Conversion to Hyper V - guest OS selection
We are considering moving to Hyper-V from ESX, but that could be up to 1 yr in the future. In the meantime, I want to create my VMs in a way that is easy to move.
In this case we are reviewing the use of Win 2016 Datacenter vs. Standard. We will definitely be using Datacenter for the Hyper-V host, but have questions about the guest OS to use.
Many of the additional features of Datacenter seem to be focused on using it as the Hyper-V server
1. If we use Standard as the guest OS will we lose access to any of the additional Datacenter features
2. Does Datacenter use significantly more resources than Standard?
3. Does Datacenter licensing apply to all guests even if they are Standard?
In this case we are reviewing the use of Win 2016 Datacenter vs. Standard. We will definitely be using Datacenter for the Hyper-V host, but have questions about the guest OS to use.
Many of the additional features of Datacenter seem to be focused on using it as the Hyper-V server
1. If we use Standard as the guest OS will we lose access to any of the additional Datacenter features
2. Does Datacenter use significantly more resources than Standard?
3. Does Datacenter licensing apply to all guests even if they are Standard?
further, on data center editions it does not matter if you are using standard or data center guest
I did not hear any issues on data center about more resource consumption as compared to standard unless you are running numerous VMs on data center
I did not hear any issues on data center about more resource consumption as compared to standard unless you are running numerous VMs on data center
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The add-on features you get with 2016 data center hyper-v as compared to standard would be unlimited hyper-v containers, shielded VMs, host guardian support and unlimited VMs
Out of above only unlimited OSE (VMs) would be attractive feature
What physical server config you have and how many VMs you planning to host on per server
approximate datacentre edition license cost is 6 times greater than standard
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/cloud-platform/windows-server-pricing#ft3
standard edition allows you to run 2 VM instances free and data center allows unlimited
Ex:
If you want to run at more than 12 VMs on single host, then data center edition is justified, again if you need cluster you need one more data center instance which will double the cost
In that case you get 8 x stanard edition licenses to build cluster and save money
Note that above is just example and you should contact Microsaoft licensing expert / TAM to get actual picture and loss / profit stats wrt licensing