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PeerSpot user
Storage and VMware Expert at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
We can use all the resources available on the servers without losing CPU or memory resources.

What is most valuable?

I think that the Fault Tolerance and High Availability features are the most valuable ones. Storage vMotion, Server vMotion, and all the flexibility that vSphere can provide to a storage environment without interruption is also very good.

How has it helped my organization?

In the past, many organizations had many physical servers, and with VMWare we can consolidate many servers without compromising on the performance. We can save a lot of space in the data center. It also helps us to save power that, at this time, is a very important factor. With VMWare, we can use all the resources available on the servers without losing CPU or memory resources, and we can centralize the space into just one storage space.

In many areas of IT, you can use VMWare solutions. Here we have many applications running on the VMware vSphere, such as Oracle Database, MySQL, SQL, web applications, Apache, and many more. For all solutions of course, it depends on how the applications work, but until to day, I haven't observed any applications that won't work inside the vSphere infrastructure.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using it since v3.5, so more than eight years, I have experience with other VMWare solutions too.

What was my experience with deployment of the solution?

No, I did not have any issues because it all depends on how the environment was configured.

Buyer's Guide
VMware vSphere
January 2025
Learn what your peers think about VMware vSphere. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: January 2025.
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What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Nothing too important yet. The new v6.0 improves upon many features in vSphere High Availability. The enhancements correct issues of recovery from storage issues with a new feature called Virtual Machine Component Protection. This feature corrects many problems that we had when the backup tool lost connection with the ESXi servers.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

No, I did not have any issues because it all depends on how the environment was configured.

How are customer service and support?

Customer Service:

I haven't had any issues with customer service and most problems can be solved through their website.

Technical Support:

I have not had any issues with technical support as they have solved any issues that I have had to contact them about.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We have other solutions in the environment such as Oracle Rac and Microsoft Hyper-V, but I believe that vSphere is the most reliable product on the market.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup wasn't complex because we have experience with other VMWare solutions.

What about the implementation team?

I implemented ii in-house.

What was our ROI?

Our ROI is high because we have 800 virtual servers spread across 22 physical ones.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

When compared to the impact that the product has had, I do not believe the cost to be too high.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

I have tested other products such as Hyper-V and Zen, but I believe that vSphere is more stable and has many more features available.

What other advice do I have?

Go ahead and get it as this product is very, very stable.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
it_user245298 - PeerSpot reviewer
it_user245298Cloud Analyst & Sales Engineer at a tech vendor with 51-200 employees
MSP

"I think that the Fault Tolerance and High Availability features are the most valuable ones. Storage vMotion, Server vMotion, and all the flexibility that vSphere can provide to a storage environment without interruption is also very good."

This is partly true, but should realize that this is only part of the solution. You still have Network, IO (in general), power fault tolerance. Most other features are more for added resiliency (ie dedupe/caching/MPIO/Jumboframing etc etc)

Failover from the macro viewpoint....I would say it starts with IO and ends with data from an infrastructure point of view. From a necessity point of view, the most important does have to be data fault tolerance...without data...why would anyone need infrastructure..

Why do I say that vmotion/server vmotion are not as vital? If a node/hypervisor goes down..it's only one thing and there should be little to no downtime..BUT if IO has gone haywire everywhere, network fails or if power completely blows (both A & B goes down)...you lose EVERYTHING, unless you have offsite DR etc etc...There's a lot more downtime involved when the top of the tree goes down, which is where I would put most of my concentration on to make better.

"In the past, many organizations had many physical servers, and with VMWare we can consolidate many servers without compromising on the performance. We can save a lot of space in the data center. "

This is true, however, not everything needs to be virtualized. Virtualization is just a small feature that has taken large strides to handle most tasks and workloads. I've yet to see an established solutionf rom VMWare also including Baremetal + features useful to enhancing performance of physical boxes.

PeerSpot user
Virtualization Architect at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
Consultant
Replication: VMware vSphere vs. Veeam Backup

VMware introduced replication in vSphere 5.5. The biggest limitation is that it only provides a single restore point only. This is an immediate show stopper for most customers. Multiple restore points are absolutely essential, because just like "good" data, any corruption/virus/dataloss from the source VM is immediately replicated to target VM, and if you don't spot the problem and perform failover to replica fast enough (before the next replication cycle) - which is going to be impossible in most cases - then you are done.

