The solution is server virtualization software. VMware is totally for virtualization.
Deputy director at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
User-friendly, easy to implement and offers excellent technical support
Pros and Cons
- "It's easy to use and very user-friendly."
- "The solution could be cheaper and less expensive."
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
We only use it for a few of its features, such as DRS, vMotion, and fault tolerance. We aren't using the NSX, cloud-based, or any other features.
The solution is 100% stable.
The scalability is very good.
We find the user interface to be very nice.
The initial implementation process is simple.
It's easy to use and very user-friendly.
Technical support has been very good. They are helpful and responsive.
What needs improvement?
The solution could be cheaper and less expensive.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using the solution for five to seven years.
Buyer's Guide
VMware vSphere
December 2025
Learn what your peers think about VMware vSphere. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: December 2025.
879,477 professionals have used our research since 2012.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
We have found the solution to be extremely stable. The performance and reliability are great. There are no bugs or glitches and it doesn't crash or freeze.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution is thoroughly a scalable solution. It's easy to expand it if you need to.
There isn't a specific number of users. We are using it for hosting services.
How are customer service and support?
Technical support is excellent. We have no complaints at all.
How was the initial setup?
The installation process is quite simple, quite straightforward. It's not overly complex or difficult. I'm certified and find the process very easy.
What about the implementation team?
We did not need the assistance of outside help. I can easily handle the implementation myself.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
You do have to purchase a license in order to use the solution.
The solution should base its prices on what the market can handle. Right now, it's a bit expensive.
The price is a little bit higher when you go for the enterprise edition. The Standard edition is quite low and the enterprise edition is quite high.
What other advice do I have?
I have two clusters, version 7 and version 6.7. Both are there.
I'm not using the cloud-based version and other stuff, so I couldn't comment on it. On the on-premises version, however, it's a very good solution. It has a nice interface and nice everything and is a very stable product. We have never faced any issues yet.
I'd recommend the solution to others 100%.
I would rate the solution at a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
IT Manager at a engineering company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Built-in backup, effective backup and recovery features
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable features of VMware vSphere are backup and recovery."
- "The setup is easy. However, the configuration expansion can be difficult. The full implementation took three to four days. This included the move from physical servers to virtual ones."
What is our primary use case?
VMware vSphere is used for server virtualization. We are using Microsoft Active Directory, file, and Linux servers
How has it helped my organization?
The built-in backup and hyper-converged systems have helped our organization.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable features of VMware vSphere are backup and recovery.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using VMware vSphere for approximately 10 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is stable. However, sometimes it goes down, which can be time-consuming because it requires some complex scripts only the support team know.
I am the only person doing the maintenance of this solution.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
VMware vSphere is scalable.
We have approximately 500 users using the solution.
How are customer service and support?
The support has been good.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We have used Microsoft previously and we have found VMware to be more mature.
How was the initial setup?
The setup is easy. However, the configuration expansion can be difficult. The full implementation took three to four days. This included the move from physical servers to virtual ones.
What about the implementation team?
We used a reseller for the implementation and had a good experience.
What was our ROI?
When you spend on this solution you will get it back.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
We pay for the solution on an annual basis. There are no additional fees other than the standard license.
What other advice do I have?
It's quite stable, has good support available, and is a mature product.
I rate VMware vSphere a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Buyer's Guide
VMware vSphere
December 2025
Learn what your peers think about VMware vSphere. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: December 2025.
879,477 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Cloud Professional Architect at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
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: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
VMware Senior Consultant at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
Has valuable features for daily use and a straightforward installation
Pros and Cons
- "We have the possibility to move workloads to different locations."
- "There are some limitations with the solution regarding migrating."
What is our primary use case?
Our primary use case for the solution right now is for a project regarding Telecom Italia. We are working with the telecom. It is mostly regarding the private cloud. The main reason for having all of these products and solutions altogether is to reach the cloud director and to have the private cloud for Telecom Italia.
How has it helped my organization?
Our organization has seen plenty of benefits from this solution. We have the possibility to move workloads to different locations. For the end-users and customers, it's beneficial because they can run whatever they want in a matter of minutes or hours instead of providing a data center for themselves and running whatever they need. Thanks to all the solutions altogether, it is possible to move the workload and it has high availability in different time zones and different regions.
