Take Control of Your Multi-Cloud Environment
73% of enterprises use two or more public clouds today. While multi-cloud accelerates digital transformation, it also introduces complexity and risk.
Simplicity Across Clouds Is Rare
91% of executives are looking to improve “consistency across [their] public cloud environments."
Applications Need to Be Modernized
68% of developers want to expand use of modern application frameworks, APIs and services.
Distributed Work Models Are Here to Stay
72% of enterprise employees are working from non-traditional environments.
Security Is a Top-Down Concern
Risk related to security, data and privacy issues remains the #1 multi-cloud challenge.
VMware Cross-Cloud™ services enable organizations to unlock the potential of multi-cloud with enterprise security and resiliency.
Multi-Cloud Spotlight
Modernize Faster Across Clouds
Modernize apps faster with a multi-cloud Kubernetes platform to help you build and run all apps consistently across clouds.
Get on a Faster Path to Prod
Build and deploy quickly and securely on any public cloud or on-premises Kubernetes cluster.
Simplify Kubernetes Operations
Build and operate a secure, multi-cloud container infrastructure at scale.
Pair with App Development Experts
Unlock value by modernizing your existing apps and building innovative new products.
App Platform
Build, run, secure, and manage all of your apps across any cloud with application modernization solutions and guidance from VMware.
11 Security Practices to Manage Container Lifecycle
Get recommended practices for DevSecOps teams that desire a more modern app methodology.
Solutions & Products
Multi-Cloud Spotlight
Power Every App on Any Cloud
Migrate to the cloud without recoding your apps. Modernize your infrastructure and operate consistently across the data center, the edge, and any cloud.
Scale Your Business & Innovate
Secure, run, and manage modern apps at scale, across clouds with consistent operations, higher speed, and reduced risks.
Accelerate Cloud Transformation
Modernize infrastructure, ops and apps to reduce cross-cloud complexity, lower costs, and improve security.
Empower a Hybrid Workforce
Enable anywhere work with broad effective security, a frictionless employee experience, and reduced cost and complexity.
Cloud & Edge Infrastructure
Run enterprise apps at scale with a consistent cloud infrastructure across public clouds, data centers and edge environments.
VMware Research: Multi-Cloud Strategies
Learn why enterprises find multi-cloud strategies critical for success.
Solutions & Products
Multi-Cloud Spotlight
Multi-Cloud & Anywhere Workspace
Empower your employees to be productive from anywhere, with secure, frictionless access to enterprise apps from any device.
Deliver an Engaging Experience
Put employees first with device choice, flexibility, and seamless, consistent, high-quality experiences.
Secure Today’s Anywhere Workspace
Ease the move to Zero Trust with situational intelligence and connected control points.
Automate the Workspace
Manage to outcomes — not tasks — with intelligent compliance, workflow and performance management.
Anywhere Workspace
Enable any employee to work from anywhere, anytime with seamless employee experiences.
Remote Work Is No Longer Optional
Shift from supporting remote work to becoming an anywhere organization.
Solutions & Products
Multi-Cloud Spotlight
Multi-Cloud Security & Networking
With connected security that delivers full visibility and frictionless operations, your apps and data are more secure with VMware, in any environment.
Secure & Connect Workloads
Operationalize consistent security and networking across apps, users, and entities with transparency built into our tools.
Protect APIs — the New Endpoints
Increase app velocity and centrally manage, secure, connect, and govern your clusters no matter where they reside.
Be Future-Ready
Get built-in threat intelligence spanning users, endpoints and networks to evolve your protection in a dynamic landscape.
Security & Networking
Deliver security and networking as a built-in distributed service across users, apps, devices, and workloads in any cloud.
Protect Your Multi-Cloud Environments
Discover the unique characteristics of malware and how to stay ahead of attacks.
Solutions & Products
Multi-Cloud Spotlight
Trusted Advisors on Multi-Cloud Journey
Partners are trusted advisors to guide customers’ journeys to multi-cloud, enabling digital innovation with enterprise control.
Work with a VMware Partner
Partners deliver outcomes with their expertise and VMware technology, creating exceptional value for our mutual customers.
Become a Partner
Together with our partners, VMware is building the new multi-cloud ecosystem positioned to become essential to our customers.
Partners
With thousands of partners worldwide, we are positioned to help customers scale their business, drive innovation and transform their customer experience.
