As soon as upon a time, for those who have been operating digital machines (VMs) in manufacturing, there was an excellent likelihood you have been utilizing VMware to do it. As a pioneering vendor within the virtualization ecosystem, VMware has lengthy stood out because the go-to resolution for companies looking for to function VMs.
However immediately, there are lots of choices for deploying VMs. You’ll be able to undertake cloud-based providers akin to Amazon EC2 or Azure Digital Machines. You’ll be able to run VMs on-premises utilizing open supply know-how like KVM or VirtualBox, or through proprietary platforms akin to Hyper-V. Otherwise you may resolve to get away from conventional virtualization altogether by migrating to containers.
With so many VMware alternate options now obtainable — and with rising questions surrounding the way forward for VMware know-how — many organizations are actually asking the query: How will you migrate from VMware? What’s one of the simplest ways to maneuver from a platform like VMware vSphere or Horizon to another like EC2? How do you switch digital machine photographs, knowledge sources, and configurations from one platform to a different?
We’re ready the next VMware migration information to assist reply questions like these. We will not let you know which migration technique is finest to your wants, after all, as a result of one of the best resolution varies from one group to the following. However we will present a basic overview of which migration processes and instruments to think about if you wish to migrate away from VMware.
Why Migrate From VMware?
Let’s begin by discussing the explanation why it could (or could not) make sense emigrate VM-based workloads from a VMware platform to another.
It isn’t as a result of there’s something inherently flawed with VMware. Quite the opposite, VMware know-how stays as mature and dependable as ever as an answer for operating the infrastructure that hosts trendy purposes. You might discover in some instances that VMware alternate options are cheaper or scalable than VMware, however the reverse can also be true, relying on which forms of workloads you might be managing and the way they’re configured.
Nevertheless, one large issue surrounding VMware that has modified not too long ago is the corporate’s product administration technique and future course. VMware’s acquisition by Broadcom, which was accomplished in late 2023, has raised concerns among some VMware customers about adjustments to product choices, licensing phrases, and pricing fashions for core VMware know-how.
For now, it stays unclear what is going to change, and it could be a bit rash emigrate away from VMware completely simply due to considerations about what Broadcom might do. Nonetheless, now is an efficient time to discover VMware alternate options and how you can migrate to them so that you will be ready if it does change into clear sooner or later that VMware is not best for you.
On steadiness — and in equity to VMware and Broadcom — we should always word that VMware alternate options like EC2, Hyper-V, and KVM are all the time altering, too. There is no assure that the product options or pricing obtainable immediately will maintain true sooner or later for these or for any merchandise.
Nonetheless, not one of the distributors of VMware alternate options has undergone main mergers or acquisitions not too long ago — so it isn’t outlandish to think about that VMware platforms are primed for extra disruption within the close to future than their opponents.
Discovering VMware Options
When you resolve that migrating away from VMware is the suitable alternative for your online business, your first step within the migration course of is choosing another platform.
VMware provides many merchandise and capabilities, akin to load balancers, firewalls, and storage virtualization. Discussing alternate options to every of those VMware choices is past the scope of this information.
As an alternative, we’ll deal with alternate options to VMware’s major product: digital machines deployed utilizing platforms like vSphere. For many organizations looking for a VMware various, discovering one other approach to deploy VMs at scale is more likely to be a first-rate consideration.
Options to vSphere and different main VM merchandise from VMware fall into three major classes. Let’s discover each.
1. Cloud-based VM internet hosting
First, there are cloud-based providers for operating digital machines, akin to:
- Amazon EC2
- Azure Digital Machines
- Google Compute Engine
There are additionally quite a lot of VM internet hosting providers from alternative cloud providers.
By and enormous, these cloud providers let you do the identical staple items as VMware: host digital machines at scale. The most important distinction between cloud-based VMs and conventional VMware environments, nevertheless, is that once you use the cloud, you run your VMs on infrastructure owned by another person. (VMware can also be suitable with cloud-based internet hosting, and we’ll say extra about that under, nevertheless it’s not a conventional use case.)
Because of this, complete value of possession for operating VMs within the cloud as a substitute for VMware could also be increased, particularly for those who function the infrastructure for a very long time. The tradeoff is that you do not have to supply your individual infrastructure, making the cloud an easier resolution.
2. Open supply virtualization applied sciences
The second major kind of other to VMware is to make use of an open supply know-how for operating digital machines. Common choices on this class embrace:
- KVM, a virtualization framework constructed into the Linux kernel
- Xen, one other main virtualization framework for operating VMs on Linux
- VirtualBox, a cross-platform open supply virtualization engine
The benefit of those choices is that they are freed from value usually. A significant downside, although, is that they lack the orchestration tooling that comes with VMware, so anticipate to need to do extra administration work by hand for those who migrate from VMware to an open supply platform. A few of these options additionally work solely with Linux-based hosts (though you may run Home windows VMs as company), so you will want Linux operating in your servers.
3. Proprietary on-prem virtualization
A 3rd class of VMware alternate options is closed-source virtualization platforms designed to be used with personal infrastructure. The primary contender on this class for enterprise-scale VM deployment is Microsoft Hyper-V.
Function-wise, VMware and Hyper-V are comparable in lots of respects; the truth is, Hyper-V, out of all VMware alternate options, arguably comes the closest to being a drop-in alternative to VMware. Nonetheless, there are some variations that would make migration from VMware to Hyper-V troublesome, akin to the truth that Hyper-V helps considerably fewer working techniques than VMware.
