You asked, and they listened. Broadcom has introduced significant updates to their licensing bundles to add some flexibility and value for not just enterprise users, but small/commercial users as well!
Most notable changes include:
- Enterprise virtualization only SKU now offered. That is right, the gap between vSphere Standard and vSphere Foundation has been closed. vSphere Enterprise is now available for customers simply looking for enterprise features (DRS, vDS, vGPUs, Host Profiles, VM Encryption, etc) on their private cloud stack.
- vSAN capacity per-core increased for VVF licenses. Previously VVF used to include 100GiB worth of vSAN capacity per core, however, that number has been increased to 250GiB. In my opinion, this is a more realistic number based on CPU/Storage ratios, however, I still do not think 250GiB will be enough to cover most environments trying to avoid having to get separate vSAN capacity licensing.
- Price increases for current available SKUs. I think most people saw this one coming. Most companies raise their subscription prices yearly. Expect an ~11% increase during your next renewal or licensing additions.
The response to Broadcom’s strategy has been mixed so far, with some seeing potential for growth while others question its appeal in a complex cloud landscape. Nonetheless, Broadcom’s focus on flexibility, performance, and cost-effectiveness could make VMware a compelling choice again for enterprises navigating hybrid and multi-cloud challenges.
Official VMware announcement here
vSphere Licensing comparison chart here
