vSphere

vSphere
Name	vSphere
Developer	VMware
Released	10 June 2009
Latest release version	8.0 Update 2
Latest release date	24 October 2023
Operating system	Linux-based
Genre	Hypervisor, Cloud computing
License	Proprietary

vSphere. It is a comprehensive server virtualization platform developed by VMware, a subsidiary of Broadcom. The platform enables the creation and management of virtualized data center infrastructure, allowing multiple virtual machines to run on a single physical server. It is a foundational technology for modern private cloud and hybrid cloud environments, widely adopted by enterprises globally.

Overview

The platform is central to VMware's Software-defined data center vision, abstracting compute, storage, and networking resources into a unified pool. It is designed to increase hardware utilization, simplify IT infrastructure management, and improve business continuity. Major adopters include large enterprises across sectors like finance, healthcare, and government, leveraging it to run critical applications from SAP to Microsoft Exchange Server.

Architecture

The core architectural component is the ESXi hypervisor, a bare-metal installation that partitions a physical server. This hypervisor interacts directly with server hardware like Intel Xeon or AMD EPYC processors. Management is primarily conducted through the vCenter Server, a centralized service that provides a single pane of glass for administrators. The architecture supports integration with major storage arrays from Dell EMC, NetApp, and HPE and networking from Cisco Systems.

Components

Key components include the ESXi hypervisor, which installs directly on server hardware from vendors like HPE ProLiant or Dell PowerEdge. The vCenter Server acts as the management hub, available as a Windows Server-based application or a pre-configured Linux appliance. The vSphere Client is the primary HTML5-based interface for administrators. Additional modules include vSphere Distributed Switch for networking and vSphere High Availability for resilience.

Features

Core features focus on availability, security, and efficiency. vSphere vMotion enables the live migration of running virtual machines between physical hosts with no downtime. vSphere High Availability automatically restarts VMs on other hosts in a cluster after a hardware failure. Security is enhanced through features like vSphere Trust Authority and integration with VMware NSX. The platform also supports advanced capabilities like vSphere Distributed Resource Scheduler for load balancing.

Editions and Licensing

VMware offers several editions, including vSphere Standard and vSphere Enterprise Plus, with features scaled accordingly. Licensing is typically per physical CPU socket, with the vSphere Foundation and vCloud Suite bundles available. The introduction of the VMware by Broadcom portfolio has led to revised packaging, such as the vSphere Foundation kit. Specialized editions exist for remote offices and VMware Horizon VDI deployments.

History

The platform was first launched in 2009, unifying VMware Infrastructure 3 with the ESX hypervisor. Major milestones include the 2010 release of vSphere 4.1 and the 2011 introduction of the vSphere Storage Appliance. A significant architectural shift occurred with vSphere 5.0, which retired the classic ESX in favor of the slimmer ESXi. Subsequent releases added integration with VMware Cloud Foundation and native Kubernetes support via vSphere with Tanzu.

Category:VMware software Category:Cloud computing Category:Virtualization software