What is most valuable?
There are plenty of features we have found valuable. It has multiple features that we are using every day during our jobs.
What needs improvement?
vSphere itself can handle lots of things, but I can say when it comes to other products, we have lots of other availability, lots of other visibilities with the data center that we have. The areas that could be improved are dependent on the project that we are working on and the use cases.
There are some limitations with the solution regarding migrating. For example, some features like EVC we have in vSphere, but still, it is not possible to migrate VM from Intel to AMD, or we still have some limitations even if we have EVC for VMs.
These are the features that maybe would be really useful for lots of customers that don't want to have downtime, and at the same time they want to be modernized, go through the new technologies now, cloud and everything.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using VMware for seven years or so.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is stable. With respect to the very traditional workload that we had, one server for one application, one physical server, I can say there are lots of improvements when we are using VMware itself. In the traditional way of doing the work, it was not possible to utilize the CPU, utilize the memory that you are using. But here, we have lots of options like over-commitment of CPU and memory. We can manage our workloads anytime.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It is easily possible to scale the solution and upgrade depending on which products we are using on-premise. We can have a path to scale, to upgrade, to do everything.
How are customer service and support?
Usually when I had to utilize customer support for the solution, it was satisfying based on the priority of raising the ticket.
How was the initial setup?
The initial deployment was straightforward, but again it depends on the use cases. For example, in one project we were working on the deployment and using automation from the customer themselves. They wrote their automation, and it was a little complex to match what they need based on their automation and how we could deploy the products for them.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate the solution a nine out of 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. Partner
Founder at a comms service provider with 11-50 employees
Higher availability with excellent technical support and great stability
Pros and Cons
- "Technical support is helpful and always available."
- "If they improve on the knowledge base and documentation, it would be extremely helpful."
What is our primary use case?
We use the solution for the virtualization of the environment. We've converted more than 90% of our environment from physical to virtual.
What is most valuable?
The higher availability and the vMotion, I would say, are what makes it very interesting as you avoid systems being down. It provides, if you cluster, high availability, and your services can move from system to system to avoid downtime.
The solution is stable.
The scalability is great.
Technical support is helpful and always available.
What needs improvement?
There are certain issues that can be improved. No solution is perfect, even though it's working for most of us most of the time. There are certain issues that crop up and some of them are not due to VMware. It could be due to the hardware it is running on. Therefore, it would be ideal if they could provide more knowledge on the fault tolerance and the high availability as some things are just assumed and then users find later that the use cases are different. Sometimes you may assume something applies to a use case only to find that it doesn't. If they improve on the knowledge base and documentation, it would be extremely helpful.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using the solution since 2012. It's been a while.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability of the product is good. I haven't dealt with bugs or glitches. It's reliable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The product is scalable. You can increase the number of servers. You can increase the number of computer resources, storage, CPU, memory. It's up to you how huge you want your clusters to be.
This is an enterprise solution. It is not used by users. It is an enterprise technology solution. Therefore, we won't be adding more users.
Almost all the engineers in the organization are using the solution. I would say maybe 15 engineers are actively using it.
How are customer service and support?
The technical support is always there. They're always available. When you have an issue, you just log a call with them and set up a service request. They assist you directly. An engineer will be assigned to assist.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We have other tools, such as Oracle VM, which we are using in other areas, however, VMware is used more than the Oracle VM.
How was the initial setup?
For the initial setup, you need to do design work with someone who understands VMware, who is actually certified by VMware. You need someone certified to do it.
Deployment is not a problem. As long as you take time doing your design, the deployment will not take long. You can do it within a week.
If you have one certified engineer, the implementation will go fine.
In terms of the management of the solution, we have about four engineers who are looking after it.
What about the implementation team?
You cannot do it by yourself. You need a certified engineer. That's a requirement from VMware and it's so that the environment is stable to avoid unnecessary scraping.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
You do need a license. Most of these vendors also offer what they call the free version of the software. If you want more support, more features, you have to go for the paid versions. That said, you can still get the free or community version of it.
What other advice do I have?
