Organization

52%

Computer Software Company

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Educational Organization

31%

Computer Software Company

11%

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 RHEV?

The initial setup is fairly straightforward and well-documented. The process is very similar to its competitors. The success of your setup depends on how well you plan.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for RHEV?

It's the open source. There's not much cost. It's very minimal comparably. Compared to what I am paying for VMware, it's negligible.

See all answers

What needs improvement with RHEV?

My teammates and I often complain that VMware is well-documented and has a large community since it is the de facto standard. I would love to see better documentation and ease of use. For newcomers...

See all answers

What is IOMMU?

DEEPEN DHULLA did explain well IOMMU. IOMMU has to be activated at the bios level. It exists on Intel and AMD platforms. It is used a lot inside virtualization platforms like VMware VSphere. It pr...

See all answers

Why KVM??? Help please!

We use VMware and KVM. We find that KVM is a lot simpler to use and it provides the virtualization we need for Linux and Windows. For us, VMware does not offer any advantage. Moreover, KVM is free.

See all answers

What is the biggest difference between Nutanix Acropolis and VMware vSphere?

We found the reduced power consumption with Nutanix Acropolis AOS a very attractive feature. We also like the interface that allows you to talk directly to your VM from the present software. We fou...

See all answers

Comparisons

Proxmox VE vs RHEV

Compared 15% of the time

KVM vs RHEV

Compared 10% of the time

Hyper-V vs RHEV

Compared 9% of the time

Nutanix AHV Virtualization vs RHEV

Compared 7% of the time

Oracle VM vs RHEV

Compared 6% of the time

More RHEV Competitors

Hyper-V vs VMware vSphere

Compared 24% of the time

Oracle VM vs VMware vSphere

Compared 13% of the time

Proxmox VE vs VMware vSphere

Compared 13% of the time

KVM vs VMware vSphere

Compared 8% of the time

Citrix XenServer vs VMware vSphere

Compared 6% of the time

More VMware vSphere Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

RHEV

February 2025

Download RHEV product report

Buyer's Guide

VMware vSphere

January 2025

Download VMware vSphere product report

Also Known As

Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization

No data available

Overview

Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization, or RHEV, is a leading open standard enterprise virtualization management solution. This solution supports virtualization of servers and desktops using the same infrastructure and a single easy-to-use interface.

Because RHEV is based on open standards, it is vendor-independent and a lot more cost effective and flexible than proprietary solutions.

Red Hat

VMware vSphere is a versatile virtualization platform known for its ease of use, flexibility, and high availability. It supports seamless migration, optimal resource allocation, and centralized management, making it highly suitable for diverse infrastructure needs.

VMware vSphere is widely adopted for its virtualization capabilities that enhance hardware efficiency and ensure minimal downtime through features like High Availability and Distributed Resource Scheduler. Despite criticisms about high licensing costs and limited fault tolerance, it remains a preferred choice due to its stability, scalability, and robust integration options. Users appreciate its efficiency in managing virtual machines and hosting enterprise applications, although challenges with web client performance and hardware compatibility are noted. Organizations often look for better integration with cloud services and enhanced automation and scalability.

What are the core features of VMware vSphere?

vMotion: Enables seamless migration of virtual machines without downtime.
Distributed Resource Scheduler: Optimizes resource allocation across hosts.
High Availability: Minimizes downtime by automatically restarting virtual machines.
Centralized Management: Facilitates easy management of virtualized environments.
Advanced Security: Provides robust security measures and compliance features.

What benefits and ROI can businesses look for?

Reduced Operational Costs: Efficiently utilizes hardware, saving on expenses.
Scalability: Easily scales to meet growing business demands.
Business Continuity: Ensures high availability and disaster recovery.
Integration Flexibility: Supports integration with various technologies.

VMware vSphere is implemented across sectors like healthcare, finance, and education for server virtualization, data center management, and private cloud creation. Its use in facilitating business-critical operations ensures high availability and efficient resource use, supporting both development and production environments.

VMware

Sample Customers

Qualcomm and Bonham's Auction House.

Abu Dhabi Ports Company, ACS, AIA New Zealand, Consona, Corporate Express, CS Energy, and Digiweb.

Buyer's Guide

RHEV vs. VMware vSphere

January 2025

Free Report: RHEV vs. VMware vSphere

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