Link to home
Create AccountLog in
Avatar of CoffeeBlack
CoffeeBlack

asked on

VMWare Licensing and Future Purchase

We currently are running:
Location 1
ESXi 4.1 with DAS
ESX 5 free with DAS

Location 2:
ESXi 4.1 with DAS

I want to start using vSphere foundation, and i'd like to see 5.1 go on the two 4.1 hosts.  I would then like to upgrade to 5.1 from 5 and use vmotion with the two servers at location 1.  That would also mean that I would be adding a SAN to the equation.

To complicate things, the ESX 5 free is the same server hardware as the 4.1, except it has 2 e5620's in it and the 4.1 has 1 in it.  So I will need to upgrade the 4.1 to 2 e5620's.

With all of that said, what kind of licensing (bundles for VMware) should I be looking in to, or would you recommend?  (I am keeping in mind the complications of licensing MS products in a vMotion environment...I can limit the movement to once a period [30 days or 60 days etc] or look in to purchasing a different sort of MS license if needed).
Avatar of coolsport00
coolsport00
Flag of United States of America image

Well, at minimum, for VMotion you need Essentials Plus (see comparison of features in link):
http://www.vmware.com/products/datacenter-virtualization/vsphere/compare-kits.html

Based off what other goals you have for your infrastructure, you can determine the version needed in the link I provided.

Regards,
~coolsport00
You could also upgrade your Host at Loc2 and add it to vCenter in your Loc1 infrastructure. It can just be a "standalone Host" (i.e. not in a Cluster), but at least you can centrally manage it with vCenter.

~coolsport00
Avatar of CoffeeBlack
CoffeeBlack

ASKER

vcenter foundation sorry...not vsphere foundation
ASKER CERTIFIED SOLUTION
Avatar of coolsport00
coolsport00
Flag of United States of America image

Link to home
membership
Create a free account to see this answer
Signing up is free and takes 30 seconds. No credit card required.
See answer
SOLUTION
Avatar of Andrew Hancock (VMware vExpert PRO / EE Fellow/British Beekeeper)
Andrew Hancock (VMware vExpert PRO / EE Fellow/British Beekeeper)
Flag of United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland image

Link to home
membership
Create a free account to see this answer
Signing up is free and takes 30 seconds. No credit card required.
Thx, went out and looked at the link, then came back with the Essentials Plus.  Thx guys.