Other limitations
• No failback
• No traffic compression
• No traffic throttling
• No swap exclusion
• No network customization (network mapping)
• No re-IP upon failover
• Minimum possible RPO is 15 minutes
• Basic VSS quiescing (no application-aware processing)
• Works within single vCenter only
• No ability to create container-based jobs (explicit VM selection only)
• Limited seeding options: cannot seed from backup, or using different VM as a seed (disk IDs have to match)
• Different ports for initial and incremental sync required
• No good reporting

Also, be aware that biggest marketing push around vSphere replication is technically incorrect statement!
“Unlike other solutions, enabling vSphere replication on a VM does not impact I/O load, because it does not use VM snapshots”

It is simply impossible to transfer specific state of running VM without some sort of snapshot even in theory! In reality, during each replication cycle they do create hidden snapshot to keep the replicated state intact, just different type of snapshot (exact same concept as Veeam reversed incremental).

PROS: No commit required, snapshot is simply discarded after replication cycle completes.
CONS: While replication runs, there is 3x I/O per each modified block that belongs to the replicated state. This is the I/O impact that got lost in marketing.

Unlike VMware replication Veeam takes advantage of multiple restore points.
For every replica, Veeam Backup & Replication creates and maintains a configurable number of restore points. If the original VM fails for any reason, you can temporary or permanently fail over to a replica and restore critical services with minimum downtime. If the latest state of a replica is not usable (for example, if corrupted data was replicated from source to target), you can select previous restore point to fail over to. Veeam Backup & Replication utilizes VMware ESX snapshot capabilities to create and manage replica restore points.

Replication of VMware VMs works similarly to forward incremental backup. During the first run of a replication job, Veeam Backup & Replication copies the original VM running on the source host and creates its full replica on the target host. You can also seed this initial copy at the target site. Unlike backup files, replica virtual disks are stored uncompressed in their native format. All subsequent replication job runs are incremental (that is, Veeam Backup & Replication copies only those data blocks that have changed since the last replication cycle).

Conclusion:
Veeam Replication really stands out on top of the feature lacking VMware Replication. The numerous missing features like taking advantage of multiple snapshot replications, to help insure data integrity, no failback, no traffic throttling and no traffic compression etc., translate to only using VMware replication for simple use cases.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: I work for a VMware Partner
PeerSpot user
it_user384207 - PeerSpot reviewer
it_user384207Manager / Architect - Platform Services at a manufacturing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Vendor

VMware's replication is quirky and buggy. With every release the product changes. We have been using it and are getting ready to move to Veeam as VMware can not get their replication stable. Currently if a volume has issues replicating under many situation you will not get any alert from vcenter and the status will show green/OK. VMware support says that is normal, status is showing last status? HUH? If it fails that is the current status and should reflect that not the last known good, what is the point. I can see why more and more people are looking to move away from VMware. They are in denial.

See all 4 comments
Buyer's Guide
VMware vSphere
January 2025
Learn what your peers think about VMware vSphere. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: January 2025.
837,501 professionals have used our research since 2012.
reviewer1752153 - PeerSpot reviewer
Solutions Architect at a comms service provider with 501-1,000 employees
Consultant
Easily move images of virtual machines between different workspaces and environments
Pros and Cons
  • "The feature that I find very valuable is the ability to move images of virtual machines from different workspaces to other workspaces between different installations."
  • "An area for improvement is that when comparing VMware to Nutanix, Nutanix has higher availability, like clustering for virtual machines. That is a good idea and VMware could profit from something like that for higher availability installations."

What is our primary use case?

We primarily use VMware vSphere for virtualization.

We use it mostly on-premise, but for the last year on cloud.

How has it helped my organization?

It has facilitated the adoption of DevOps practices and technology.

What is most valuable?

The feature that I find very valuable is the ability to move images of virtual machines from different workspaces to other workspaces between different installations.