Important Steps for Migrating From VMware
The precise steps for migrating away from VMware will fluctuate relying on which VMware merchandise you might be presently utilizing and which platform you are migrating to. Generally, nevertheless, you will wish to be sure that your migration course of covers the next key steps:
1. Again up VMware VMs and associated sources
First, create backups of digital machines you could have operating in VMware, in addition to any related sources, akin to digital knowledge storage. Having backups is necessary in case one thing goes flawed throughout the migration course of.
You’ll be able to again up most VMware VMs by taking snapshots of them, and VMware provides snapshotting capabilities for a few of its different merchandise, too. Nevertheless, for those who’re taking snapshots as a part of a VMware migration course of, maintain the following advice in thoughts:
- For finest outcomes, flip off VMs earlier than taking snapshots. In any other case, it could be troublesome to revive them later.
- Make sure that you may import the digital disk information to your snapshots (which take the type of vmdk information by default usually) into whichever platform you will be migrating.
2. Arrange your VMware alternative
Subsequent, get your VMware various setting up and operating. When you’re migrating to a cloud-based setting, that is fairly straightforward since you needn’t set up something. However if you’re utilizing a VMware various like KVM or Hyper-V, you will must arrange the infrastructure to host it and provision your virtualization software program.
3. Transfer VM photographs and knowledge
Step three of your migration away from VMware is to maneuver knowledge out of your VMware setting to the brand new setting. To simplify this course of, take into account copying your VMware disk photographs en masse to a storage quantity positioned in your new setting, versus attempting to import the pictures one-by-one.
Ensure as effectively emigrate any further sources, akin to knowledge volumes that aren’t a part of VMs.
4. Convert disk photographs
In case your new VM platform does not help VMware file varieties, you will need to convert the disk photographs to a suitable format first. Instruments akin to qemu-img are helpful for this function; they will convert VMware codecs like vmdk into photographs which are suitable with open supply hypervisors (like qcow2) or Hyper-V (like vhd).
5. Create new VMs
With suitable disk photographs prepared, you may start creating new VMs to switch those you will be shutting down in your VMware platform. You could possibly automate a part of this course of with the assistance of migration instruments or scripts that routinely learn VMware configurations and generate new VMs based mostly on them.
6. Configure setting settings
You will additionally must configure your new internet hosting platform to match the networking, storage, safety, and different insurance policies you had in place for VMware. Right here once more, migration instruments could possibly automate a few of this work, however anticipate to have to speculate appreciable handbook effort in getting an equal setting up and operating.
7. Redirect visitors to your new setting
As soon as your VMware various setting is totally practical, you may take your outdated VMware platform offline by redirecting visitors to the brand new VMs.
8. Shut down VMware
Lastly, after confirming that the brand new setting is able to dealing with your workloads, you may shut down your VMware sources completely.
Different Components to Take into account for a Profitable Migration From VMware
Earlier than closing, let’s contact on just a few further factors which are necessary for executing a profitable migration.
Working VMware on a public cloud
As a substitute for migrating away from VMware fully, some organizations may want to rehost their VMware workloads on prime of public cloud infrastructure. Sure VMware merchandise, akin to Horizon, help this strategy for sure public clouds.
Since you’d nonetheless be utilizing VMware-licensed software program, any such change does not get rid of considerations about future VMware product adjustments. But it surely does a minimum of get your workloads into the general public cloud, the place they’re a step nearer towards operating on a cloud supplier’s native platform — making it simpler emigrate away from VMware completely at a later time if you want.
Take into account migration instruments
As we talked about, some VMware alternate options provide migration instruments that may assist transfer workloads from VMware platforms to a brand new setting. For instance, Hyper-V provides a VM conversion wizard, and the Amazon cloud offers a migration service that automates a few of the steps for changing an on-prem VM right into a VM hosted on EC2.
Not all VMware alternate options provide migration assistants. But when one is out there for the platform you are utilizing, it should most likely simplify your migration dramatically. Simply needless to say migration instruments could not help all forms of workloads or configurations, they usually can typically make errors — so anticipate to need to carry out some handbook conversion work, too.
Changing your VMware infrastructure
A significant problem you might run into whereas migrating away from VMware is an absence of other infrastructure to host your new VMs. In case your present servers are all busy internet hosting VMware-based workloads and you’ll’t shut these workloads off till the migration course of is full, which servers do you employ to face up a brand new setting?
One resolution is emigrate to the general public cloud, the place you needn’t present your individual servers. In any other case, you might want to accumulate new servers as a part of your migration technique.
There isn’t a easy resolution on this entrance, however this is a crucial issue to think about when planning a migration away from VMware.
Containers as a VMware various
Migrating VM-based workloads to containers sometimes requires greater than a small quantity of labor as a result of it necessitates changes to application architectures, in addition to the adoption of further instruments (like Kubernetes) to assist handle containers.
But when the workloads you might be operating on VMware may gain advantage from an overhaul, take into account migrating to containers as a substitute of shifting them to a different VM internet hosting platform. When your apps are containerized, you open up an entire new set of choices for shifting out of VMware as a result of you may migrate to a self-managed Kubernetes cluster or deploy containers within the cloud utilizing providers like Elastic Kubernetes Service or Azure Kubernetes Service.
Concerning the writer
Christopher Tozzi is a know-how analyst with subject material experience in cloud computing, software improvement, open supply software program, virtualization, containers and extra. He additionally lectures at a significant college within the Albany, New York, space. His guide, “For Enjoyable and Revenue: A Historical past of the Free and Open Supply Software program Revolution,” was revealed by MIT Press.