I'd recommend the solution to other users. It's a good technology. They're pioneers in the industry.
I'd rate the solution at an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Technical Architect at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees
Offers a myriad of features
Pros and Cons
- "Once you have everything configured, it is relatively straightforward."
- "When we talk about the overall private cloud stack, I would prefer for it be a lot more seamless."
What is our primary use case?
A typical use case for vSphere would be general virtualization, primarily, where we're deploying either Linux or Windows-based workloads. We do have a lot of design-ready nodes we use for some of our clients. We also use Tanzu, from an application development container, microservices type of solution as well.
What is most valuable?
VMware vSphere is replete with about a gazillion different features. In the context of vCenter, everything has been amalgamated into a single appliance. It's much more simplified at deployment. Because of that, immediately I would say the most useful feature is the Lifecycle Manager, VLCM, that is now available. So, what used to be the VMware of Data Manager has now changed to the Lifecycle Manager. Those changes are really, really useful.
What needs improvement?
I'm a big fan of vSphere; I have used it since the days of 3.5, all the way up to now. When you deploy it as a complete stack, from vSphere to vCenter to the vRealize Operations, Orchestrator, all the way up, you're into your NSX login site, the entire cloud stack. By the time you're done, you begin to feel, "do you really need so many different pieces that you need to connect? Could it not just be a single, unified product?" I'm not saying the integration is difficult. It is seamless. But it gets to you at a point. There are times where you really begin to think, "I got this." Not, " it should be much easier than this."
I can't think of anybody on the planet who would actually have issues with vSphere. vSphere is as stable as the word stable gets. When you do the entire stack scenario unless you're doing something like VMware Cloud Foundation on VxRail, wherein it becomes a much more seamless solution where you are using discrete hardware, you're creating the entire cloud platform. It gets a little tedious doing all those workflows at times.
From a management center, particularly referring to the private cloud stack, I would prefer for it to be a lot more seamless. There are competitors, Cloud Management Platform or Morpheus, for example. It's a product you deploy and you're good to go. With this, there are so many different pieces to connect. It grows on you.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using VMware for a long time. As as a DC architect, I use it day in and day out.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
If you're looking for any hypervisor, vSphere is not a gold standard, vSphere is the gold standard. There's no single other option. When it comes down to it, if I can afford it, vSphere is the only one that I'm going with.
How are customer service and support?
There have been cases with vSphere itself, but the fact is that VMware support is great.
I have had clients who have faced issues in the context of hyperconverged infrastructure. A problem in the networks assumes a lot more significance in the context of HCI, and VMware support is awesome.
How was the initial setup?
I have no complaints about the setup. The integration is seamless. When you put together all the various pieces, you build an entire private cloud stack. At that stage, once you have everything configured, it is relatively straightforward. But it is not a single homogenous unit.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The licensing is perpetual licensing that you pay for once.
As far as the price of the license, I can't think of anyone who will say, "I'm happy with the pricing." There's always room for improvement. But, you get what you pay for. It's as simple as that. With vSphere, from my perspective, I don't want problems. I want it to be as seamless as possible. That's unfortunately why you've got to pay for it.
What other advice do I have?
Regarding this solution, vSphere is the gold standard. It has been there for 15 years, and you're not going to find people who are dissatisfied with vSphere. You're not going to find people complaining about vSphere. The only thing you will find is when we talk about things like VxRail, things like that, where issues can come. vSphere by itself, I can't think of anybody who's not happy with it.
I would rate vSphere a ten out of ten. You're not going to find anything better.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Hybrid Cloud
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partner
System Advisor IT at a non-profit with 201-500 employees
Reliable, user-friendly interface, easy to install, configure, and manage
Pros and Cons
- "There is the simplicity of management, accessibility, and availability."
- "The only concern that I have with VMware is the support. It is very limited and can be better."
What is our primary use case?
In the organization where I have worked for the past nine years, there are multiple virtualization platforms. Virtualization software includes Microsoft Hypervisor, Red Hat KVM, Oracle virtual machine, and Oracle virtual cloud.
vSphere is optimized for a specific type of virtualization.
What is most valuable?
There is the simplicity of management, accessibility, and availability.