Working Together with Partners for Customer Success
See how we work with a global partner to help companies prepare for multi-cloud.
Solutions
VMware vSphere ESX™ End of Availability
VMware has announced the end of availability (“EOA”) of VMware vSphere ESX hypervisor 4.x and VMware Management Assistant (“vMA”) versions 1 and 4, effective August 15, 2013. As of this date VMware vSphere ESX hypervisor 4.x and vMA versions 1 and 4 will no longer be available for download from VMware and customers will no longer have the ability to download or generate license keys for use with these products.
If you are currently using or plan to use VMware vSphere ESX 4.x hypervisor or VMware Management Assistant versions 1 or 4:
- Make a backup or keep an archived copy of these binaries and generate any necessary license keys in order to maintain or expand a vSphere ESX hypervisor version 4.x or vMA versions 1 and 4 environment PRIOR to August 15, 2013.
- Read customer announcement
- Read the KB article #2039567
- Read General FAQ below
This announcement does not require immediate customer action. It also does not impact any of the following:
- vSphere ESX hypervisor 4.X and vMA support lifecycle. The end of support life (“EOSL”) date remains May 21, 2014. VMware’s support lifecycle page can be found at: https://www.vmware.com/support/policies/lifecycle/enterprise-infrastructure.html
- Customer’s ability to use the binaries of vSphere ESX hypervisor 4.x or vMA versions 1 and 4 past August 15, 2013. Customers retain the ability to use licensed binaries past the EoA or EOSL dates. However, they will not be able to download binaries or generate new license keys after the EoA date or obtain technical support and subscription after the EOSL date.
- vSphere ESXi 4.X availability and support
- vMA 4.1, 5, or 5.1 availability and support for all versions
If you have additional questions not covered here, contact your VMware or VMware Reseller representative.
FAQ
What is VMware announcing?
VMware is announcing an End of Availability (EoA) date for vSphere ESX hypervisor 4.x and vMA versions 1 and 4 on August 15, 2013. After that date, VMware will no longer offer customers the ability to download or generate license keys for vSphere ESX hypervisor 4.x or the vMA (version 1 or 4).
Why is VMware no longer offering the ability to download or generate license keys for vSphere ESX 4.x hypervisor or the VMware Management Assistant 1 or 4?
The EoA of the vSphere ESX hypervisor and vMA is part of a larger product evolution, and it allows us to increase our focus on the vSphere ESXi hypervisor, which offers a small footprint and provides the most robust hypervisor architecture on the market. It was also stated by VMware over several previous releases that only one hypervisor would be available in the future. The EoA of the vSphere ESX hypervisor 4.x and vMA version 1 and 4 is the next step in this evolution. Customers are encouraged to use the vSphere ESXi hypervisor as well as leverage any service offerings currently available to make the switch in architectures if required.
Is VMware immediately ending technical support for vSphere ESX 4.x hypervisor?
No, VMware is NOT immediately ending support for the vSphere ESX hypervisor. Support for the vSphere ESX hypervisor 4.x will continue to follow the standard support End of Support (EoS) process and standard lifecycle policy as described above.
What should customers do if they need help with the migration?
Customers who require assistance in moving to vSphere ESXi may purchase VMware’s Professional Services Offering: vSphere ESX to ESXi Assessment and Migration. This service offering is ideal for large-scale migrations as it accelerates existing ESX transitions to ESXi through knowledge transfer workshops, thorough analysis of the environment plus an estimate for the effort required to migrate from vSphere ESX to ESXi. VMware partners also offer migration services.
More information on VMware professional services can be found at: http://www.vmware.com/consulting/
Will customers still be able to continue to generate license keys for 4.x?
Yes, customers will be able to generate license keys until the EoA date. After August 15, 2013, customers will not be able to download ESX 4.x or vMA versions 1 and 4 binaries or downgrade a license key to use with vSphere 4.x ESX when they make a current purchase of vSphere.
What is VMware Management Assistant (vMA) and what does it do?
The vSphere Management Assistant (vMA) allows administrators and developers to run scripts and agents to manage ESXi hosts and vCenter Server systems. vMA is a virtual machine that includes prepackaged software, a logging component, and an authentication component that supports non-interactive login.
Please visit http://www.vmware.com/support/developer/vima for further information.