What needs improvement?

An area for improvement is that when comparing VMware to Nutanix, Nutanix has higher availability, like clustering for virtual machines. That is a good idea and VMware could profit from something like that for higher availability installations.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using VMware vSphere for the last eight to 10 years using different scopes for different projects.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is pretty stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I haven't had a chance to do any scalability exercises, just some tests, but not on real-time or on real production. Probably later I will get a chance to test scalability.

There are about 10 or 15 people using it directly in the environments and between 500 and 600 people that are enabled with the VMware.

We require just another engineer and myself for the deployment of VMware.

We probably will not increase the licensing for the VMware, but we will increase the load on the installation that is being handled by VMware.

How are customer service and support?

I haven't had a chance yet to use technical support, but from past experience I would say that it's very good. For this project we have not had a chance to use direct technical support, but for previous projects it has been good. So hopefully it stays like that.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is relatively simple. Between one and 10, I would give it a six.

For the product that I'm working on right now it took about three weeks because it had several different virtual machines and inside the virtual machines there were a lot of containers. So there were certain complexities that extended the complexity of the VMware installation itself. But for just the VMware only it took about a week and a half or something like that.

We did not use consultants or resellers for deployment, just the documentation.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Our license is on a yearly basis.

What other advice do I have?

My advice to anyone considering using VMware vSphere is you have to find out the requirements. You have to do a very good job finding the requirements so that the scoping and provisioning of the resources are okay. That way you don't have  later have to be constantly changing the configuration. It is good to spend some time doing requirements and finding out the loads, etc... that you are going to have to handle.

Generally, VMware vSphere is not perfect, but it's okay. On a scale of one to ten, I will give it an eight.

You get used to the interface. The pricing is getting cheaper, but it depends. Anyway, it is a good product.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Public Cloud
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Fredrik Hallgarde - PeerSpot reviewer
Consulting Manager at Real Time Services AB
Real User
Top 5Leaderboard
Absolutely scalable, easy to install, and has good manageability
Pros and Cons
  • "Its stability and manageability are valuable."
  • "There should be more stability in the updates. They had an issue with the last release."

What is our primary use case?

We're using it to run all kinds of workloads.

What is most valuable?

Its stability and manageability are valuable.

What needs improvement?

There should be more stability in the updates. They had an issue with the last release.

Their support should also be improved.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for 15 years.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It's absolutely scalable. We have 130 users who are using this solution. All of the company is using it.

How are customer service and support?

I am not satisfied with their performance or speed for anything below P1 or production-down status. Anything below that is worse than we could expect.

How was the initial setup?

Its installation is straightforward. That's not a problem.

The deployment duration varies. For a specific installation, it could take 15 minutes to set up the whole thing, and it could also take three weeks. It depends on how we're scoping it.

What about the implementation team?

I could do it myself.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

Its licensing is typically yearly. From a value standpoint, it's worth it.

What other advice do I have?

I would absolutely recommend this solution. I would rate it a nine out of 10.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
PeerSpot user
Cloud Professional Architect at FPT Software
Real User
It's straightforward to scale and configure virtual machines
Pros and Cons
  • "The fact that vSphere is an on-premise solution is beneficial for the user. It's easier to manage the infrastructure. It's more straightforward to scale and configure virtual machines."
  • "VMware vSphere is perfect for the on-premise solution, but we are in the cloud era, so I think maybe VMware needs to invest more in the cloud and the microservice chain. It would be better if VMware offered more cloud solutions and continuous applications."

What is our primary use case?

We need virtualization for our company, or sometimes our customers leverage virtualization solutions instead of using physical machines.

What is most valuable?

The fact that vSphere is an on-premise solution is beneficial for the user. It's easier to manage the infrastructure. It's more straightforward to scale and configure virtual machines. 

What needs improvement?

VMware vSphere is perfect for the on-premise solution, but we are in the cloud era, so I think maybe VMware needs to invest more in the cloud and the microservice chain. It would be better if VMware offered more cloud solutions and continuous applications.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

In terms of scalability and stability, vSphere is excellent. We lack volume when we need to bundle a considerable number of physical machines to facilitate virtualization. There are a lot of competitors like Nutanix or others, but VMware is the number one solution for me.

