VMware users weigh alternatives as licensing costs rise

Rimini Street has published research showing that many VMware users are reassessing their virtualisation strategies. The survey found that 90% of respondents are considering alternatives to VMware because of higher licensing costs.

The study covered 269 executives, managers and professionals at organisations that use VMware. It found that 66% are already using or considering third-party support, while 73% identified cost savings as a top priority in virtualisation decisions.

Licensing changes also featured prominently in the responses. Alongside higher costs, 54% said the end of support for perpetual licences was a reason to evaluate other options.

Respondents also pointed to practical obstacles as they review their infrastructure plans. Operational complexity was cited by 40%, while 38% mentioned the difficulty of managing multiple vendors. Another 37% pointed to both the security risks of a broader attack surface and the skills required from IT teams.

Mixed approaches

The findings suggest that many organisations are moving away from a single-platform model. Some 60% said they are considering a multi-hypervisor strategy, while 47% favour a hybrid setup that combines hypervisors and containers.

Nearly half of those surveyed are not planning a move to VMware Cloud Foundation. The report found that 48% currently have no plans to move any assets to that platform.

This points to a more gradual approach among VMware users as they weigh existing investments against new spending. It also suggests that many are considering combinations of on-premises systems, private cloud, public cloud and alternative hypervisors rather than committing to a single path.

Support and security emerged as another area of concern. Among those considering third-party support, the main reasons were security, cited by 60%, installation and implementation support at 57%, and service and support concerns at 54%.

The survey also examined how security leaders view protection in virtualised environments. It found that 77% of IT virtualisation security leaders would value a security offering that provides real-time threat visibility and proactive protection against vulnerabilities, rather than relying only on patching.

Keith Costello, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Rimini Street, said the results reflected demand for more control over infrastructure decisions.

"Organisations want more choice, flexibility and control over their virtualisation strategies," said Keith Costello, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Rimini Street.

"Our suite of services for VMware helps clients reduce costs, strengthen security, improve support outcomes and extend the value of their existing VMware investments, without being forced into disruptive timelines or one-size-fits-all vendor roadmaps. These survey findings reinforce the need for practical, vendor-independent strategies that put business priorities back on the client's terms," Costello said.

Broader reset

The report was produced by Unisphere Research on behalf of Rimini Street. All respondents were current users of VMware products at the time of the survey.

Joe McKendrick, Lead Analyst at Unisphere Research, said the responses showed that companies were trying to reduce dependence on a single supplier while preserving continuity for important systems.

"The shift for current VMware users is not simply about replacing one vendor with another. It reflects a broader effort by enterprises to reduce dependency on a single provider, maintain continuity for mission-critical systems and modernise at a pace that fits their own business requirements," said Joe McKendrick, Lead Analyst at Unisphere Research.

"For many organisations, that means balancing support for existing environments with new investments designed to improve resilience, security and scalability over time," McKendrick said.