Source URL: https://www.theregister.com/2024/12/02/beeks_group_vmware_opennebula_migration/
Source: Hacker News
Title: Broadcom loses another big VMware customer
Feedly Summary: Comments
AI Summary and Description: Yes
Summary: The text discusses Beeks Group, a cloud operator in the UK, migrating from VMware to the open-source OpenNebula stack, primarily driven by high licensing costs and issues with VMware’s support and innovation. This shift led to increased VM efficiency and reduced costs for Beeks and its clients, highlighting a trend of organizations reconsidering their virtualization strategies amidst Broadcom’s aggressive licensing practices.
Detailed Description:
– Beeks Group, a UK-based cloud operator, has transitioned from VMware to OpenNebula for its virtual private servers and bare metal offerings due to several key reasons:
– **Cost Concerns**: Beeks received a licensing bill from Broadcom that was ten times higher than previous amounts, prompting a reevaluation of their software choices.
– **Customer Feedback**: Clients indicated that VMware was no longer an essential element of their infrastructure.
– **Quality of Support**: Beeks’s team reported a decline in VMware’s support services and innovation, contributing to their decision to switch.
– **Management Overhead**: The perceived complexity and management overhead of VMware’s suite hindered operational efficiency, with too many resources being allocated to managing VMs rather than running them.
– The migration to OpenNebula was not straightforward:
– **Compatibility Challenges**: Beeks had to rebuild proprietary software that originally interfaced with VMware APIs to function with OpenNebula.
– **Metrics Collection Deficiencies**: Initial tools in OpenNebula lacked robust capabilities for tracking performance metrics critical for financial services, but Beeks successfully developed custom solutions to meet these needs.
– **Operational Improvements**: The switch resulted in a 200% increase in virtual machine efficiency, allowing them to run more VMs per server at lower costs.
– **Market Context**: Broadcom’s VMware has seen other clients, including prominent firms like Geico and AT&T, also reconsidering their partnerships due to high costs and perceived drops in service quality. Beeks’s favorable experience illustrates the potential cost savings other firms may realize if they reevaluate their relationship with VMware.
Key Insights:
– The decision of Beeks Group underscores the growing trend of organizations exploring open-source alternatives to proprietary platforms, particularly in environments where cost and operational efficiency are critical.
– The evolving landscape of cloud services indicates a shift towards hybrid solutions that better meet diverse client needs, especially within sensitive sectors such as financial services where performance and latency are paramount.
This case serves as a significant example for other organizations in matching their infrastructure needs with the right technology stacks, spotlighting the operational and financial benefits that can arise from such strategic transitions.