How are customer service and support?

We don't contact VMware support often, but I sometimes have trouble understanding their manuals, so I ask them for help.

How was the initial setup?

It's easier for the user to deploy vSphere or the vCenter, but it's complex when setting up network virtualization.

What was our ROI?

I think VMware is a good investment. We use VMware to maintain our internal system. 

What other advice do I have?

I rate VMware vSphere seven out of 10. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
reviewer1260267 - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior System Administrator at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Is user friendly, stable, and scalable
Pros and Cons
  • "VMware vSphere is user friendly. It is scalable and stable."
  • "VMware vSphere needs to increase the datastore volume."

What is most valuable?

VMware vSphere is user friendly. It is scalable and stable, which are very important attributes for us.

What needs improvement?

The installation is a little bit complex.

VMware vSphere needs to increase the datastore volume.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using it for 10 years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is a scalable solution.

How was the initial setup?

The installation is not overly complex. The integration project took two months, and the upgrade to version 6.7 took a lot of time.

For deployment and maintenance, you need a team of three or four admins and engineers.

What about the implementation team?

We worked with an integrator.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We evaluated Hyper-V.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend this solution and rate it at ten on a scale from one to ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Information Technology Support Coordinator at a computer software company with 5,001-10,000 employees
Reseller
Is stable and integrates well with other environments
Pros and Cons
  • "It is a very stable solution. Integration with other environments was simple to achieve."
  • "The documentation could be improved. It does not help me to show the client the value of going with VMware vSphere rather than an open source or cheaper solution."

What is our primary use case?

It's the main virtualization solution for our clients.

What is most valuable?

The HA and DRS are very valuable.

It is a very stable solution.

Integration with other environments was simple to achieve.

The initial setup is simple even for complex environments. The documentation for implementation is very good.

VMware vSphere has great technical support.

What needs improvement?

The documentation could be improved. It does not help me to show the client the value of going with VMware vSphere rather than an open source or cheaper solution.

If we have extensive documentation that is complete and helps us understand all the features, it will help us to try to propose the solution itself and try to show the value of going with it.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using VMware vSphere for more than twenty years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

When compared to the stability of other solutions, VMware vSphere is by far the most favorable.

How are customer service and technical support?

Compared to Microsoft's technical support, it's by far the best experience that we've had.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is very simple. Even for more complex environments, it's really pretty simple. The available documentation is complete, which helps specialists create more complex solutions in VMware.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

This is not the cheapest solution, but when you consider the stability of VMware vSphere, it is a great solution.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

My clients evaluated Hyper-V because they use a Microsoft environment.

What other advice do I have?

I recommend that they get familiar with the technology and also with the documentation for implementation. It's really complete. I would also recommend that they obtain the training available online, which is really good.

On a scale from one to ten, I would rate this solution at ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Reseller
PeerSpot user
reviewer1377360 - PeerSpot reviewer
Line Technical Agent at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Classic, stable, easy to install and use
Pros and Cons
  • "It's easy to use."
  • "In the next release, I would love to have Java as a service, platform as a service, and container as a service."

What is our primary use case?

We use this solution for virtualization and management.

What is most valuable?

It's easy to use.

It's a classic solution.

What needs improvement?

In the next release, I would love to have Java as a service, platform as a service, and container as a service.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for two years.

I am using version 6.7.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It's a very stable product and we plan to continue using it.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It's a scalable solution. We have approximately 5,000 users, with 150 in the IT team and there are 10 in the admin team.

How are customer service and technical support?

I have not needed to contact technical support.

How was the initial setup?

The installation is straightforward.

It took a day to deploy.

What about the implementation team?

I completed the deployment myself.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

It's a pricey solution. The price could be better.

We pay for licenses on a yearly basis.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We contacted Hyper-V but have never used it.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend this solution to others who are interested in using it.

I would rate VMware vSphere a nine out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free VMware vSphere Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: January 2025
Buyer's Guide
Download our free VMware vSphere Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.