The interface is really user-friendly.
What needs improvement?
The only concern that I have with VMware is the support. It is very limited and can be better.
When you get support from the VMware global team or support locations, customer complaints are not entertained or taken seriously by the VMware global team or support centers. Other OEMs, such as Microsoft and Oracle, would make you a priority.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using VMware vSphere for three years.
We recently upgraded to the latest version.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It's a very stable solution. In fact, when it comes to virtualization, you can tell anyone to use the system.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
In our organization, we have 600 users.
My previous organization had a population of approximately 35,000 people.
How are customer service and support?
The support is the only negative feedback, they need improvements.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I'm familiar with all of the virtualization platforms that are now available on the market.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup and installation are straightforward. It is something that can be done by anyone.
In one hour, we can complete the installation and configuration.
Admins are only required to look after the VM portion of the new VM creation as well as the configuration or modification. Aside from that, we have a team of two or three admins to deploy and maintain this solution during their shift time, such as in the morning and afternoon shifts.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The organization pays the licensing fees.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We looked at a few alternatives and compared them to vSphere.
What other advice do I have?
The freelance experience for the platform is excellent.
I would recommend this solution to other users.
I would rate VMware vSphere a ten out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Senior Software and Systems Engineer at a computer software company with 11-50 employees
Reliable, scalable, with good support and high availability
Pros and Cons
- "This solution's most valuable feature is its High Availability."
- "The support is good, but it's slow."
What is our primary use case?
We are an IT company and VMware partners.
VMware vSphere is used for virtualization in all situations and for all businesses.
What is most valuable?
This solution's most valuable feature is its High Availability.
What needs improvement?
The only concern I have with VMware vSphere is that the level of support is inadequate. It's not very fast. The support is good, but it's slow.
When we need help, we require someone to answer the phone quickly.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been selling VMware vSphere since it was launched.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
We have no issues with the stability of VMware vSphere. It is very stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
VMware vSphere is a scalable product.
How are customer service and support?
Technical support is good but not very fast.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We have customers who use Sangfor, as well as customers with VMware.
vSphere is used by all VMware customers.
How was the initial setup?
A small infrastructure installation can take up to eight hours.
The teams are always the same. We have five technicians, three of whom specialize in networking and virtualization, and one who is a management engineer.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Our customers have the option of paying the licensing fee when they purchase the solution or renting it from us.
If a customer chooses to rent the solution, the customer pays us and we purchase the solution.
What other advice do I have?
The vSphere serves as the system's control center for managing virtual machines (VMs). VMware vSphere is present in all installations.
Our solutions are all deployed on-premises.
As a company, we advise, supply, and install products for our clients. We provide two solutions, one of which is Sangfor and the other is VMware.
As a reseller of vSphere, I would recommend this solution to anyone who is interested in using it.
I would rate VMware vSphere an eight out of 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. Partner
Buyer's Guide
Download our free VMware vSphere Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros
sharing their opinions.
Updated: December 2025
Product Categories
Server Virtualization SoftwarePopular Comparisons
Hyper-V
Proxmox VE
Red Hat OpenShift
Nutanix AHV Virtualization
Oracle VM VirtualBox
Oracle VM
Citrix XenServer
XCP-ng virtualization platform
IBM PowerVM
Virtuozzo Hybrid Server
OpenVZ
ISPsystem VMmanager
Buyer's Guide
Download our free VMware vSphere Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros
sharing their opinions.
Quick Links
Learn More: Questions:
- VMware ESXi or VMware Workstation?
- What is the biggest difference between KVM and vSphere?
- VMware vs. Hyper-V - Which do you prefer?
- How does VMware ESXi compare to alternative virtualization solutions?
- VMware has been positioned in the Leaders Quadrant of Gartner’s Magic Quadrant for four years. Agree/Disagree? Why?
- Proxmox vs ESXi/vSphere: What is your experience?
- Oracle VM vs. latest VMWare?
- Which is the most suitable blade server for VMware ESXi?
- What do each of the VMware and Citrix products do?
- What is the biggest difference between Nutanix Acropolis and VMware vSphere?















